Let Us Celebrate
The spring season signifies a time of rebirth as we come out from the darker days of winter. This spring in particular, this sense of rebirth feels even greater than usual as our lives slowly begin to return to normal after a year of darkness during this pandemic. It is, in a very real sense, a time of healing and reawakening for all of us as more and more of us receive vaccinations, as businesses begin to reopen, and as there are more opportunities for us to reconnect with loved ones in person once again. This all brings cause for joy even while we remain cautiously optimistic as we take baby steps back into what seems now like our former lives.
I am thrilled that we are at a point at which all of our graduates – from both 2020 and 2021 – can don their caps and gowns and walk across a stage to receive their diplomas live and in person, with loved ones seated in the same space, to celebrate their amazing accomplishment in receiving a coveted degree from the University of Southern California. I am incredibly proud of all of our graduating Trojans who persevered during these past three unprecedented semesters, and who can now feel the sun on their face at the LA Coliseum as they hold their diplomas in hand.
We, at JEP, also have a great many student staff and partners that we honored and celebrated on April 21 st at our annual Community Service Awards Event which was presented virtually this year. Three of our student staff were recognized:
- Tania Apshankar, a USC sophomore and our ReadersPLUS Assistant Coordinator for Vermont Elementary School received one of two Grace Ford Salvatori Scholarship Awards.
- Daniela Cruz, our 32 nd Street ReadersPLUS Coordinator for the past two years, graduating this May with a progressive degree in Global Health after committing eight semesters to a variety of JEP programs, received the 2021 Barbara Seaver Gardner Award in honor of JEP’s founder and first executive director.
- Cecilia Nguyen, a graduating senior who committed seven semesters with JEP and ReadersPlus (one semester abroad), received the highest student honor of the night with the Extraordinary Community Service Award.
In addition to our incredible students, we have dedicated and generous program partners who
were also recognized at the event:
- Our USC Financial Aid Office was awarded the Dornsife Award for Exceptional Service for their commitment to supporting community federal work-study students – more than 50 USC ReadersPLUS students alone each semester! – who earn and grow through serving young learners in our community schools.
- The Ella Fitzgerald Charitable Foundation who in a typical year donates approximately 2000 books to our seven partner schools and their students, in this COVID year donated nearly 8000 books as well as materials such as crayons and pencils, to a grand total of nearly $15,000 in-kind donations to our program.
Clearly, this pandemic did not keep us down. Our students and program partners rose to the occasion and, in many ways, did more than ever before. The dark year is behind is and, while things are slowly beginning to bloom again, they are blooming. There are brighter days ahead for all of us, and we all made it through together. Let’s celebrate all that we have accomplished and allow more love, light and hope to return to our world in the months to come.
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