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Wonder Movie Event
CONNECTING SOUTHERN ARIZONA
Year in Review
Best wishes from Border Eco
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Lens on the Border
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People that “Echo” Maria Scholnick
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Richard McPherson Named National Safety Educator of the Year
Border Eco Updates CONTENT Border Eco Magazine
Our goal is to continue reporting on the great people, organizations, and services in our community. We want to change public’s perception on our border town. Border Eco is focused on the positive people, organizations, and services within our community that makes our bordertown unique. Santa Cruz County is a beautiful community with lots of history and cultural background.
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Wonder Movie Event
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IME-BECAS Scholarship Program
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Lens on the Border
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Nativity Scenes Exhibition
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Santa Cruz Parent Love Connection
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People who “Echo”Maria Scholnick
We are grateful for the continued support. We want to thank our customers for their support. Our mission is to change public perception of our border town.
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SCVUSD Hosts Info Night on Middle School Cambridge Honors Program
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Richard McPherson Named National Safety Educator of the Year
“It is never too late to bring in change, that you want to see around you. Let the New Year be the forefront for introducing new ideas and new concepts to make the world a better and safer place for all of us.”
SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT
Editor: Adriana Romero Student Intern Reporter: Nadia Sandoval Student Intern Reporter: Chris Alcaraz Magazine Graphic Designer Consultant: Adriana Romero Sales Representative: Tony Montanez Information is correct at press time. Check www.bordereco.com for updates.
Border Eco Magazine now offers TV advertisement. Contact us for rates and channels to help promote your business in Santa Cruz County. Our office is located on : 1071 N. Grand Ave. Ste. #122, Nogales, Arizona 85621 (520) 461-4880 Email: contact@bordereco.com
Border Eco, LLC © 2018 copyright all rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without the permission of Border Eco Magazine is prohibited. Any material produced is the property of Border Eco. Any material published is not necessarily the opinion of Border Eco and will not be held responsible. Border Eco Magazine accepts material from advertisers, clients, readers and various sources which are not necessarily the opinion of Border Eco Magazine in print or on Border Eco websites and will not be held responsible.
Please send us information on any upcoming events, meetings, or programs to share with our readers.
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Border Eco | January 2018
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On November 30th, all 4th grade students attending NUSD schools attended a special viewing of “Wonder” at the Oasis Theater. The new movie, released in mid-November, deals with issues of bullying, acceptance and kindness. The idea of using the movie and book as a teaching tool was first suggested by Ms. Ana Karen López, elementary school counselor at Bracker and Coronado Elementary Schools.
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After the movie, Ms. López said, “Everyone enjoyed the book and the movie so much!! The students, teachers, and myself, we all learned so much from this beautiful story, it was a great way to reinforce kindness, empathy, compassion, and how not to be a bully or bystander, but an upstander.” All 4th grade teachers in the district read the book to their students in the weeks prior to the release of the movie.
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Mr. Alfredo I. Velásquez sponsored the event through the Santa Cruz County School Superintendent’s Office and the Healthy Student Grant, providing the books, transportation, admission fees and snacks. He was in attendance, welcoming and addressing the students, and requesting that they pay particular attention to the message the movie has to offer. Students will be participating in various follow-up activities using the themes of the movie.
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Border Eco | January 2018
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IME-BECAS Scholarship Program On November 30, 2017 at 9:00 a.m. the Nogales Mexican Consulate and the Santa Cruz Provisional College hosted the IME-BECAS Scholarship Program Forum at the college. The forum panel included Consul Ricardo Santana Velazquez, Dr. Stella Perez Executive Director and CEO of SCCPCCD, Mr. Richard Brennan CFO SCCPCCD, and Claudia Lilley Executive Director of Literacy Volunteer of America in Santa Cruz County.
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The IME-BECAS scholarship program has been serving local students in Santa Cruz County since 2005. In 2011, IMEBECAS Scholarship Program partnered with the local college to offer scholarships to students planning on attending college. For several years now, this program continues to help disadvantaged high school students who are planning on graduating, or graduated from Santa Cruz County and are planning to enroll at the college.
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Many of the disadvantaged students do not qualify for financial aid or have the economical means to attend college. This specific scholarship program helps local students have the opportunity to attend a higher education institution. The economic support is a significant factor that motivates students to continue with their studies and academic goals.
Lens on the Border The Consulate General of Mexico, Santa Cruz Provisional Community College District and Sierra Club Borderlands hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony for the exhibit “Lens on the Border� on Friday, November 17th at 3:00 p.m. at the college campus. The event was free and open to the public. The event was well attended by the public. The exhibition brought together work from several renowned artists. Artists included work from photographer Bill Hatcher, National Geographic, photographer Alejandra Platt of Sonoran Native Nations, Deni Seymour an Independent Research Archeologist, US / Mexico border artist Raechel Running,Palestinian activist and filmmaker Khaled Jarrar, and Krista Schyler, of Conservation Photographers. The exhibit was displayed for the public at the Santa Cruz Provisional Community College until December 15th.
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Nativity Scenes Exhibition & the traditional “Posada”
The Consulate General of Mexico and the Cultural Arts Committee of Nogales, Arizona organized the Nativity Scenes Exhibition and the traditional “Posada” hosted at the Salón Bicentenario of this Consular Representation the past 15th of December, several organizations and local artists placed their nativity scenes, including Nogales Community Development, the Cultural Arts Committee, Rafael de la Torre, Eloina Lafuente, Sandra Kory and the Consulate General of Mexico also participated with a live nativity scene.
During the celebration, visitors admired the performance of “Nogalenses in Arizona choir” and the ensemble “Oh Happy Day”, afterwards they enjoyed the traditional tamales with hot chocolate, and once the meal was done children were called outside to “hit the piñata” and received a bag of candy from Santa Claus.
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Santa Cruz Parent Love Connection The Santa Cruz Parent Love Connection was founded in 2009. The organization began as a small support group for parents with special needs children and youth. Today, the non-profit organization provides a variety of services to Santa Cruz County families with special needs children and youth. The organization offer services to all children and youth with special needs regardless of their disability. “We take education very serious and want to make sure special needs children and youth receive equal opportunities,” said Program Director Maria Scholnick. The SCPLC has 12 support group parents. They meet monthly every 1st Monday of the month from 9:00 a.m.10:00 a.m. at the McDonald’s on Mariposa for coffee. The organization encourages local families with special needs children and youth to attend their monthly meets to join their efforts towards improving services for children. “We empower parents with special needs children and youth in our community to become advocates for their children. Parents are able to obtain information on services and special education resources available to them in our area,” said Maria Scholnick.
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The organization has accomplished many of their goals which include: organizing educational workshops, art summer programs, family playgroups, social activities, and conferences. This year SCPLC hosted their first Down Syndrome Awareness Walk in October with support from the Santa Cruz Valley Unified School District #35, Superintendent David Verdugo and Special Education Director, Dr. Lunderville at the Teyechea Park in Nogales, Arizona. Parents and grandparents of children with special needs gathered for a Christmas Night Celebration on Saturday, December 16th. The Christmas Night Celebration was hosted by the Santa Cruz Parent Love Connection and funded by SANDS the Southern Arizona Network for Down Syndrome, parents and contributions from the community. The event took place in the dining room annex at the McDonald's on Mariposa Rd. in Nogales Arizona. Children and youth with special needs along with their parents attended the celebration. Special needs children and youth received a free meal and a present from their parents. The celebration included holiday trimmings with Santa Claus distributing presents to all special needs children and youth in attendance. |
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“We were happy to have families visiting from Tucson, Arizona this year. SCPLC enjoys hosting group activities that fulfill our mission statement to promote awareness, value, and inclusion for special needs children, youth and their families,” said Mrs. Scholnick. SCPLC is affiliated with the NDSS and Southern Arizona Network for Down syndrome. SCPLC is funded in big part by SANDS. For more information about SCPLC call (520) 4705833 you can also find them on Facebook.
People that “Echo”-Maria Scholnick For this New Year, Border Eco selected Maria Scholnick for our People that “Echo” in our community piece. Mrs. Scholnick was born in the northern part of the peninsula of Baja California Mexico. She was raised for the most part of her childhood in Hermosillo, Sonora Mexico. Her mother was a missionary and her father worked as a weather broadcaster for the government of Sonora until cancer claimed his life in 1998. She attended the college of nursing at the University of Sonora Mexico from 1976 to 1980. She worked as a nurse for 18 years. Her mother dedication to community service inspired her to work in the field. Maria Scholnick has been living in Arizona for over 32 years now. She has been married to Jack Scholnick for 25 years and has two wonderful children, Mickey 23 years- old and Francine 16 years-old. Before she moved to Santa Cruz County with her family, between working as a nurse, she volunteered as a storyteller for a few years at El Rio Community Pediatric clinic in Tucson, Arizona. She also helped her husband Jack with his antique and furniture store on 4th Street Avenue in Tucson.
In 2001, Maria later moved to Santa Cruz County with her family where she gave birth to her daughter Francine. The birth of her daughter Francine, who was born with Down syndrome opened up a whole new chapter in her life. This inspired her to form the Santa Cruz Parent Love Connection. New to Santa Cruz County Maria wanted to get involved in the community. From 2010 through 2014, she joined two local non-profit organizations SEACAP and the Residents of Rio Rico where she served for two years as a committee program chair. “It was a wonderful learning experience for me. It helped me to learn about wonderful people and the needs in my community,” said Maria Scholnick. In 2010, she had an opportunity to be a part of the Partners in Policy Making Leadership and Advocacy Training Program sponsored by Pilot Parent of Southern Arizona. During that period of time, she had an opportunity to learn many skills and tools to help advocate for her daughter Francine and also for families raising children with special needs. At that time the Santa Cruz Parent Love Connection had already initiated. The advocacy training helped to solidify their mission as an organization. w w w.bordereco.com
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In 2015, Maria was appointed to be a part of the DDD Arizona Human Rights Committee Board. “I am proud to say that Santa Cruz County has been a perfect community to help raise my daughter Francine. I am blessed and proud to be an active member of the community serving kids with special needs and their families,” said Maria Scholnick of the Santa Cruz Parent Love Connection If you are a parent of a child with special needs and would like to join the SCPLC monthly coffee meetings every first Monday of the month in the playground equipment section at the McDonald's on Mariposa Rd, in Nogales Arizona from 9am to 10am. For more information please send an email to mariascholnick@yahoo.com or call (520) 470-5833.
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SCVUSD Hosts Info Night on Middle School Cambridge Honors Program Information about the Cambridge Assessment International Education program at Coatimundi Middle School and Calabasas PreK-8 School will be presented on Thursday, January 11, 2018, 5:30 p.m. at Calabasas School in the middle school (grades 6-8) Multipurpose Room. This presentation is open to community members, students and any parent/guardian living in Southern Arizona who is interested in enrolling their student in middle school Cambridge classes in SCVUSD35. Cambridge International Examination classes are offered to students in grades 6 through 8 at Coatimundi Middle School and Calabasas PreK-8 School, the only schools in southern Arizona to offer this advanced middle school program. The Cambridge program was first offered at Rio Rico High School to ninth-graders in the 2012-13 school year. The middle school program at Calabasas and Coatimundi began the following year.
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This is an open enrollment opportunity for all southern Arizona students looking for a rigorous academic program that prepares them for early college credit classes. This advanced program in English, mathematics and science emphasizes projectbased learning, higher-order thinking strategies, and hands-on learning. Program goals are to develop learners who are: · Confident in working with information and ideas – their own and those of others. · Responsible for themselves, responsive to and respectful of others. · Innovative and equipped for new and future challenges. · Engaged intellectually and socially, ready to make a difference.
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Cambridge International Examinations is the world’s largest provider of international education programs and qualifications for 5- to 19-year-olds. It is part of the University of Cambridge, one of the world’s top universities, known for excellence in education. Cambridge programs and qualifications are taught in more than 9000 schools in over 160 countries. Interested middle-school students and parents are invited to learn more about the program and pick up an application at the January 11 meeting. For more information, contact Toni Ann Schadler, Coatimundi Middle School, 520-375-8812 or Deanna Bazzanella, Calabasas PreK-8 School, 520-375-8513.
Richard McPherson Named National Safety Educator of the Year Richard McPherson, Rio Rico High School CTE Agriculture Science Teacher, was awarded the 2017 CareerSafe National Safety Educator of the Year award at the recent Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) CareerTech Vision Conference in Nashville, TN. The award recognizes exceptional educators who have dedicated their time to prepare students for the future, and helped students recognize and mitigate workplace hazards in their chosen careers. McPherson received $5,000 for use in his classroom.
According to McPherson, safety is a major component of his hands-on curriculum that includes Introduction to Agriculture, Applied Biological Systems, Plant Science and Advanced Plant Sciences. During his nine years of teaching, he has logged more than 18,000 hours of accident-free direct work experience with his students.
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“If the students aren’t safe here, it can totally impact their entire future,” McPherson said. “Safety gives them a future, and they’re more likely to get employed if they come in with some safety knowledge, training and attitudes.” “Each year, Mr. McPherson elevates our Ag Ed Program to new heights by adding what eventually become award-winning programs," said RRHS Principal Shelly Vroegh. "The common thread throughout is safety, his number one priority. We're fortunate to have such a phenomenal teacher."
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