Mountain View High School’s Teacher Preparation Academy (TPA) has returned for the spring semester, during which students are tutoring and providing one-on-one instruction to transitional kindergarten through sixth-grade students while focusing on the development of their teaching skills. Co-Directors Amy Minick and Mary Boutté lead the group of junior and senior students in TPA –– a Golden Bell Award-winning program that provides aspiring educators a pathway toward pursuing a teaching career –– as they offer weekly tutoring sessions at Maxson Elementary School and Payne Elementary School in the nearby Mountain View School District.
El Monte High School freshman Elizabeth Gonzalez Canales was recognized with a full scholarship to the prestigious Ryman Arts Program, which will enable her to receive supplementary art instruction, enrichment, and support during the spring 2022 semester. Canales grew up watching her uncle create works of art, which ignited her passion and talent for the arts at an early age. In fifth grade, she began teaching herself how to draw, using the environment around her as inspiration.
The El Monte Union High School District Board of Trustees adopted a resolution to recognize Lunar New Year across campuses during a Feb. 2 Board meeting, an initiative that honors the diversity of the EMUHSD community and celebrates the history and traditions of Asian communities around the world. El Monte Union students, faculty and staff celebrated the 2022 Lunar New Year, known as Year of the Tiger, with special festivities held at El Monte High School and Rosemead High School that were organized by Associated Student Body (ASB) members.
El Monte Union Selects Trustee Area Map, Finalizes Election Sequence
The El Monte Union High School District Board of Trustees adopted a final trustee map – NDC Green 3 – and sequence of elections during a public hearing on Feb. 2, as it prepares to transition from an at-large to by-trustee area election process beginning in November 2022. The District will present the map to the L.A. County Committee on School District Organization for consideration in the coming months. More information on the map and sequence of elections is available here.
South El Monte High School celebrated former and current Associated Student Body (ASB) members at their ASB Induction Ceremony in December, which emphasized their hard work and dedication during distance learning in 2020-21 and their successful return to campus in 2021-22. Despite spending the majority of their 2021 term online, student leaders came together and planned opportunities for students to stay engaged and have fun while following COVID-19 health and safety protocols.
El Monte Union High School District has selected Kirk McGinnis as the District’s new Director of Curriculum and Instruction. A key focus for McGinnis will be to provide leadership and expertise in developing career technical education (CTE) pathways within the District. With a history of building and maintaining positive school environments, McGinnis brings more than 20 years of experience in education to the role, as well as deep knowledge in how to build and expand programs such as dual enrollment for college credit, and CTE pathways that provide training in fields such as automotive technology, engineering, video production and sports medicine.
El Monte Union High School District released an eighth draft trustee area map for public review ahead of its next Board of Trustees meeting and final public hearing on Wednesday, Feb. 2. The maps were created to support the District’s transition from at-large to by-trustee area elections. The newly released map – NDC Green 3 – was developed by professional demographers, National Demographics Corporation (NDC), based on comments received from the Board during the Jan. 5 public hearing. This map, includes a small revision to ensure the area bordered by Santa Anita Ave. on the west, Bryant Rd. on the north, Tyler Ave. on the east, and Valley Blvd. on the south is united in the proposed Trustee Area 3.
Rosemead High School senior Madison Loterina has received a full-ride Posse Foundation Scholarship to attend Bucknell University, where she will continue to explore her passion for learning and pursue her dream of becoming a history teacher. Madison, a first-generation college student with a 4.15 GPA, discovered her passion for helping others to learn at an early age while volunteering with younger students at her elementary school. Madison credits her Advanced Placement (AP) history teachers at EMUHSD for nurturing her love of the subject and inspiring her career goals.
The El Monte Union High School District Board of Trustees will move forward three draft trustee area maps for further consideration as the District transitions from at-large elections to trustee-area elections. The Board plans to select a final map for adoption at its meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 2. Following comments during the Jan. 5 public hearing, as well as feedback taken during several community open houses and previous public hearings, the Board narrowed the number of draft maps for consideration following consensus to eliminate the NDC Yellow, NDC Green and NDC Green 2 maps and requested changes to NDC Green map to create a new NDC Green 3 Map. The Board of Trustees will adopt a final map from the following three drafts: NDC Orange Map, NDC Yellow 2 Map, and a new NDC Green 3 which is being developed by professional demographers based on comments received from the Board during the recent public hearing.
Arroyo High School held an open house on Dec. 17 to showcase their one-acre on-campus garden, also known as the ‘Farm Lab,’ where students grow and harvest their own produce, learn about ecology and farming science and how to conserve water to preserve the ecosystem. The urban garden provides a flourishing and sustainable food source for hungry families with a variety of crops, including fruits such as lemon, orange and papaya, medicinal and culinary herbs, root vegetables like carrots, radishes and sweet potatoes, lemon grass, sugar cane and more. While at the open house, guests had the opportunity to enjoy garden-grown basil lemonade, win raffle prizes and make party baskets full of harvested produce.
