Teacher TRAC Program Celebrates 33 New Graduates

Cerritos College's Teacher TRAC (Training Academy) program honored 33 Teacher TRAC program graduates on Thursday, May 10 as the students moved closer to gaining a bachelor's degree and teaching credential from California State University Long Beach.

Honoring Teacher TRAC students at the recognition ceremony were the Cerritos College Board of Trustees; senior members of Cerritos College administration; Sue Parsons, director of Teacher TRAC, Dr. Jean Houck, dean of the College of Education at California State University, Long Beach; Teacher TRAC leadership team and faculty members; and friends and family of the students. Each graduate received a certificate and a commemorative golden apple in recognition of their completion of the first leg of the Teacher TRAC program.

Graduates from the program included Olivia Arias, Cynthia Barahona, Audra Brewster, Patricia Buchanan, Javier Caldera, Diana Carrera, Robert Ceja, Tara Champlin, Wendy Correa, Alpha DeAsis, Claudia Fierro, Sendy Galvan, Nicole Gardner, Janelle Generosa, Gabriela Gonzalez, Raul Gonzalez, Angelica Guevara, Laura Hernandez, Lisa Hignite, Gabriela Luna, Francisco Martinez, Erika Morales, Yesenia Nieto, Denise Norris, Christene Raines, Judy Ramirez, Jhonathan Ramos, Gabriela Romero, Adriana Rosas, Vicky Samaniego, Kimberly Sampson, Mark Shimazu and Keith Tolentino.

Scholarship awards were also presented during the event. Patricia Buchanan received a $1,000 Fred Gaskin scholarship that includes a $1,000 match from CSULB; Laura Hernandez received the Esther Espinoza Scholarship in the amount of $1,000 with a $1,000 match from the Cerritos College Foundation; Diana Carrera, Erika Morales and Yesenia Nieto each received an Eruditio Scholarship for $500 each; and Mark Shimazu received the D. Franklin Wright Mathematics Scholarship for $2,500.

Irma Jimenez, a Teacher TRAC alumna from the class of 2003, provided closing remarks and encouraged the class of 2007 to continue to be faithful in their studies and to hold high hopes for their careers in education.

Cerritos College's Teacher TRAC program offers many services, programs, and pathways for students interested in teaching K-12. For students interested in becoming an elementary school teacher, Teacher TRAC's flagship program is a partnership with California State University Long Beach. As a student in the integrated, standards-based Teacher TRAC / CSULB program, students can earn their bachelor's degree and multiple subject teaching credentials and complete their student teaching within four years. For more information about the program, visit http://www.teachertrac.com/.