The Pomona Host Lions Club recently presented $4,900 in mini-grants for instructional enrichment to 20 teachers from the Pomona Unified School District. Over the past nine academic years, the club has awarded $45,000.
Teacher mini-grant recipients and Lions gathered at the Associated Pomona Teachers office for a reception and awards ceremony on Thursday, October 17. At the beginning of the ceremony, Pomona Host President Barbara Smith praised the teachers, “Each of you gives tremendous time beyond the school day and contributes large amounts of your own money beyond school funding to insure a quality education for your students. It is our club’s pleasure to enable you to purchase items to enrich your lessons without your having to dip even more into your own pockets.”
Lion Morgan Brown, who is also Executive Director for the Associated Pomona Teachers (APT), is chair of the Lions Mini-Grant program. Both Brown and Lion Frank Guzman, PUSD Board Member, shared their appreciation and congratulations with the teachers.
Find out what's happening in Diamond Bar-Walnutfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
According to Smith, “The club feels a strong commitment to the students and teachers of the Pomona Unified School District, and the Mini-Grants are an excellent way to show its support.” The club also purchases eyeglasses for students who have no other way to obtain them, sends Lions to classrooms to help students with reading and math, presents flags to students and books and stuffed lions to classrooms for Flag Day, and supports students going to the University of La Verne REACH program. The Pomona Host Lions also led a fundraising drive that culminated in the 2002 opening of the Pomona Lions Vision and Hearing Center on the Marshall School campus.
Lions Mini-Grants fall into two categories: individual and team. Individuals can receive up to $250 and teams up to $500. This year, 14 individuals and three teams received awards.
Find out what's happening in Diamond Bar-Walnutfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Teachers receiving individual awards are Bety DeLeon (Arroyo School), Eric Burnett (Decker), Anna Daniel (Kingsley), Dorothy Kim (Lopez), Douglas Cochran (Philadelphia), Scott Lukesh (Fremont), Vuthy Tim (Lorbeer), Rebecca Molinar (Marshall), Christiana Duckett (Ganesha), Tina Solorzano (Park West), Norma Contreras-Guillen (Park West), Theresa Nguyen (Pomona), Alison Fisher (Pomona) ad Chelly C. Alexis (Pomona Alternative School).
Team award recipients are Kathy Taeleifi and Jennifer Chan-Munroe of Golden Springs, Mary Lou Ortiz Jamieson and Manuela Echeverria of Montvue, and JoAnn Silliker and Anette Richards of Vejar.
After the teachers received their Mini-Grant checks, they shared how the Lions money had been used for classroom instruction. Some mini-grants purchased materials to promote reading literacy. Others targeted math, science, history, good parenting and cross-curricular instruction.
For further information about the Pomona Host Lions, please email the club at pomonahostlions@gmail.com or view its website at www.pomonahostlions.org.