Bethany Gibson teaches IB Language & Literature and AP Language & Composition at San Jacinto High School, where she is also Co-English Department Chair and IB Coordinator.  When she received notice that she was a grant recipient, she said, “I’m so thrilled to have this grant opportunity! I am in the process of creating supply boxes for our interactive notebooks we use in all my classes. Boxes will be available for each table group to use so supplies are only ever an arm’s reach away! I’m also considering investing in ambient lighting for my classroom. The overhead lights are bright and clear but ambient lighting helps soothe the mind and provides a more inviting atmosphere for learning.”

Valle Vista Elementary School Special Education teacher Kelly Hileman expressed her thanks to CalRTA for providing these opportunities to receive funds for their classrooms.  She said, “Thank you so much for holding such events for teachers! This check means so much to me! I plan on buying art and sensory items with the money. I teach TK-2 Special Education, and the Arts and sensory opportunities are so critical for this group of students. Thank you from room 16, Mrs. Hileman’s Class!”

Science teacher Melissa Ferguson teaches 6th and 7th grade Mild Moderate SDC/RSP (Special Day Class and Resource Specialist Program) at Kathryn Newport Middle School in Menifee.  As with the other grant recipients, Melissa is focusing on the necessities.  “Thank you!” Melissa responded when notified she was a winner.  “This $100 grant will go to starting my ‘I’m in need of…’ cabinet. Many of my students lack supplies or even basic necessities, and I want to take those factors that often become barriers to learning out of their picture.” 

Lisa Cameron teaches 7^th grade Special Education at Menifee Valley Middle School Menifee.  Given the limited budgets established by many districts, teachers are always in need of additional supplies to bolster instruction and increase student participation and engagement.  Lisa says that she plans to use her $100 grant to purchase “balance boards for students to stand and work at tall desks.”

The California Retired Teachers Association’s mission is to protect retirement security and other retirement benefits for teachers and to support public education.  Teacher grants are just one way in which retired teachers can support and advocate for current California educators.  CalRTA Division 33 awards 16 $100 Teacher Grants each year and offers 11 $1000 scholarships annually to graduating seniors from local high schools. For more information about CalRTA, go to calrta.org or div33.calrta.org.

The post Calrta Teacher Grant Recipients Thankful For Extra Funds appeared first on The Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle.

The Soboba Indian Reservation school also invited students from Sherman Indian High School in Riverside to interact with vendors throughout the afternoon. Students were asked to create a schedule based on their interests, spending 15 minutes at each table, throughout six rotations.

Noli chooses to hold this annual event early in the school year so students have exposure to different colleges prior to open application month in October.

All Noli students, in grades 6 through 12, have a 20-minute Advisory Class prior to their fourth period classes where they discuss their current grades and challenges as well as their future goals. Sonia Modesto, who teaches Special Education and serves as one of the grade level Advisory teachers, said the annual fair plays a huge part in the students’ guidance process as they explore all options and opportunities.

“I think it is so amazing and inspiring that these vendors take the time out of their day to share it with our students,” said Modesto, who plays a key role in organizing the event. “During Advisory, we do encourage our students to reflect and discuss the day, what they learned, what they are interested in, what they enjoyed and what they may not have cared for. It is both engaging and interesting to get their feedback. It also helps us to plan for the next year.”

Students sat in the gym’s bleachers to be welcomed by Alex “Panda” Armendariz, Admissions and Outreach Specialized Recruiter for California State University San Bernardino. “This event gives you the opportunity to learn about what’s available. Take advantage of having the chance to talk to those who are making time to be here for you today,” he said.

Four other colleges were represented, sharing what each campus offers in terms of Native American studies and student life. Mt. San Jacinto College is a local community college that shared information about its adult education courses and non-credit programs for career development as well as its Native American Student Success/Support Services. Representatives from The University of Redlands and California State Universities located in Fullerton and San Marcos answered many questions posed by the students and had lots of handouts for them.

To further help students make the right decision, Cal State Fullerton is offering a Fall Webinar Series during its open enrollment period of Oct. 1 through Dec. 2 and a free campus tour on Oct. 26. Seniors were encouraged to visit calstate.edu/apply or Fullerton.edu to learn more.

The electricians’ union offered demonstrations about the type of jobs available in this field and AUMT Institute shared the career of phlebotomy. Temeeku Midwifery and the California Nurses Educational Institute shared details about medical field careers and several branches of the military explained recruitment to the students.

Coast Guard recruiter Caleb Svitenko served in the U.S. Navy for six years prior to joining the Coast Guard six years ago. He said those who enlist have often already done research and come in prepared to serve in this very specific branch.

Eastern Municipal Water District has a plethora of career paths for students to consider as does GRID Alternatives who shared the various jobs available in the rapidly growing solar industry.

Entrepreneur and Realtor David Borja Castaneda was able to explain different aspects of the real estate business to students who asked many different questions. He shared that he was working a full-time job with an automotive company and was not making the income he wanted so he switched careers. He said he enjoys being self-employed but that it isn’t easy. He added that it’s important to be a “people person” and to have compassion and great listening skills to be successful. Chloe Trosper, a junior at Sherman Indian High School, is interested in being a designer so Castaneda explained what stagers do and how they have a big impact on the sale of a house. “Real estate and designing go hand in hand,” he told Chloe.

Anthony Luna Trujillo always has one of the most popular presentations with his Stylish Culture business. He discussed how he started his graphic design business with the support of his family while he was a senior at Noli in 2015. He is a self-taught artist and graphic designer who comes up with creative designs that he recreates on items such as decorative boards, T-shirts, hats, stickers and his new line of coloring books. Although he has been a firefighter for the past seven years, he has always found time to keep up with his many orders on his days off. “I started Stylish Culture with my family when my parents invested in me. It started with an image and ended with a legacy,” said Trujillo, who now has a son, Tukut Trujillo, born June 29. “I love doing this.” He is active on Instagram @stylishculture15.

Funeral Arranger Robert Young with Inland Memorial Funeral Care in Hemet explained the different jobs that exist in that business. With a strong tie to the Native American culture, the company is well-known among local students.

Riverside County Sheriff’s Department’s Tyler Topping brought purebred bloodhound Leia to the event, and she was an instant hit with students and staff alike. He explained that his K-9 partner is trained to search for missing people – not drugs, guns or bombs – and that she is extremely good at what she does. Leia was super friendly, eliciting hugs and tummy rubs from the crowd. Topping explained that when it’s time to trail, he puts on her vest and she completely changes, transforming into working mode.

California Indian Manpower Consortium provides employment and training services and other related services to Indian and Native American people. Hemet’s Coastline Beauty College offers certification in cosmetology and manicuring to anyone 18 years or older that has a high school diploma. Instructor Mina Price is also a former student and Jessica Crane from admissions said the school has hired quite a few students to work there. They also shared with students that the college offers discounted prices for salon services and specials for prom and homecoming events.

Noli science teachers Jay Dagostino and Sabrina Sobel Smith discussed all the different types of jobs that are available in the field of marine biology as both had previous careers at Sea World. Smith shared scuba diving equipment and how it works and Dagostino had many sea life samples and photos. He said there are many internships and entry level jobs at aquariums and other places where workers can learn the business from the ground up.

Branch Bankers Rosa Guardian and Tracie Bannister are with PNC Bank, the sixth largest bank in the nation but new to Hemet. Their message to students was mostly about the importance of financial literacy and the fact that PNC offers internships for college students to learn more about the banking business. “It may not seem important to them now but having a good relationship with your bank is important,” Bannister said. Guardian said banking offers all kinds of positions from the business side to the customer service side and shared that PNC is really big on expanding from within. Bannister agreed, stating that career development is huge and that the bank offers lots of incentives, sharing its motto of “employee driven, management guided.”

Members of the Soboba Casino Resort shared details about what is involved with marketing and the different skill sets they seek. Several departments from the Soboba Indian Health Clinic were available to share what it takes to work in the areas of dental, optical, pharmacy and wellness/behavioral health.

 Cecilia Tsai is an optometry resident and had lots of equipment available for students to explore the world of optometry. She answered questions about eye function and diseases and what it takes to get into the field.

Dental Assistant Liz Martinez explained that being a hygienist offers lots of flexibility and freedom because they can work as often as they want and at different dental offices. “It’s been very rewarding for me; I love it and I enjoy my patients,” said Martinez, whose table offered smile kits that consisted of toothpaste, a toothbrush, floss and lip balm.

Students left with lots of other freebies from the vendors, such as candy, water bottles, pens, T-shirts, notepads, stickers and more.

“I would have to say that the main highlight for me at this event each year is to see our students really engage,” Modesto said. “They become so inquisitive and interested in what the representatives of the colleges and careers that attend have to share.”

The post Noli Indian School students learn about careers and colleges appeared first on The Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle.

Riverside’s elementary, middle and high school levels partnered with local organizations or expressed appreciation to local businesses during its May 24 Community Kindness Day, said district Marketing and Communications Director Nick Carrabine. This year marked a change from previous Community Kindness Days, which were held during summer break.

One group of high school students visited United Way of Lake County. Their volunteer activities included sorting items for the organization’s food pantry.

“It’s really important for us to have volunteers that are able to help us keep it organized and sort it, so certainly the students being here to do that is a huge help to us, and then they’re also going to assist with helping us do a little bit of spring cleaning within the building,” said UWLC President Dione DeMitro.

The students were later scheduled to help sort clothing items donated for the local Back to School Bash, DeMitro added.

Junior Megan Sullivan described the volunteer work as a “great way to end the year by helping the community.”

Carrabine said that high school students also volunteered at the Lake County History Center, The Salvation Army and elsewhere in the district.

Riverside sophomore Aiden Kanaga volunteered at the district’s Melridge Elementary School. He said that he was helping with the school’s field day activities.

“It’s been really good,” Kanaga said. “I had a lot of fun helping set up field day, and it feels good to help give back to the community.”

Melridge students also had an opportunity to demonstrate community kindness. Principal Gretchen Wakim said that the school worked over recent weeks to collect more than 300 cereal boxes for End 68 Hours of Hunger. The school celebrated by arranging the boxes in a domino-like pattern and watching them fall in the school gym.

Wakim said that End 68 Hours of Hunger provides at least 50 food bags to Melridge students each week. The organization depends on donations, so the school collects money for it.

The End 68 Hours of Hunger website states that it provides weekend meals to address student hunger between their Friday school lunch and Monday school breakfast.

Elsewhere in the district, Carrabine said that other elementary schools partnered with the Jared Box Project to make boxes for hospitalized children, Project Linus to provide blankets for children and the Lake County Council on Aging to provide food for the Pet Meals on Wheels program and cards for seniors.

He added that elementary school latchkey students made cards for nursing home residents, while a number of students from LaMuth Middle School visited local businesses and thanked them for supporting the district.

“Many of these schools already have relationships with the local nonprofits that were chosen or some were chosen based off the suggestion of a school building staff member that has a personal connection to the organization,” Carrabine said in an email.

This year’s Community Kindness Day was moved to May to allow students to participate, he added. In previous years, around 40 to 50 district staff members spent a day in the summer traveling to express appreciation to the community.

He said that the new Community Kindness Day ties into the district strategic plan’s focus on advocacy, partnerships and engagement.

“We hope our students and staff can help these organizations help those in need within our community,” Carrabine said. “We are always looking for ways to give back to the community and anytime we can get our students involved, the better.”

“We hope the students realize the impact that they are making on their community and the importance of giving back,” he added later. “We hope they know that their work today will leave a smile on someone’s face and help someone in a time of need.”

The post Riverside students participate in revised Community Kindness Day appeared first on The Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle.

MENIFEE, CA — Harvest Hill STEAM Academy teacher Misty McBee was named the 2025 Riverside County Teacher of the Year, Menifee Union School District announced Friday.

According to the district, the animatronics teacher is the first from that district to receive the honor and the first animatronics teacher to be awarded that distinction.

“This prestigious recognition marks a historic milestone,” Dr. Edwin Gomez, Riverside County Superintendent of Schools, said. He visited McBee’s classroom to personally deliver the news, and praised her for her innovative approach to education and her significant contributions to student learning and school culture.

“Misty is known by all for her striving to ensure all students receive the best learning opportunities possible through engaging curriculum and instructional strategies. She has created an animatronics course for students that prepares them for high school Career Technical Education courses and diverse career opportunities. Her classroom is one where students are motivated and engaged as they learn critical thinking and problem-solving skills in project-based learning modules.

Board Trustee Jackie Johansen highlighted that the enthusiasm in McBee’s classroom serves as a prime example and model for student engagement.

“The Riverside County Teacher of the Year award is a highly competitive honor, selected from nearly 20,000 educators,” the district said. “Candidates undergo a rigorous application process that includes nominations by peers and administrators, application reviews, interviews, and site visits by a selection committee. The final four candidates are chosen before the county superintendent announces the winners.

“This is the third year in a row that the Menifee Union School District has produced a county-level educator of the year. “

“Mrs. Tara Surguine was selected as the Riverside County Confidential Employee of the Year
in 2022. Then, in 2023, Principal Daphne Donoho from Táawila Elementary School was selected as the Riverside County Principal of the Year.

“The Menifee Union School District congratulates Misty McBee on this exceptional achievement and is honored to have such a dedicated and innovative educator represent the district.”

The post RivCo Animatronics Teacher Hailed County ‘Teacher Of The Year’ appeared first on The Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle.