U-46 recognizes volunteers for service to students
Five Bartlett High School students have been named Elgin Area School District U-46's 2019 Volunteers of the Year.
The district recognized several volunteers who donated their time and talents during its annual Volunteer Reception Thursday.
Students Rohan Shah, Rushi Patel, Harsh Chheda, Aayush Patel and Sareena Shah - founding members of the Mentors For Tomorrow after-school program for elementary and middle school students - earned the recognition for offering homework help, STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) projects and enriching activities at Spring Trail Elementary School in Carol Stream, and Sycamore Trails Elementary School and Eastview Middle School, both in Bartlett.
Shah, 17, the group's president, started the program to instill a love for learning in younger students and give back to the district. People who have role models are more involved in their education, said Shah, a senior who hopes to pursue a career in medicine.
Shah and some of his peers in Bartlett High's Science, Engineering and Technology Academy began visiting the after-school SAFE program at Spring Trail in 2016 during their freshman year.
The program later expanded to Sycamore Trails, and to Eastview this school year. It now involves 32 Bartlett High student mentors - freshmen through seniors - who visit the schools in smaller groups for two hours weekly, engaging students in hands-on activities, providing tutoring in math and other subjects, and being positive role models. Group members have served an estimated 80 to 100 students overall.
The program's success has spurred the group to try and replicate it at other U-46 schools.
"Rohan, Rushi, Harsh, Aayush and Sareena have not only started a program that impacts students in several schools but they have created a blueprint for their peers to extend this initiative throughout the district," U-46 CEO Tony Sanders said. "We know that students can play a major role in inspiring their peers toward academic success."
The district also presented its third annual Helping Hands Award recognizing volunteerism at the school level. Harriet Kunesh, Carmein Blasucci and Janet Knupp, who volunteer at Ontarioville Elementary School in Hanover Park, were selected for the 2019 Helping Hands Award from among 13 nominees.
Kunesh, Blasucci and Knupp, members of Poplar Creek Church in Bartlett, have worked on Thanksgiving food drives for at-risk families, organized a Christmas Mart to support families in need, donated playground equipment and presented gift cards to dedicated teachers. They participated in the school's annual school supplies collection, helped distribute food and snacks to students, and distributed homegrown vegetables to Ontarioville families.
Knupp also mentored a group of boys, while Blasucci and Kunesh have been mentoring a group of sixth-grade girls through a local Girl Scout troop.
Members of the Citizens' Advisory Council, the U-46 Educational Foundation Board, the African American and Bilingual Parent Advisory Councils, and the School Safety Advisory Task Force were among the volunteer groups recognized for consistently supporting student learning, academic success, and family engagement.