Saturday, April 01, 2006

FUHS DEBATE COACH SAL TINAJERO IS HONORED

To read a news article printed in the Orange County Register on April 1, 2006 about the FUHS debate coach, click on "Comments" below.

posted by Connie @ 4:09 PM   1 Comments

1 Comments:

At 4:19 PM , Blogger Connie said...

Saturday, April 1, 2006
Confidence builder
Fullerton educator named Hispanic Magazine's Teacher of the Year says above all students need self-assurance.
By FERMIN LEAL
The Orange County Register

FULLERTON – For Fullerton Union High teacher Sal Tinajero, the difference between a student who just does well and one who flourishes is simply confidence. So as coach of the school's speech and debate team, Tinajero above all has tried to teach his students to believe in themselves. "Students not only need to learn to read and write," said Tinajero, 34, a Santa Ana resident. "They need a strong self-assurance to lead them to college and beyond."

Since he began at the school five years ago, virtually all of his debate students have gone on to college, many earning full scholarships to prominent universities throughout the country. And under his tutelage, the speech and debate team ranks as the defending Orange County champion and one of the state's top programs.

That's why Hispanic Magazine named Tinajero its 2005 National Teacher of the Year. Tinajero will travel to Washington, D.C., on Thursday for a ceremony in his honor, and a tour of the White House with first lady Laura Bush. Tinajero was nominated for the award by parents at the school. U.S. Rep. Loretta Sanchez, D-Garden Grove, Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido and several other local politicians sent letters of support. "This is an incredible honor for someone to say I am one of the best teachers," said Tinajero, who is also a Santa Ana Unified School District board member. "I never had a clue this was coming." He beat out more than 100 finalists from across the country for the award, which is co-sponsored by the Nordstrom department-store chain.

"There is no other person in my mind who deserves this more," said Manny Gonzales, a parent with one current and one former student in Tinajero's program. "He should not only be the teacher of the year, he should be the teacher of the decade. "Gonzales credits Tinajero with turning his shy, introverted daughter Krystyn into a well-spoken, self-assured student. Krystyn is a freshman at Bradley University in Peoria, Ill., one of the country's top colleges for speech and debate. "Krystyn would not be where she is today without Mr. Tinajero's help," Gonzales said. "It's incredible how she grew as a person in the time that he worked with her. But he does this for all his students, not just a select few."

Tinajero often contacts universities on behalf of his students and persuades recruiters to visit competitions in which his students compete." Getting students into college is definitely his first priority," said Bronte Nelson, a sophomore in Tinajero's program. "When students say they want to go to college, but it cost too much money, Mr. T tells them not to worry because he will find them a scholarship."
Nelson said Tinajero works well with students because he seems more like a friend and not a teacher. "He still demands a sense of respect, but in return, he also respects our ideas," she said.
Tinajero grew up in Santa Ana. As a student at Saddleback High, he always knew he wanted to go to college, something his Mexican immigrant parents strongly promoted. After college, he returned to Santa Ana to teach. At Lathrop Intermediate, one of the county's poorest-performing schools, he started a speech and debate team in an effort to give students that self-confidence. He was hired at Fullerton Union High in the 2001-02 school year to resurrect the school's once-fabled speech and debate program, which had trained former President Richard Nixon.

Today, parents, teachers and students say the program is better than ever, not only because of all the trophies the team brings in, but also because of the success its students achieve after they graduate. "This is all because of Mr. Tinajero," Nelson said. "If anyone could describe a perfect teacher, it would be him."



CONTACT US: fleal@ocregister.com

 

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