Vol. 54, No. 20
Serving the San Gabriel Valley Since 1966
Special Section Temple City, San Gabriel, & ROSEMEAD PAGE 7
Local Events page 2, 3 “Off Beat Happenings”
Entertainment
page 14 - 15
Sports pages 9 - 11
May 18, 2016 Chalk Talk
page 4
Visit Us Online at www.midvalleynews.com for more Highlights of Local Schools and Events from the San Gabriel Valley Area. Follow Us on
Gidley and Potrero Schools to Receive Muscial Instruments by Arlene Bury El Monte
National Foundation Awards Grant to Outstanding School Music Programs El Monte City School District’s Gidley and Potrero Schools will soon receive new musical instruments, thanks to The Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation. With many school music programs across the country losing vital funding, the Foundation helps underserved schools with minimal budgets by donating new instruments, often replacing some that are more than 30 years old. Applications for support
were submitted by David Carden at Gidley School and Victor Williams at Potrero School. The Foundation found their programs to be a worthwhile investment, allowing more students to be able to play and experience the benefits of music education. EMCSD Superintendent Dr. Maribel Garcia said, “As a district we have committed to music education for all of our students from kindergarten to eighth grade.
LeGore School Uses the “FORCE”
Courtesy Photo
These instruments will be a great addition to our existing program, enabling more students to go farther in their music education. We take pride in the Foundation’s appreciation for our school board’s recognition that music has an impact on student achievement and success.” “Learning music in school is a way to engage kids and give them something that makes them better students and better people,” said Fe-
lice Mancini, President and CEO of The Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation. “They deserve every tool available to help them receive a quality education, and we want to insure that music is in that toolbox.” The Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation donates musical instruments to under-funded schools in an effort to give youngsters the many benefits of music education, help them to be better students
and inspire creativity and expression through playing music. The organization was inspired by the 1995 motion picture Mr. Holland’s Opus and founded by Michael Kamen, who composed the music for the movie and countless others. In the last 20 years, over 20,000 instruments have been donated to over 1,360 schools across the country. More information can be found at www. mhopus.org.
The audience enjoyed the presentation and seemingly got the important message the students on stage were trying to communicate. ALCC is an on campus club sponsored by
the principal, Mrs. Adriana Garcia. Garcia said, “The club meets once a week and we focus on leadership skills, public speaking and
Past or Current Resident
by Arlene Bury El Monte
El Monte City School District’s LeGore School Aztec Leadership College Club (ALCC) used a Star Wars themed play as an effective way of communicating the importance of the Smarter Balance Assessment Consortium (SBAC) and the essential skills to take it. The student led play started with the Star Wars anthem that you would expect to hear, along with a light-saber battle between Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker. The heroine, Rey, had to use the “FORCE” to get to the SBAC. The FORCE is an acronym that stands for Focus, Organization, Review (Repeat and Reread), Concentration and
Photo courtesy
Energize. Rey meets both good and bad guys (almost all of the Star Wars characters make an appearance) on her journey, ultimately defeating the forces of evil and getting to the SBAC.
Force continued on page 8