The first Tuesday in June was the Park City High School scholarship award ceremony, which preceded graduation day. Students, teachers and counselors had worked for the entire school year to get to these events, and I have proudly been apart of these ceremonies for the last 21 years. The focus o f the Back to our Roots/The Eileen G. Bailey Memorial Scholarship Fund is to assist students whose parents did not attend college. We’ve seen that the support, mentorship and guidance that we have given these students is invaluable to their eventual success. But the process began a long time ago, when these students were just starting their education here in Park City. Our four elementary schools have since the 1980s been at the forefront of assisting these students acclimate to life in a new country where English is their second language. By providing a safe, welcoming  and challenging environment for these students, the Park City School District paved the path for their education and gentrification and helped them become productive, successful members of our American society. This endeavor has been handled well by the Park City School District and its teachers and counselors, and has made the work we do at Back to our Roots so important. As the first gen population has grown in Park City and Summit County and succeeded academically, the Ecker Hill Middle School and the Treasure Mountain Junior High school (now blended into one) have grown to meet the challenge. Teachers like Rebeca Gonzalez, a sixth grade teacher who once was a student in Park City, have become integral leaders in the Latinos in Action program. Her teaching and exemplary professionalism have helped the first generation population thrive and prepare for the rigors of higher education. Counselors Nora Buchanan and Nikko Jensen have nurtured and pushed these students to be ready for high school, and teachers such as Dr. Jacob Jobe and Melanie Moffat have improved the grades, test scores and overall readiness for a future in the post secondary education system. One teacher in particular, Mrs. Anna Williams, has been in the forefront of this uplifting process. I have worked with Mrs. Williams since 2005, and she has guided me as to the needs and capabilities of her LIA students and has been my mentor throughout this Back to our Roots journey. She has raised the bar for her students. I and others in her direct orbit have followed her lead in helping these young people. Bright Futures counselor Pepper Elliot has done an outstanding job of guiding these students, and Monica Settlemire, the scholarship adviser, has shown love, dignity and professionalism toward their students, peers and donors. It is something we can all be proud to be a part of. It is my honor to have met this challenge and my privilege to have worked with these dedicated students and educators. Together we have helped to make Park City and Summit County a top school district and assisted in creating a bright, stable and diverse work force for the future. Tommy Tanzer Founder, Back to Our Roots The post A rewarding day appeared first on Park Record. ...read more read less