But one teacher and a book program at Birney Elementary School, sponsored by Community Health System, changed all that.
“I think a lot of the kids I went to school with didn’t really have opportunities to get out and see the world,” said Hernandez about his time growing up in Central Fresno. “So coming into Mr. [Robert] Garcia’s class, and having someone believe in you like he did really gave me — and everyone in our class — a whole new outlook on life.”
Today, Anthony is a monitor technician at Community Regional Medical Center in Downtown Fresno, approaching his fifth year in healthcare. He says his career is the result of the opportunities Community made possible for him and his classmates at Birney Elementary.
Building relationships, helping future generations
Nearly 12 years ago, Craig Wagoner, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Community Health System, met Robert Garcia, sixth grade teacher at Birney Elementary. As the two connected, Garcia told Wagoner about the struggles students faced in his classroom.“One of the biggest things that really surprised me was the number of sixth grade students who couldn’t read at their reading level,” Wagoner said. “And what surprised me even more was that many of these kids didn’t even have access to books. They needed books.”
Reading can help young minds develop new perspectives on the world, exposing them to new ways of thinking and helping develop a certain level of empathy. That's why Community donated hundreds of books to Birney Elementary, and teachers like Garcia developed the BEARS Program, which “helps students learn how to 'BE: Active, Readers, and Super,'” Garcia said. At that time, team members from Community (and Wagoner himself) would go on campus to read with students and play outdoor sports — experiences some of the students would never have had otherwise.
When Community began donating to Birney, only 30% of the students in Room 42 were reading at the sixth grade reading level. By the time the students finished school, 90% of the students were reading at grade level.
Beyond reading, Wagoner said he wanted to give the students more than just books — he wanted to give them an experience they couldn’t find anywhere else.
Providing hands-on learning opportunities to disadvantaged students
When Community’s decade-long partnership began with Birney Elementary, students were given the chance to visit Community Regional, put on a pair of scrubs and be exposed to different opportunities they could pursue if they wanted to eventually go into healthcare.Employees from various departments — including emergency services, surgical services and environmental services — met with students and showed them first-hand what life was like inside the walls of the Valley’s only Level I trauma center.
Hernandez was one of those students who had the chance to tour Community Regional. “I realized [healthcare] was more than just being a doctor or a nurse,” he said. “And seeing it in person, I remember, was something I would have never imagined having the chance to do otherwise.”
“Students got to see real doctors, real nurses and real surgeons — and the look on every kid’s face was priceless,” Garcia said about his experience taking students to Community Regional. “But then COVID hit and we stopped everything. The tours, the in-class visits and the BEARS Program all stopped when we moved to virtual learning.”
Once schools returned to in-person learning, Community reengaged with Birney Elementary and donated new books and iPads to Garcia’s class. With the additional donations, Garcia launched “Club 42” — a new reading program that teaches students about nine core values that will empower each student as they get into the real world:
• Courage
• Citizenship
• Commitment
• Determination
• Excellence
• Integrity
• Justice
• Persistence
• Teamwork
While the name of the program may have changed since he was a student at Birney, Hernandez said Garcia’s passion for teaching never wavered. “[Mr. Garcia] was by far the best teacher I ever had — all the way through college,” he said. “I credit this class to a lot of what I’ve accomplished.”
And Garcia said he’s living his life’s dream by helping students make their own dreams come true.
“I tell parents at the beginning of the year that this is a partnership — me and them — working with their children,” Garcia said. “Having the support of families, having the support of administration at the school and having places like Community being there for these kids, anything is possible — just like it was for Anthony.”
