Dear friends and partners,

We’re just a few days away from fall (although it's hard to tell with climate crises causing record heat waves and raging wildfires), and today also marks the beginning of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. I want to wish a Shana Tova to all who celebrate, and to anyone who is just eager for this year to end. Let’s hope that the year 5781 brings us all the health, happiness, and peace that we’ve missed in 2020. 

LA Unified is also looking to the future. We began rolling out both our COVID testing and employee childcare programs at designated school sites last week, as well as exploring whether we will be able to safely open additional childcare seats for District students—particularly as an option for high-need students and children of essential workers. And because our kids need stability during this unprecedented school year, I advocated for—and am happy to report—that the District will provide funds to prevent displacement of any TK-3 teachers and maintain as many positions in other grades as possible.

I am also pushing for the District to explore the safe formation of a 1:1 or small group, in-person learning option for students with special needs and English Learners, in compliance with the County guidelines. And we continue to work with our teachers to plan for a physical return in a hybrid model for all students once it is safe to do so, while maintaining a fully virtual option so our families can make the best choice for themselves. 

We also began a series of virtual town halls for each of LA Unified’s “Community of Schools” within my district. This new model was created to provide more personalized support and increase local decision-making, which is especially important as we continue to navigate this unprecedented school year. Click here to learn more and register for one of our upcoming town halls, or check them out afterward anytime here on Facebook. You can also check out our progress and accomplishments in each community of schools here. 

This is an especially difficult time for our families, our communities, and our country. But I remain inspired by the resilience of our kids as we all work to make the most of this year.

We’re still all in this together, apart.