Free tuition offered to Kelly school heroes
By Aaron Burgin
Thursday, January 6, 2011 at 6:13 p.m.
SAN MARCOS â The Kelly Elementary School construction-worker heroes are going back to school, and the school is picking up the tab.
Carlos Partida, Eddie Dominguez, Steven Kane, Mario Contreras and Toby Wiest helped subdue Brendan Liam OâRourke, who is accused of opening fire at Kelly Elementary School in Carlsbad in October, wounding two second-grade girls. The workers chased after him after he stopped to reload. Partida knocked him to the ground with a truck and helped hold him until police arrived.
Contreras suffered a broken hand when he punched OâRourke.
Van Nuys-based Contractors State License Services, a private vocational school in San Marcos, is giving $1,000 scholarships to each man. The scholarships will pay for the workers to take one course, such as for contractorâs license examination preparation, blue print reading or contract estimating.
The school stepped in to offer the scholarships after learning about the heroics displayed by the workers, which garnered national attention. Days before the shooting, the school offered Victor Perez, a Fresno construction worker who rescued an 8-year-old girl who had been kidnapped, a similar scholarship.
âWe were kind of on a hero thing,â Cyndi Beaver, the schoolâs marketing coordinator, said Thursday during a ceremony. âWe just wanted to acknowledge our heroes in the construction industry.â
The timing of the scholarships couldnât have been better, the men said. They are all currently unemployed. For most of them, the contract at Kelly Elementary, a renovation of the schoolâs kitchen, was their last job.
âWeâre looking,â Partida said. âThereâs just not much out there right now.â
Four of the five men said they would use the scholarship to get their Class B state contractorâs license, which would enable them to find more work or potentially start a business themselves.
The men say they have been overwhelmed by the adulation they have received.
âWe still get the âyouâre a heroâ response,â Kane said. âItâs been really nice.â
