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  • As Black college enrollment lags, study suggests strengthening communities

    As Black college enrollment lags, study suggests strengthening communities


    MarQuan Thornton is a senior at Adelanto High in California’s High Desert. He credits the Heritage Program at his school, aimed at Black students, for helping to keep him on track for attending college.

    Emma Gallegos/EdSource

    Across the nation, more Black students are graduating from high school — but fewer are attending college, according to a report released by the Schott Foundation for Public Education. 

    A study released Tuesday by the organization examined 15 districts throughout the country that collectively educate more than 250,000 Black male students, two of which are in California: the Los Angeles Unified School District, the largest school district in the state, where 7% of students are Black, and the Oakland Unified School District, which has an enrollment of about 45,000, 21% of students being Black. 

    With a 71% graduation rate, Black males at Oakland Unified were among the five lowest in the country — hovering above Detroit, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Minneapolis. At 75%, Los Angeles Unified’s wasn’t much higher. 

    “It’s clear that there is something that has to happen across California,” said John Jackson, the CEO and president of the Schott Foundation. 

    “If you take L.A. Unified and Oakland Unified as two of the largest districts in the state — and two districts that have the largest Black male population — there is something that has to happen.” 

    Jackson added that any efforts by LAUSD are especially critical and could “potentially catalyze progress across the country.” 

    Graduating from high school

    As of the 2019-20 academic year, roughly 86% of students across the country graduated from high school in four years, according to the report. 

    And between 2012 and 2020, Black students’ graduation rates improved the most of any group — slicing the gap between Black and white students by almost half. Black male students, however, did not perform as well as their female peers. 

    “The fact that between 2012-2020, the graduation rate increased for all students (4%) and more significantly for Black students (14%) supports the need for states and localities to focus on resourcing the strategies and supports that improve the academic outcomes for the lowest performing group as a pathway to elevate the outcomes for all students,” the report noted. 

    Still, at 81%, the rate for all Black students remains below the national average — along with Latino and Native American students. 

    Only three states had graduation rates that were higher than the national average: Alabama (88%), Delaware (87%) and Florida (87%). On the other hand, Wyoming (66%), Minnesota (69%) and Idaho (69%) had the lowest rates. 

    In California, Black students sustained a graduation rate of 76.9%. 

    Graduating from high school, according to the report, is also connected to a lower likelihood of becoming homeless or incarcerated.

    Specifically, the report notes that a young person who has not graduated from high school is 350% more likely to experience homelessness and 63% more likely to face incarceration. 

    High school graduation can also be linked with a longer life expectancy. 

    “To change this trajectory impacting the very lives of Black males, we must broaden our lens beyond the classrooms and hallways because students do not live within school walls,” Andre Perry, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, wrote in the report.

    “They reside with families and are part of neighborhoods where the prevailing conditions directly impact not only their educational outcomes but also their life expectancy.”

    Going to college 

    Nationally, in the past decade, more than 600,000 Black male students who were projected to participate in post-secondary education have been missing, according to the report. 

    Community college enrollment among Black students across the board fell by 26%, and Black student enrollment in historically Black colleges and universities fell by 16%. Meanwhile, in four-year colleges and universities, there was no increase. 

    And among Black men, college enrollment dropped by 39% between 2011 and 2020. 

    The fall in enrollment comes amid an increase in the number of Black people between the ages of 18 to 34 — whose population rose from 9 million in 2000 to almost 11.5 million a decade later. 

    Last year, in the Cal State system, graduation equity gaps also increased between Black, Latino and Indigenous students. But some campuses have made targeted efforts to bridge them. 

    CSU’s Young Males of Color Consortium received $3.2 million dedicated to creating programs that will be available at 16 CSU campuses and nearby community colleges — and has been “laser-focused on collaborating with higher education professionals to improve the retention, success, and college completion of young men of color enrolled at our partner colleges and universities,” according to a statement provided to EdSource.

    “In the future, we hope to work with our K-12 partners to strengthen the college access pipeline for young men of color, including Black men,” the consortium added.

    ‘Loving systems’ 

    The report emphasized the need to cultivate “loving systems” — which it defines as “a system of core supports that you would provide the children you love” — in order to foster equity and improve student outcomes.

    “When we talk about loving systems, we talk about giving young people and, in this particular case, Black males, access to the supports that are indicative of what you know the average parent would give their young person to succeed,” Jackson said. 

    “Access to healthy food is an education issue. Access to affordable housing is an education issue.”

    In LAUSD, the Black poverty rate was 20% in 2022, and the Black unemployment rate remained at 14%. Meanwhile, in Oakland, the poverty rate was similar to LAUSD — and the Black unemployment rate was about 10%. 

    Both regions also deal with high costs of living and are highly segregated. According to the study, LAUSD had a Residential Segregation Dissimilarity Index of 60%, and Oakland’s was 52%. The index measures the distribution of Black and white residents, ranging from complete integration at zero, to complete segregation at 100.  

    “At the end of the day, racism is nothing more than institutionalized lovelessness. And with that frame, our goal here has to be — and as we recommend the North Star for California, for LA for Oakland, and many other cities — creating … the types of loving communities where all students have an opportunity to learn and to thrive,” Jackson said. 

    “When we do that, we will also see the type of progress in a multiracial democracy that we desire.”





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  • Communities demand transparency after Ed, LAUSD’s AI chatbot, fails 

    Communities demand transparency after Ed, LAUSD’s AI chatbot, fails 


    An LAUSD student tries out Ed, the district’s new AI assistant for students.

    Credit: Los Angeles Unified / X

    Roughly a month after the Los Angeles Unified School District revoked its AI chatbot, Ed, communities of parents, teachers and experts are demanding that the school district respond to their concern that the short-lived association with AllHere, the company that built and supported the program, has potentially compromised data on the district’s larger educational priorities. 

    “While we welcome technological advancements, it’s crucial to engage in transparent discussions with educators, educational staff, parents, and policymakers about the risks and impacts of AI in schools,” said Cecily Myart-Cruz, president of United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA), in a statement. 

    UTLA also encouraged the district to engage outside counsel and move forward with an investigation. Myart-Cruz also emphasized in the statement that any AI tools moving forward are part of collective bargaining. 

    School board member Rocío Rivas said in a July 31 Facebook post that the district has “initiated investigations” to look into allegations of compromised data. 

    A spokesperson for LAUSD said on July 15 that regardless of what happens to AllHere, student data will be protected by security measures that forbid the company from storing student data outside the U.S., unless the district grants the company permission to do so. 

    The lead-up

    In March, LAUSD rolled out the red carpet to introduce Ed, a smiling sun chatbot designed to serve as a personal assistant for students — capable of connecting them to mental health resources, informing them of cafeteria menus and waking them up in the morning. 

    The district has repeatedly justified its decision to use AllHere.

    “Los Angeles Unified launched a rigorous and competitive RFP (request for proposal) process and adhered to the District’s procurement process,” a district spokesperson told EdSource. “What we intended to develop did not readily exist as an off-the-shelf product, and we needed to build this from the ground up.” 

    The district considered three entities — AllHere, Afirma and Kokomo 24/7, which LAUSD collaborated with to provide telehealth services — and paid AllHere roughly $3 million for the product. 

    Carvalho said the bot was also designed to nudge students who are falling behind and allow them to click on resources for help. He also reassured the March event’s attendees that agencies at various levels — local, state and national — would help monitor any cybersecurity concerns. 

    At the time, he acknowledged that Ed might endure some challenges but that the district was committed to its success. 

    “Just like humans are not perfect — although sometimes, in certain political circles, some say they are — the technology produced by humans isn’t perfect either,” Carvalho said at the March event. 

    “With all of the protections against the vulnerabilities, there is always a concern. That’s why we are over vigilant,” he said.

    Ed was supposed to be rolled out in phases — beginning with the district’s 100 priority schools. 

    Three months later, on June 14, alarms began to sound, and AllHere had furloughed the bulk of its staff due to financial challenges, The 74 reported. Meanwhile, the CEO left. 

    In response — and because AllHere staff were unable to supervise it — the district removed the chatbot feature. LAUSD, however, still owns Ed, the district spokesperson confirmed, and the resource is still largely available to families. 

    The LAUSD spokesperson said Ed’s chatbot will return to families when the “human-in-the-loop aspect is re-established.” 

    “Los Angeles Unified was surprised by the financial disruption to AllHere. We were not made aware of any red flags concerning the organization, its solvency, or any financial issues,” the district spokesperson said. 

    “We had every confidence in their ability to develop a solid product. We, like other districts, were notified of their financial collapse and immediately ceased payment for a pending invoice.”

    The spokesperson also said that the district has not found a connection between what happened at AllHere and a data breach known as the Snowflake incident, adding that AllHere “does not maintain data on Snowflake.”

    Concerns over potentially compromised data have remained in the LAUSD community since, leading the district to begin investigating. 

    The pushback 

    While Los Angeles Unified remains committed to Ed, community members and experts at the University of Southern California (USC) Rossier School of Education continue to express their concern about student safety and the district’s priorities.

    “All we want are smaller class sizes and happy teachers. Basic stuff,” said Joanna Belson, the parent of a senior at North Hollywood High School, whose sister teaches in the district. “We don’t want Ed. We don’t want AI.”

    She added that the district should instead spend its money on expanding music and arts education — and extending sports programs to middle schools. 

    Echoing Belson, Alicia Baltazar, another LAUSD parent, voiced concerns about any potential data compromise, saying the district’s newfound emphasis on AI contradicts its new decision to ban cellphones in school. She added that the district should instead spend the money on bolstering its staff. 

    “I don’t know … how I’m going to tell my kid: ‘Stay off your cellphone. Don’t touch that at all. But here, use your laptop all day long. Use your chatbot,’” she said. 

    For Yasemin Copur-Gencturk, a professor at USC, the concerns lie in the technology itself. 

    Copur-Gencturk said there’s no evidence that the tool can accomplish what the district said it can do: promote academic recovery. 

    “AI has incredible potential to transform education and improve educational outcomes. There is no doubt about that. But there is a big ‘if,’” Copur-Gencturk said. “And I think many are ignoring that part. Most of the AI-based tools are not designed based on what we have learned from research on teaching and learning.”

    She said, for example, that AI tends to take each learning goal separately, without considering how concepts build on or connect to one another. This is particularly common in subjects like mathematics and could negatively impact students’ learning experience. 

    School districts, she said, should not spend large sums of money on AI unless they are certain the necessary security measures are in place and will have the positive academic impact they are seeking. 

    “There’s a notion that as long as artificial intelligence is involved, or a newer technology is involved, it will solve the problems,” Copur-Gencturk said. “Unfortunately, life is not that simple. We really need to, as educators, as administrators, we really need to be more cautious.”

    Beyond Los Angeles Unified

    While LAUSD has struggled with its rollout of Ed, districts across the nation that are contemplating incorporating AI could feel the effects, said Robin Lake, the director of the nonprofit Center for Reinventing Public Education. 

    “We never want to see things like that happen, and it’s obviously a setback for LAUSD in their goals for that tool,” Lake said. “But it’s also potentially a setback for other districts around the country who might look to LAUSD and think, ‘Oh, no, I don’t want to take any risks at all around AI, because I don’t want to end up in the newspaper.’” 

    She also said LAUSD’s story could serve as a reminder for other districts to roll out any AI features more slowly and more carefully, especially amid a “gold rush of providers” and a desire to remain ahead of the curve. 

    Lake also emphasized the importance of the education communities coming together to communicate their needs to education technology companies — and stressed the need for state and federal governments to provide better guidance to help ensure AI is woven into education equitably. 

    Despite the challenges, however, Lake maintained that AI has incredible potential to transform education — and that a “couple blowups” experienced by one district should not deter others from pursuing AI tools. 

    “Could AI help transform the teaching profession? Could AI help address student mental health crises? Could AI help improve assessments in education?” Lake said. 

    “There’s so many, so many possibilities. There’s still big questions around all of them, but as times get tighter around money, as federal funding goes away, we really must look to all potential solutions, and AI should be one of those.” 





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  • AmeriCorps cuts slash support services, programs for vulnerable communities

    AmeriCorps cuts slash support services, programs for vulnerable communities


    During small group reading instruction, AmeriCorps member Valerie Caballero reminds third graders in Porterville Unified to use their fingers to follow along as they read a passage.

    Lasherica Thornton/ EdSource

    Twenty-three-year-old Valerie Caballero worked with seven third-graders, guiding numerous activities on decoding words, on Thursday at Roche Elementary in Portersville. In another small group of three students, teacher Shelly Noble focused on building reading comprehension. The rest of the class, also in small groups, read independently or completed literacy assignments online, until it was time for the groups to change stations – to go to Caballero or Noble.

    Caballero is one of 85 community members trained as AmeriCorps volunteers to tutor and support over 2,000 students at 10 elementary schools in Porterville Unified. 

    The AmeriCorps program deployed her and others to third to fifth grade classrooms to provide students with additional time for reading and math intervention that they wouldn’t get elsewhere. 

    “Families rely on programs like AmeriCorps to give their child one-on-one support and attention that they need,” Caballero said. 

    Fifth grader Jizelle Alvarado, who has benefited from the AmeriCorps program since her third grade year, said volunteer Stephanie Rector has helped her read at a better pace and to multiply three-digit numbers. Without hesitation, the fifth grader said she and other students would still be struggling with reading and math if not for Rector’s daily support. 

    Last Friday, the program was one of many whose survival became uncertain because of the reduction of federal AmeriCorps grants by the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, under the Trump administration. 

    Nearly $400 million in AmeriCorps funding was cut, jeopardizing more than 1,000 programs and the jobs of tens of thousands of employees, tutors, mentors and volunteers, the national volunteer service organization reported. 

    Attorney General Rob Bonta announced in a statement earlier this week that California has “taken action to hold the Trump Administration and DOGE accountable to the law.” Two dozen states, including California, filed a lawsuit Tuesday against the Trump administration for “dismantling AmeriCorps.” 

    Unless the lawsuit prevails, the AmeriCorps funding cuts – estimated at $60 million for educational, economic, environmental, health and disaster response services in the state – will impact 87 programs and over 5,600 positions, according to Cassandra González-Kester, communications manager for California Volunteers, the state service organization that receives most AmeriCorps grant funding and disperses it to schools, nonprofit organizations and other entities to address critical community needs. 

    “These cuts affect service members who responded to the LA Fires, the tutors and mentors for our young students, as well as those who care for seniors,” she said. “School districts and non-profit organizations throughout the state are already feeling these severe impacts.” 

    But the nearly 14,000-student Porterville Unified has decided to use its own funds to continue the program until May 30, the last day of school — something not all schools and organizations will be able to do, so many communities will be left without critical services. 

    Thousands of students receiving support through AmeriCorps may have those services upended or interrupted – if they haven’t already – by the sudden cancellation of grants by the Trump administration.

    The cuts are hurting the most vulnerable: kids in need of reading and math intervention; students struggling with chronic absenteeism; families experiencing housing instability; and communities recovering from natural disasters. The end of services could exacerbate existing inequalities and worsen future prospects.

    “If we aren’t able to continue this work (beyond this school year),” Warren said, “it’s going to leave a huge void, and our students are definitely going to feel the effects of that.” 

    People supporting their community 

    AmeriCorps, an independent agency of the U.S. government, supports volunteer and service efforts in California and across the country by providing opportunities for community members to meet local needs and address pressing issues, including academic support and intervention for students, youth mentoring as well as homelessness, food insecurity, health and other key areas in communities.

    Due to the range of programs that AmeriCorps supports, thousands of families in California alone will lose services, if they haven’t already. 

    “We recognize the impact this has across all programs and staff, not just in our state but nationwide,” said Monica Ramirez, the executive director of First 5 Madera, which operates the Madera Family Resource Center in the Central San Joaquin Valley.  

    The Madera Family Resource Center, a comprehensive hub for families with children aged 0 to 5, is partially funded by federal AmeriCorps money. The center provides weekly playgroups, preschool readiness programs, developmental screenings and resource referrals to support early childhood development. After getting notice about the AmeriCorps funding cuts, which had, in part, made services possible, the resource center, which extends services to Chowchilla, Eastern Madera County, and the Madera Ranchos, closed its doors this week. 

    Porterville Unified’s ‘Building Communities, Changing Lives’ is largely funded by AmeriCorps. AmeriCorps awarded the district more than $1.6 million in federal funds and the district matched those funds with about $1.2 million this school year. 

    Most of that funding goes toward living stipends for AmeriCorps members, community members and college students who may be tutors, mentors or in other roles. 

    Covering the operating costs for 85 AmeriCorps members who provide 35 hours of weekly student intervention and support is approximately $210,000 for May, an expense the district likely won’t be able to foot without the AmeriCorps funds. 

    “I don’t see another way to move forward without the AmeriCorps funding,” Warren said. 

    State agencies, such as California Volunteers, are trying to fill the void for impacted groups, Fresno State College Corps director Mellissa Jessen-Hiser said. The state, she said, will fund the college corps members’ continued work at places such as the food bank, Poverello House, a homeless shelter in Fresno, and Fresno Unified schools for the rest of the semester. 

    The federal government has provided more than half of the funding for some of California’s AmeriCorps programming, with the agency’s members supporting 17,000 foster youth with education and employment, and tutoring or mentoring 73,833 students in 2023-24, according to California Volunteers. 

    Volunteers play a ‘vital role’ in student progress

    Of the more than 2,000 students that Porterville Unified AmeriCorps members provide one-on-one and small-group instruction, tutoring and intervention to, 1,657 are in need of academic support, based on this year’s district assessments. 

    Members work with at least 25 students each day over 10 months of the school year; they focus on reading and literacy, helping struggling students get to grade level. 

    “It’s going to create a larger learning gap if they’re not receiving this extra support,” said Caballero, the tutor. 

    Based on mid-year data from this school year, 44% of students served by AmeriCorps members have improved by at least one proficiency level on their reading assessment, demonstrating meaningful academic progress, Warren, the program director, reported. 

    Lasherica Thornton/ EdSource
    Lasherica Thornton/ EdSource
    Lasherica Thornton/ EdSource
    Roche Elementary third grade teacher Shelly Noble said students receive at least three rounds of daily reading intervention from their time with her, with AmeriCorps volunteer Valerie Caballero and from the school’s intervention specialist. Through Valerie Porterville Unified’s ‘Building Communities, Changing Lives’ AmeriCorps program, Cabellero not only provides small group instruction but also supports students individually.

    And with an extra person in the classroom working alongside them, teachers gain the ability to focus on the academic struggles of students who need it most.

    Without AmeriCorps, “we will not see the growth in reading and writing that we see because the majority (of the work) will be put on myself,” said Noble, the third grade teacher. 

    The AmeriCorps members also build meaningful connections with students, extending their support beyond academics and making students feel valued, thereby creating an engaging and supportive learning environment. 

    “We’re able to really see the effects of having those members work with those students and the impacts that they’re making,” Warren said. 

    Federal funding cuts trickle down to schools

    The California Reading Corps and Math Corps, or Ampact Educational Programs, across Fresno, San Mateo, San Joaquin, Merced, Tulare, Santa Barbara and Riverside counties have supported thousands of students with academic intervention, including over 6,000 students last school year. AmeriCorps members prepare students for kindergarten, get elementary students on track to grade-level proficiency by third grade and have seventh graders algebra-ready by eighth grade, according to program information for this school year. Its more than $3.1 million in federal funding is one of California’s 87 impacted programs. 

    Thomas Elementary in Fresno Unified, which has used the AmeriCorps reading support program, doesn’t plan to use the Reading Corps next school year due to the possible federal cuts, the district confirmed. 

    Under the 30-year-old Kern Community Mentoring program, three dozen AmeriCorps members have mentored over 700 high-needs students in the urban and rural communities of Kern County each year, according to Robert Meszaros, communications director with the Kern County Superintendent of Schools that administers the program. 

    By providing encouragement, guidance and support, they address the “whole child”, a philosophy that is evident in several AmeriCorps programs, specifically those focused on mentorship. 

    Each year, mentors help at least 20 students improve their academics, attendance, behavior and engagement, and based on data from the program, more than half of the mentees improve their attendance and reduce suspensions. 

    With the cuts to AmeriCorps, Meszaros said, it may mean the loss of the program. 

    Alternative funding, other options

    Programs impacted by the federal funding cuts are exploring options to continue serving the community. Some are seeking support from their state representatives, who can advocate on their behalf at the state and possibly national level. 

    “Not sure what the next steps are,” Warren said. Porterville Unified is looking for alternative funding sources, such as state grants. 

    So is the Kern County education office for the AmeriCorps mentoring program it runs. 

    “Ultimately if that funding can’t be sourced from other resources,” Warren said, ”then it goes away and we’re left with a big void.”

    While it’s unclear at the moment whether the multimillion-dollar cuts will stand, the people working in AmeriCorps programs urged decision-makers to realize the people affected. 

    In the words of Caballero, the Porterville Unified tutor: “think about students’ needs.” 





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  • Stop shortchanging charters serving the highest need communities

    Stop shortchanging charters serving the highest need communities


    Students at Lodestar Charter School in Oakland.

    Courtesy: Lighthouse Community Public Schools

    While we wait for the governor’s budget — and a much leaner projection for public education funding — many district and charter school officials have started making significant cuts in preparation for the upcoming school year.

    Unfortunately, at a time when every dollar matters, charter schools serving some of California’s highest-need students are getting shortchanged.

    Critical dollars following each and every student is a fundamental construct in our state’s Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF). Schools and districts that serve a higher number of high-need students — English learners, low-income students, and foster youth — get additional funding in the form of supplemental grants for each student, along with concentration grants for schools where more than 55% of the student body is from at least one of those student groups. These funds are meant to follow the students and be invested in their programmatic needs.

    Unfortunately, the only exception is if these students attend a public charter school. 

    Current law caps the concentration grant funding for charter schools at the unduplicated pupil percentage of high-need students in the school district in which they are physically located. This restriction disproportionately affects students and families who attend charter schools in districts where the percentage of high-need students is lower than that of individual charter schools. For example, 82% of Oakland Unified’s students are eligible for the additional funding, but many charter schools in East Oakland serve student populations with unduplicated high-need student percentages ranging from 85% to 99%. Yet concentration funding for these charter schools is capped at 82% despite their serving a higher percentage of high-need students. This is also true for many charter schools in the LA area, in the wider Bay Area, as well as across the state. 

    A new bill seeks to correct this inequity by ensuring that dollars actually follow students to their schools.  

    Assembly Bill 1062 would enable charter schools serving greater percentages of high-need students than their district to apply for a waiver to receive concentration grant funding based on their actual student population, rather than being capped at the local district average. 

    Take for example Lodestar: A Lighthouse Community Public School in the Sobrante Park community in deep East Oakland. Like many communities impacted by the pandemic, the school’s demographics have shifted over the last five years. Today, Lodestar serves a student population where 98% of the students have high needs, including 47% English learners, 8% newcomers to our country, 17% qualifying for special education services, and 5% homeless. Should they be expected to meet their community’s needs at “82 on the dollar” while still being expected to meet the state’s stringent charter renewal criteria brought on by Assembly Bill 1505? (This 2019 law requires charters to outperform state averages on standardized tests and other measures to qualify for streamlined approval.) 

    Shouldn’t dollars that are directly tied to students and families follow them regardless of the school a family chooses for their child? 

    Many charter schools and charter management organizations that serve East Oakland exist to provide strong school choice options to students and families in historically under-resourced communities. It’s not surprising that one-third of Oakland students have selected charter schools. Over the last three years, Oakland’s charter high schools have had college readiness A-G completion rates for African American and Latino students that are significantly higher than at district high schools.

    Despite Oakland’s rich history of political activism for historically marginalized and under-resourced families, this clause in the funding formula prohibiting charter schools from fully accessing these funds has not been studied nor evaluated.

    The Assembly Education Committee has an opportunity to consider and address this funding inquiry. This committee, which includes progressive assembly members from the Bay Area and greater Los Angeles area, can advocate for public dollars following each student for their education and future impact.

    It’s time to ensure that state funding follows students equitably, so they are not penalized for choosing to attend a public charter school.

    •••

    Rich Harrison is CEO of Lighthouse Community Public Schools, which operates two K-12 public charter schools serving more than 1,600 students in East Oakland.

    The opinions expressed in this commentary represent those of the author. EdSource welcomes commentaries representing diverse points of view. If you would like to submit a commentary, please review our guidelines and contact us.





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  • ‘The day I lost my house:’ School communities reel from Eaton, Palisades fires

    ‘The day I lost my house:’ School communities reel from Eaton, Palisades fires


    A parent and child embrace as students are welcomed to Brentwood Elementary Science Magnet on Jan. 15.

    Credit: Mallika Seshadri / EdSource

    Tanya Reyes, a teacher in the Los Angeles Unified School District, initially tried to befriend her reality. 

    But when her husband sent her a video of her Altadena home up in flames, and she heard him cry, she had to press pause. 

    “I’ve only watched parts of it, but I know at one point he starts crying. … It just felt surreal,” Reyes said. “We’re worried about our neighbors, worried about who’s safe, the peacocks that lived on our street.” 

    “I’m from Maui, so it feels like Lahaina, all over again.” 

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_GHxX9zQdI

    Tanya Reyes received this video from her husband, Antonio, which shows their house engulfed in flames.

    It was Wednesday, Jan. 8 — roughly 24 hours after she, her husband and three daughters unknowingly left their home for good and drove to a relative’s house in West Hollywood with just two items each and a few critical documents. 

    When it was finally time to break the news to her three daughters, Reyes asked: “What’s the most important thing that we have?” 

    She hoped the kids would come back with “each other.” 

    Instead, her daughters said: “A house!’” 

    “And then we told them, and my eldest daughter just kind of wanted to keep watching the video that he (her husband) had taken. And then, she started journaling ‘The day I lost my house,’ Reyes said. 

    “And then that night, from like 3 to 4:30 in the morning, my 3-year-old, who normally sleeps, spent the hour and a half telling me everything that she missed.” 

    Reyes, who works with pregnant girls and young mothers, is among thousands of teachers, staff and students across Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD )and Pasadena Unified reeling from evacuations and losses associated with the Palisades and Eaton fires that have ravaged nearly 60 square miles, including at least 10 schools — all while schools are reopening and attempting to restore a sense of normalcy to children who have lost everything. 

    Pasadena Unified looks to a gradual reopening

    Reyes isn’t just a teacher in the Los Angeles Unified School District. She’s also a mom of two students in Pasadena Unified, the hardest hit by the Eaton fire. 

    Longfellow Elementary, her daughters’ school, is one of the lucky ones that’s still standing.

    Five district-run schools and three of its charters schools are either seriously damaged or destroyed. 

    More than 1,300 employees in Pasadena Unified lived in evacuation zones, and Jonathan Gardner, the president of United Teachers of Pasadena, the teachers union, told The New York Times that roughly 300 had lost their homes. 

    The vast majority of students were displaced, too. Of Pasadena Unified’s 14,000 students, about 10,000 had to leave their homes, according to a district media release. 

    “In times of hardship, our district community has always shown remarkable strength and unity, and this time is no different,” board President Jennifer Hall Lee said in a statement. 

    “The challenges of the Eaton Fire have tested us in unthinkable ways,” she added. “Yet I am still struck by how much resilience and compassion I have seen from our community. This has truly been a testament to the spirit of Pasadena Unified.”

    A lot lies ahead on Pasadena Unified’s road to recovery. To begin a phased reopening, 10 of the district’s schools and programs that collectively serve over 3,400 students will reopen on Thursday, prioritizing schools that are furthest away from the fires and deemed safe through testing by the California Office of Emergency Services.

    A large-scale cleanup is also underway, involving the district’s maintenance and operations team and more than 1,500 contractors, according to the district. 

    So far, 82 tons of debris have been removed from schools, according to a media release issued Tuesday evening. 

    Pasadena Unified’s maintenance and operations team, working alongside more than 1,500 contractors, has been clearing debris and conducting extensive sanitization efforts to meet environmental and safety tests after the devastation caused by the Eaton fire.
    Credit: Pasadena Unified School District

    Meanwhile, the district welcomed back about 2,700 teachers, staff and administrators on Wednesday morning.

    “I’m really proud of my Longfellow Elementary,” Reyes said. 

    And when the staff at the low-income community school found out Reyes and her family had lost everything, they jumped in to help.

    “They sent out emails of everyone you could be in contact with: ‘here’s this person; here’s Connie; here’s Monica; here’s who can help you if you need help with anything.’”  

    Palisades Charter High School seeking a home

    Known for its appearances in films such as “Carrie” and “Freaky Friday,” Palisades Charter High School is a long way from reopening. 

    Roughly 40% of the campus was damaged or destroyed by the fires, according to the Los Angeles Times — but the school’s leaders are still seeking a temporary place to call home. 

    In the meantime, students will learn online. 

    “We have a unique opportunity to show the strength and resilience of our community in the face of adversity,” said Pamela Magee, the school’s principal and executive director, in a Jan. 13 media release. 

    “By coming together, we can ensure our students can stay in their learning environment, with their friends and mentors, at a time when they need it most.” 

    Students embark on a new normal at Los Angeles Unified 

    At 11:15 a.m. on Jan. 7, teachers and staff at Marquez Elementary School were informed they had to evacuate the school immediately. 

    A dark cloud of smoke hovered above the yard where everyone convened. They could see fires on the hillside. 

    Students, who ranged from 4-year-olds to third graders “were put on a school bus and sent out over to another school, where the parents were told they could pick them up,” said Wendy Connor, a veteran first grade teacher. “Half of (the kids) are crying. Half of them aren’t. They’re all trying to help each other.”

    Just over a week later, 353 of the 722 students who attended LAUSD’s Marquez Elementary and Palisades Charter Elementary resumed their school year — but there was nothing normal about their circumstances.

    Parents carry books and supplies into Brentwood Elementary Science Magnet on Jan. 15.
    Credit: Mallika Seshadri / EdSource

    Their schools had been burnt down. Some of them had also lost their homes, and now the students found themselves on a new campus altogether. 

    But the students made their transition as one class to Brentwood Elementary Science Magnet and Nora Sterry Elementary School. They are still learning from the same teachers and are studying alongside their same classmates.

    “Not one of them has said, ‘I don’t want to be here,’ or ‘I want to be with my mommy or my daddy,’” Connor said. “They’re all just like, ‘Oh, where do I line up? Let’s go! We’re ready to go!’”  

    However, she added, many students who lost their homes have not yet returned. And many parents and school employees remain concerned about the toll the fires will have on students’ mental health in the short term and the long run. 

    The district has compiled resources for LAUSD communities to access mental health resources, among other wraparound supports, including telehealth options, a 24/7 support line and access to wellness centers.

    Debra Duardo, Los Angeles County superintendent of schools, also emphasized the need to curb students’ social media use, so students are not watching videos repeatedly of homes and familiar spaces being burnt to ash. 

    She also said it is critical for parents and adults to stay calm and model positive coping strategies. 

    “They’re resilient, like you wouldn’t believe,” said Cecily Myart-Cruz, the president of UTLA, the district’s teachers union, speaking during an elementary school visit. “My son lost his father two years ago, just unexpectedly. And I’m in the throes of the ebbs and flows of grief. And that’s what I saw today.” 

    A first grader now at Nora Sterry Elementary drew his home surrounded by fire after returning to class on Jan. 15.
    Credit: Mallika Seshadri

    Teachers and staff across the district are struggling, too. 

    Of the 10% of UTLA’s members that had been assessed as of Jan. 15, Myart-Cruz said 539 members had been displaced, and the homes of 136 members were either destroyed or damaged. 

    Meanwhile, more than 100,000 teachers reported experiencing medical complications as a result of the fires, including respiratory issues, and more than 1,000 said they are unable to work because they are dealing with other extenuating circumstances, like helping family members who have lost their homes, according to Myart-Cruz.  

    While Connor’s home and family are safe, she admits to having much higher stress levels and a higher heart rate at times.

    Connor grew up in the Palisades — and is coming to terms with her loss — her childhood home, her old school and Marquez Elementary all gone. 

    But she is holding onto a glimmer of hope — three classrooms in the middle of Marquez Elementary remain standing. Her old room was one of them. 

    “I’ve been anxious trying to … go into the room and see if there’s anything I could save,” Connor said. “And then, I just had to put most feelings aside, so that I could get the (new) classroom ready and get going for the kids.”





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