Dear Berryessa Community, 

Thank you for your contributions to making the start of the new school year a fantastic one. The support you provide to your students is key to their success!  

Encouraging positive habits such as getting enough sleep at night, coming to school every

day and on time and having a good breakfast all make a difference in their academic performance and their lives. Together we can promote healthy habits and help them develop a positive mindset about reaching their goals through hard work and a solid daily routine. 

We are pleased to share that our district has expanded the number of Transitional Kindergarten (TK) classes with the addition of three new classes. We are excited to offer more opportunities for families to access early learning for their children!

We appreciate everyone’s collaboration, and look forward to seeing you at our

upcoming Back to School Nights! 

Sincerely, 

Dr. Roxane Fuentes 

Superintendent

It has been great to see our returning and new students, staff and families! We celebrate our shared commitment to advancing our students’ education! 

Here are some pictures from the first days of school at BUSD: 

We are ready to celebrate the start of a new school year with our fantastic Back to School Nights across the district. We look forward to seeing you there!

As shared in our August newsletter, the BUSD Board of Trustees and administration are committed to working diligently to address the District’s current budget challenges. We continue to work on the directive from the Santa Clara County Office of Education (SCCOE) to identify $6M in reductions by the end of this calendar year.

The BUSD Budget Stabilization Committee, consisting of diverse representation from the California Teacher Association Berryessa (CTAB), the California School Employee Association (CSEA), Teamsters, BUSD parents, and a combination of site and District office administrators, has been hard at work and have held several meetings. Their feedback is an essential part of this process.

The next committee meeting will be held on September 21st to discuss their proposals in detail and to determine the priority of those ideas, so they can be presented to the Superintendent and Board of Trustees for recommended adoption before the end of 2023. 

We look forward to sharing more updates each step of the way. More information regarding our budget development process and about the Budget Stabilization Committee is available on our website. Thank you for your support and partnership! 

As part of our commitment to diversity and inclusion, we are pleased to recognize Hispanic Heritage Month! It is a celebration of many different cultures and traditions from Mexico to Central America to South America and more. Latinos and Latinas have have made vast contributions to our nations across diverse fields! 

One of them is Dr. Ellen Ochoa, a veteran astronaut with a groundbreaking role in NASA. Her career is so impressive. Dr. Ochoa joined NASA in 1988 and became the first Hispanic woman to go to space in 1993. She has flown in space four times! As the first Hispanic director of the Johnson Space Center and its second female director, Dr. Ochoa set a precedent of excellence and dedication. Reaching out to the stars, exploring space and making learning a life-long experience create a remarkable lesson for us all. 

We hope you will enjoy Dr. Fuentes’ special message

about Hispanic Heritage Month:

Here are links where you can learn more about Dr. Ellen Ochoa.

NASA Astronaut Dr. Ellen Ochoa

Life Story: Ellen Ochoa



And you can learn more about Hispanic Heritage Month here: 

Hispanic Heritage and Inventions

Hispanic Heritage Month: Smithsonian

National Park Services Celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month

We can all remember our first steps into a classroom and the lessons and fun time shared with other students and caring adults. Early learning is a foundational opportunity for children to learn through play as a context for social and emotional development. 

We are proud to share that for the 2023-2024 school year, our District expanded the number of Transitional Kindergarten (TK) classes with the addition of three new classes. There are a total of nine Transitional Kindergarten classes that are located at six of our elementary school campuses. The TK classes are located at the following schools: Brooktree, Majestic Way, Northwood, Ruskin, Toyon, and Vinci Park. In our classrooms, children can advance their knowledge in areas such as language and early literacy, mathematical foundations, and science.

Did you know that early learning is the central factor that impacts school readiness? Children who enter the K-12 system ready for school have an 82% chance of mastering basic skills by age 11, compared with a 45% chance for children who are not school ready. Learn more with the resources below.