In 2020, El Monte Union High School District was awarded a $9.8 million grant by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to fund a menu of Clean Mobility measures that promote the use of zero-emission vehicles and clean transportation options for students, parents, and staff. The District, along with its project funders and partners, needed to build awareness about this innovative project and its benefits to students, families, and the greater El Monte community, showcasing their environmental leadership and furthering their outreach to foster clean mobility.
VMA created a “green” ribbon cutting event on August 18, 2021, to celebrate the arrival of the first all-electric buses, and tell the story of the project to media and local officials. The event featured speeches by state, county, and District officials, spirited performances by the South El Monte High School band, dance, cheer, and color guard teams, tours of the electric buses, info sessions with project partners, and snow cones for all attendees.
More than 100 key industry and community leaders participated in the event, which received coverage by numerous local and national media outlets.
To amplify the project goal of educating the community about the benefits of clean mobility, VMA Communications enlisted two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist and nationally-syndicated cartoonist Lalo Alcaraz and his team at Pocho Villa Productions to create an animated short and a series of Public Service Announcements (PSAs). The animations, produced in partnership with CARB, are intended for distribution locally and across the state to encourage families to use clean transportation options to get to and from school.
