Thank you Pasadena Tournament of Roses and CFP Foundation!
Story courtesy Pasadena Tournament of Roses.
The Pasadena Tournament of Roses Kicks Off Extra Yard for Teachers Week by Honoring Local Pasadena Teacher Cynthia Macias as a Part of the Big Day for Teachers Celebration
Macias will receive a $1,000 Donors Choose gift card to use in her virtual classroom
PASADENA, Calif. – The Pasadena Tournament of Roses(R) along with the CFP Foundation celebrated the Big Day for Teachers today by honoring local Pasadena teacher Cynthia Macias with a surprise visit and a $1,000 Donors Choose gift card to use toward student resources. The Big Day for Teachers is a part of the CFP’s Extra Yard for Teachers Week which celebrates educators across the country.
Ms. Macias, who is a first grade teacher at McKinley School, has been an educator for 14 years. Her Donors Choose gift card will be used toward a “One Love, One Heart” project which will help build her students’ social and emotional skills. She is the lead first grade teacher at McKinley School and has a great working relationship with her fellow teachers and administrators.
Ms. Macias has also done an amazing job at engaging with her classroom during distance learning due to COVID-19. She has incorporated many strategies to connect with her students, using cue cards, hand signals, songs and pop-ups to foster engagement with her class while they learn from home.
Tournament of Roses President Bob Miller presented Ms. Macias with a Donors Choose Gift Card in a surprise visit that also featured staff members from McKinley School.
“We are thrilled to celebrate Ms. Macias’ dedication to her students, their families, and colleagues as a part of the Big Day for Teachers. Education has the ability to open doors, open minds, and change lives. Ms. Macias continues to do that with her hard work and ability to adapt to distance learning in engaging, interactive and fun ways,” said Miller. “We are excited that we can work with the CFP Foundation to celebrate our local teachers as part of the Extra Yard for Teachers Week.”
McKinley School Principal Dr. Merian Stewart and Assistant Principal Charel Bailey also praised Ms. Macias calling her an extraordinary educator.
“Simply put, Ms. Macias understands young children and what motivates them to want to learn,” said Steward and Bailey. “When visiting her virtual class, all students are engaged and excited and pleasantly surprised by a song or a hand gesture she may sing or demonstrate to introduce an activity. The McKinley community is fortunate to have such an awesome educator.”
“Congratulations Ms. Macias!,” said Pasadena Unified School District (PUSD) Superintendent Brian McDonald. “I am grateful to the Tournament of Roses and the CFP Foundation for celebrating the dedication and innovation of our teachers. Especially during the pandemic, educators have truly gone the extra yard for students to engage them in meaning learning.”
The CFP Foundation’s Extra Yard for Teachers Week is an eight-day celebration, from September 12-19, that honors and recognizes great teachers. Throughout the week, the college football community, including universities, conferences, bowl games, and ESPN, goes out of its way to let teachers know they are valued and respected.
