Press Releases
School orchard destroyed by vandals to be replanted on Saturday
Donors, volunteers will work to rebuild part of Pacific Elementary School’s “outdoor classroom”
January 27, 2016 (Sacramento): With the help of volunteers and community donations, a school orchard destroyed by vandals will be replanted on Saturday morning (January 30).
Fourteen young fruit-bearing trees were destroyed at Pacific Elementary School (6201 41st St.) on November 15. Vandals ripped off branches and pulled trees from the ground, dragging some across campus. The orchard was only about a year old, installed in the fall of 2014 by the group Common Visions in partnership with The California Endowment, Soil Born Farms and SCUSD.
SCUSD to help former students receive retroactive diplomas
December 16, 2015 (Sacramento): Former SCUSD students who completed all graduation requirements except passage of the California High School Exit Exam (CAHSEE) may be eligible to receive a diploma retroactively.
In October, Governor Jerry Brown signed SB 172 allowing K-12 districts to award diplomas to eligible students who did not pass CAHSEE, which became a graduation requirement starting with the class of 2006. The new law takes effect January 1.
ONTRACK and SCUSD awarded federal grants for youth mental health services
November 13, 2015 (Sacramento): ONTRACK Program Resources and the Sacramento City Unified School District have been awarded three-year grants from the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to train adults in Youth Mental Health First Aid.
With this Project AWARE Community Grants funding, parents, guardians, community members and SCUSD staff will learn how to recognize the signs of mental health issues in children. ONTRACK and the school district will be coordinating services and focusing on youth in the Meadowview area of Sacramento.
Help wanted: SCUSD holds job fair on Saturday
Qualified candidates will be offered employment on the spot
November 12, 2015 (Sacramento): Sacramento City Unified School District’s Human Resource Department is hosting a Classified Recruitment Fair from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Saturday, November 14 at the Serna Center, 5735 47th Ave., Sacramento, CA 95824.
SCUSD is one of the largest employers in Sacramento, with a workforce of about 4,200. The Classified Recruitment Fair will be one-stop shopping for those seeking employment in non-teaching positions: Candidates will be interviewed on the spot. Qualified applicants may get conditional offers on the spot as well.
Jamba Juice, GENYOUth plant seeds for success with school garden grants
Event on Thursday morning will show how the funding is being used
November 10, 2015 (Sacramento): Students at Nicholas Elementary School will demonstrate their new garden science curriculum at an event on Thursday morning to thank Jamba Juice and the GENYOUth Foundation for grants to 14 SCUSD campuses totaling $36,000.
GENYOUth’s program outreach partnered with Jamba Juice on grants for school gardens. At SCUSD, campuses are using the funding to either start gardens or maintain existing ones.
Kennedy marching band to surprise classmate recovering from hit-and-run bike crash
Taariq Jensen has yet to start senior year due to his injuries
November 6, 2015 (Sacramento): All 130 members of John F. Kennedy High School’s marching band will assemble in a Pocket neighborhood cul-de-sac Saturday afternoon to perform for classmate Taariq Jensen, who was seriously injured in a hit-and-run bike crash last summer.
McClatchy teacher placed on leave following incident today
October 30, 2015 (Sacramento): A faculty member at C.K. McClatchy High School was placed on administrative leave today following reports of inappropriate behavior in class.
Several students concerned about the teacher brought cellphone video to school administrators, who acted swiftly to remove the teacher from class and contacted law enforcement. The teacher will remain on leave while the district investigates the incident.
The video appears to show the teacher, dressed in a Halloween costume, wrestling a student on the floor of a classroom.
California Middle School to celebrate $3.1 million gym renovation and expansion
Modernized structure will serve entire Land Park community
October 30, 2015 (Sacramento): SCUSD will cut the ribbon on California Middle School’s newly renovated and expanded gym during a high-energy pep rally with students and staff on Tuesday, November 3.
The event will feature a three-point basketball shoot-out, cheerleaders, live music and a comedy routine by the school’s Land Park Rangers troupe.
Cal’s gym, which was built in 1975, was overdue for modernization and expansion to accommodate the popular Land Park middle’s schools growing needs. Improvements include:
PHOTO OP: McClatchy and Burbank baseball teams to play fall scrimmage donning Halloween costumes
October 29, 2015 (Sacramento): Why do ghosts go to baseball games? To BOO the umpires. Why did the vampire quit the baseball team? He couldn’t find his BATS.
Insert your favorite Halloween-themed baseball joke as the fall baseball teams for CK McClatchy and Luther Burbank High Schools will spend their Halloween morning squaring off in a scrimmage with players decked out in full Halloween garb.
The fall matchup between the two squads is an annual tradition, but with the game falling on Halloween this year the two teams decided to add a fun twist to the matchup.
SCUSD hosts Halloween-themed pedestrian safety fair on Friday
Early morning event will feature kids in costumes, ‘Pete Walker’ safety mascot, bike helmet giveaway
October 28, 2015 (Sacramento): Will C. Wood Middle School students will be treated to a fun, Halloween-themed safety fair on Friday morning – an event that will close Walk and Bike to School Month for SCUSD.
Co-hosted by the state Office of Traffic Safety, the fair will feature Pete Walker, a California safety mascot who has appeared on billboards and bus ads throughout October. Walker wears a costume made of car parts and promotes the message “Pedestrians Don’t Have Armor.” The school will have a “selfie station” for students in costume to take photos with Pete Walker.
Chicas Latinas de Sacramento to give 400 pairs of new shoes to SCUSD school
Every Woodbine Elementary student will receive a pair
October 26, 2015 (Sacramento): Chicas Latinas de Sacramento will donate more than 400 pairs of new shoes to students at Woodbine Elementary School on Wednesday, October 28. The donation amounts to a new pair of shoes for every student at the school.
“We are so grateful to Chicas Latinas and the generosity of the group’s membership,” said SCUSD Superintendent José L. Banda. “I look forward to seeing our students enjoying their new shoes.”
SCUSD appoints veteran administrator to lead reopening of downtown school
Dr. Gema Godina-Martinez was instrumental in establishing McClatchy High’s respected Law and Public Policy Academy
October 2, 2015 (Sacramento): Sacramento City Unified School District’s Board of Education has selected Dr. Gema Godina-Martinez to lead the reopening of downtown’s Washington Elementary School.
The Board voted unanimously Thursday to appoint Godina-Martinez – currently an assistant principal at C.K. McClatchy High School – as Washington’s new principal, beginning immediately. Washington was one of seven SCUSD elementary schools closed in 2012 due to chronic under-enrollment. With downtown development booming, the district is committed to reopening Washington next fall.
SCUSD to celebrate start of school with Hollywood-style ‘premiere’
Students, parents to get superstar treatment with red carpet event at Hollywood Park Elementary
August 27, 2015 (Sacramento): Lights! Cameras! Backpacks!
Sacramento City Unified School District is throwing an early morning red carpet bash – complete with life-size award statuettes, paparazzi and autograph hounds – to celebrate the first day of school on Thursday, September 3.
The event at Hollywood Park Elementary School (home of the Hollywood Park Stars) will kick-off a year of honoring SCUSD’s 76 neighborhood and specialty schools, campuses that have launched the dreams of Sacramento residents for generations.
Summer Break begins Monday: Help prevent crime on campuses
Report any suspicious weekend, evening activity at SCUSD schools
June 11, 2015 (Sacramento): Sacramento City Unified School District is asking the community to help keep its 75 schools safe and secure on summer evenings, weekends and holidays. School resumes on Thursday, September 3.
Summer programming begins on 40 campuses on June 22 and lasts through July 30. Most programs operate in the morning and are over by 2 p.m. During late afternoons, evenings and weekends, campuses will be locked and alarmed. Security cameras will be monitored as well.
Two SCUSD students named Gates Millennium Scholars
Award covers college tuition, living expenses for four years
June 8, 2015 (Sacramento): Two SCUSD students have been named Gates Millennium Scholars, an award that covers the cost of attending college for high-performing, low-income students of color.
Luther Burbank High School salutatorian Sabreena Singh, 18, and John F. Kennedy High School senior Manuel Valencia, 18, are among 1,000 students nationwide in the program’s Class of 2015. The scholarship is funded by a $1.6 billion grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Seniors to commit to colleges at first academic signing day
Sacramento Pathways to Success partners will participate in White House ‘Reach Higher’ event
April 29, 2015 (Sacramento): Local high schools have long participated in the tradition of athletic signing days to celebrate sports stars as they commit to a college. On Friday, May 1 – National College Decision Day – other seniors will get their day of celebration, too.
SCUSD joins California Thursdays fresh food movement
Morning kick-off event TOMORROW will feature breakfast, free farmers’ market
April 22, 2015 (Sacramento): SCUSD will kick-off its participation in California Thursdays, a growing statewide movement to bring California-grown fresh fruits and vegetables to school cafeterias, with a breakfast event at John Still K-8 School this Thursday (April 23).
With partner the Center for Ecoliteracy, SCUSD is joining 41 other districts around the state in its commitment to improving the health of children by improving the food they eat at school.
Students to share ideas for saving water, energy at Earth Day event
Project Green educates kids about California’s resources
April 21, 2015 (Sacramento): Twenty-eight student-led Green Teams will share their proposals for saving water and energy at the district’s Earth Day Project Green Showcase on Wednesday (April 22).
Winning ideas will be funded by the district through Measure Q bond money.
McClatchy to rally for girls headed to state championship
Lady Lions are first SCUSD team to battle for CIF title since ‘02
March 25, 2015 (Sacramento): C.K. McClatchy High School students and staff are holding a rally in front of the school on Friday morning (March 27) to show support for the girls’ basketball team, which battles Junipero Serra of Gardena for the state title later that day.
Matsui, McCarty to celebrate opening of new school-based clinic
WellSpace Health facility at Hiram Johnson is first of its kind in Sacramento City Unified
March 10, 2015 (Sacramento): Congresswoman Doris Matsui will join state Assemblyman Kevin McCarty and other elected officials on Thursday (March 12) at an official ribbon-cutting for the new WellSpace Community Health Center at Hiram Johnson High School.