Latino educators celebrate education

$9,000 in scholarships, Educator of the Year recognized Madera’s chapter of the Association of Mexican American Educators (AMAE) celebrated education this week by presenting nine $1,000 college scholarships and its Educator of the Year award.

The 2016 award went to retired principal Mario Torres, who spent 37 years in education including 20 years with Madera Unified School District. He served as a resource teacher at Washington School, counseled migrant students at Madera High School and taught English to adult students. He speaks seven languages.

“I remember one time at Washington School,” said award presenter Delia Aldama, “he came in my office and he said, ‘You know what, Miss Aldama? I need to go take a class, just for fun. So I went to Fresno State and enrolled in a class.’ I said, ‘What did you enroll in?’ ‘Calculus.’ For fun? Calculus for fun? Come on!”

Torres left MUSD to be principal of Englewood and then McFarland schools before retiring...