Press Releases

Press release

SCUSD gears up to fight summer learning loss
Summer Matters @SCUSD helps kids stay focused, engaged

May 6, 2014 (Sacramento):  Sacramento City Unified School District is continuing its work as a leader in the fight against summer learning loss with its free Summer Matters @SCUSD programs for children and teens.

“We are absolutely committed to preventing the kind of summer learning loss that puts urban kids behind their peers when school starts again in September,” says Interim Superintendent Dr. Sara Noguchi. “Our students deserve every academic advantage we can give them.”

Press release

City, SCUSD to celebrate new Fruitridge traffic signal

May 6, 2014 (Sacramento):  SCUSD and the City of Sacramento will celebrate the operation of a new traffic signal on Fruitridge Road on Friday, May 9, at a West Campus High School press conference.

The installation of the new light at Fruitridge and 58th Street culminates a joint effort by the two agencies launched after West Campus student Michelle Murigi, 16, was fatally hit by a car in the intersection. Subsequent to her death, five of Michelle’s friends and classmates started a petition to demand a traffic signal (www.facebook.com/58thAndFruitridge).

Press release

Neighbors asked to help protect schools over Spring Break
Arsonists, metal thieves, vandals prey on schools during the holidays

April 10, 2014 (Sacramento):  Sacramento City Unified School District is asking the community for help in keeping its 75 schools safe and secure over Spring Break (April 12-20). School resumes on Monday, April 21.

Arson fires at two SCUSD playgrounds last summer cost the district $50,000 in insurance deductibles.

Press release

District, teachers union to hold press conference on NCLB Waiver

April 8, 2014 (Sacramento): Sacramento City Unified School District and the Sacramento City Teachers Association (SCTA) will hold a joint press conference on Wednesday (April 9) on the future of the No Child Left Behind waiver at SCTA’s office in East Sacramento.

SCUSD Board President Patrick Kennedy and SCTA President Nikki Milevsky are scheduled to make a joint announcement.

WHAT:   Joint SCUSD-SCTA Press Conference

WHEN:  3 p.m. on Wednesday, April 9

WHERE:   SCTA, 5300 Elvas Ave., Sacramento, CA 95819

Press release

SCUSD workshops help parents understand new online tests

March 19, 2014 (Sacramento):  Students across California are getting ready to participate in a trial run of the state’s new online assessment program which will eventually replace paper-and-pencil testing.

The new Smarter Balanced Assessments will be field tested in SCUSD schools beginning April 7. To help parents learn about the new tests, SCUSD is sponsoring a series of parent workshops that focus on the assessments and the learning standards to which they are tied.

Press release March 13, 2014 Special Board Meeting

SCUSD trustees set meeting to discuss superintendent search

March 11, 2014 (Sacramento): Sacramento City Unified School District’s Board of Education will hold a special meeting on Thursday (March 13) to discuss the search for a new superintendent to replace Jonathan Raymond, who resigned in December.

The Board will meet at 5 p.m. with representatives of the executive search firm Leadership Associates of La Quinta, recently selected to direct the search for a permanent superintendent.  The Board is expected to discuss the process for filling the position and create a timeline for meetings to receive public input.

Press release

Fern Bacon gets high-tech media lab, thanks to SECC grant
Middle school schedules ribbon-cutting ceremony for Wednesday

Editor’s note: The following press release was written by students of Fern Bacon Middle School.

Sacramento, California – Fern Bacon Middle School is pleased to announce that it will hold a Grand Opening and Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony for its recently renovated media studio with the help of the Sacramento Education Cable Consortium’s media grant.

Press release

Connecting the dots: SCUSD seeks public input on how best to fund schools

January 20 (Sacramento): The state’s new Local Control Funding Formula is bringing sweeping changes to the ways schools are funded and how K-12 districts are held accountable for using state resources.

In general, LCFF has fewer funding restrictions that tie resources to certain programs. In exchange for this new flexibility, districts are required to develop accountability plans that detail how spending is aligned with California’s eight priorities for public education.

Press release

Noguchi named SCUSD Interim Superintendent

November 21, 2013 (Sacramento): 

The Sacramento City Unified School District Board of Education voted 5-2 this evening to appoint former teacher and principal Sara Noguchi, Ed.D., as interim superintendent and to begin the process of finding a permanent replacement for outgoing Superintendent Jonathan Raymond.

Superintendent Raymond announced last month that he will be leaving his post as of December 31 to return to his native Boston, where he plans to spend more time with his immediate and extended family.

Press release

Sara Noguchi named SCUSD Interim Superintendent

The Sacramento City Unified School District Board of Education voted 5-2 this evening to appoint former teacher and principal Sara Noguchi, Ed.D., as interim superintendent and to begin the process of finding a permanent replacement for outgoing Superintendent Jonathan Raymond.

Superintendent Raymond announced last month that he will be leaving his post as of December 31 to return to his native Boston, where he plans to spend more time with his immediate and extended family.

Press release

Money moves: SCUSD hosts forum on state funding changes
Public input sought on Sacramento educational priorities prior to State Board of Education’s release of spending templates

November 4, 2013 (Sacramento): This fall, the state is gearing up to change the way public schools are funded and how K-12 districts are held accountable for using resources.

In anticipation of these changes, the Sacramento City Unified School District on Wednesday is sponsoring a public discussion of local educational priorities aligned to resources. Input from Wednesday’s meeting will aide in the creation of a spending accountability plan as required by the state.

Press release

SCUSD to hold town-hall forum on next year’s budget, LCFF
District officials will answer questions, provide data

October 22, 2013 (Sacramento): Sacramento City Unified School District is hosting “town hall”-type forums to educate the public about its 2014-15 budget and new state funding and spending rules.

The second forum in the series will be held at 6 p.m. on Wednesday at Genevieve Didion K-8 School, 6490 Harmon Drive, Sacramento.

Press release

Parents go back to school at Common Core workshops

October 4, 2013 (Sacramento):  SCUSD is staging a series of workshops to give parents hands-on experience with the new Common Core State Standards.
Parents attending the sessions will be challenged to write to essay prompts, annotate informational texts, flex their speaking and listening skills and solve math problems — all strategies associated with the new standards. By the end of a three-part series, parents will have a clear picture of how Common Core standards are changing SCUSD classrooms.

Press release

School closure lawsuit dismissed

September 24, 2013 (Sacramento):  The group that sued Sacramento City Unified School District over the closure of seven chronically under-enrolled schools has voluntarily agreed to the dismissal of their complaint against the district and the case has been dismissed by a federal judge.

“With dismissal of this lawsuit, SCUSD can focus its attention and precious resources on preparing every student at every school for college and 21st century careers, which is the district’s mission,” SCUSD Superintendent Jonathan Raymond said.

Press release

City, SCUSD announce traffic signal for Fruitridge crossing

September 11, 2013 (Sacramento):  SCUSD and City of Sacramento officials announced on Wednesday that they have joined forces to install a traffic signal at a Fruitridge Road crossing where a West Campus High School student lost her life 20 months ago.

Michelle Murigi, 16, was hit by a car in the crosswalk at 58th Street at Fruitridge Road on January 19, 2012, and died from her injuries. Subsequent to her death, five of Michelle’s friends and classmates started a petition to demand a traffic signal at the intersection (www.facebook.com/58thAndFruitridge).