Students harness penny potential

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Teacher Araceli Rivera (center) and students (from left) Jose Gomez, Daphne Parker, Kayla Barron and Raul Martinez share an appreciation plaque from the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

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Students in teacher Dave Meek’s class sharing the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society plaque are (from left) Mike Equihua, Moniane Castro, Jesus Miranda, Eduardo Chavira (aide), Jose Robreo, Jacob Dijkstra, Tanisha Fields and Marco Quintero.

Pennies are often maligned for taking up space in one’s pocket or purse, considering their lack of purchasing power for individual items. Recently, students enrolled at Community Learning Center (CLC) Tech, operated by the Kern County Superintendent of Schools, proved you can make a difference, if you collect enough pennies. They pooled their "Pennies for Patients" and raised more than $2,200 to help the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Many of the students have a tough life of their own. Community schools give them a chance to stay in school, when for a variety of reasons they have become at risk of dropping out. Yet, the combined CLC Tech classes taught by Leonor Lopez, Dave Meek and Araceli Rivera accepted the challenge proposed by their teachers - to raise money to help others.

Why get the students involved? Rivera had an answer. "Part of being a teacher is teaching civic education to our students," Rivera said. "They are required to learn a high school curriculum set by the State of California, but as teachers, we also take some time during our lessons to educate our students about having a positive role in their community."

The teachers said their school mission was to collect as much as possible to help the society find a cure for leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease and myeloma, and improve the quality of life of patients and their families.

"Day in and day out, we focused and talked about our ‘mission’ (to raise funds for young people battling these awful diseases)," Meek said. "Statistics indicate that every day the equivalent of two classrooms of students are diagnosed with cancer."

Rivera felt it was not only worthwhile for the patients, who will benefit from the funds raised, but also the students, who raised the money. "The image of our at risk students to many is that they are ‘gangsters,’ ‘taggers,’ ‘criminals,’ and ‘bad kids,’" Rivera said. "Sadly, some students are beginning to think the same about themselves. It has become our job as community school teachers to show them otherwise."

The penny drive gave the students a sense of self-worth and accomplishment, according to Lopez, Meek and Rivera. The teachers said their CLC Tech pupils realized that they had a lot of power when the situation dealt with their community. They saw how they could perhaps help save a life by collecting spare change. The teens used ingenuity to collect money in their homes - looking under sofa cushions being one of the most popular methods employed. Public speaking and socialization skills came in handy, as they sought out donations from family members, and even asked their neighbors.

"We completed the project by raising more than $2,200, and our student population at CLC tech is roughly 250 students," Meek said. "We would definitely say that it is an amazing testament to how our students see their potential and rise up to achieve it. With his hand over his chest, one of my students, Jose, said, ‘It makes this area of my body feel good.’"

The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society felt pretty good, too, after receiving the donation. They honored CLC Tech and its students with a bronze plaque, certificate of appreciation and a pizza party.


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