Elk Grove High School Visits University of California, Berkeley; Meets California State Senators and Irish Mayor

The following is a news release from the Elk Grove Unified School District: 

On October 16, senior students in Elk Grove High School’s Technology and Digital Arts (TDA) Academy toured the Adobe West Building in downtown San Jose; California State University, San Jose and the University of California, Berkeley. 

While exploring the famous Sproul Hall Plaza at UC Berkeley – led by UC Berkeley senior Kyler Hamilton – TDA Academy students ran into California State Senators Loni Hancock and Larry Levin accompanied by Mayor Tom Bates of Berkeley and Lord Mayor Councillor Máirtín Ó Muilleoir of Belfast, Ireland.

Councillor Ó Muilleoir was visiting the historic plaza because of the connection with Ireland and spoke to the group about the importance of the steps and how the protests of the 60’s and 70’s inspired social and political change in Ireland as well.  Senator Hancock proceeded to thank the group of seniors for their hard work and dedication to education. She also expressed how strongly she felt about academies and how they helped students on their path to success. Hancock has introduced legislation that increases the size of school-to-career programs in California high schools and is a known advocate for the expansion of academy funding.

Quotes from Elk Grove High School TDA seniors:

"Seeing UC Berkeley made everything worth it- Meeting Senator Hancock and seeing Alumnus Kyler's progress inspires me to be great." - Jenny Giao

“One thing that inspired me from the trip was Kyler explained how you could transfer from a junior college to a university. Some people don't have the grades to go straight to a university, so it gives them hope.” - Faith Chapman

"At first, I was a little anxious to go to UC Berkeley, because I knew with my grades I would never be accepted. However I learned its more than grades, going there, learning about the history, and meeting Senator Hancock showed me that I can still be the best if I wanted to, and motivated me to apply to colleges I wouldn’t have last week." - Julia Stone

“The one thing that inspired me the most on this trip was seeing everything in the Adobe buildings and the way everything was set up. It made me think about possibly being interested in interior design or something along those lines in the future.” - Cassidy Shoop

"The greatest part of the field trip was being able to see the way college students live - It made me more excited to be a part of that experience." - Allison Garcia

"One thing that inspired me was walking through Adobe seeing different types of artwork displayed everywhere, but the one thing that hit me the most was the wall Adobe made up of post-it notes. Looking at the notes, reading them, seeing that all the employees give one another support and positive reinforcement to everyone. The atmosphere was welcome giving me a feel that my ideas matter and that I too can achieve what I dream and believe." - Gabrielle Hollow Horn Bear