Local Teacher Receives Teacher of the Month Award

Obesity is expected to haunt half of all American children under the age of eighteen by 2010 and over one-third of the children in Europe. This is not a local epidemic by any means, and experts are concerned about the long term consequences. Too much junk food and not enough exercise seem to be the main culprits, but when the outlook is this dismal, many wonder what they can do.

Not Shelly Mendoza. This 59 year old Physical Education teacher at Rosemont High School is tackling the obesity epidemic one class at a time. “I enjoy firing up the kids and working with them”, she says. And work with them she does. In fact she leads aerobics lessons three times a day and on Wednesdays, her classes run about a mile and a half. In order to receive their points, the students have to stay in front of her.

Mendoza has been teaching for 36 years-it seems it’s been just enough time to perfect her teaching skills. During her classes, music can be heard playing on an old turntable from Mendoza’s personal collection of 45′s. Her students appreciate that she works out with them instead of giving directions then sitting back. Her spirit seems to be overflowing to her students.

This fall, Mendoza will work on conditioning with the Rosemont High School basketball team.

Her thoughts on obesity center around the students she works with: “To be a healthy adult, you need to be a healthy child”. The important eating habits and exercise skills she is instilling in her students might save them from the struggle obesity causes.

Congratulations Shelly Mendoza! We appreciate your hard work.