January Student & Educator of the Month Winners

The Lakers are proud to announce the January 2010 Student and Educator of the Month winners! This month’s student winners: Sky David and Peyton McMillan; teachers: Heidi Hubbard and Luis Lainez and principals: Cassandra Willis and Olga McCullough, demonstrate an outstanding commitment to academia, athletics, and community outreach.

Sky David is an 8th grader at Vanguard Learning Center. Sky excels academically with a 4.3 grade point average. She is also a leader at school, where she has volunteered with the Ladies and Gents afterschool club.

Peyton McMillan is a 1st grader at Sierra Madre Elementary School. Peyton is a great student who is also involved in charity work. He has organized lemonade sales and participated in 5K Jog-A-Thons to raise money for sickle cell anemia.

Heidi Hubbard is a teacher at Garden Hill Elementary. Ms. Hubbard is praised by her fellow teachers and principal for the extra attention that she gives to her most needy students, often spending time with them outside of school.

Luis Lainez is a teacher at Garfield High School. Mr. Lainez has been an exceptional drafting technology teacher for the last 27 years. He encourages his students to develop their talents and they have responded by winning the LA County Fair, Architecture and Drafting Contest every year since 1999.

Cassandra Willis is a principal of Home Gardens Elementary School. Ms. Willis’ teachers credit her with transforming the school with her energy and implementation of the No Excuses University program, which encourages students to think of college as an expectation, not just a possibility.

Olga McCullough is a principal of Kellogg Polytechnic Elementary. Ms. McCullough inspires both teachers and students with her passion for youth literacy. She has coordinated Kellogg’s participation in the Lakers “Read To Achieve” Reading Challenge with school-wide reading assemblies and a creative rewards program. Each Student and Educator of the Month winner was invited to the home game on January 10th against the Milwaukee Bucks. They were honored during a halftime presentation where they received a plaque and a $50 gift certificate to Staples. The nominations for the January Student and Educator of the Month were submitted by principals and teachers of each school based on exemplary teaching efforts, academic achievement or extracurricular activities.