Back to School!
Dear La Ballona Community,
On Monday, January 24th, we all return with hope, new strategies, and hopefully increased health. I know that our minds are all on Omicron, but I want to take a quick breather and focus on Martin Luther King Jr. and Kindness. We began last week with the holiday of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. What a remarkable human he was, accomplishing so much by the age of 39 when he was assassinated. Our children think the age 39 is really old, but we adults know that most of us are still trying to figure how to live our lives way into our adulthood. The fact that King was able to reignite a movement that continues to influence us in his short life is a true inspiration.
One of King's strongest values was promoting justice through peace and nonviolence. What a role model for us all, especially our children. King once said “That old law about ‘an eye for an eye’ leaves everybody blind. The time is always right to do the right thing.” This message is one we often use in schools to help one other solve conflicts with their schoolmates. La Ballona will use this message, along with many others to begin our Great Kindness Challenge. Counselor Serrano and our teachers are preparing lessons to promote kindness with our children. (See below for the flyer).
I would like to spark a kindness movement with our adult community. During a time when our emotional reserves are so low, it's important that we remember that we are all here because we love our children. We all believe that the path to a better tomorrow is to support, nurture, positively influence, and teach our children. In honor of this common goal, please join me in an adult kindness challenge. Enjoy the adult activities below.
Stay PAWSitive
Dr. Becky Godbey
Principal
Message from the Superintendent:
Dear CCUSD Community,
I want to thank you for your understanding, patience and cooperation as we made the difficult decision to cancel school for the remainder of this week. We realize that having your children home from school so unexpectedly undoubtedly caused hardship for many families. However, given the rapid rise in positive Covid-19 cases in Los Angeles County, and among our students, faculty and staff, we believe this short-term closure was the most prudent thing to do.
CCUSD’s top priority remains the same as it has been since the beginning of the school year in August 2021: To create and maintain a safe in-person learning and teaching environment for all.
There was some urgency behind our decision:
- Prior to winter break, CCUSD averaged .36 new Covid-19 cases each calendar day (i.e., a new case was confirmed every three days);
- As schools resumed after winter break, CCUSD’s daily average accelerated to 52+ new confirmed Covid-19 cases each day, an increase of 144 times over the pre-holiday rate.
We continued to receive new positive case results with every testing day.
For the most current breakdown of positive cases by school site, check the CCUSD COVID-19 Dashboard.
CCUSD chose to address the fast-rising caseload by:
- Increasing pupil-free time by extending the number of days away from school to include this Wednesday, Thursday and Friday (01/19-01/21/2022), in addition to the previously scheduled days off of Monday and Tuesday (01/17 and 01/18). This allowed for all staff and students, regardless of vaccination status, to get tested before returning to school. Testing is conducted via LFN drive-through events and at-home testing kits provided to students and staff;
- Requiring a negative Covid-19 test result from each individual student and staff member before they return to school on Monday, January 24, 2022.
- Requiring that students who are not yet registered for testing get registered. If your child is not signed up for weekly testing, please do so ASAP here.
- Pursuing 100% weekly district-wide Covid-19 testing, once school resumes in person.
We also continue to subscribe fervently to the belief that learning in-person is the best option for the majority of our students, both from a social-emotional as well as an educational perspective. To reiterate, our top priority is to create and maintain a safe in-person learning and teaching environment for all.
When school does resume in person on Monday, we will continue with the following safety protocols:
- Weekly testing. We may increase this to bi-weekly as testing capacity allows.
- Wearing medical grade masks (KF94/N95) for everyone at every school site, except when actively eating or drinking.
- Mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations for all staff and students (ages 12 and above), including recommending booster shots for everyone who is age-eligible. We also HIGHLY recommend that students age 5-11 also get vaccinated, now that they are eligible.
As I shared above, a negative test result will be mandatory before each student and staff member can return to in–person instruction on Monday, January 24. We held drive-thru testing events this week. If you were not able to get tested then, you can submit results of at-home test kits taken within 24 hours of January 24, or test results from another provider such as a healthcare clinic, also taken within 24 hours of January 24, 2022. Submit the results to your school site.
If you chose to use an at-home Covid-19 test kit or get tested at a healthcare clinic not affiliated with CCUSD, please email your child’s test results to your school site:
- Culver City High School: c19-highschool@ccusd.org
- Culver City Middle School: See instructions included with test kit
- Linwood E. Howe: c19-linhowe@ccusd.org
- El Rincon: c19-elrincon@ccusd.org
- El Marino: c19-elmarino@ccusd.org
- Farragut: c19-farragut@ccusd.org
- La Ballona: c19-laballona@ccusd.org
CCUSD will continue to provide you with frequent updates on CCUSD’s testing schedules, Covid-19 case numbers, and the logistics for returning to and maintaining in-person schooling as safely as possible. We will share information on the district website, via social media, through the weekly Culver Pride e-newsletter, and through additional emails dedicated to the district’s Covid-19 status.
Thank you again for your understanding, cooperation and patience. We will continue to monitor, manage and mitigate Covid-19 within our school community. Stay healthy and safe. We will get through this together.
Once again, if your child is not yet registered for the weekly testing, please enroll them ASAP via CCUSD COVID-19 Test Registration (https://hipaa.jotform.com/LivingFit/CCUSD). Weekly testing is required in order for your child to remain in school.
Respectfully,
Quoc Tran, Superintendent
Painting help
We need 2-3 parent volunteers to paint La Ballona's calming/sensory room. All materials provided. Must be done after school or on the weekend. Please contact Liz Vila at lizhagen@hotmail.com if you can help. Thank you so much.
Lions' Pride Run (Jogathon)
Hello Families, We are gearing up for our spring fundraiser, the Lion's Pride Run! Students are lacing up those sneakers in preparation, and we need parent support as well. Please reach out to Rocio Alvarez - webadmin@laballonapta.org if you're able to help organize this awesome fundraiser.
2022-2023 La Ballona PTA Nomination Committee
As we move into the second half of the school year, our PTA Board is beginning the process of creating a nomination committee for future Board members. If you are a current PTA member, and would like to help shape next year's board, please reach out to Jamie Krute - msjamiedoody@gmail.com
ANNUAL FUNDRAISING DRIVE (still going strong)
We are currently at $64,000, just a bit over half way to our yearly goal of raising $120,000 (approx $300/child)!
For this year's programs and supplies, we're in need of community support. Every donation pushes us closer to our goal; allowing us to create a platform for our students to access educational opportunities, tools and experiences the school might not otherwise be able to afford.
Ways to donate and help out:
Go to bit.ly/laballona and donate what you can!
By check, make payable to "La Ballona PTA" and return in an envelope to your classroom teacher.
Share this flyer with your friends, family, and local businesses!
Monthly donation option is available at https://laballonapta.org/donate
Ask your company if they offer matching gifts for employees!
La Ballona Elementary School
Culver City, CA 90232
Email: erikaarredondo@ccusd.org
Website: www.laballona.ccusd.org
Location: La Ballona Elementary School, Washington Boulevard, Culver City, CA, USA
Phone: 3108424334
Facebook: facebook.com/laballonaelementary
Twitter: @LaBallona