Superintendent's Update - June 6, 2025
Superintendent's Update - June 6, 2025
From the Office of the Superintendent
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Superintendent Austin’s Message . . .
Congratulations to everyone for a fantastic year. This week some things came full circle. While at El Carmelo this week, I saw a group of kids playing with a parachute. Most of us have memories of doing similar things growing up. It was fun to watch them work together to make the parachute go up and down. On graduation day, I walked across the Paly campus and had to laugh as I saw a group of high school kids… with a parachute. With the exception of their size, it was the same. It was a good reminder that no matter how sophisticated we think our students are, they are still (thankfully) kids.
I rarely single out individuals or schools for recognition for the obvious reasons. I am making an exception today. On Wednesday, I attended the Hoover and Greendell “Field Day” to celebrate the end of the year. I have appreciated the way the campus has worked together to make everyone feel part of a common team. For context, the Hoover staff embraced the move to our temporary site while a new Hoover campus is under construction on Charleston Avenue. The Greendell staff was already at the site. Hoover is the second temporary guest, after a year with the Palo Verde staff.
I immediately noticed the positive and optimistic spirit of the Hoover staff, despite the challenges associated with packing up classrooms and making the move to a temporary campus, which splits the grade levels geographically due to facility constraints. From the first day, they had great attitudes and expressed gratitude to the Greendell occupants, which included several programs. For their part, the Greendell program employees welcomed the Hoover staff like they were old pals.
I am proud of everyone at the site and appreciate the way they chose to make the best out of a difficult temporary situation. The Field Day event was a reminder of the reasons they resonate with me today. They were united in their “uniforms” for the day, working booths and activities for our kids. The combined team made the day all about kids. The laughter, ice-cream on faces, and lines for activities were exactly what we should hope for our kids as the last days of school came to an end. I am thankful for many things, and today I am thankful that they provided the inspiration for a final “THANK YOU” for the year.
