Ortiz, Phan Among Students of the Month for February

From left: Sally Myers, Founder; Dr. Jonathan Greenberg, Superintendent, Perris Union High School District; Dorothy Wolons, CEO, Menifee Valley Chamber of Commerce; Alma Martinez, CEO, Perris Valley Chamber of Commerce; Kimberly Cherry, Perris High School; Karla Ortiz, Heritage High School; Shanice Haynes, Perris Lake High School; Julie Phan, Paloma Valley High School; Mayor Daryl Busch, City of Perris; Mayor Scott Mann, City of Menifee; Mayor Pro Tem Mark Yarbrough, City of Perris.

The Menifee Valley and Perris Valley Chambers of Commerce recently honored the local high school Students of the Month for February.

The students and their families attended a luncheon sponsored by the chambers, along with local businesses and organizations. Principals and teachers from each high school shared stories about the students and they each received certificates of recognition, numerous gifts, congratulations and encouragement from local, county, state and federal dignitaries.

Heritage High School’s Karla Ortiz is February was one of those honored. According to Principal Julie Zierold, Karla’s dedication to academics is clearly proven by her 4.4 GPA. Zierold also said that Karla has a heart to help others as she is planning to travel to the Dominican Republic to help the poor there.

Karla shared that she is willing to take challenges in her life and is determined to make her own future. She plans to attend Harvard University and obtain her law degree, then come back and help other minorities to obtain higher education.

Paloma Valley High School’s Student of the Month is Julie Phan. According to Principal Don Williamson, Julie is academically driven and loves to give back to others. She is involved in a number of school organizations, including the National Honors Society, Robotics, WASC, and other volunteer programs.

Julie admitted she had some issues when she first started high school. However, after joining cross country and track, she learned many things. One of those is that in order to love yourself, you have to accept yourself. Julie plans to attend UC Irvine or UC San Diego to major in bio medical engineering to work in the field of prosthetics.

Perris High School’s Student of the Month is Kimberly Cherry. Kimberly maintains a GPA of over 4.0 while taking a number of AP courses. Staff and administration have commented that Kimberly is a great all-around student who is involved in several organizations and continually helps her peers to do better.

Kimberly stated that one thing she has learned throughout high school is that she can’t do everything herself, and it’s OK to ask for help. She plans to attend UC San Diego and major in bio chemistry to become an emergency medical physician.

Shanice Haynes is Perris Lake High School’s Student of the Month. According to Assistant Principal Talisa Sullivan, she is an example of an amazing individual who chose to make good decisions.

Shanice shared that she looked down upon herself and was very shy. But after arriving at Perris Lake, she started to overcome some of her issues and took initiatives to ask for help and be more involved in her education. She is now thriving and plans to attend college to become a crime scene investigator. She said that she wants to help others who have lost loved ones and help bring closure to their lives.

Students are nominated by their teachers and staff at their respective school sites and are chosen for their character, integrity, love of learning, ability to persevere and overcome challenging circumstances, community service, and how they make a difference on their high school campus.

If you wish to learn more about the Student of the Month Program, contact founder Sally Myers at 951-506-8024.