Category: Student Recognition

Warriors Attend Drama Festival

By Emilio Grijalva and Aliah Luna

Pueblo Players attend Drama Festival

Pueblo’s advanced theatre students participated in the Southern Arizona Festival of Theatre at the University of Arizona on January 24, to compete against other drama programs in Tucson area high schools.

Senior Andrea Martinez won three superior ratings, qualifying her for state in Phoenix. She performed monologues from Jake’s Women by Neil Simon and The Scottish Play by William Shakespeare.

Martinez said, “It was an overwhelming experience! I got to spend this moment with people who have the same passion as me. This experience taught me a lot about myself.”

Ms. Sarah Sutton, Pueblo’s drama teacher, said, “I knew during rehearsals that Andrea Martinez was doing really well. I was and am very proud of her.”

Pueblo’s drama students who attended the festival performed solo monologues, small group plays; musicals, and duets.

Sutton began preparing her students after winter break, which involved daily practices to be competitive by late January. Her students selected their own material that they wanted to perform.

Senior Santos Barbosa said, “Everyone there tried their very best and had lots of fun.” Barbosa said that he performed a duet from the play/movie, The Producers called “We Can Do It” with his drama class peer, Gilbert Becerra, a junior.

Sutton said, “I’m hoping that we continue this tradition each year. I’m confident that this year’s beginning students will eventually be in competition with other drama students across Southern Arizona.”

Free Super Bowl Tickets For Lucky Warrior!

By Gabriela Gastelum and Isaac Montiel

Cesar Rivera surprised with Superbowl tickets!

Our very own Warrior, senior Cesar Rivera, was totally surprised with Super Bowl XLIX (49) tickets—as well as vouchers for transportation costs.

Comcast NBC Universal and The Boys and Girls Club of Tucson teamed to make one deserving member’s dream come true with two tickets to the Super Bowl; and, on Friday, Jan. 16, that lucky person was Cesar Rivera.

Rivera said, “I was just sitting in the background waiting to get interviewed until a guy just came up to me with two tickets telling me that I’m going to the Super Bowl. Of course, without any hesitations, I said ‘YES!’” He paused and added, “With my other ticket, I took my dad.”

Rivera said that the two-hour trip to Glendale, Ariz., was very “adventurous”—in fact, he said, “ “It was sick!”, referring to his intense enthusiasm for the experience.

“I met so many NFL players such as Larry Fitzgerald, Odell Beckham, Andrew Luck, Aaron Rodgers and Colin Kaepernick.”

Cesar Rivera met some of his favorite players at the Superbowl

Rivera said that he and his father left Tucson on the Thursday before the Super Bowl and returned home on Monday, the day after the event.

“My dad and I took a tour of the Cardinal football field,” Rivera said, “and then we went tailgating before heading to the big game. We were seated near the [Seattle] Seahawks’ end zone, although there were a lot of [New England] Patriots fans around me.” Rivera said, “I even got to see the fight that went down between the two teams!”

Rivera said that despite all of the excitement he experienced, the most amazing moment was being in the front row seats to the NFL honors show.

“It’s like being at the Grammy’s,” Rivera said. “But instead of music, great NFL players were being honored.”

He added, “Since it was my first time attending the honors award show, I didn’t know we were supposed to be dressed fancy, so my dad and I went right away to rent some neat tuxedos.”

Cesar Rivera will never forget Superbowl XLIX

Pueblo Students Chosen For Ivy League Experience

Cecilia Machado, Jose Toro & Ashley Parra

Three Pueblo Magnet High School Class of 2015 Juniors have been accepted into the Arizona Ivy League Project, a two-year program that develops students’ leadership and academic skills, takes them on a tour of the East Coast and prepares them to apply for and attend Ivy League institutions.

Ashley Parra, Jose Toro and Cecilia Machado were chosen from a field of 50 applicants and are the only students from Tucson accepted this year. They will attend leadership classes in Phoenix during their first year in the program and will visit eight Ivy League campuses during the trip to the East Coast in the spring. In their senior year, they will attend classes that help them apply to the universities.

All three students are excited about the trip. For Parra and Machado, it will be their first time on an airplane and their first time leaving Arizona.

“I’m most excited about seeing the campuses, the variety there,” Parra said. “I’m excited about meeting the admissions officers. It’s like a golden ticket.”

The Arizona Ivy League Project is open to sophomores and juniors who come from an economically disadvantaged background and have at least a 3.75 grade average. The application process includes providing teacher recommendations, writing three essays and undergoing an interview with an admissions panel.

The students said hard work and focus have been essential to reaching their goals, and that hasn’t always been easy. Managing their time can be a challenge.

“I have to study. I don’t get to be that teenager, but I’m making myself a better opportunity,” Machado said.

Toro has had similar experiences. “It’s kind of a struggle to keep up our grades, studying for hours upon hours at night,” he said.

All three Ivy League Project winners said teachers at Pueblo have helped and inspired them. “Coming into high school is intimidating,” Toro said. “My teachers motivated me to do my best, even when I didn’t think I could.”

The Pueblo students will be holding fundraisers to cover the cost of the East Coast trip, where they will tour eight campuses and meet with admissions and other personnel. They can also accept tax-credit donations. See our tax credit webpages to learn more about making a donation.

About the winners:

Jose Toro
Career plans: Doctor of chiropractic
Dream school: Harvard because of its reputation, but open to all
Quote: “In the interview, they asked who our role models are. I said the Pope.”

Ashley Parra
Career plans: Veterinarian (heavy on research)
Dream school: Looking for one that fits her
Quote: “My dad is really proud. I’m a first-generation college student.”

Cecilia Machado
Career plans: Pediatrician
Dream school: Looking at Yale or Georgetown
Quote: “Everyone wants to go along on the trip. They want to go in my suitcase.”

Courtesy of TUSD1.org

Scholar Profile Christian Malena

Christian Malena is a Pueblo Alum from the Class of 2011.  This article appeared in the Arizona Alumni Magazine.

I am a first-generation college student. My father was one of the few on both sides of my family to graduate from high school. My mother only went to school until the 7th grade. Embarking on this new phase of my life, as well as in my family’s life, was both exciting and terrifying. We were entering unknown waters, but we have done it together.

The biggest barrier I faced was fi nances. I am from a typical middle-class family, so I am not eligible for grants and scholarships that are primarily awarded to lowincome families. At the same time, my parents can’t afford to cut me a $20,000 check to pay for tuition and other college expenses each year.

As a scholarship recipient, I truly appreciate my time at the University. I never take this opportunity for granted and being on scholarships encourages me to do my best.

Out of all the applications that the scholarship committee received, they choose to award one of their scholarships to me! The fact that people are willing to invest money in my future gives me confi dence and motivation to succeed.

Scholarships have also provided me with a tremendous support system. Through the UA Hispanic Alumni
scholarship, I have mentors who encourage me and who I can go to with questions. I have had valuable professional networking opportunities, one of which opened doors for me to become a student worker at the UA Alumni Association.

I am humbled by the tremendous blessing I have been given!

Christian Malena Arizona Alumni Magazine

Bill De La Rosa Awarded Gates Millennium Scholarship

Bill De La Rosa (Left) with Brandon Sanchez at NHS Induction Ceremony

Bill de la Rosa, class of 2012 Senior, is one of 1,000 talented students nationwide to receive the Gates Millennium scholarship in 2012. The scholarship provides full funding through graduate school.

“I see this like a once in a life time opportunity, knowing that I will be secure financially for the next four to eight years of college,” says de la Rosa. “The generosity of Bill and Melinda Gates is a gift from God to me that I will benefit from and be responsible for. I know that God has great plans for me and I will make sure to prepare myself to serve others through the degrees I will receive from my education.”

De la Rosa’s notification letter stated that his “accomplishment is especially notable in context of the more than 24,000 students who applied, making this year’s the largest and most competitive group of candidates in the program’s history.”

De la Rosa has been accepted to Bowdoin College, a nationally renowned college of liberal arts and sciences in Maine. After earning his bachelor’s degree, he plans to attend Harvard Law School, with the goal of using his law degree to assist families unable pay for legal representation.

Since his freshman year, de la Rosa has been one of the top five students in his class. He is currently valedictorian, with a 4.12 GPA. He’s achieved his academic success in spite of family hardship, providing care for his father and siblings during his father’s illness.

Pueblo High counselor Teresa Toro says that de la Rosa “has made being smart a ‘cool’ status on our campus. He is very popular among his peers and is highly regarded by his teachers. He is constantly talking to students about the need for them to do their best and be their best.”

Toro states, “I am beyond proud for Bill and his accomplishments. He is a true example that no matter what life throws at you that you cannot make excuses for not succeeding. He has such high standards, walks the talk, and is still so down to earth and loved and respected by all of his peers and faculty. I have such high regard for him that I asked him to be the peer mentor for my son, who is a current freshman at Pueblo Magnet High School. He is truly deserving of this most generous award by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.”

To complete the circle of giving, De la Rosa’s goals include establishing his own foundation to provide scholarships to future students.

More information about the scholarship is available at gmsp.org.

Courtesy of www.tusd1.org.

Pueblo Fire Science Takes Charge At Regionals

On Saturday, February 4th, 2012 the Regional SkillsUSA Fire Competition met at the Rural Metro Fire Training Center here in Tucson. The 40 participants from the region were from the west and east campuses of the JTED Fire Program including 6 from Pueblo’s Fire Program.

The competition included the following events: ropes & knot tying, hose rolling, breathing apparatus timed competition, climbing a ladder with tools in hand and a victim drag with a 200 lb. dummy.

The day culminated with a Fire Fighter Combat Challenge that mixed Pueblo students with JTED students and a very delicious barbeque.

Pueblo Fire Science At SkillsUSA Competition

We are very ecstatic to announce that our team made Pueblo proud. Out of the top 10 scores, we had 4 of our 6 participants in the following places:

  • First Place- Carlos Meraz (Senior) – 2nd year in the program
  • Second Place- Juan Aguilar (Freshman) -1st year in the program
  • Fifth Place-Victor Grutzius (Junior) -2nd year in the program
  • Sixth Place- Luis Mendivil (Freshman) -1st year in the program

Manuel Cedre & Hector Ortega made a great showing and just missed being in the Top 10.

Congratulations to the Pueblo Fire Science Program! They showed up at the competition with one thing on their minds and that was to put Pueblo Fire on the map. They did it in a big way!

Thank you Chief Jeff Smith for sharing.