La Serna High School Assistant Principal Griselda Castro will take the helm as the school’s newest principal, bringing 25 years of education experience to the role. Castro will replace longtime La Serna Principal Ann Fitzgerald, who has been appointed assistant superintendent of personnel services effective July 1, 2020.
Pioneer High School’s Summer Math Academy, in partnership with East Los Angeles College’s Escalante Program, will celebrate its 30-year anniversary as a six-week distance learning program, continuing a tradition that allows students to complete an entire schoolyear’s worth of advanced math curriculum in one summer session and earn high school credits if they score a “B” grade or better. The program will run June 15 to July 28, with classes held from 8 a.m. to noon Monday through Friday. Classes will be conducted via Zoom videoconferencing. Online registration is open until May 20.
Starting Monday, May 18, Whittier Union’s five comprehensive high schools will host Drive-Thru Graduation Delivery events for its Class of 2020. Seniors will arrive to their schools at designated times to receive special yard signs, caps and gowns, graduation products, medals and other items as part of the delivery. Pioneer High School will provide yard signs from 8 a.m. to noon May 18 and hold its official distribution event on June 1; Whittier High will hold its event from 12 to 4 p.m. May 18; La Serna High School will hold its event from noon to 5 p.m. May 19; California High School will hold its event from 1 to 6 p.m. May 20; and Santa Fe High School will hold its event from noon to 4 p.m. May 21.
Santa Fe High School senior Angel Moreno Gallegos has traveled a long road to become the first member of his family to graduate from an American high school and attend a four-year university. Born in the United States but raised in Mexico, Moreno Gallegos came to Santa Fe as a freshman with almost no English language skills. Four years later, he will graduate as a student leader with a 4.12 GPA, with plans to attend Cal Poly Pomona and study chemical engineering. For his ability to rise to numerous challenges and stay focused on his goal of academic achievement, Moreno Gallegos was honored with an Award of Merit by the Whittier Union Board of Trustees during its virtual board meeting on May 12.
As Whittier Union schools prepare students to take their Advanced Placement exams for the first time ever from home and online – a challenging feat for any student – Pioneer High School teachers and staff showed their support by holding a drive-thru pep rally on May 6. While observing social distancing and wearing protective masks, Pioneer administrators and AP teachers banded together to provide 150 students who are poised to take their AP exams, which begin Monday and continue through May 22, with “survival kits” containing supplies and snacks.
Whittier Union seniors donned college apparel, held school pennants and posed with colorful balloons as they reminisced about their high school experiences and celebrated their next steps – into college, military or careers – during virtual College Signing Day activities on May 1. College Signing Day recognizes high school seniors’ commitment to continuing their education at four-year universities, community colleges, the military or vocational schools. Although many universities have extended decision day until June 1, many students have already made their choices.
Whittier Union’s five comprehensive high schools have been listed among the top-performing public high schools in the state and the nation, according to the 2020 Best High Schools rankings by U.S. News and World Report. California, La Serna, Pioneer, Santa Fe and Whittier high schools ranked in the top 25% or higher of high schools in the nation, in addition to earning high rankings among approximately 2,600 high schools in the state.
Whittier High School engineering teacher Steve Swanson is bringing a little comfort to the medical workers at PIH Health Whittier as they support the community during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using 3D printers, Swanson, who is in his fifth year teaching at Whittier High, created over 300 ear guards for surgical masks and donated them to the hospital’s health care professionals this month.
Since launching its Distance Learning program, Whittier Union has engaged 95% of students through Google Classroom, where 98% of teachers are posting assignments and projects. During the transition from in-classroom instruction to remote learning, the District has provided teachers and staff continued professional development to carry out classes from home, adapt the curriculum and become better-versed with technology. To ensure students have the technological access to learn from home, the District has distributed over 1,325 Chromebooks and has secured 300 hotspots to distribute to families.
Santa Fe High School senior Roman Vargas entered middle school without any expectation of ever attending college, but six years of Achievement Via Individual Determination (AVID) classes and rigorous academic opportunities taught him to set goals, collaborate with classmates and work toward achieving post-secondary success. Vargas – a first-generation college student with a 4.2 GPA – is on his way toward making his dreams happen after winning a full-tuition Posse Foundation scholarship to attend Hobart and William Smith Colleges, a private liberal arts college in Geneva, New York, where he will major in history.