High School student has street named for her

The corner of Cholla Drive and Pierson Boulevard has a new name, Desert Hot Springs high school’s valedictorian, Sarah De La Cruz.
“It feels amazing and especially because I’m going to be the first one to start a tradition, and I hope I’m setting an example,” said De La Cruz.

The city decided to honor De La Cruz because of her academic achievements. Her principal, Anna Kalisek, said she is very proud of her students.

“Each of the departments choose their outstanding seniors, and then we put all the names out to the staff and said, ‘These are the outstanding seniors. Who would you like to choose?’ and they chose Sarah,” said Kalisek.

Mayor Yvonne Parks said that this is an incentive for the youth of Desert Hot Springs to strive for the best.

“This is just the beginning; it’s the first year. We’ll have one every year from now on,” said Parks.

And she says this will help move the city in the right direction.

“Every day there’s something new, every day it’s improvement. So, we’re just going to keep moving forward,” said Parks.

Principal Kalisek said it’s important to encourage the students.

“It’s all about motivating the kids and rewarding them for what they do well,” said Kalisek.

De La Cruz said she feels pride in her accomplishments and is excited for the future.

“It just makes me want to do really good in college and set an example for the community,” said De La Cruz.