| | News from Laguna Beach Unified School District, its teachers, students, staff and Board of Education. | | Board reviews wildfire preparedness and efforts to harden school campuses | | |
The Board received a comprehensive update on wildfire preparedness across LBUSD, bringing together district and school site staff, Laguna Beach Fire Department representatives, and facilities experts to review existing prevention, response, and mitigation efforts. With each school facing a different wildfire exposure based on its location and surrounding terrain, every campus maintains a site-specific safety plan with evacuation, shelter-in-place, and reunification procedures, supported by a district Emergency Operations Center, regular inspections, emergency training, and a districtwide fire drill planned for this fall.
Preparedness extends beyond school property through coordination with the City of Laguna Beach, the Laguna Beach Fire Department, and the Orange County Fire Authority on vegetation and fuel management, including targeted goat grazing on hillsides near district campuses and specialized fuel-modification work near El Morro Elementary. The district also coordinates emergency communications with the City's Emergency Operations Center and participates in regional preparedness efforts through the Emergency Preparedness Interagency Collaborative (EPIC).
Looking ahead, the district will continue to build on this framework through defensible space, vegetation management, and facility improvements, with new construction and modernization projects providing opportunities to further harden campuses against wildfire. Fire-resistant design can include noncombustible exterior materials, fire-rated roofs, ember-resistant vents, protected doors and windows, and landscaping designed to reduce fuel and ignition risk. LBUSD and the Laguna Beach Fire Department will also collaborate on information and community preparedness nights to help parents and families better understand wildfire prevention, emergency response, and preparedness.
| | District focuses accountability plan on student needs | |
The Board received an update on a new approach to development of LBUSD's 2027–30 Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) and its companion budget process. At its core, the LCAP is a three-year accountability plan that requires school districts to identify where gaps in student opportunities and outcomes exist and describe the goals, actions, services, and investments intended to address those needs. This creates a focused framework for examining how the district supports students and student groups with the greatest need, and for measuring whether those efforts are improving outcomes.
Historically, LBUSD has used the LCAP as a broad planning document, with approximately 96% of the district's overall budget represented as LCAP expenditures. By comparison, comparable community-funded, or "basic aid," school districts typically identify approximately 4–6% of their budgets as LCAP expenditures. Going forward, LBUSD plans to more clearly distinguish the two processes so the LCAP provides a focused view of targeted student needs, the resources directed toward them, and whether those investments are improving outcomes.
Under the refined approach, the LCAP will focus more directly on areas such as supports for students with disabilities, English learners, students from economically disadvantaged households, and foster or unhoused youth; Multi-Tiered Systems of Support; chronic absenteeism; and targeted family engagement and professional learning. The district budget will provide the broader financial picture of all district programs, staffing, operations, and priorities. The two will remain connected, with LCAP actions and expenditures aligned with the district budget.
LBUSD will introduce its revised budget development process in September, with the process beginning in December. The district's comprehensive LCAP engagement process will continue, providing opportunities for students, families, staff, and community members to share feedback that can inform the focused LCAP, the broader budget process, or both, depending on the needs and priorities identified.
| Laguna Beach Unified School District names Ryan Zajda 2026 Spirit of Laguna award recipient | |
Laguna Beach Unified School District has named Director of Facilities and Sustainability Ryan Zajda the recipient of the 2026 Spirit of Laguna Award.
The award recognizes a district employee who exemplifies extraordinary service to others. Zajda joined LBUSD in 2017 and has served as director of facilities and sustainability throughout his tenure, leading the facilities, maintenance, and operations employees who work behind the scenes each day to keep the district’s campuses safe, functional, and welcoming.
In close partnership with school site administrators, Zajda and his teams support nearly every aspect of the district’s physical environment, from plumbing, irrigation, custodial services, and everyday repairs to long-term facilities planning and campus improvements. He has overseen major capital improvement projects, including the Laguna Beach High School pool modernization project, improvements to the athletic fields at Thurston Middle School and LBHS, Building 100 at LBHS, and the Laguna Beach Family Resource Center on St. Ann’s Drive.
| | Ad Hoc Arts Committee continues work, seeks applicants | |
The Board approved the continuation of the Ad Hoc Arts Committee for the 2026–27 school year, building on work that began last year to review district arts programs and strengthen connections with Laguna Beach's broader arts community. The committee's previous work included input from students, staff and community partners and resulted in recommendations focused on sustaining strong programs while expanding access, improving coordination and deepening community arts partnerships.
As the committee begins its next year of work, LBUSD will open a new application process to recruit members for the 2026–27 committee. Students, staff, parents and community members interested in contributing to this next phase of the committee's work are invited to apply.
| Superintendent's Weekly Update | In this week’s update, Superintendent Don Austin, Ed.D., reflects on lessons from the first week back to school and shares updates from across LBUSD. Highlights include the launch of a new elementary math curriculum, progress on the LBHS pool modernization project, student transportation and school meals updates, and Homecoming Huddle plans. | Community invited to LBHS vs. Shadow Ridge home football game | Join us Friday, Sept. 4, at 7 p.m. at Guyer Field as the Breakers take the field for their final home football game of September. Check out the LBHS athletics calendar for more opportunities to support Breaker student-athletes throughout the fall season. | The next regularly scheduled Board of Education meeting is on September 10, 2026. Visit lbusd.org/board for more information. | | | | | |
