LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Back to School in LAUSD

The Los Angeles Unified School District has gone back to school for the fall semester, and as your representative to the LAUSD School Board, I was thrilled to welcome students, families and staff back to campus for a great new year.

The start of school is a time of excitement, promise and renewal—and our school communities are returning to a more normal routine than the past few years. As we continue guiding their path to recovery, we are committed to accelerating academic progress, fostering socio-emotional wellbeing and keeping our schools safe.

This year also marks the first full year since the board brought on Superintendent Alberto Carvalho and approved the district’s new strategic plan. The plan focuses our efforts on ensuring that every student graduates ready for the world and prepared to succeed in college, career and life.

As the year gets underway, students will see new or expanded programs, like one-on-one tutoring services, a healthier new school menu, WiFi-enabled electric school buses, green space and outdoor learning opportunities, and more. Families are participating in expanded after-school options, connecting with free home internet access and gaining valuable new insight through our new “Family Academy” program.

Teachers and staff are engaging in new professional development training and wellness programs. We will continue to invest equitably and effectively in our local school communities to ensure our kids can reach their full potential.

In the Palisades community, this includes efforts to increase green space with a new outdoor reading area at Paul Revere Charter Middle School, and supporting campus safety with new secure entry systems at Canyon Charter Elementary School and Topanga Elementary Charter School, along with new speed bumps installed outside Marquez Charter Elementary School.

We continue actively funding new projects to modernize our learning environments, with plans approved to install a new air conditioning system at Palisades Charter High School, new classrooms completed at Kenter Canyon Elementary School, classroom upgrades in the works at Palisades Charter Elementary School and more.

The district continues to maintain the safest possible learning environments for our students and families. In alignment with the latest public health guidance, current COVID protocols include enhanced, comprehensive sanitizing efforts and increased ventilation, response testing, recommended masking, and more updated processes to ensure our school communities can safely return to some sense of normalcy. The district will continue to monitor evolving conditions and adapt as needed to stay aligned with county guidance.

Safety efforts are also extending to the cloud, following the recent ransomware attack targeting our online systems. Our swift action and collaboration with federal law enforcement partners mitigated the impact of the attack, and everyone from our IT department to school staff worked tirelessly to ensure uninterrupted instruction to our students as the recovery process got underway.

Our students have been through a lot, but above all, they have shown us the magnitude of their resilience. As we navigate the promise and possibility of this new year, we will do whatever it takes to support their full recovery from the crisis they’ve endured.

Nick Melvoin
Vice President of LAUSD School Board

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