Mini-Grants for Teachers for Glendora Public Schools

On February 2nd, 2024, the Rotary Club of Glendora delivered their 2024 Glendora Rotary “Mini-Grants for Teachers” awards to commendable educators from Glendora and Charter Oak Unified School Districts.

Club meeting big check presentation pictures: Rotarian Monica Garcia, Vice President of Glendora School Board; Jane Bock, Rotary Club President; Rotarian Jennifer Prince, Ed.D., Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services; and Joe Cina, Mini-Grant Chair and Rotary Club Treasurer.

Glendora Rotary’s involvement in the “Mini-Grants for Teachers” initiative dates to 1984, initiated by the late William “Bill” Bird. This annual project has been dedicated to preserving Bill’s memory within the Rotary Club of Glendora. It remains a cornerstone of the club’s fundraising efforts. The 2024 campaign, which commenced in October, allocated 35 grants to 44 teachers, totaling $12,840.00, to benefit Glendora’s educators and their students.

This year, Glendora Rotarians rallied support from our club members, local businesses, corporate sponsors, and community members to contribute to the cause. Since the “Mini-Grants for Teachers” program in 1984, the Rotary Club of Glendora has successfully raised over $500,000.00 to support the educational endeavors of Glendora’s dedicated teachers. Recipients of this year’s 35 awards were as follows:

From Charter Oak Unified School District:
Washington Elementary:
“Read and Imagine” by Rima Gennaoui & Stella Urena, “Multi-sensory Expanding Expression Tool Kit” by Camille Smiley, “STEM building stations” by Amy Sanchez

Willow Elementary: “Sensory Items” by Holly Waters, “Beginning the School Day with a Soft Start” by Rebecca Valdez, “Tech Venture, Igniting Creativity in Every Byte” by Kelly Eisenbise & Allison Huckins, “Fine Motor & Sensory Supports” by Purvi Shah, “Imaginative Play Couches” by Monica Hernandez

From Glendora Unified School District:
La Fetra Elementary: “Supplemental Material” by Veronica Dionne, “Making Math Fun!!” by Patricia Allaf, “Circuit Board STEM Science” by Michele Perez, “STEAM of Dreams – If They Build It…. They Will Learn” by Kim Kuehfuss & Stacy Ryan

Sellers Elementary: “Coding with TK” by Kaitlin Gurley & Hollie Rush.

Stanton Elementary: “Secret Stories for Success” by Beth Gorski, “Student Focus Set” by Sara Peckham, “Imagination Station” by Wendy Hopkins, “Cracking the Letter Sound Code with Secret Stories” by Colleen Kausrud, “STEM: Let your imagination Soar!” by Cristina Hernandez, “Protect your HeART” by Indu Afandalor, “Reading To New Heights” by Cristina Cullen, “Eagle Time Reading Groups” by Edgar Gomez, “Eagle Time Literacy Circles” by Juliette Aguirre, “Fine Motor Frenzy” by Armi Juarez, “Eagle Time comprehension group” by Christina Prouty, “Secret Stories: Cracking the Reading Code” by Diane Kolby, “Find your Spot” by Amy Estrada, “Putting the Fun in Fundations” by Tiffiny Ramerez

Sandburg Middle School: “American History Day” by Kristy Carriga, Rich Olivas, & Ryan Evans, “Kids Making History” by Carolyn Scott-Patterson and Katherine Milhous,

Glendora High School: “Scientific Calculators for My Chemistry Students” by Rana El Yousef, “Food Chemistry” by Janel Coats, “Movable Workstations” by Thom Cruz and Dave Andrecht, “Mandarin and Biology” by Jingying Yu, “Wrestling With History,” Creating Historical Argument” by Patrick Hart, “Glendora High School-Wide Wellness and Mental Health Advocacy” by Brittany Wooldridge & Joy Dunn.

The Rotary Club of Glendora extends its heartfelt appreciation to the administration of the Charter Oak and Glendora Unified School Districts for their invaluable support this year. We would also like to thank our generous individual and corporate donors Sheryl Hill, Kathleen Garvey, Crestwood Communities, Athens Services Inc., Gary Clifford, Antoine Sayegh, Gene Morrill, Pam & Dwight Richards, Bob Kuhn, Authentic Escrow, Citrus Edge Realty Inc., Kirk Warner Insurance Agency, Maria & James Kypreos, Daniel & Lori Boyer, Gary & Kathy Boyer, Jane & Dennis Bock, Craig Henderson, Rudy & Susanne Hayek, Steve Garett, Angela Gee, Guadalupe Corder, Joe Babineau, Lisa Frank, Rose L. Wentz, Gerald & Sherry Heinrich, and Art and Sarah Ludwick.

We’d also like to thank our memorial donors Aracely Mora, Bob Verhoef, Carol Seward, Carolyn Breeden, Craig Henderson, Jim Nakano, Ron White, Margaret Magallon, and Steven Bautista for donating in memory of Rotarian Thom Hill. Also, Jim Nakano for donating in memory of Diane Norman, Rotarian Mike Bevilaqua, and Beverly Colley. Their unwavering support has made this year’s program a reality.
Also, a big thank you to this year’s committee Mini-Grant Chair Joe Cina, Rotarians Jane Bock, Club President, and Youth Chair Lisa Frank.

A little about the Glendora Rotary Club:
The Rotary Club of Glendora lives by the motto “Service Above Self,” dedicating itself to making a positive impact in both our local community and on a global scale. Our primary mission is to serve the community, and we are committed to this goal. We gather every 1st, 2nd, and 4th Tuesday at 8:00 AM at The Village Eatery, located at 221 N. Glendora Ave., Glendora, CA 91741. If you want to learn more about us, please consider joining us for breakfast or visiting our website at RotaryofGlendora.org.

To donate to this year’s fundraiser, please visit the link below or send a check to:

Glendora Rotary Charities
PO Box 776
Glendora, CA 91740



The idea for this annual Rotary project was to provide modest grants to teachers to enhance and improve the teaching process. Among other things, faculty members use these grants to secure classroom materials, link curriculum among varying disciplines, purchase supplementary reference books, and fund educational field trips or special lectures.

The best part is that over three-plus decades Mini-Grants have assisted hundreds of teachers in providing teaching aids for thousands of students!

The members of the Glendora Rotary Club would be grateful that you, too, “found a need to fill!”

The Program

Mini-Grants for Teachers Program – (October-January) For more than 40 years, the Club has been enhancing the educational experiences of K-12 students in the City of Glendora by sponsoring Mini-Grants for Teachers.  The committee kicks off the program at the first club meeting in October. Teachers (usually three) who earned grants from the previous academic year are invited to explain how their grants made a difference in the classroom. The subsequent grants are juried by club members and school district personnel.  Grants are awarded in January at a location to be determined.