Message from Superintendent Skelly
Happy New (School) Year!

I hope this newsletter finds you well, and your student is enjoying the start of the year. This time of the year is exhausting! There's so much stimulation -- new friends, changing social dynamics, habits and routines. And that's just for the adults! When my own children would start the year they would be zombies when they made it to the weekend.

For those of you who are new to the District, the Superintendent's Newsletter is published roughly twice a semester, and it's meant to supplement the information you receive from your particular school or program. If there's a topic you'd like shared in this publication, send me an email at  [email protected] , or give me a call at 650-558-2200.

District Goals

Every year staff prepares, and then the Board approves  Annual District Goals . While much of our work is ongoing and enduring, there are areas we give particular emphasis or specific initiatives that call for greater attention and focus.

This year some areas we will tackle include:
  • Providing a consistent, rigorous and engaging educational experience for all students
  • Narrowing opportunity gaps that students experience in order to increase achievement for all students
  • Developing an equity vision statement with the involvement of more individuals
  • Enhancing student well-being and family engagement
  • Improving communications with both internal and external audiences
  • Being good stewards of our resources. Our Board of Trustees recently directed staff to pursue the sale of the soon-to-be-vacated Crestmoor site in San Bruno. We'll look to them for direction on building housing for staff.
  • Consider a bond measure in March 2020 to continue delivery of high quality, safe, sustainable, and state-of-the-art 21st century learning environments for our students.
Ethnic Studies - Supporting Understanding of and Empathy for All Students

This past year we saw a disturbing uptick in documented hate speech, anti-Semitism, bigotry, and racially-charged issues, throughout the world and sometimes through poor choices made by students. This means we must redouble our work around the cause of respect, justice, and empathy.        

The history of American public education is in large part the story of fighting discrimination in all forms, but finding the best strategies for these complex issues is not easy. Last year, at the School Board's behest, we piloted Ethnic Studies classes at five of our schools, with Capuchino High taking the lead by making the class a freshman requirement. In the spring, the Board received a  report on the results of this trial and encouraged us to offer this class more widely, with the goal of having every student take this class as an underclassman.

The results from our pilot suggest that our students' social-emotional health is enhanced when they know "who they are and where they came from" and that is validated in their educational experiences. In addition, we believe that we can build a greater sense of community and a commitment to respect and empathy when our students know how their personal story fits into our greater society. Further, this work ties nicely with our ninth grade English curriculum where the theme for the year is "The Self" (other themes for other years are: 10th - The World", 11th - "The Nation" and 12th - "The Future").   See the English curriculum here .

Perhaps you have seen the recent discussions at the state level about the drafts of the Ethnic Studies State Model Curriculum. We're monitoring this discussion closely and have analyzed our current course of study to see if there are any implications for local work - we have found that there are not. Our team of Ethnic Studies teachers will continue to collaborate to refine the course and to create powerful learning experiences for our students.        

Our staff believes that education can be the cure for most of society's ills. That's often a huge motivating factor for why they do the work they do. Our nation's progress toward greater equality, cohesion, and acceptance has been one of fits and starts, but this journey has always gone through its schools. I'm excited about Ethnic Studies and other initiatives we have in place to be part of making our communities and our nation stronger, together. Now that you know more about Ethnic Studies, you have a whole new topic for dinner time conversations with your student!
Report Absences Online

When I had school-age children, one of the most annoying things about interacting with the attendance office was listening to a long voice message before leaving a voicemail about my child's doctor's appointment. Now, finally, we have a tech solution!  Each of our schools now allow families to report a student absence online. 

Please see the homepage of your school's website to report an absence in a few easy clicks. This online reporting also provides families the chance to provide additional information and request support from the school on issues that may be affecting a student's success. Please call your school's attendance clerk if you have any questions

District Works to Provide Greater Access to All Students

Last year a group of dedicated parents, students and staff worked to identify ways the District could provide broader access to all students to a variety of events and services (like entrance to football and basketball games and free college transcripts). Based on their recommendations schools will now provide:
  • Free admission to all football and basketball games for SMUHSD students: All District students with a valid student ID may be admitted to any football or basketball game on our campuses provided they have no major disciplinary history.       
  • Free admission to plays and musicals:  All SMUHSD students with a valid student ID may be admitted to plays and musicals on our campuses. See campus leadership for details on how to gain free admission. 
  • Free academic transcripts for current SMUHSD students: Current SMUHSD students shall receive up to ten free academic transcripts from their schools. Schools may charge current students $5/transcript after they have requested ten free transcripts.
  • Sports physicals for students without health insurance: Students who don't have health insurance or who don't have the ability to pay for these exams should see their school health clerk for assistance.       
  • GATE ACT/SAT test prep scholarships: The GATE Parents Group will offer scholarships to students with financial need for their test prep classes.       
Facilities Update

Drawing of a School Building For almost 20 years SMUHSD has implemented a methodical program to renovate aging school facilities and construct new facilities to protect the safety of our students and provide the best possible learning environments. 

Although some of our facilities have been updated or replaced, other aging classrooms, labs and school facilities require repairs, updates and improvements.

We are currently planning the next phase of improvements to our local high schools and we invite you to share your opinions and priorities by taking this short survey. 

Most of the improvements completed at our local high schools to date have been funded by school facility improvement bond measures generously approved by our local voters. The District has refinanced outstanding bonds to take advantage of historically low interest rates and has also participated in the no interest bond program offered by the Federal Government. SMUHSD applied for and received matching grants totaling over $13 million from the State that would have otherwise funded improvements in other school districts. The District has worked hard to maximize the quality of facilities available to our students while minimizing the cost to local taxpayers. 

At this point, however, remaining available funds for facility improvements are insufficient to fund identified priority projects to improve academic success and better ensure student safety, sustainability, parity and technology for our schools. Some projects have exceeded their useful life. Similar to technology, state of the art classrooms have changed dramatically in the last 20 years. Issues of individual and collective student safety have increased in our community. The State does not provide ongoing money for repairs, maintenance projects or new construction.  

Thank you so much for your involvement in our schools and our community and for taking the time to share your thoughts through our survey .

Equity Vision

As part of the   District's 2019-2020 goals , SMUHSD will adopt an Equity Vision that articulates how we are serving all students and anchors all District policies, practices and instruction. A draft version can be found here   . We believe it is important to publicly declare that equity is central to our mission.

The District is also seeking interested parents, students and community members to serve on an Equity Advisory Committee that will meet throughout the year to discuss the vision and make suggestions on how to best serve all students equitably. 

If you are interested in being a part of this group, please contact Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction,  Julia Kempkey .        


By the Numbers

Enrollment

Many California school districts have seen declining enrollment over the past several years. In SMUHSD, we've enjoyed a modest but steady increase. However, 2019-20 may be the last year we experience an increase in the number of students who walk through our doors.

School 2015-16 Enrollment 2019-20 Enrollment 4 Year Difference
Aragon 1,489 1,726 +237
Burlingame 1,385 1,531 +146
Capuchino 1,159 1,233 +74
Hillsdale 1,388 1,644 +256
Mills 1,209 1,223 +14
San Mateo 1,609 1,741 +132
Peninsula 223 215 -8



Closing Thoughts

At the end of last year I wrote to the graduating seniors and others about the blessings of unanswered prayers -- the idea that, often, and particularly in hindsight, much of what we fervently want but never realize actually turns out to be for the best. As this year opens, there's perhaps a slightly different idea that's worth considering, most apropos, perhaps for freshmen parents.

One of the many great things about our schools is that there are so many things to do during high school. There are clubs to join, sports to play, courses to take, and performing arts activities where students can participate. While students can do virtually anything, they can't do everything, and this can be a problem.

If yours is like virtually every other family, your student will "fail" in some aspect of school. They won't make a sports team or their playing time will be less than they hoped. Another student will be selected for the theater lead or the first chair in the orchestra, There will be some subject in which your student's performance will be less than they (or you!) would like it to be.

While these aspects of school life will cause pain, they also have the potential to serve a really good purpose. How are we supposed to learn what we are good at if we don't experience failure in other areas?  I have encountered so many students who found fulfillment and pleasure in an activity they only considered after failing at some other activity.

As your student's chief guide during high school, please consider the key role you can play as both cheerleader and consoler. While we hope for every success from our students, we know that some measure of failure will be part of their high school experience. 

On we all go!

Kevin