McMinnville School District (MSD)’s Hispanic PTA, the first all-Latino PTA in Oregon, was named an OnPoint Community Builder and awarded $1,000. The winners were recognized at a reception at Meriwether’s restaurant in Portland as part of the Educators of the Year announcement, which was broadcast on Live! At 7 with KGW.
Pictured (from left) Tanya Perez, PTA president; Margarita Del Valle, PTA treasurer; OnPoint President/CEO, Rob Stuart; Esther Sheffield, MSD Migrant program recruiter; and Silvia Ruelas, PTA secretary,
The group was recognized for their ongoing efforts to share information with local Hispanic parents during the Latino Resource Fair in March. The fair was created to connect Latino families, English learners, and migrant families with district schools and community-based resources such as Head Start, the Housing Authority of Yamhill County, Lutheran Community Services, the Oregon Health Authority, Virginia Garcia Clinic, Family and Youth Services, Legal Aid Services of Oregon, Work Source Oregon, the library, fire department, police department, Yamhill County Health Department, Chemeketa Community College, the OSU Extension Service and the OSU-Juntos Program.
The fair offered workshops for Spanish-speaking parents on a variety of topics that were based on the age of their child, such as how to support their students academically, how to access medical services, how to nurture early literacy, how to navigate the road to college, and other health- and education-related topics.
“This group works hard to ensure that all of our students succeed,” said Kristian Frack, EL & Migrant program coordinator for the district. “This award is a true testament to their efforts and success.”
The Hispanic PTA plans to use the OnPoint grant as seed money for a similar resource fair next spring.