El Monte Union High School District and the El Monte Promise Foundation are honoring 1,800 Class of 2020 graduates with 400 individualized banners displayed along major corridors and streets across the three cities that the District’s six high schools call home. The banners – which recognize graduates from Arroyo, El Monte, Fernando R. Ledesma, Mountain View, Rosemead and South El Monte high schools – each include up to four student photos, names and plans for college, trade school or military. The Class of 2020 donation campaign was created in response to the COVID-19 pandemic that halted many graduation ceremonies across the nation. Banners are placed on streetlights within District boundaries and near each high school.
El Monte Union Student Receives Nomination for Theater Competition
Arroyo High School student Terralyn Contresceri-Ryan pursues her passion in musical theater by actively searching for online opportunities while on distance learning. Just recently, Contresceri-Ryan was accepted as a nominee for Broadway’s Next on Stage, a high school musical theater competition. In Contresceri-Ryan’s video submission she performed “Sonya Alone” from the musical “Natashe, Pierra and the Great Comet of 1812.” Though she did not qualify for Top 30, Contresceri-Ryan’s dedication is a great example of the passion and drive El Monte Union students have.
El Monte Union High Schools Host Virtual Back to School Nights
El Monte Union high schools held virtual back to school nights, inviting students and parents to learn more about their campuses, teachers and distance learning. To enhance the virtual experience, El Monte High School and Mountain View High School created YouTube presentations with welcome messages from principals, teachers and the Associate Student Body. To view El Monte High School’s Back to School video, click HERE. For Mountain View High School’s video, click HERE.
El Monte Union High School District will continue its distance learning program for the remainder of the fall 2020 semester, but is exploring the possibility of developing learning groups (pods) on campus for students most in need, including those in special education programs and English learners. Under the learning pod program – which could begin as early as October – El Monte Union plans to establish small cohorts of no more than 12 students with two supervising adults per group. The District is also working on providing day care and academic support via its After School and Safety Program (ASES) program, LEARN.
El Monte High School art teacher Patrice Cooley has a flair for connecting with her students, encouraging beginning and experienced artists alike to bring a unique voice and passion to their art. For her exceptional ability to empower students, set standards for quality education and achieve the highest level of professionalism in art education, Cooley has been recognized as the California Art Education Association (CAEA) 2020 Outstanding Visual Art Educator of the Year. She will be honored at CAEA’s virtual state conference in November and will represent California at the 2021 National Art Education Association convention.
Fernando R. Ledesma High School Opportunity teacher Patty Autran’s love for teaching began as a third-grade student when she – the only Spanish-speaking student in class – was asked by her teacher to help an English learner who had just joined the class. Autran, however, put her teaching dreams on hold after high school to serve in the United States Air Force, an experience that has greatly shaped her teaching philosophy. There, she learned the importance of structure and discipline, how strength comes through unity, and to never leave anyone behind – values that Autran brings to her classroom every day.
Construction of a new multipurpose building and gymnasium at Fernando R. Ledesma High School is moving forward as El Monte Union plans a host of new Measure HS-funded projects, including a new Community Education Center and synthetic track and fields. Approved by voters in November 2018, Measure HS authorized $190 million in facilities bonds that are funding enhancements of learning facilities at each high school. The first series of bonds was sold in June 2019 for $56.7 million. It is anticipated that the next series will be sold in 2021 or 2022.
El Monte Union Measure HS Facilities Bond Fuels New Construction
Construction of a new multipurpose building and gymnasium at Fernando R. Ledesma High School is moving forward as El Monte Union plans a host of new Measure HS-funded projects, including a new Community Education Center and synthetic track and field. Approved by voters in November 2018, Measure HS authorized $190 million in facilities bonds that are funding enhancements of learning facilities at each high school. The District has been able to move swiftly to push certain projects forward, including the installation of HVAC units, while students are off campus.
Rosemead High School junior Xitlalic Palacios was such a talkative child growing up that her parents nicknamed her “perquito,” the Spanish word for parrot. Spurred on by her parent’s encouragement, Palacios has emerged as a strong public speaker, campus leader and engaged students. Palacios, a first-generation college-goer, will use her leadership qualities to advocate for El Monte Union students after being sworn in as Student Trustee by the District Board of Trustees during a virtual board meeting on Aug. 5. Palacios is the first junior to ever serve on the Board.
Palacios, a first-generation college-goer, will use her leadership qualities to advocate for El Monte Union students after being sworn in as Student Trustee by the District Board of Trustees during a virtual board meeting on Aug. 5. Palacios is the first junior to ever serve on the Board.
El Monte Union High School District has promoted four administrators, who have nearly 90 years of combined experience in the District, to new positions for the 2020-21 school year. Robin Torres has spent the last seven years as principal of El Monte High School, where she began her education career at El Monte Union in 1985 as a physical education and life science teacher. A credentialed Adapted Physical Education Specialist, Torres coached multiple sports at El Monte High before stepping into administrative posts at Mountain View, Rosemead and El Monte-Rosemead Adult schools. She succeeds Felipe Ibarra, who retired in June.
