Whittier Union Student Surprised with $40,000 Edison Scholarship
Pioneer High School senior Ana Cortez was surprised with a $40,000 Edison scholarship while in her AP Chemistry class on March 20, surrounded by friends, classmates and teachers. Cortez is one of 30 Southern California high school students to be named a 2019 Edison Scholar. Cortez plans to major in bio-engineering to prepare for a career creating technological advancements for people with disabilities, including artificial prosthetics at an affordable price.
Santa Fe High School will host a two-day “Every 15 Minutes” program with a trio of techniques to bring
home the dangers of drinking and driving: a graphic staging of a deadly drunk-driving crash, students
randomly pulled from classes to represent lives lost to drunk driving and a mock funeral service. The
drunk-driving scenario involves firefighters, police and a coroner, as well as students pre-selected from
the school – including one who “dies” and another who is arrested for driving under the influence and
booked into jail. The crash scene will take place at 11:10 a.m. Wednesday, April 3 at Santa Fe High School, 10400 S. Orr & Day Road, Santa Fe Springs. A mock funeral will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday, April 4.
Two Whittier Union high schools have earned the first College Board AP Computer Science Female Diversity Award for achieving high female representation in their AP Computer Science Principles courses. La Serna and Whittier high schools were recognized for either reaching 50 percent or higher female representation in the AP course or having a percentage of the female computer science examinees meeting or exceeding that of the school’s female population. Out of more than 18,000 secondary schools worldwide that offer AP courses, the schools are among 685 to accomplish this feat.
The Whittier Union High School District is inviting eighth-graders and their parents to attend Future Frosh Night at 6 p.m. Thursday, March 21. Teachers, students and administrators at each of the District’s five comprehensive high schools will provide valuable information about the classes and programs available to all students.
Nearly 100 of Whittier Union High School District’s brightest science students put their knowledge to the test on March 1, when they constructed Rube Goldberg machines, built lamp-powered water heaters, designed and built skeeball catapults and competed in a science quiz bowl during the second annual WUHSD Science Cup. Approximately 20 science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) students from each comprehensive high school competed at the Sierra Education Center gym, with Santa Fe High School taking home the top prize: The Science Cup.
La Serna High School senior Olivia Genao is a budding artist whose lifelong passion for art, science and math has fueled a remarkable educational journey that has brought her District-wide recognition for gaining early admission to Yale University. Genao, La Serna’s 2019 Student of the Year, was granted early admission to the elite Ivy League in December. She is one of 794 applicants from around the world selected to join the Class of 2023 through the Early Action program. Genao, who plans to major in neuroscience, was offered a full tuition scholarship.
Students, teachers and staff at three Whittier Union high schools were treated to thousands of free Chick-fil-A sandwiches as part of Kindness Week, an annual weeklong celebration aimed at uniting schools, communities and homes through random acts of kindness. To demonstrate kindness to their classmates, the Associated Student Body (ASB) organizations at Whittier, California and La Serna high schools signed up to participate in an outreach program hosted by the Chick-fil-A in the Whittwood Town Center.
The Whittier Union High School District Board of Trustees at its Feb. 19 meeting adopted a final trustee area voting map – NDC Green – and sequence of elections as it prepares to transition from at-large elections to by-trustee area elections beginning in November 2020. The Board made its decision following hundreds of comments taken during several community open houses, feedback submitted on the District Formation website and input provided during seven public hearings. The map will be presented to the Los Angeles County Committee on School District Organization for final approval in the coming months.
The Whittier Union High School District community is remembering the life of inspirational educator, mentor and former Santa Fe High School athletic coach Jack Mahlstede, who died Jan. 24 after battling pancreatic cancer. He was 80. Mahlstede, who dedicated more than 42 years of his career to Whittier Union, began as a varsity assistant football coach for Santa Fe High School in 1969 and became head varsity football coach in 1970. He served as Santa Fe’s head varsity coach for football, track and cross country until 2011, when he retired. In 2014, the District dedicated Santa Fe High School’s football field to Mahlstede.
La Serna High School teacher and 2012 California State Teacher of the Year Ken LaVigne has been recognized for his compassion and integrity, touching the hearts of hundreds of students, teachers and administrators he has worked with over his 30 years as a teacher and football coach. LaVigne, who \ created the school's revered Organized Academic Support in School (OASIS) program, has worked to help at-risk students regain their joy for learning and set them on the path toward graduation. He has documented his experiences in an inspirational new book, "Coach the Soul," telling heartwarming and occasionally heartbreaking stories of his students' struggles and triumphs.
