Piedmont Pulse

March 11, 2024

Dear PUSD Families:

In this week’s edition of the Piedmont Pulse, I will be sharing information about the following topics:

1. Honoring Our Classified Staff

2. Open Enrollment for Residents & interdistrict Transfers - Enroll Now!

3. Tri School Parent Ed Program - Go Kindness!

4. Witter Field Dedication

5. New Leadership Positions - Input Opportunities
   

In partnership,

Jennifer Hawn, Ed.D.

Superintendent

I want to thank the students, staff and families who have reached out in the last several weeks to share their perspective regarding the district’s budget and our desire to adjust our budget according to our declining enrollment and our efforts to increase staff compensation. Several weeks ago, I honored our certificated staff during these difficult times of reductions. I want to also share some perspective about our amazing classified staff.

Simply put, we could not operate without our classified staff members. They are the “rock” that provides the foundation for all of our operations. We have made reductions to our classified staff according to our decline in enrollment, but it’s important to remember that we could not run our schools without this essential group, and value their work in support of our students. When we think of PUSD as an outstanding school district, it is in large part because of our amazing classified staff.

On the March 4th Board agenda, the final list of reductions were approved in two layoff resolutions. We have reduced the number of reductions for our certificated positions, and we have reduced the number of reductions of our classified positions. If you attended the budget study sessions, you observed the many reductions to our staff, including classified staff. At the second budget study session, the Board directed staff to reduce further, and we planned additional reductions of classified staff. However, we never got to the point of posting these reductions on the 2/28 Board agenda because the Board gave direction to explore a parcel tax increase to Measure H, a decision that allowed us to delay and ultimately pull back on some of the reductions for certificated and classified staff.

At this point, we have moved forward with reductions that total $1.4M, which reflects our declining enrollment and adjustments to uphold our compensation offer to staff (9% over three years), and our classified staff are included in these reductions. We wish we did not need to reduce any positions; however, these reductions must happen to adjust our budget.

Thank you to our classified staff. We value your efforts, and you are an essential part of our team.

PUSD Enrollment for 2024-25 School Year

The Piedmont Unified School District (PUSD) is accepting enrollment for residents and for students who live outside Piedmont, pending space availability. If you are a resident, we encourage you to enroll asap so that we can finalize resident enrollment and open up enrollment to students who live outside Piedmont. In many cases, we know we have space available, and we are already approving interdistrict transfer student applications. We understand that families have many options for school choice, including private schools, and we are working hard to process resident and transfer student enrollment as applications come in. Families who live outside of Piedmont and who are seeking information about interdistrict transfers should check the Non-Resident Transfers page.

Families with children turning five years of age between September 2, 2024 and June 2, 2025, are eligible for the District’s TK program for the 2024-25 school year. Visit the District website for more information about the TK program.

Interdistrict Transfers - Sylvia Eggert - 510-594.2614, seggert@piedmont.k12.ca.us

Beach: Sarah Schaaf - 510-594-2666, sschaaf@piedmont.k12.ca.us

Havens: Melanie Reed - 510-594-2680, mreed@piedmont.k12.ca.us

Wildwood: Christine Petersen/Jennifer Davidhazy - 510-594-2780, wildwoodoffice@piedmont.k12.ca.us

PMS: Caryn Palliser - 510-594-2669, cpalliser@piedmont.k12.ca.us

MHS: Bernadette Navarro - 510-594-2878, bnavarro@piedmont.k12.ca.us

PHS: Darlene Low - 510-594-2646, dlow@piedmont.k12.ca.us

I will close by thanking our team above for their work in processing enrollment. This is a busy time in our district, and I am grateful to have such an amazing team welcoming our new families and creating a sense of belonging from day one in our district.

I am thrilled to see additional parent education nights offered at our Tri Schools starting tomorrow night and next month. Thank you to our Principals, speakers, and our Parent Clubs for supporting these important family events.

The Tri-school Principals and Parents Clubs have an Elementary Parent Education Program that provides workshops and speakers relevant to parenting kids TK-5. Their final two workshops of the year are right around the corner. Tomorrow, Tuesday 3/12 6:30-8pm in Ellen Driscoll (Havens), they will be hosting Cultivating a Culture of Kindness, a workshop led by PUSD Director of DEIB Jean Takazawa, flier linked HERE. This workshop will focus on how we build connection and create a more inclusive community through kindness. You can RSVP here. Then, Thursday April 18th at 7pm on Zoom, My Digital TAT2 will be returning to talk about parenting in the digital era - supporting dialogue and strategies for building young people's healthy tech habits and well-being. More information about this event will be shared closer to the event date. I hope you will join them!

Yesterday, we held a ceremony to dedicate a plaque commemorating the service of Jean C. Witter, Jr., PHS student from 1935-1938, along with his service in WWII after which he was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart. Below is the dedication that you can now see on Witter Field:

Witter Field

Dedicated on September 24, 1948 in honor of Jean C. Witter, Jr., beloved son, star quarterback, respected team captain, Optimo award winner and honor student at Piedmont High School from 1935-1938.

Jean took his athletic talents to U.C. Berkeley where his blocked punt led the Bears to a 16-0 upset win over Stanford in the 1941 big game. He also played rugby all four years and captained the 1942 national championship team.

Upon graduation from Cal, Jean was commissioned as an Ensign, United States Naval Reserve, and assigned to the USS San Francisco. He courageously gave his life for freedom on November 13, 1942 during the Battle of Guadalcanal, one of the fiercest naval battles of WWII. His ship took forty-five major hits while inflicting severe damage to a Japanese task force with vastly superior firepower. The destroyer escort, USS Witter, was named in his honor.

We encourage students and families to visit and enjoy the new Witter Field dedication plaque at the El Cerrito entrance to Witter Field. The legacy of Jean C. Witter, Jr. lives on in our district, our community, and our country.

Several weeks ago, I shared that we have several new leadership openings for next fall. If you are interested in providing input on the profile of a successful candidate for these positions. Please see below. We invite your input by March 29, 2024. Thank you!

Director of Special Education

Principal - Piedmont High School

Director of Athletics

Women's History Month - The California Department of Education and Piedmont Unified School District celebrate Women's History Month annually in March. We celebrate our female students, staff, and families this month and ALWAYS!

District Professional Development Day - March 11th. Today is a professional development day for staff, and there will be no school for students.

55th Annual Bird Calling Contest - The 55th Piedmont Bird Calling Contest takes wing on Friday, March 29, 2024, at 7:00 PM at the Alan Harvey Theater at Piedmont High School. Tickets are now on sale at showtix4u. Prices are $25 for General Seating and $15 for Students. More information linked HERE

Piedmont Pulse Updates - Please note that I will be sending out Piedmont Pulse newsletter every other week. Archived Piedmont Pulse Newsletters are linked HERE

PEF - The Giving Campaign - The Giving Campaign officially ended in December; however, you can still give. We are grateful to our community for their support of our outstanding teachers and programs. If you are able to give, go HERE.

Piedmont Portal - For all of the latest school and community events, please visit the Piedmont Portal linked HERE

Donate for Absences - Parents, please remember that if your child needs to be out of school, you can submit payment HERE for the lost revenue. Each day that a student is out of school (for any reason, including illness) means a loss of revenue in the following amounts per day: TK-3rd Grade = $61.32; 4th-6th Grade = $56.39; 7th-8th Grade = $58.06; 9th-12th Grade = $61.20. This is invitational, of course.

Witter Field Renovation Project Updates - For updates on the Witter Field Renovation Project, please go to our Facilities page on our PUSD website.

Community Pool Construction Update - Safety measures around the Community Pool Project construction site on Magnolia Ave. across from PHS/MHS are currently in effect. Visit the City of Piedmont's website for details.

Work for PUSD - PUSD is seeking candidates for a variety of positions. Visit the District's Edjoin page for a complete list of jobs available and to apply online.

Substitutes Needed - Support students while earning up to $200/day. PUSD seeking substitute teachers for the 2023-24 school year. Visit the District's EdJoin page for more information and to apply.

Follow PUSD - Please read our school newsletters sent out weekly for update to date information. The District Facebook (@piedmontunified), Twitter (@piedmontunified), Instagram (@piedmontusd) and Threads (@piedmontusd@threads) pages are active.

Email: communication@piedmont.k12.ca.us
Website: www.piedmont.k12.ca.us
Location: 760 Magnolia Avenue, Piedmont, CA, USA
Phone: 510-594-2600