Fontana Unified School District provided the Class of 2023 with an emotional sendoff during a series of commencement ceremonies, held May 23 at the Ontario Convention Center and May 24-25 at the Toyota Arena, that featured passionate speeches, joyful cheers, proud renditions of alma maters, colorful streamer cannons and loud applause from loved ones. The Class of 2023 includes high-performing students who will further their education at institutions across the country – including Columbia University, Boston College, UC Berkeley, UCLA and Stanford University – as well as graduates enlisting in the armed forces and beginning their careers with support from the District’s robust career technical education training. This year’s graduating class also featured nearly 550 State Seal of Biliteracy recipients.
Summit High School Class of 2023 graduate Sandy Thomas’ excellence in the classroom and on the court has earned him recognition from the Jordan Brand Wings Scholars Program, which awarded him a full-ride scholarship to further his education at his college of choice. Thomas – a committed student athlete who has competed at the varsity level in both basketball and swim – was awarded the scholarship in front of family, friends, coaches and school staff during a ceremony earlier this spring. Though he was also awarded a full-ride scholarship to UC Santa Cruz, Thomas has decided to attend Cal Baptist University, supported by the Jordan Brand Wings scholarship.
Fontana Unified Grad Earns Private Pilot’s License in CTE Pathway
A.B. Miller High School Class of 2023 graduate Nathan Aguilar loves nothing more than soaring above the clouds. As a member of the school’s aviation career technical education pathway, Nathan quickly developed his flying skills, distinguishing himself as the first A.B. Miller student to earn his private pilot’s license. Aguilar’s pilot’s license allows him to fly any aircraft for which he is appropriately rated and fly with friends, fly at night, take a business trip or do sight-seeing. A.B. Miller’s two-year aviation program serves as a flight training school and includes a pilot training class, an airline mechanic class and a flight simulator lab.
Nine Henry J. Kaiser High School Class of 2023 graduates will attend UC Berkeley in the fall, an achievement supported by their involvement in the school's numerous college readiness programs and resources. Daisy Alatorre-Cervantes plans to double major in business administration and management, technology, and entrepreneurship, with a minor in legal studies; Melvin Damper will major in media studies with a tentative career path in law; David Valenzuela will major in aerospace engineering; Frida Monreal will pursue public health; Fernando Martinez will study applied mathematics and computer science; Brianna Valadez will major in molecular and cellular biology to become a pediatric surgeon; Adrian Garcia will pursue political science with a focus on public policy; Jasmine Landeros will study music in pursuit of her goal of becoming a concert violinist; and Emily Lara will major in literature with the hopes of becoming a university professor. All nine students are part of Kaisers Advanced Placement program, and three are also part of the college-prep AVID program.
The Fontana Unified School District and the City of Fontana will host a second Community Roundtable, featuring small breakout groups, to continue meaningful discussion regarding concerns of diversity, equity and inclusion within the District and city and identify actionable solutions. The second roundtable will be held at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, May 31 at the Jessie Turner Health and Fitness Community Center, 15556 Summit Ave., Fontana.
A trio of Fontana High School scholars will pursue their goals of higher education at elite universities across the United States after earning prestigious scholarships that will allow them the freedom to work toward their dream jobs. Jasmin Hurtado-Mendez will attend UC Berkeley after being named a 2023 UC Regents’ and Chancellors’ Scholar; Josue Arias-Ramirez will attend Boston College after being named a Questbridge National College Match scholar; and David Munoz-Padilla will attend Columbia University in New York after earning a Big Brothers Big Sisters scholarship. Hurtado-Mendez was home alone, staring in disbelief at her computer, when she discovered that she had been accepted to UC Berkeley. After jumping for joy in celebration, she read a little further down the message and realized the news was even more momentous – she had also been named a UC Regents’ and Chancellors’ scholarship recipient.
Six Fontana Unified School District employees have gone above and beyond in their leadership, instruction, and commitment to English and multilingual learners, earning them the Multilingual Recognition Award from the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools. The Multilingual Recognition Award was established in 1987 as a way to recognize the outstanding contributors that enrich the educational experience and academic achievement of linguistically diverse students. Awardees from various districts across San Bernardino County were honored at the 36th Annual Multilingual Recognition Celebration on April 28.
In front of a packed house of family and friends cheering on their favorite hometown celebrities, Fontana Unified rolled out the red carpet and trained the spotlight on its emerging K-12 student storytellers during the inaugural Fontana Film Festival, held May 5 at Steelworkers Auditorium. Curated from more than 130 student videos submitted from across the District, the Film Festival showcased the diverse talent and technical skills acquired in Fontana Unified’s TV and video production programs. Students from Summit, Jurupa Hills and A.B. Miller high schools, along with students from Southridge Tech Middle School and Almond Elementary School, competed for statuettes that resembled tiny Oscars.
Fontana Unified at-promise students looking to change the trajectory of their lives and achieve at higher levels celebrated the completion of a 10-week Success Club intervention program – featuring support from life coaches, motivational speakers and spoken word poets to help students get back on track for graduation – during a ceremony held May 10 at Citrus High School. Rescue a Generation (RAG) is a San Bernardino-based nonprofit designed to help underserved students overcome obstacles and empower themselves to establish high expectations and transform their lives. RAG Success Clubs were initiated at Sequoia, Almeria, Truman and Southridge Tech middle schools, and A.B. Miller, Citrus and Eric Birch high schools, with approximately 200 students participating.
Fontana High School’s Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) students are qualified to enter the workforce and gain experience – all while pursuing degrees and career opportunities in the medical field – after achieving a 92 percent pass rate on the state board exam during the 2022-23 school year. This is the second year in a row FOHI CNA students’ exam pass rate has exceeded 90 percent. The program – offered through the Patient Care career technical education (CTE) pathway at FOHI – provides hands-on training at nursing facilities, offers the opportunity to earn credit at Chaffey College, and prepares students to earn state certification.
