Dear SPUSD Families,
I am thrilled to welcome you and your children to the 2022-2023 school year! Thank you for your support as we greet our faculty, staff and students with open arms. Hopefully your summer months were spent with family and friends doing activities that gave you time to relax and recharge. We look forward to hearing stories about your children’s summer adventures when they return to school next Thursday, August 11.
This year South Pasadena Unified is growing. With the statewide expansion of transitional kindergarten, we are welcoming more of our youngest students at all three elementary schools. The school grounds have been carefully prepared and now feature new art classrooms and workspaces in place of the portable buildings and new playgrounds for students to enjoy. At the middle and high schools, our staff has ensured that our facilities are in top-notch condition. The recently renovated SPMS Arts Building and SPHS Athletics Facilities provide extraordinary spaces for students to learn and grow and will complement the new Broadcast Journalism Studio at SPHS. This new instructional space will offer Pasadena City College courses to SPHS students during the school day. Students will receive both college and high school credit.
I am thrilled to welcome you and your children to the 2022-2023 school year! Thank you for your support as we greet our faculty, staff and students with open arms. Hopefully your summer months were spent with family and friends doing activities that gave you time to relax and recharge. We look forward to hearing stories about your children’s summer adventures when they return to school next Thursday, August 11.
This year South Pasadena Unified is growing. With the statewide expansion of transitional kindergarten, we are welcoming more of our youngest students at all three elementary schools. The school grounds have been carefully prepared and now feature new art classrooms and workspaces in place of the portable buildings and new playgrounds for students to enjoy. At the middle and high schools, our staff has ensured that our facilities are in top-notch condition. The recently renovated SPMS Arts Building and SPHS Athletics Facilities provide extraordinary spaces for students to learn and grow and will complement the new Broadcast Journalism Studio at SPHS. This new instructional space will offer Pasadena City College courses to SPHS students during the school day. Students will receive both college and high school credit.
The past few years have shown us that our students continue to need a strong foundation of social-emotional support in addition to their academic instruction. The District meets these needs through our Train Your Brain Program in addition to increased counseling, specialized teachers focused on academic and behavioral needs, and partnerships with outside agencies. We also are highly focused on the impacts of social media on our youth and will continue our efforts to educate our youth about its impact. We have a vast array of subjects planned for our teachers’ professional development this year including enhanced social-emotional learning strategies, culturally responsive teaching, and anti-bias training, among other topics. SPUSD employees will kick off the school year with an inspirational message about kindness and compassion during the All-Hands Gathering the day before school begins.
Regarding COVID-19 protocols, we will send information to staff and parents/guardians to confirm the most recently updated Los Angeles County Department of Public Health protocols for schools. Please stay tuned for more information.
Thank you for all of your help and trust as we continue to lead students on their educational journeys. Please consider participating in SPEF, PTA, SPMS/SPHS Booster Clubs, and other volunteer opportunities. This support helps our District continue to be a destination for families seeking an extraordinary educational experience for their children.
We’re looking forward to an outstanding school year!
Regards,
Geoff Yantz, Ed.D.
Superintendent
Superintendent