Meet David Hester, an Earn-A-Bike Park Tool School alumni. David successfully completed the Intermediate Bicycle Mechanics course in March.

David started an amazing journey this past Friday, to bike the Southern Tier Bicycle Route which starts in San Diego, CA and ends in St. Augustine, FL, over 3200 miles total.

David knew that he might run into maintenance and mechanical issues during his journey, which led him to take our Intermediate course. With the skills and knowledge learned, he will be able to overcome any obstacle on the road.

We wish David the best of luck on his amazing journey!

Read all about his journey here: https://www.trailjournals.com/journal/entry/633198

For the past three weeks, teachers, parents, and community leaders have been nominating San Antonio 4th and 5th graders for the Earn A Bike Student Excellence Award.

This year, like for many of us, has been a year filled with struggles and hard times, especially our youth in school. That is why Earn A Bike decided not to run programs and add more screen time for the students, yet to recognize their hard work and determination to stay focused in school.

Listed below are the students who earned the Student Excellence Award Nominee and the reason why.

Steve
"He is so smart, loving, patient, curious, generous, kind, and a very hard worker. He does his chores regularly and also helps with other things around the house. He has a younger brother who is autistic, and he plays with him & helps calm him down when he’s upset. "

Jordan
" Well mannered.  Jordan is a very respectful young man.  He exhibits respect to his elders, classmates and to himself.  He exhibits great energy even through virtual learning and thinks of others before himself."

Isaac
"Isaac is a student who has struggled with learning and behaviors over the years. During this pandemic, he has been extremely responsible. He has attended every Live session and completed every assignment given to him. He has shown he can be responsible for completing his own work and is trying very hard to make good choices. He has become a helper to his family in many ways. He is helping with yard work, cooking meals, and chores around the house. He has made giant steps towards becoming a responsible citizen."

Ramon
"Ramon is such a joy in class. He is always willing to work hard and determined to do his best. If he doesn't understand or has a question, he will ask me for clarification and not give up on figuring out how to complete the assignment or task. He also is a hard working and important member of his family. Ramon helps his family by taking care of his baby brother, who looks up to him.  He always tries to be a good role model for his baby brother and will often share stories how his baby brother copies him or wants to be like him. I am so glad he is in our classroom and I believe he is one-of-a kind kid who deserves the joy of having his own bike."

Malakai
Malakai is the second oldest of five brothers and has already been through and witnessed so much in his little life already. He has been through and witnessed things that no child should. Despite this, he is the most happy, loving boy I've ever had in my class. He is the best big brother to his younger siblings and loves them all so very much. He works hard on his classwork and when something is hard, or doesn't make sense, he works until he gets it. Malakai deserves to Earn A Bike for Christmas because deserves a little piece of happiness in his world to call his own.

Miah
Miah is one outstanding student. We began with online classes and was always the first student to log on eagerly waiting instruction. Since then she is doing in class learning and loves coming to class. She is always helpful to me and the other students in class. She is very patient and considerate when assisting a student navigate through the various websites. What impresses me is that when a student online struggles she is ready to present her computer screen so that the other student can follow along and learn the ropes. Miah is an outstanding student that continues to strive to be a better person every day.

Josiyah
Josiyah deserves a bike for Christmas because he is such a good student despite family pressures. He works very hard on all his lessons. He has a kind and wonderful heart. He is full of joy.

Tony
When I read his paperwork it was less than favorable. I read about a student that had been out of control in 3rd grade, but it did not match the beautiful soul that was sitting in my classroom. I spoke to his mom and she told me of all the hard times they've had. She cried, I cried, and I commended her for her parenting of 5 boys under the age of 11. He struggles with all subject areas, but I never hear him complain; and even with a mask on you can see his face light up when you compliment him. With his attitude, he'll go on to do great things!

Noah
Noah Castro is an exemplary student. He is present every day and on time. When he is logged on virtually he turns on his camera and and is always ready to participate. Noah always completes all his assignments and computer programs. He  has his mother check his work by before he submits it to me because he wants to have good grades. He's even caught some of my mistakes and reports to me to fix! When we take test he types on chat to the whole class...good luck!

Jose
Through this pandemic so many families and students have had to go through many difficult circumstances.  It is very easy to give up, however, my student Jose has demonstrated that giving up is simply not an option.  Jose has had perfect attendance despite the constant internet issues.  Jose strives to do his best in everything that he does.  But this school year he encounter a problem that he was unsure he would be able to tackle. "The Beast" aka the internet,  was something that seemed to be out of his control.  He had so many technical problems if it wasn't the WIFI, it was the Chromebook, or the hot spot.  Despite these problems he still continued to log back on every single day.  Many students easily said they did not have a good connection and would not log on to class.  Jose was not one of those students.  He used his parents' phone or his dad's computer.  He did whatever he had to do to make sure he was in class.  He has had perfect attendance all year long.  


Rayden
Rayden has multiple house members all being taken care of their loving grandmother. However grandma is not too tech savvy so Rayden has had to figure all virtual learning mostly on his own. Despite these challenges, he is always present and completes his work. He is very bright, has the top score in the entire school in our math computer program our district uses! He is very kind and compassionate. When his classmates have trouble he volunteers to help reading to them or explaining directions. He also takes time to show them any cool tricks he learns for the computer. 

Jason
Jason since day one has followed his schedule to the T. He is always present and usually early ready to login for our live teaching sessions. Him and his mother always make sure that he has completed his work and submitted it. 

Carter
Carter since day one has been present to all of our live lessons. He follows his schedule and is very punctual. He loves to participate. He also is my self assigned time manager. He reminds me when it's time to switch or when I forget to record my lessons. His parents are very communicative with me, making sure Carter is on it. 

Jeremiah
Jeremiah is a hard worker and wants to do his best. I love how he works on his assignments and puts forth his best effort. 

William
I have been blessed to have William in my 4th grade class this year.  William has always been a student that stands out above the crowd academically and socially by playing a major role in all extra curricular activities.  This year William has been a very driven virtual student who does any and everything in his power to earn straight A's on his report card and excels in all subject areas.  He seeks excellence in every content and takes his education very serious.  William is extremely deserving of this bike for Christmas because he is one of the hardest working 4th grade students at our school and pushes himself everyday to be an even better version of himself.

Maximus
Maximus deserves to earn a bike for Christmas because even though he lost his bio dad when he was 5, he persevered. He is an amazing brother to his siblings. He is respectful, selfless, and kind. He is always helpful at home. He is an awesome student! He always does a great job, and as a parent I can trust he will get all his work done. I have not encountered any problems with him with completing his assignments. He is honest and responsible. His hard work pays off as he get straight A's in school and is also on gifted and talented. He catches on to new things quickly and has adapted well to virtual learning, then to a brand new school in our community when he started in-person learning this year. He was nervous starting a new school but has adjusted well in his new learning community. He outgrew the bike he had at 5 and currently does not own a bike to learn how to ride. This was something he used to practice with his bio dad, but is ready and determined to learn how to ride a bike with his stepdad.

Jose
Jose is a hard working student. He comes to school everyday to learn and do his best. He advocates for his classmates as well as himself. He also tries hard to be a role model for his younger siblings. He is determined not to let the things around him get him down. 

Jose
I feel Jose deserves to Earn A Bike for Christmas because he is a very hard working student. Jose is currently a virtual learner and is dedicated to his school work. Jose has shown outstanding responsibility and dedication to his commitments. He is a very respectful young man not only to our staff here but to his family as well. He is very friendly and easily makes friends with his classmates and others around him. 

Jessica
As I pondered on recognizing a scholar for their perseverance and determination during these challenging pandemic times I couldn't help thinking about all of the pupils in the world, and specially my students. This school year has certainly been a grueling one for all teachers, parents but particularly for students.  This year I'm blessed with 14 scholars, 7 who attend face to face and 7 who work remotely.  They're all great students and by all means all worthy of this award.  However, one that certainly pops into mind as I think of my nomination is Jessica.  Jessica is a very responsible and dedicated pupil and should be the recipient of this prize.  
To begin with, she is a responsible individual when it comes to her education.  Jessica works remotely and is generally the first one to join our zoom meetings.  She is focused in our learning and continually asks questions when needed.  She attends dyslexia classes and makes sure to notify me when her time to leave arrives.  She worries that she'll miss assignments and always remembers to remind me about uploading pictures or notes regarding our work.  Not only is she responsible, but also dedicated.  She works on her assignments the moment they're assigned and she'll ask as many questions needed to complete her task.  If something didn't go well and she needs to redo it, she has no problem working on it again.  She also shows dedication and support to her peers by being there when someone needs assistance.  As mentioned before, Jessica is a responsible and dedicated fourth grader and her actions serve as a role model to other students.  Her wonderful characteristics make her a great candidate for this award.  It is truly a blessing to have students like Jessica and know that these students will one day be outstanding citizens.  

Mackenzie
Mackenzie is self motivated and her motivation flows to others. She’s hard working and dedicated to her studies. Mackenzie strives to do her very best to be successful.
She’s very kind and generous, family values are very important to her. 

Julian
Julian is twin brother to Juan but, is in class all his own. He is very dedicated to his classwork even as a virtual learner. He gets his assignments turned in on time and is on line with his scheduled classes. Julian is very friendly and outgoing. He meets no strangers, he’s friends to all! He is always there to offer a helping hand to whoever needs one.

Jaylen
Jaylen is new to our school this year. When I spoke with mom, she mentioned that he didn’t have an easy time at his old school because students thought he was “weird.” However, even with his past experiences, Jaylen has taken this new change and made it the best he can. He is always my first student online and always ready to start the day. He has really came out of his shell and I know that this bike would light up his heart. He truly deserves it.

Jonathan
I wish every teacher would have the privilege to know a student like Jonathan. He is resilient, caring, polite and above all kind. Every morning, he will greet me with a good morning Ms. He never fails to ask how I am doing. He looks out for his classmates and makes sure to let me know when I miss something during class. He pushes his classmates to do their best thus pushing me to do the same as a teacher. 

I am beyond blessed to have him in my virtual classroom. He has perfect attendance and will always log in to class 30 minutes before we start. He is attentive and participates ALL the time. His hand is always in the air wishing to tell the entire class the answer to my questions. He has shown courage, perseverance and determination during this trying times for us all. He does not live in the best neighborhood and lives in a very small home where you can hear the neighbors next door during class but he has a HUGE heart of GOLD where as a teacher, you learn to see beyond the circumstances and learn to appreciate how he makes the best of every situation and keeps pushing forward. 

Jonathan is very bright and kind and is most deserving to receive a bike from this organization. If you were to ask him, he would probably tell you that he would like another of his classmates to receive it because that is who he is. He would rather go without, so someone else could have what he does not. I have no doubt that he will go far and be successful in life.  

Landis 
Landis is a hardworking, motivated, kind individual. Since we have been back in class he has preserved to complete his work. With all the school that was missed and lost he is determined to learn and  be apart of all the extracurricular activities even though there are extra precautions. He come to school everyday with a smile through his mask and makes the best of what ever happens. 

Deyani
Deyani is a self starter. She works hard, is ready to learn and does whatever it takes to get the job done. Throughout this virtual learning, there have been many challenges for Deyani, but she does not let that get in her way. She reaches out, uses the resources available and does whatever she needs to do to complete her assignments. She is determined to understand what she is learning and also to do good work. There have been
times when she struggled, but she did not give up. She shows up for tutorial sessions, asks for other options to improve her skills and follows through. She is truly focused on being a better student. Her determination and perseverance are admirable and deserving of recognition.

Eban
Eban is a student who has struggled academically in the past. This year he is shining bright! He has made so much progress even with a pandemic looming over his head. He is working on growing his mindset every day and has started to see his own growth. He has started to notice a difference in himself. I am honored to be his teacher and part of his growth/academic journey. 

We congratulate these students for their determination and perseverance!
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In April, we had to adapt our Earn-A-Bike @ School program to the changing environment around the Covid pandemic. We took the EAB@School program and moved it online. We adapted very quickly because we know the importance this program has on the youth in the area. During the summer months we were able to evaluate our first online course, research how to create meaningful and engaging course content, and apply what we had learned to a new edition of our EAB Online course. The second edition of EAB Online is a very comprehensive course that goes over cycling safety, the importance of wearing a helmet, tool safety, maintaining your bicycle to keep it running smoothly, and an emphasis on the importance of health, diet, and exercise. 
This summer, we were also able to work with CAST School in San Antonio to offer five internships for students in the CAST system. The students that we worked with were all very impressive and were able to contribute to a number of the EAB programs. These interns worked hand-in-hand (virtually of course) with the EAB staff on various projects including our social media promotions, the new online course, the EAB Shop, and cultivating donor relationships. We look forward to working with CAST Schools in the future and we wish our interns the best in the coming school year. To see the CAST School facebook live video of our interns click here.

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