When Pinnacle High School opened its campus in 2003, Christina Bonifasi-Hughes was enrolled at the school as a sophomore. After graduating from Pinnacle, she always had a feeling that one day she would return.
That happened in 2012 when she became a math teacher at the school.
"It's a full circle moment. I always knew that I would be back. Now my oldest son will be a freshman (at Pinnacle) next year," said Bonifasi-Hughes, a 2024 Palo Verde Fiesta Sports Foundation Wishes for Teachers recipient.
Bonifasi-Hughes teaches juniors and seniors, with many of the courses offering dual-enrollment, allowing high school students to take classes and receive college credit. Among these students, Bonifasi-Hughes saw a need.
"It's a somewhat unrealistic expectation that these students purchase a calculator for one math class," said Bonifasi-Hughes. "Especially since I'm teaching dual enrollment, most of my students may never have to take math again. So, why would they spend $130 on a calculator for one year?"
Luckily, Bonifasi-Hughes had been told about the Palo Verde Fiesta Sports Foundation Wishes for Teachers program by her peers at Pinnacle High School, who were winners in previous years. Her fellow teachers had used their Wishes for Teachers grants to purchase more calculators for their students. This inspired Bonifasi-Hughes to apply for Wishes for Teachers with the hope of purchasing new TI-84 calculators with colored screens for her students.
"When there are two black lines for the X and Y-axis, sometimes it can be confusing. What are you even looking at? Whereas having the colored calculator truly helps the students to see what's going on when they're graphing," said Bonifasi-Hughes.
With the $2,500 she received from Wishes for Teachers, Bonifasi-Hughes purchased 10 TI-84 calculators with colored screens and a Bluetooth-enabled iPad with streaming capabilities, allowing her to walk around the classroom while projecting her screen live.
"Walking around the room helps me interact with students," she says. "Previously, I was using my own iPad, and it's really old, so it wasn't working very well anymore. I was really grateful to refresh my tech world for my students."
It was last November when Bonifasi-Hughes received a FaceTime call from an unfamiliar number. Normally, it would go unanswered. But because it was the Palo Verde Fiesta Sports Foundation Wishes for Teachers Draft Day presented by SRP, she decided to answer. On the other side of the phone was Scott Pasmore, news anchor from Arizona's Family 3TV's Good Morning Arizona.
"??They recorded the video of me answering the phone, and it played on the big screen at the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl game. I had a lot of students who went to the Fiesta Bowl, and they're like, 'Mrs. B, we saw you up there!'" said Bonifasi-Hughes.
After experiencing how the new calculators have enhanced the learning experience, Bonifasi-Hughes believes that every teacher should apply for the Palo Verde Fiesta Sports Foundation Wishes for Teachers program.
"Apply and think of what could make your life easier and help your students," said Bonifasi-Hughes. "It's not selfish to try to make our everyday job easier because our jobs are hard, especially if you're in this for the long run! I've got at least 13 years to go."
