POMONA HIGH SCHOOL
JUNE 12, 2009
AVID NEWSLETTER
Congratulations Seniors!
Seniors have been accepted to their co!ege of choice...
Seniors working diligently with
Mrs. Race are reaping the rewards of
their tenacity & efforts. On May
28th, some Seniors were honored
Seniors looking forward to 2009-2010
77% of AVID Seniors have been
accepted to a 4-year college. Next
y e a r, t h e f o l l o w i n g S e n i o r s a r e
expected to attend the following
colleges & universities: Raul Aguilar,
Mt. SAC; Steven Alamazan, Central
Wa s h i n g to n Un i v e r s i t y ; C e c i l a
Barrios, UC Riverside; Kaprice
Booker, Cerritos College; Vanesa
Brown, Citr us College; Jasmine
Burgos, Cal Poly; Jose Cabello, Cal
Poly; Jenny Chittham, Cal Poly;
Karen Cornejo, Cal Poly; Sergio
Correas, Cal Poly; Luis Cruz, Cal
Poly; Roxana De La Rosa, Chaffey
College; Max Garcia, Mt. SAC; Nancy
during awards night. The following
Seniors received AVID scholarships:
Linda Tu, April Rios, Alberto Perez, &
Nelson Guevara.
Garcia, Citrus College; Javier Grijalva,
Mt. SAC; Jose Grijalva, Mt. SAC;
Lizbeth Guevara, CSU Northridge;
Nelson Guevara, UC Riverside;
D a n i e l Gu t i e r r e z , M t . S AC ;
Christopher Heredia, CSU Fullerton;
Shaquinta Hill, CSU San Bernardino;
Celina Huerta, Chaffey College;
Jesenia Lopez, CSU San Bernardino;
Romero Martinez, Mt. SAC; Amanda
McClary, Woodbury University; Sara
Mendoza, University of La Verne;
Lauren Peck-Lewis, San Jose State;
Alberto Perez, UC San Diego; Andy
P h a m , C S U Fu l l e r t o n ; Ro n a l d
Piccirillo, Cal Poly; Jacob Ponce,
Teacher Spotlight
MRS. DAISY RACE
After 34 years teaching,
Mrs. Daisy Race has decided
to retire & enjoy time with
her family & friends. She has
taught at every grade level
except 3rd grade. She received
her Bachelor of Arts degree in
Sociology & teaching
credential from the CSU Los
Angeles. She later added to
her credential an
authorization for mathematics
from Whittier College. But
Mrs. Race did not stop
there...she continued in her
education & received her
Masters of Education degree
at Azusa Pacific University.
What was her most
satisfying teaching
experience? “Being involved
with the AVID program.”
Thank you Mrs. Race for
your dedication to your
students!
Citrus College;
Alejandro Quezada,
CSU Fullerton; Ilse
Ramirez, Citrus College; April Rios,
University of La Verne; Jasmine Rios,
CSU San Bernardino; Ricardo Rivera,
Mt. SAC; Daniel Rocha, Citr us
College; Jaqueline Rodriguez, CSU
Sacramento; Monica Soto, Chaffey
College; Karla Talamantes, Cal Poly;
Dimitri Tillett, CSU Bakersfield;
Nataly Torres, UC Riverside; Linda
Tu, UC Davis; Erika Vega, DeVry
University; Crystal Valencia, Chaffey
College; Regina Vela, University of La
Verne.
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 POMONA HIGH SCHOOL

JUNE 12, 2009

Dear AVID students,

I Believe in You
I want to tell you that I believe in you; Please don’t put away the dreams inside of you.
I believe in your mind & all the dreams, intelligence, & You have the power to make them real.
determination within you. You have the power to make yourself exactly what you
You can accomplish anything. want to be.
You have so much open to you, Believe in yourself the way I do, & nothing will be
So please don’t give on what you want from life or from beyond your reach. - Author unknown
yourself. Sincerely, Mrs. Race

AVID SCHOLARSHIP ESSAYS

I have been in AVID since the beginning of my high
school years. As a freshman I came into AVID not knowing
anything about the program and
considering it a fallacy that I was part of
this program which ultimately was a
constant help and a probable reason for
my smoother transitions from grade to
grade through out high school. Today as
AVID Senior and looking back at my
high school years I am grateful to have
had AVID as a guide and a helpful
resource for the changes and the
challenges that will happen upon my
entrance in to the University of
California Riverside.
From freshmen year in class
with Mrs. Barbee AVID is a helpful program upon which
goals are not just expected but AVID helps you reach these
goals. My freshmen year was fairly simple and provided a
smooth transition into AVID. Sophomore year began the
preparation for the CAHSEE, an exam set simple and which I
passed with ease. Perhaps the most valuable and productive
year in which AVID became greatly
important to me was my junior year
where SAT, Subject Tests, ACT, Personal
Statement and more where taken care of
all which are a large part of the college
preparatory steps. Senior year was based
mostly on applications and AVID was a
great help in preparing us for this so
preparation through out all four year was
a constant theme.
Personally I am involved with
AVID Club so my interactions do not end
in the classroom. I have been able to be
part of the club as a member, vice-
president and this final year as President. AVID ideals will
stay with me long after graduation and I am ultimately glad to
be a member of the AVID Class of ’09.
- Nelson Guevara

always caught my attention, engraved in other students, it also had another

Since the first day I attended
high school I knew college was at the
end of the road. I am now in my senior
year and the road is rising from the
obscurity and becoming clearer
everyday. Over the years I have been
praise for my scholarship, receiving
high marks, certificates, and awards.
Among all these recognitions, one
one my award was the phrase, “The
difference between ordinary and
extraordinary is the effort.” Perplexed
once, I was now fully aware that I
played the role of an ordinary student
but I also realized AVID being extra
conscientious over its students
manifested itself in a sort of contagious
manner, so that one too became extra.
Thus by providing its students with
tutors (the AVID Program); I was
benefitted by receiving assistance with
homework during and after school
hours. Using this as a resource I was
able to bring out my full potential, so
that I was no longer in the middle but at
the top of the ladder. Nevertheless
AVID inspire me to become
independent for though it provide its
students with resources not available to
criteria encode in its acronym,
A d v a n c e m e n t Vi a I n d i v i d u a l
Determination. This to me meant AVID
would open many doors to its students
but we, the students, had to enter by
ourselves. Inevitably this lead to
perceiving my work loads in a different
way, so that I had to work extensively,
in the attempt to improve my skills.
Such that not always being dependent I
learn plentiful from my mistakes so that
in future situations these mistakes were
not perceived again. Basically all I want
to impart is that because of AVID, I was
able to take honors and AP courses,
become involved in extracurricular
activities, and most importantly have
the opportunity to attend a four-year
college.
- Alberto Perez

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 POMONA HIGH SCHOOL
JUNE 12, 2009

11th grade news surpassed the amount of students that

The 2008-2009 school year has
indeed been a quite eventful year for
PHS students, especially from the AVID
Junior class. Throughout the entire
school year, our AVID juniors have
contributed enormously to the image of
the AVID program. Many of these
students, aside from also being active
students in the AVID elective class have
also been fully involved in the AVID
Club, which has recruited a record
amount of students this school year.
Nelson Guevara, president of the AVID
club and a graduating
AVID senior, expresses his
deep optimism for the
upcoming AVID class as
ambitious students such as
Evelyn Godinez, Luis
Valenzuela and Alejandra
Murillo have taken the lead
in becoming future AVID
Club leaders.
The AV I D
program not only has
grown significantly, it has
also improved from the
inside out. Since Pomona
High School’s AVID
program has entered demo
status in early 2009, its students more
than ever, have represented the AVID
program as a whole. First, AVID juniors
have been actively involved in
spreading the word about college
admission requirements to non-AVID
students, (of those being core classes,
SAT/ACT scores, and extracurricular
activities) through PowerPoint
presentations. Our junior students have
been adequately prepared for the
presentations displaying the highest
levels of professionalism and poise. The
effort of our juniors has also extended
to the middle school level as they
presented to students in Ralph Waldo
Emerson Middle School and Palomares
Middle School. AVID juniors were also
a c t i v e l y i n v o l v e d o rg a n i z i n g
recruitment workshops for students and
parents that are interested in the
program. The result was phenomenal!
The amount of middle school students
that applied into the AVID program has
Calendar
have ever applied prior to the 2009
school year.
June 4, 2009
Aside from contributing to the
End-of-Year Celebration
growth of the AVID program our
juniors have played a key role in
June 8-9, 2009
contributing to students throughout the
Senior Final Exams
community. This year, AVID students
played a key role in tutoring the 10th
June 15-17, 2009
grade class in preparation for the
California High School Exit Exam Final Exams
(CAHSEE). The results proved to
June 22, 2009
surpass all expectations as the class of
2011 shattered an all-time record as Summer School Begins
more student than ever have passed the
September 8, 2009
New School Year Begins
SUMMER to do list:
- Summer Readings for AVID & AP
classes
- Assignments for AP courses.
In the Pomona
Community
With the recession, all
AVID students decided to
exam, a true morale boost to Pomona
High School. Also, AVID students have collect much needed
been actively involved in contributing m a t e r i a l s f o r Fo o t h i l l
to the schools outside of the gates of Famil y Shelter. Items
Pomona High School. 11th grade AVID collected were: non-
students have tutored Emerson Middle perishable foods, cleaning
School’s eighth graders in preparation
for the STAR/CST tests, which are a supplies, diapers, &
requirement for all California grade laundry soap/softener.
school students. Mrs. Mitchell’s 10th
As the year comes into the
close, the rising AVID seniors are grade AVID students went
looking forward to a phenomenally the extra mile & supported
eventful year for the 2009-2010 school March of Dimes which is a
year. In full throttle, the soon-to-be non-profit health national
seniors are placing their vast efforts in voluntary organization for
preparation for their college and pregnancy & baby health.
scholarship applications for the
upcoming year. However, this will not If you would like to donate:
slow down our juniors from www.marchofdimes.com or
contributing to Pomona High School as call 800-658-6674.
many are looking forward for an
incredibly eventful and spirited year.
- Ruby Lopez, c/o 2010

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 POMONA HIGH SCHOOL
JUNE 12, 2009

10th grade CAHSEE surpasses expectations The Top “10s”:

Last year, 85% of 10th graders who took the
CAHSEE for the first time passed both the English
Language Arts & Math sections. This year, 96%
passed ELA & 94% passed Math.
What did we do differently this year? Many of
our 10th students participated in Saturday Scholars
where they worked in small groups with tutors to
work out sample problems or they took sample
exams to monitor their progress. All their hard
work & determination paid off.
GPAs:
4.0s - Teresa Picirillio Ruffina Porras, & Michael Sanchez
3.9s - Analia Cabral, Tracey Akugue
3.8s - Giovanni Velasquez, Jackie Tu
3.6 - Itzel Solis
Our Top Athletes:
Giovanni Rodriguez - Football, wrestling, & baseball
Darren Hayes - Basketball & Volleyball
Michael Sanchez - Soccer

CAHSEE high scores:

Our “AVID” readers: AR books
ELA &
Math Ruffina Porras 8
Shaylyn Swartz 450 & 448 Alexis Venegas 7
Giovanni Velasquez 450 & 433 Daniela Arredondo 5
Marissa Romero 436 & 423 Michael Sanchez 5
Michael Sanchez 406 & 450
Eunice Chavarin 419 & 414
Parker Ross 414 & 414
Gabriela Gomez 402 & 400

April 1, 2009: 9th & 10th grade AVID students

visited UC Irvine. While on campus, students
took a guided tour & experienced college-life.

POMONA HIGH SCHOOL’S AVID PROGRAM GROWS

In 2009-2010 academic year, the AVID program is excited to see the growth of the program. Next year,
more sections of the AVID elective course will be added to the master schedule. There will be three
sections of 9th grade, three sections of 10th grade, two sections of 11th grade, & two sections of 12th grade.
And lastly, but not least...our AVID will be applying for Demonstration Status, which only a select few have
this privilege.

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