Palisades Charter High School English teacher Rose Gilbert’s long-standing commitment to education was apparent Sunday as photos of her interacting with students and faculty flashed across a video screen during an awards banquet in her honor. ‘To sit in Rose’s class is to fall in love with literature,’ PaliHi’s Executive Director Amy Dresser-Held told a crowd of Gilbert’s family, friends, colleagues and former students at the Sheraton Delfina hotel in Santa Monica. Even at 90 years old, Gilbert still reports to work every day and teaches a full load of classes. Previously at University High, she has taught at PaliHi since the school opened its doors in 1961. ‘She inspires students to push hard, to dig deeper and really think,’ Dresser-Held said. Gilbert inherited millions from her late husband, Sam, and has since given generously to PaliHi. Most recently, she donated $2 million toward the construction of the Maggie Gilbert Aquatic Center, an on-campus pool that will be named after her late daughter. For her devotion to teaching and charitableness, Dresser-Held presented Gilbert with the inaugural Pali Spirit Award, which will be given annually to someone who has made a significant contribution to Palisades High and its community. ‘That was unbelievable, and I’m at a loss for words,’ Gilbert said following Dresser-Held’s speech. ‘Just attending this event is an honor for me.’ Gilbert, whose nickname is ‘Mama G,’ said teaching has brought her tremendous joy. ‘Students have given me a reason to smile and to laugh,’ said Gilbert, who affectionately calls her students ‘bubbalahs,’ a term of endearment in Yiddish. She also selected one of her former students, Michelle Mahanian, to receive the first Gilbert Award, which will be given annually to an alumnus who demonstrates humanitarian values. Mahanian, who majored in neuroscience at UCLA and will graduate summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa this weekend, formed the volunteer organization, Music to Heal, in 2004. Through her organization, more than 100 volunteers play music for chronically ill patients at UCLA Medical Center. Last year, Mahanian received a $10,000 scholarship from the Donald A. Strauss Foundation and the UCLA Medical Center for her philanthropy. Instead of using the money for herself, she decided to purchase musical instruments and install a recording studio at UCLA Mattel Children’s Hospital. ‘As a former bubbalah who was fortunate enough to have been Mama G’s student for two years, there could be no greater honor for me than to receive an award bearing the name of Mrs. Rose Gilbert,’ said Mahanian, who plans to attend medical school at UCLA this fall. ‘I will never forget the first time I peeked through the door of her classroom and caught my first glimpse of Mama G. She stood with a firefighter hat atop her head, lecturing with such an unmistakable passion for teaching that she would periodically exclaim, ‘I’m on fire, buballahs!’ amidst her ardent explanations of ‘The Great Gatsby’ and ‘The Crucible.” Mahanian and Gilbert also received certificates from City Councilman Bill Rosendahl, who was unable to attend. All proceeds from the dinner will benefit the $4.2-million pool project scheduled for completion next March. Fundraising consultant Jeanne Goldsmith said the school raised more than $10,000 from the dinner and still needs $1.2 million. PaliHi swim coach Maggie Nance thanked the 110 attendees for their contributions. ‘To give our Dolphins [the school’s mascot is a dolphin] a place to swim is immeasurable,’ she said. The boys and girls teams have won a combined 29 city section titles since 1961. In fall 2010, PaliHi will be able to offer aquatics as part of its curriculum and can add sports such as diving and water polo in its 12-lane competitive pool, Nance said.   ’This is the beginning of a new tradition at PaliHi,’ said social studies teacher Chris Lee, who emceed the event and thanked the members of the organizing committee: Nance, Goldsmith, Beverley Auerbach, Debbie Ebert, Terri Hacker, Alicia Silka and Pam Solomon.   PaliHi junior and swim team member Hayley Hacker created the slideshow of Gilbert’s family life and career that was shown during the ceremony.
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