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It’s always a good feeling when the law catches up with what you know in your heart to be true. So it is this year with emergency preparedness drills for lockdowns. Sometime in the early 2010s, it became incumbent on schools to provide an accurate simulation of a high-level emergency lockdown during the school day. We coordinated with law enforcement, classes practiced building barricades and staying silent while we went door to door through the hallways with a checklist of rooms to ensure total compliance. After a few years, we started talking as a staff. Was this “practice” more traumatizing than it needed to be?

So we adjusted our practice. While still falling within the parameters of our mandate, we began to have teachers present a slide deck outlining procedures students could expect to follow in the event of a lockdown of the school. These procedures are developed in partnership with local agencies as part of the county’s Big Five protocols. Instead of scaring our kids, we decided to have a conversation with them.

After reviewing best practices around barricading doors and behavior expectations in the event of an emergency, we practice exiting classrooms and proceed to designated meeting points on the football field. It takes about 20 minutes to evacuate the campus and account for all students. Students from our Health Careers Academy, trained in emergency response, help facilitate the activity. Once we have the all-clear, we thank our students for their orderliness and cooperation and dismiss them for lunch. 

Most of them go about their days without a second thought about what we just practiced. Many, however, are very strongly affected by the idea of gun violence on campus. I am, despite knowing all about our detailed safety procedures for a variety of distressing scenarios. Unequivocally, we are in an ideal situation: our school partners with the amazing Redwood City Police and Fire Departments, and is staffed by veteran teachers, aides, and non-classroom personnel, and a seasoned administrative team. Students are in good hands here. Nonetheless, we all lose sleep thinking about the possibility of an armed intruder. We accept it, begrudgingly, as part of life in 21st-century America.

To help provide even more peace of mind, we partnered several years ago with the Sandy Hook Promise Foundation to provide students access to a 24/7 tip line, live chat capabilities with a human respondent, and real-time communication with school and local law enforcement when urgent health and safety matters come to light. All students are trained during the first week of school on how to use the platform. I have been impressed with the maturity and care students have shown in utilizing this resource. Your students look out for one another. We’ve even had students report when their peers experience a strong negative impact from the emergency training.

Which is why this year’s changes to the California Education Code around emergency lockdown drills are so welcome. Moving forward, the requirements will be even more closely aligned to the approach we’ve been taking at Sequoia for the past seven years. They include (per Section 3282):

• No high-impact drills (e.g., simulations of active shooters, realistic props, or resistance tactics).
• Mandatory advance notification 
• Opt-out option available
• Announcements required before and after the drill
• Trauma-informed & age-appropriate drills
• Post-drill wellness resources available



Our next emergency drill will take place on 10/2, hopefully with even fewer students experiencing unhealthy anxiety over the activity. We take our drills seriously and are grateful that our students do as well. We are encouraged by the more humanity-centered approach to maintaining a safe and prepared learning environment for students and families.

Have a great week!

Best,

Sean

Save the Date - October 7- PTSA/ELAC Joint Meeting

We have revamped the monthly meeting into a new format, which will highlight topics of community interest.

Please join us on Oct 7 at 7:00 p.m. for drinks and snacks as we host a conversation and panel discussion on College and Career Readiness. Please bring all your questions!

This meeting will be in-person in the MPR as well as on Zoom. More details to follow!

¡Apunte la Fecha! - 7 de octubre- Reunión de PTSA/ELAC

El 7 de octubre a las 7 p.m. en el salón de usus múltiples (MPR por sus siglas en inglés) - Reunión de PTSA/ELAC

Hemos relanzado nuestras reuniones mensuales con un nuevo formato, remarcando tópicos de interés para la comunidad.

Por favor únase a nosotros el 7 de octubre para compartir refrescos y bocadillos mientras sostenemos una conversación y un panel de discusión sobre Universidades y Preparación para la Carrera Profesional. ¡Háganos todas sus preguntas!

Esta reunión se llevará a cabo en persona, en el salón de usos múltiples y también por Zoom.

Calling All Creators- PTSA Reflections Program- I Belong/Yo pertenezco

Explore the arts and express yourself in the PTSA’s Reflections Program! This year’s theme is: I Belong | Yo pertenezco. 

Enter your artwork and reflection in one of six categories: Dance, Film Production, Literature, Music Composition, Photography, or Visual Arts.

Learn more here (including how to enter).



All entries will be recognized for their artistic achievement. Entries are due by Sunday, November 9, 2025 at midnight. Questions? Email us.

Sequoia PTSA is now on Instagram and Facebook!

Sequoia PTSA is now on Instagram and Facebook! 

Stay connected with real-time updates on meetings and events, volunteer opportunities, and celebrations of our students and staff.

• Instagram → @sequoiaptsa
• Facebook → Sequoia High School PTSA

Like, follow, and share to help us spread the word—and tag us so we can reshare your Sequoia moments.

•  Event reminders & recaps
•  Volunteer spotlights & needs
•  Program updates and resources
•  Campus life and Raven pride

Be part of the UNALIYI spirit - join/renew your PTSA membership today!

Follow us: Instagram: @sequoiaptsa | Facebook: Sequoia High School PTSA 

You Know You've Been Meaning To....

...So click and JOIN NOW! 

With your membership, you can: 

• Be a part of Sequoia's community of parents, teachers, and students who make our school welcoming, united, and engaged! 
• Empower the California State PTA to speak up on behalf of our families.  

Our State PTA has a long history of protecting and supporting California's most valued assets—our children. The greater our number, the stronger our voice!

Please email Dana Rechin if you have questions.

Beyond the Classroom: Supporting Student Clubs and Mental Health & Awareness

SHSEF raises funds from parents, community members and grantors to close the gap in state and local funding. The funds raised touch each of our students. 

• Sequoia is home to 72 active clubs—and they can apply for mini-grants to help support their purpose. 
• We invest in student wellness. SHSEF funding supports an additional, full-time therapist.

Our fundraising goal is $650,000 for the ‘25-26 school year and our recommended ask per student is $1,500, or any gift that is meaningful to your family. Learn more and DONATE TODAY!

Check your inbox for the September SHSEF newsletter!

Volunteer Opportunity for Parents and Community Members -

Tuesdays 8:30 - 10:00 a.m.

Join our volunteer team working with recent immigrants and ELD students. Working individually and in small groups, our parent and community member volunteers are expected to prepare for about 15-20 minutes per week by reading my emails and previewing any curriculum materials. Join this wonderful community (with a 100% volunteer return rate from last year!). There are approximately 22 sessions, however, it is acceptable to miss a few. 

Volunteers will be required to complete the volunteer clearance process.

For more information please contact Stacy Schmidt Wenzel 

Get your Senior Portraits Scheduled Now!

All 12th graders should be scheduling their Senior Portraits through Prestige Portraits Studio in San Carlos. Following your session, be sure to log in to select the photo you would like used in the yearbook. All portrait sessions must be completed by November 21. Schedule your portrait here! 

Sequoia ASB Donation Drive for Students in Need!

Please help us in our effort to provide Sequoia students with certain resources for success like clothes/formal wear, school supplies, canned foods, toys/stuffed animals, etc. We are accepting donations until Tuesday, September 23, in the Student Activity Center. The Free Thrift event will be held in Room 128 from 7:00 a.m. until 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, September 24.

Transform the trajectory of a Sequoia student and become a Sequoia Academy Mentor!

For less than two hours a month from November through May, Sequoia Academy Mentors work one-on-one with students from the Digital Arts Academy or Health Careers Academy on career-related skills. Adults can support a student by sharing their knowledge and experience about how to take steps towards a successful and rewarding career.

Join our team! Whatever professional stage you are in, our students can benefit from your career journey. To learn more and sign up, visit our website or contact Greg Schmid.

ATHLETICS

Home games this week:

• 9/23 Girls Tennis vs Menlo-Atherton - Varsity 3:45 pm
• 9/24 Girls Volleyball vs Half Moon Bay - Frosh 4:00 pm
• 9/25 Girls Tennis vs Burlingame - Varsity 3:45 pm
• 9/25 Girls Volleyball vs Half Moon Bay - Varsity 6:00 pm, JV 4:30 pm

Both home and away games have been added to the Sequoia High School Athletics Calendar – and don't forget to follow @seqboosters on social media. 

Introducing Business Banner Sponsorships

New this year, Banner Sponsorships offer local companies a way to promote their business while supporting Sequoia High School! Banner sponsorships are available at multiple locations on campus including Terremere Field, El Camino Real, the Main Gym, the Baseball Field, and the Swimming Pool. In addition to on-campus visibility, Business Banner Sponsors receive recognition by sports announcers during Sequoia home games, as well as in e-newsletters and social media.

To learn more or become a sponsor, please visit Business Banner Sponsorships. 

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Special thanks to all of Sequoia's existing business sponsors for their generous support: Gunderson Dettmer, Oracle, Goetz Bros Sporting Goods, Tavarez Orthodontics, JM Lehman Construction, County Consumer Plumbing, Chang Orthodontics, Peninsula Chemical Company, Rim Orthodontics, Joyce & Tatum Real Estate, John McAfee–State Farm, Hassett Hardware, Jennifer Fischer Interiors.

The NEW Sequoia Media Center Fall Newsletter is here!  Learn about the Storytelling Society, peer tutoring, a free New York Times academic pass, and more!

To sign up for the free Parent Venture newsletter, click here. 

September 23: Breaking the Silence: A Doctor's Insights on Youth Suicide Awareness & Prevention

To provide a physician's insights on suicide awareness, we welcome Rex Huang, MD, Child/Adolescent Psychiatrist and Chief of Psychiatry at the Kaiser Permanente Redwood City Medical Center.  Register

23 de septiembre: Romper el silencio: perspectivas de un médico sobre la concientización y prevención del suicidio en jóvenes

Para ofrecer perspectivas médicas sobre la concientización del suicidio, damos la bienvenida a Rex Huang, MD, psiquiatra infantil y de adolescentes y jefe de Psiquiatría en el Centro Médico Kaiser Permanente Redwood City.  Registro. 

September 25: Hello, Cruel World! Science-Based Strategies for Raising Terrific Kids

In Hello, Cruel World!, science journalist Melinda Wenner Moyer provides practical, comprehensive, science-backed tools to help our children handle the challenging world they will inherit. Register.

25 de septiembre: ¡Hola, mundo cruel! Estrategias basadas en la ciencia para criar niños maravillosos



En ¡Hola, mundo cruel!, la periodista científica Melinda Wenner Moyer ofrece herramientas prácticas, completas y basadas en la ciencia para ayudar a nuestros hijos a enfrentar el desafiante mundo que heredarán. Registro.