Our Art Lead Teachers throughout EMCSD visited The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture of the Riverside Art Museum for some inspiring professional development! They aimed to learn ways to incorporate more culturally appreciative art forms into their lessons with students. We're never too old to learn something new, especially if it will benefit our students and help them find their interests! Check out some photos from our teachers' visit below!

Our custodial teams’ goal is to make sure our students, staff, and families have clean, ready-to-use spaces for learning 🧠 This means providing them with up-to-date tools and training to accomplish that goal 💪

Custodians were given professional development on new ways to keep our classrooms, hallways, and community spaces clean.

Training on new scrubbers were provided to middle school custodians so they can continue to efficiently and effectively mop and disinfect floors. Elementary schools are next up to be trained.

Custodians were also given upgrades to their fogging machines so they can ensure high touch and hard-to-reach areas of classrooms and offices are properly disinfected using safe probiotic mist.

By: Gabriela Angel

 

On your next trip to an LA County Library, be on the lookout for a bubbly bookmark at checkout. Durfee School 8th grader Jenny Wong from El Monte City School District is a winner of the 44th annual LA County Library Bookmark Design Contest. Her marine-themed bookmark was a finalist at the Norwood Library contest, and was then selected by Los Angeles County Board Supervisor Hilda Solis as a grand winner from District 1.

 

“I jumped for joy!” said Jenny upon receiving the congratulatory letter. “As time passed and it sank in, I cried.” Overjoyed, she called friends to share the exciting news. Introduced to drawing by a friend, Jenny is a self-taught artist and her winning bookmark symbolizes her self-determination and dedication to her growing craft. Jenny’s bookmark includes a collection of sea creatures like jellyfish, turtles, starfish, and fish. When asked about her inspiration for the design, Jenny pointed to social media, “I was scrolling on the art side of TikTok, and jellyfish stuck out to me because of the colors and design.”

 

Jenny credits her teacher Ms. Kara Brown for encouraging her to participate in the contest. Feeling overwhelmed about catching up on school work after returning from a family trip to Vietnam, Ms. Brown suggested Jenny create a design to ease her stress. “I knew Jenny enjoyed drawing and told me that creating art helps her relax,” said Ms. Brown. “I wanted her to experience that she can have fun while doing something that may be perceived as stressful.” Wanting her students to gain confidence in themselves, Ms. Brown motivates them to participate in activities, enter contests, and join new clubs. “They will never know if they like it until they give it a try. They will never win a contest if they don't enter. I truly want all my students to gain confidence in themselves and they do so by finding out who they are by trying something new.”

 

Aside from her passion for art, Jenny loves to read, especially mystery and romance. She is part of Durfee’s Millionaire Readers Club, students who have read one million words in a year. She is now closing in on two million words. Jenny said her 7th grade teacher, Ms. Monica Macias, helped her fall back in love with reading. Ms. Macias tries to expose her students to different genres through having a variety of books available in her personal library. “I allow students to read whatever they enjoy, regardless of reading level,” said Ms. Macias. “Once I knew what kinds of books she liked, I would have her venture into specific authors who I thought she would enjoy.” In order to help students discover, or rediscover the joy of reading, Ms.Macias says you need to be a guide. “You must never assume that a student knows what they like to read. You must help guide students to explore possible interests and you must have a lot of patience.”

 

Initially, Jenny entered the contest for fun, not expecting to win. Now she is a LA County Bookmark Design winner. Like her teacher, she would advocate for her peers to try new things, “Just try your best and whatever happens happens. You never know what’s going to be on the other side, so you might as well just do it,” she explained. Jenny and her family will be honored at a local ceremony by the LA County Library in March to commemorate her artwork.

We still have spaces available for our Spanish-language "Parenting in a Digital World" workshops throughout our district to help give you the tools to help keep your students safe online. Parenting in the Digital World, is a 90-minute, engaging and eye-opening presentation about what is really going on in our children’s digital world. It will be presented in-person. EMCSD parents can sign up for any workshop at any school.

 

Students do not need to attend.

 

Topics Discussed:

• Current apps kids are using and what you need to know about them
• Risks associated with popular social media sites
• "Sexting" and online predators
• How to set expectations and consequences
• How to monitor online activity and find secret Instagram accounts
• How to talk to your child about pornography
• Parental controls and privacy settings

 

ESPAÑOL Fechas y lugares de las reuniones (puedes asistir a cualquier reunión en cualquier escuela).

11 de marzo a las 9:00am - Wright

18 de marzo a las 8:30am - Columbia

25 de marzo a las 8:30 am - Durfee

25 de marzo a las 5:00pm - Río Hondo

El Monte City School District (EMCSD) is proudly offering three voting centers for the upcoming 2024 Presidential Primary Election. See the dates and locations of the voting centers below. For more information about California's Primary Election process, visit California's Secretary of State website here.

 

You can also drop off your mail-in ballot at these locations as well.

 

Early Voting

Locations will be open March 2 - March 4, 2024 from 10:00am-7:00pm

 

Election Day

Voting centers will be open on March 5, 2024 from 7:00am-8:00pm

 

Voting Centers

Jeff Seymour Family Center

10900 Mulhall St, El Monte, CA 91731

Durfee School

12233 Star St, El Monte, CA 91732

Rio Hondo School

11425 Wildflower Rd, Arcadia, CA 91006

Rio Hondo College is inviting EMCSD families to their STEAM Festival! This is a free family event that includes interactive science activities and games for elementary, middle, and high school students led by Rio Hondo College students and faculty.

 

When: Saturday, March 9, 2024 from 11:00am - 2:00pm

Where: Rio Hondo College Mathematics, Sciences, and Engineering Division (3600 Workman Mill Rd, Whittier, CA 90601)

 

Your elementary or middle school child will get to participate in hands-on experiments that include: chemistry, engineering, physics, biology, arts demonstrations, and more!

 

Sign up for free by clicking the button below! For more info, click here. For questions, email: [email protected]

The city of El Monte invites families to their Eggstravaganza event on Saturday, March 23 from 10:00am - 12:30pm.

 

The event will include petting zoos, bouncers, craft activities, pictures with the bunny, train rides, and more! See graphic for complete overview of event.

 

When: Saturday, March 23 from 10:00am - 12:30pm

Where: Mt. View Park (12127 Elliot Ave, El Monte, CA 91732)

Pasadena City College is hosting a free math academy for students entering 7th and 8th grade. The academy will be from June 24, 2024 - August 2, 2024.

 

Information sessions include:

Zoom

• March 11 at 5:30pm
• March 19 at 5:30pm
• March 21 at 5:30pm

In-Person

• March 16 at 10:00am

Are you or someone you know looking to pursue a career in education? Do you want to be more involved in your student's district? As we prepare for the start of the 2023-2024 school year, there are many job openings available at EMCSD! We have listed a few below. You can also see more on the graphics above.

 

• AVID Tutors
• Child Development Instructor
• Custodial Substitute
• Dual Language Spanish Teacher (2 positions available)
• ELD Testers
• Energy Management Specialist
• Health Services Specialist (2 positions available)
• Instructional Support Specialist (10 positions available)
• Mandarin Dual Language Immersion Teacher (4th Grade)
• Music Teacher (Temporary)
• Nutrition Service Assistant
• Registered Dietitian
• School and Community Liaison- Durfee School
• School Psychologist Intern
• Special Education Teacher (2 positions available)
• Testing Specialist
• and much more!