Think Together Radiates with Honor!
Think Together’s Colton Joint Unified School District Partnership with Dhasa Care Foundation Is a Crowd Favorite
Think Together’s Colton Joint Unified School District has been in the limelight as they develop different ways to improve student environment. After the district’s recent partnership with the Dhasa Care Foundation, students from four Colton Joint Unified School District sites gathered at Joe Baca Middle School to showcase their skills and talent. Dhasa’s mission is to enhance the lives of students through music and art, providing them with a social environment that will build social skills, new relationships, and much more. Thank you to Fontana Herald News for highlighting the work done by the Dhasa Care Foundation and Colton Joint Unified School District!
Colton City News and IE Community News also joined in on the celebration of Think Together’s 2024 Champion of Change Award recipient Colton Joint Unified School District. Think Together’s 14-year partnership with this district has been nothing short of impactful as they continue enhancing student lives through educational opportunities.
Think Together Program Leader Patricia Cetnarowski Receives Site Lead Award at 2024 Celebrating ExL Champions Awards
The celebration continues as one of Think Together’s program leaders, Patricia Cetnarowski, receives the Site Lead Award at the 2024 Celebrating ExL Champions Awards. Patricia has been working as an educator for over 30 years. Through her work at Dollahan Elementary School in the Rialto Unified School district, she has been able to improve program quality, which has shown through her ability to provide students with exceptional support.
Congratulations, Patricia!
Think Together Shines at the LA Business Journal: 2024 Nonprofit & Corporate Citizenship Awards
This May, Think Together was recognized at the 2024 Nonprofit & Corporate Citizenship Awards in four categories.
Think Together’s Southeast Los Angeles team, led by General Manager Lesley Martin, was honored as a finalist for the 2024 Nonprofit Team of the Year Award. The staff culture within this team has encouraged them to go above and beyond for Think Together students, fostering strong relationships with school and corporate foundation partners like The Boeing Company and LA Dodgers Foundation. In Summer 2023, this team provided nearly 150 second-grade students across four schools in Compton Unified and Lynwood Unified School Districts the opportunity to participate in readings by the Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw, former pitcher Dennis Powell and former outfielder Al Ferrara.
Boeing was also recognized as a nominee for the 2024 Outstanding Collaboration Between a Business and a Nonprofit. Boeing has provided Think Together’s Southeast Los Angeles and Orange County schools with STEM, coding and robotics program curriculum and resources. Over its five-year partnership with Boeing, Think Together has served more than 12,000 students across 61 K-12 schools. During the 2023-2024 school year, this equated to 3,660 students served with lesson plans, supplies and equipment needed to explore STEM subjects.
Last but not least, Think Together’s Chief Operating Officer Tia Dwyer was named a finalist for the 2024 Nonprofit Executive of the Year Award. Tia’s ability to lead with excellence for over 17 years has encouraged prosperity across all Think Together. Through her knowledge and strategic vision, Tia has established a 50-person talent acquisition team, hiring over 5,000 people this last year.
Congratulations to all the finalists and nominees!
CORRECTION: BOOST 2024 Fuels Change and Ignites Excellence of Afterschool Professionals
In our last Think in the News, we shared the amazing Think Together staff that took part in the 2024 BOOST conference. However, we missed the opportunity to share two Think Together partners who also offered valuable knowledge on how to improve expanded learning for all students. With that, we’d like to acknowledge the following presenters:
College and Career Success for All: Partnering with AVID
- Juan Vasquez Varela, Director of Student Impact
- Dr. Trent Mohrbutter
Expanding Student and Self-Awareness and Career Exposure with Find Your Grind
- Eric Sarb, Account Executive
- Erika Somogyi, Customer Success Manager
Through their presentations, AVID and Find Your Grind offered insightful information to numerous in and out-of-school time professionals who are seeking different methods to establish an environment where every student can excel.
This month has been filled with tremendous accomplishments worth acknowledging. As Think Together continues to grow, the ability to change the odds becomes more compelling as we work towards expanding our reach to students across California.
