Join Arms Around Our Kids Gatherings Tomorrow
PTA's throughout Pasadena Unified School District have joined together in an effort called Give Us Tomorrow and invite parents and community members to take part in Arms Around Our Kids, a public declaration that schools must be safe places for our children to learn and our teachers to teach.

Tomorrow morning, Friday, March 9, a few minutes after the start of each school’s day, parents and community members will link arms around the perimeter of each school to demonstrate our commitment to the physical and emotional safety of kids throughout our community. Please join in this peaceful action, and in calling our leaders to account for policy and budget choices that put our children’s and their teachers’ lives at risk.

Give Us Tomorrow (GU2M) is a grassroots effort started by parents and community members who want to address gun violence affecting children in our society.
By linking arms around our community’s schools while they are in session on Arms Around Our Kids day, we signal to our students, teachers, school employees and the community that we are not going to let harm come to them, and that we must all work together for solutions.

The Vision | The children of Pasadena, Altadena and Sierra Madre all grow up in a safe, stable,
                        and supportive environment that prepares them for success in school and life.
Celebrate Women's History Month
The month of March is Women's History Month, an annual declared month that highlights the contributions of women to events in history and contemporary society.
The Pasadena Unified School District has passed a resolution declaring March as Women’s History Month. The Altadena Education Committee and Eliot Arts Magnet Academy invite you to join them for a celebration of Women’s History, the Women’s Movement, and Women’s Liberation on Wednesday March 28, 2018 from 5:00 – 8:00 PM at the Carl D. Roeder Auditorium 2184 N. Lake Avenue, Altadena. Special Guest Panelists will include U.S. Representative Judy Chu, State Senator Anthony Portantino, Assemblymember Chris Holden, LA County Supervisor Kathryn Barger, Pasadena Mayor Terry Tornek, PUSD Superintendent Dr. Brian McDonald, and PUSD Assistant Superintendent Dr. Marisa Sarian.

For more information, visit Eliot’s Facebook page or contact the Chair of Education Committee, Jennifer Lee, Jennifer.Lee@AltadenaTownCouncil.Org.

Collaborate Helps Send Washington STEAM Kids to Camp
One day before their planned departure, more than 65 6th grade students at Washington STEAM Magnet Academy received a check for $4,500 that completed paying the bill for their week-long attendance at Lake Arrowhead Science Camp in the local mountains.

The donation came about through connections made when Collaborate PASadena offered its Neighborhood Leadership Institute in the Fall. As part of the experience, participants formed groups that undertook community projects. Bill Creim, a local attorney and active member of the Pasadena Educational Foundation, and his group focused their efforts on the PUSD, offering help to the schools in numerous ways, both during the Fall and extending into the new year. One such offering is a dance class elective at both Washington and John Muir High School, to begin later in the Spring for which the group not only planned all logistics, but also funded for the students at those schools. To date, the contributions the group has put toward the PUSD total more than $15,000.

“When we learned there was a need for funding Science Camp, I spoke with members of our Collaborate PASadena group. Jenny Jakubiak and Sandy Roffman felt strongly that we should find a way to meet this need, so we put our heads together and found a donor who stepped up and wrote the check. Seeing the happiness on the students’ faces was great! They can all leave for camp knowing that the community cares deeply about them,” said Bill Creim.

Shannon Malone, Principal at Washington STEAM, expressed her appreciation to Creim’s group and Collaborate PASadena for pulling it all together during a brief check-presentation ceremony with the students at the school. “It is so important for our students to understand the support they have in our community, now more than ever.” Indeed, “now more than ever” is how Collaborate PASadena frames its current work of gathering people and organizations together to help our schools, and the children and families of Pasadena, Altadena and Sierra Madre.
Speaking of celebrating great women...

Mary Donnelly-Crocker, Executive Director of Young & Healthy, is one of Pasadena's true treasures, having served children and families for more than 38 years!

Mary received both her B.A. and M.A. in Child Development at CSULA. She began her career at Huntington Memorial Hospital where, for 10 years, she served as a Child Life Specialist. She has led Young & Healthy -- a nationally recognized program that connects low-income uninsured children with volunteer doctors who will provide them care at NO COST -- for nearly 30 years. She has been a local leader in the implementation of the Affordable Care Act -- helping community partners enroll over 15,000 people into health insurance in the last two years. Young & Healthy has received numerous awards and recognitions, both nationally and locally. In 2015, Young & Healthy was named Pasadena’s BEST NONPROFIT. Young & Healthy is currently embarking on a program, bringing new research and best practices around the concepts of Trauma Informed Care.
"I hope that my work increases equity and levels the playing field for children and families who otherwise lack access to health care. I think of Young & Healthy work as helping to make the world a little more just."

Mary also serves on Collaborate PASadena's Leadership Council, and is a strong proponent of collaboration, often sharing that it is written into the strategic plan and DNA of Young & Healthy.

Mary's life-long passion has been helping children and their families. And she is most proud to be the parent to one great nephew, three adult children...and if that wasn’t happy enough -- Mary is grandma to the "cutest toddler in the world"!

Mary is a powerhouse who also has a wonderful sense of humor and great compassion for others. We all thank her for her many -- many -- contributions to our city's children and families!
Come Help Build a Playground!
Collaborate's Supportive Communities Work Group is involved with a project in the Harkness Avenue area of Pasadena, to build a playground for local children. Billed as "an incredible community-wide initiative," the project is a partnership  partnership with Pasadena Foursquare, Kompan and KaBOOM! (the national nonprofit dedicated to building playgrounds for children in under-resourced areas). A large group of children were recently invited to give input for their "dream playground" and more than 150 community members will help with the installation. "Build Day" is April 12, and anyone interested in helping out, or donating, can register at www.wallysplayground.com. Click here for a flier in English and Spanish. Click here for additional details about the project.
Another Great Read Across Pasadena For the third year in a row, on March 2nd Read Across Pasadena successfully brought community members into our schools to read to children. The program began in conjunction with the Pasadena Educational Foundation's realtor initiative, led by Dawn O'Keeffe and local realtor, Carrie Benuska, and coordinated by Collaborate PASadena and PUSD staff members Linda Machida, Tina Renzullo and Hilda Ramirez, and Laura Zachar of Reading Partners. PEF's Monica Lopez and Alison Pultz helped coordinate over 80 guest reader visits this year. Getting onto our campuses is a wonderful way to see the great things happening in our local schools. Tours are coordinated by the Pasadena Education Network. Click here for more information.
News and Events
Click here to find the latest news and events on the Collaborate PASadena website! We happily post partner news and events on our site and on our Facebook page and Instagram. Submit to elizabeth@collpas.org .
Partner Praise
Pasadena's Office of the Young Child coordinator, Lila Guirguis, will be leaving her post this month, but the great work of the Council for the Young Child continues on. We are all grateful to Lila for her hard work in launching the office. The important work of the Council continues with four key initiatives: Early Childhood Hubs development; Early Development Instrument (EDI) Community Conversations; Wellness Policy 0-5; and Early Childhood Public Education Campaign. Click here for more information.
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v. to make stronger; enlarge; extend