La Cañada Elementary PTA

LCUSD Updates: School Scheduled Reopening Thursday, January 16

1/7/2025 11:12 pm

 

LCUSD Update 1/13/2025

 

School Reopening Thursday, January 16th

Today the Governing Board met and took action on staff recommendations related to reopening, learning continuity, and support plans.

 

Reopening:

  1. Plan for all schools reopening Thursday, January 16th, 2025 pending all conditions are met (all evacuation warnings are lifted, power is available on campus, air quality is in orange or better via AirNow)
  2. We will send a communication out Wednesday evening by 8:00 p.m. to confirm school will be open on Thursday. 
  3. Important: To prepare for return, if your student had medicine stored in health offices that required refrigeration, please plan on sending new medicine to school. 
  4. If conditions are not met for Reopening on Thursday, January 16th, the Governing Board will convene a special meeting on Monday, January 20, 2025 at 10:00 a.m. to provide direction to staff regarding next steps for reopening schools as soon as possible.

Learning Continuity Plan:

  1. In support of students impacted by the Eaton fire due to new living situations or health conditions, students can access the Learning Continuity Plan (emergency home learning plans) outlined here from Thursday, January 16th - Friday January 24th, 2025.
  2. If needs still exist, students can sign up for an short-term independent learning plan for an additional 15 school days (January 27 - February 18, 2025).
  3. For needs beyond this timeline, we’ll work with families individually.

Support and Resources:

 

  1. Staff severely impacted by the Eaton fire will have access to 10 paid administrative leave - Natural Disaster - days to use during the remainder of this school year. 
  2. Here is a great guide on talking to children about wildfires: Guide from NASP.
  3. LCUSD will be building out a “get support/give support” webpage to assist those who need support or those interested in providing support. You can review what we have so far here.
  4. LCUSD school enrollment: If you know an LCUSD resident whose student attended an impacted private or charter school in Pasadena/Altadena, we can support enrollment in our schools. For current staff members whose students’ schools have been impacted by the fire, please contact our LCUSD Registrar to assist with enrollment. 
  5. CEC has offered childcare at each elementary school site from 8am-6pm this week.

 


LCUSD Update (From ParentSquare update)

 

1/9/2025

 

Superintendent's Update: Information on School Closures and Communications - January 9, 2025
Wendy Sinnette • 13 hours ago • Thursday, Jan 9 at 6:11 PM • La Cañada USD

 

Dear LCUSD Community,


I hope this email finds you and your family safe as we deal with the difficult, for many devastating, conditions brought on by the Eaton fire, the winds, and the evacuations. Today the LCUSD Cabinet and Governing Board President and Vice President met, and I wanted to share with you some important outcomes and updates from the meeting.


Firstly, I know that with people’s lives being upended, any information for planning is essential. So, please be advised that LCUSD schools will NOT be open on Monday, January 13, 2025.


Because we are in a current state of emergency, this allows us to apply for a State waiver which offsets the lost days and provides the district with funding. Given this, we do not believe that we will be required to add any additional days to the end of the school year.


Next, we recognize how important it is to have timely and reliable updates from your school district.  For the length of the school closures and throughout the time that we are responding to this disaster, the district will be sending out communications every Monday through Friday at 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. and we will send a communication on Sunday at 4:00 p.m.  These communications will all be sent via ParentSquare.


Importantly, we know that many teachers, staff, and families have faced life-altering loss from these fires and everyone’s life has been upended to some extent.  LCUSD’s administration has endeavored to reach out to all teachers and staff in order to be informed regarding what they have suffered during this last week.  We are working on an action plan to provide support and will share details as soon as we are able.  We intend to do the same type of outreach to all families in the days ahead.


Additionally, we wanted to share a few resources with you that may assist you in accessing necessary information which may help address your family’s needs during this disaster.  These resources are listed at the end of this email.


My heart goes out to our entire LCUSD Community.  Please stay safe and feel free to contact me and/or your LCUSD Administration if there is anything we can do to support you.


Sincerely yours,


Wendy Sinnette

Superintendent


List of Resources for LCUSD Families

Fire Status Updates/Air Quality

Evacuation Centers

Housing/Shelter

For Animals/Pets

  • Pasadena Humane Society: Emergency shelter for animals, 361 S. Raymond Ave., Pasadena. Seeking families to foster pets displaced by fires. Email foster@pasadenahumane.org.

Food/Drink/Transportation/Recharging Electronics

  • Planet Fitness: Free access to facilities (showers, locker rooms, WiFi) for those affected by fires, including first responders. Contact your local club for details.

  • AT&T: Unlimited talk, text, and data for fire-affected areas through Feb. 6. Check their website for eligible ZIP codes.

  • Odyssey Games, Pasadena: Offering evacuees a place to charge phones, use restrooms, and grab a snack (1795 E. Colorado Blvd.).

  • Lyft: Free rides to/from shelters (up to $25 per ride, max two rides). Use code CAFIRERELIEF25 by Jan. 15 (limit: 500 riders).

Other Resources

 

 

 

 

 

 

1/8/2025 LCUSD Update

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1/7/2025 LCUSD Update

 1/7/2025

 

Dear LCUSD Community,

 

In light of the severe wind storms and fires impacting our local area today, which will continue through tomorrow, LCUSD will be closed on Wednesday, January 8, 2025. While we understand the disruption this may cause our families, the safety of our students, staff, and community is our utmost priority.

 

We appreciate your understanding this difficult decision. We will continue to monitor the extreme weather conditions and will provide additional updates regarding reopening later in the week as more information becomes available. At this time, we anticipate that school will resume as scheduled on Thursday, January 9, 2025.

 

Thank you for your cooperation and commitment to ensuring the safety of our LCUSD Community.

 

Sincerely,

Wendy Sinnette

Superintendent