Santa Barbara Unified School District fellowship helps alumni return to district as teachers

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – A fellowship provided by the Santa Barbara Unified School District (SBUSD) is helping alumni pay through college and return to the school district to teach.

SBUSD said it partnered with the Program for Effective Access to College (PEAC) Foundation and the UCSB Gevirtz School of Education to make this effort possible.

There have been 10 PEAC Fellows so far, and three are currently attending UCSB’s Teacher Education Program, according to SBUSD.

"I didn't think I could have achieved my dream of becoming a teacher had it not been for the Fellowship," said Jessica Zamora Sanchez, a first grade teacher for McKinley. "So when I received the opportunity to attend grad school on a full scholarship, it removed the financial barriers that hindered me from pursuing a teaching career."

SBUSD said Zamora is one of three teachers at McKinley who went through SBUSD schools before returning to teach, thanks to the PEAC and UCSB Fellowship.

The district’s PEAC program is a network of support for primarily first-generation college-bound students and in its 13th year of service, according to SBUSD.

One unique aspect of this fellowship is that it helps students give back to the community they were raised in.

"Honestly, it feels like coming home. I wasn't as nervous as I thought I would be," said Adriana Trujillo, a sixth-grade McKinley teacher, who returned to the school after attending it for eight years as a student. 

"It's amazing. My students were shocked and surprised that I came back and that where they're growing up is where I grew up. They are always constantly asking for pictures of me and my time here [at McKinley]," said Trujillo.

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