TEAMwork pays off for students

Many Riverside Unified School District staff members work constantly and tirelessly behind the scenes to do their best for students. A great example of this is the team that helped to successfully put together the $843,492 AmeriCorps grant awarded to the University/Eastside Community Collaborative. The Collaborative is a partnership that includes UC Riverside, the city, and our district. Funding from this three-year grant ($281,164 per year) will pay for math and literacy tutoring for students at Patricia Beatty, Emerson, Fremont, Longfellow, Taft, and Highland Elementary Schools as well as University Heights Middle School and John W. North High School. It also covers after-school mentoring at area parks and community centers. An estimated 1,300 students will benefit from tutoring provided by 80 college students who will be working with the program.

This program never would have happened without the extremely hard work of RUSD Grant Development Specialist Hattie Byland, Certificated Personnel Administrator Tena Petix, and Senior Program Evaluator, Dr. Mark Jensen. These are just three of our district’s “unsung” heroes who do their best to help our students every day. I also commend the incredible efforts of Josh Maher, Project Director of the University/Eastside Community Collaborative and Robin Metz, Recreation Superintendent for the City of Riverside. UC Riverside was the lead applicant for this grant and Josh and Robin were key members of the grant-writing team responsible for our successful application. With continued support from UCR Chancellor Dr. White, Riverside Mayor Ron Loveridge, our dedicated principals, and the many others who work with the UECC/AmeriCorps program, I know this will continue to be a successful partnership that showcases what our community can accomplish by working together for the benefit of students.