TULARE COUNTY – In the latest edition of the “Children First” special, ABC30 highlighted “Standout Students” from across the Central Valley. And two of the stories featured come right out of Tulare County.
Dulce Soto-Sanchez, a recent graduate of Monache High School, represents Porterville in the special. She came to the United States from Mexico when she was 12 and did not speak any English. Soto-Sanchez used Google translate, academic support and the help of her friends to learn English and do her homework throughout high school. According to the “Standout Students” special, Soto-Sanchez graduated in the top 10% of her class at Monache High School this past spring.
Along with strong academics, Soto-Sanchez graduated near the top of Monache’s Manufacturing and Construction Technology Academy. The ABC30 special demonstrated her woodwork through the years including a box, a clock, a night stand and her senior project, a vanity.
Despite being accepted into UC Merced, University of Arizona and other colleges, Soto-Sanchez has decided to attend College of the Sequoias for the first two years of her studies. Because she enjoys working with her hands, ABC30 reports that Soto-Sanchez plans to be a civil engineer.
Also from Tulare County, the special highlighted students from Monson-Sultana School. These students participated in the annual Step Up Youth Challenge and created a project to support farmworkers, connecting them with food, healthcare resources and more.
To gain a better understanding of what farmworkers do, the team went to a Golden Star Citrus Packing House and got to work. In the ABC30 special, the students were seen packing lemon bags by hand, making boxes and then packing the lemon bags into the boxes.
