Dear SPUSD Families, Faculty, Staff, and Administrators,

 

This week, Dr. Suzie Abajian announced that she is resigning from her position on the SPUSD Board of Education due to her family relocating outside of South Pasadena. We greatly appreciate Dr. Abajian’s service and her dedication to the students in our community. For the past six years, Dr. Abajian has thoughtfully helped guide the District with its curriculum development, facilities renovation and expansion, and most recently through systemic changes due to the pandemic and its effects. We are grateful for her contributions to and stewardship of the South Pasadena Unified School District and the greater South Pasadena community. The Board will be scheduling a special meeting to discuss the next steps in filling a vacancy on the school board. Additional information will be forthcoming.

 

Campus Visits
Over the past couple weeks, I have had the pleasure of visiting our schools and classrooms and seeing firsthand how teachers and students are fully engaged in teaching and learning. I witnessed collaborative learning, teamwork, idea sharing, thoughtful discussions, experimentation, extraordinary works of art, energetic physical education activities, expressions of gratitude and kindness, and a general sense that students are enjoying being in school. One example of the exciting work going on is the celebration of National Hispanic Heritage Month at Monterey Hills Elementary School. This video provides an excellent overview of one of the projects on campus.

 

COVID-19 Updates
Today Governor Newsom announced a mandate that will require eligible California students to be vaccinated against COVID-19 to attend in-person instruction. The mandate will be effective starting the term after the FDA grants full approval for the COVID vaccine for people ages 12 and older, expected beginning either January 2022 or July 2022, and will be phased in across grade levels. For more details, please see the news release from the Governor’s Office. Feel free to contact the Governor’s Office with any questions or concerns about this public health requirement.

 

While this mandate may be controversial, the District seeks to uphold directives from experts who are licensed and experienced in making public health decisions that will further protect our students, faculty, and staff. We will implement these requirements with good intentions to continue supporting health and safety as a top priority in our District.
 
In the meantime, please remember to keep your child(ren) home from school when they are sick. If they are showing any symptoms of infectious illness, make sure they stay home and get tested if necessary. SPUSD continues to offer weekly, asymptomatic surveillance testing on Tuesday afternoons at SPMS.

 

Care Solace
As we progress through the fall semester, we also want to remind you that we have partnered with Care Solace to support the well-being of students, staff, and their family members. Care Solace is a complimentary and confidential care coordination service that can help you quickly find mental health or substance use treatment options matched to your needs regardless of circumstance. If you would like to use Care Solace to help you find a provider:

 

 
Community Reminder
The City of South Pasadena has officially launched its redistricting process based on the 2020 Census data with an updated website that contains all the information and resources the community needs to get involved. For information about the City’s process, please visit this link.

 

In closing, please enjoy these photos from SPHS Color Day 2021. What a wonderful celebration of school spirit!

 

Regards,

 

Geoff Yantz, Ed.D.
Superintendent