Success Stories

Students Earn College Credit

Sports Medicine Competition

National Registry EMT Testing

Meet Danielle...

When Danielle visited her Aunt and Uncle in New Jersey after her freshman year in high school, she was treated to a Broadway show, her first.

“We went to see The Phantom of the Opera, and I was floored,” said Danielle. “The entire time, my eyes never wavered from the spectacle of the show. I tried to figure out how the ramp moved into the bottom of the theater and how the actor playing the Phantom was able to be in two places at once. I had so many questions, and when I left the theater, I knew that theatre was going to be a part of the rest of my life. After the trip, my mother told me there must be a technical class at the high school and that she would help me to find the teacher; Bill Cox was that man. I met with him, too young to be a part of his program. But I explained my experience during The Phantom of the Opera and asked him all the questions I had. I think he liked that I was so inquisitive. He told me I could be a part of his class the following semester, and I enrolled at that point. I had to get a work permit. That was the beginning of my theatre career.”

Danielle graduated from Upland High in 2001 with honors. Throughout her high school experience, she was a student of Bill Cox’s R.O.P. Theatre program.

“I was the youngest student in his class and felt unqualified to be a part of it all at first,” said Danielle. “During the first semester, I found my place and became much more confidant. I looked forward to going to class after school. Bill Cox made class fun and exciting. I was always taking notes when we were in the classroom and very eager to participate in the usage of power tools and painting sets. I worked very hard and made sure I impressed Bill as much as possible. I never complained about any activities and was always volunteering for the jobs, like mopping the deck, which no one else wanted to do. I was just happy to be there, experiencing everything.”

Danielle took all three levels of theatre courses offered at Baldy View, learning about each aspect of technical theatre: lighting, sound, design, painting, construction, and management. She also interned for Bill Cox’s program during her final term. Danielle continued learning about theatre during college: costumes, scenic construction, lighting, and audio. Scenic design was her passion, and she knew that it was exactly what she was meant to do with her life.

Danielle graduated in May of 2005 from San Diego State with a B.A. in Theatre Scenic Design. She currently is the Assistant Box Office Manager at the La Jolla Playhouse. She is applying for graduate schools this year to earn her M.F.A. in Scenic Design.

“If I had never been a part of Baldy View ROP, and if I had never met Bill Cox, I would not be where I am today,” said Danielle. “I am a graduate of one of the leading Theatre Colleges in California. I have a job in a prestigious theatre. And I have future goals. My aspirations in theatre were just that, aspirations, until I was introduced to Bill Cox and the ROP classes. Then, they became attainable.

“I would tell students to experience everything they can,” continued Danielle. “Your interests now might not be your interests tomorrow, and you owe yourself the chance to try new things. Everything that you want, you can earn with hard work and diligence. There is nothing in the world more important than your future. Mentors, like Bill Cox, are people you don’t come across every day. If you are interested in theatre, participate in the ROP classes. They will become some of the most poignant and significant memories during your high school education.”

~ Danielle Meister

Meet Steve...

Steve first attended BVROP in his junior year of high school: a 16-week Fire Technology course run by Corona Fire Captain Tim Hayward.

“The course involved the fundamentals of fire service, history, and explanations of what, why, and how they do it,” explained Steve. “It also included a six-hour Saturday meeting during which we received hands-on training: ladders, hose lays, and firefighting first hand.”

Steve returned to BVROP again during his senior year, this time attending the EMT program run by Orange County Fire Authority Director Chuck Fedak. The 16-week course involved classroom work and shifts in a clinical setting as well as one 12-hour shift with an ambulance company.

“I excelled in this class and found out a lot about my self,” said Steve. “I finished the class in the top three grade-wise, and I was a certified EMT before I even graduated high school. The class not only prepared me for the task involved in the job, but it also helped me to even figure out that a career in the Emergency Medical Service field was what I wanted. Baldy View’s program also helped me develop better study habits and work ethics. I was hired directly out of the program with an emergency ambulance company in Orange County.”

Steve is still employed as an EMT, currently with the American Medical Response company in Rancho Cucamonga. In addition, he also is an American Heart Association CPR and first aid instructor as well as an EMT instructor for BVROP.

“I’m well on my way towards my goal of becoming a paramedic and ultimately a firefighter,” said Steve who is currently 20 years old and attending Victor Valley College, earning his degree. “BVROP’s programs have given me all that I have right now...a great job that changes daily...a job that allows me to help people and be there when they require assistance. The EMT program also gave me great mentors, especially Chuck Fedak who, personally, asked me to come back as a skills instructor. He also is the person who got me into CPR and first aid, and he continues to be a great instructor, helping me during paramedic school and always being someone who is willing to help someone out with anything that they need.

“Thanks to Baldy View, now everyday is a ‘wow’ because every call we run in some way helps the person who has called us out,” continued Steve. And every time I teach a class, I feel as if I’m helping someone help someone else. BVROP has given me so much…friends, knowledge, motivation, skills, and the ability to continuously step up and help people. It’s given me a start at such a young age, and age that most people don’t even know what they want to do. They’ve allowed me to get my career started at 18; nothing else can ever replace that. I would recommend Baldy View and this program to anyone and everyone.”

~ Steven Marczinko