Nearly all Los Angeles Unified campuses and offices will reopen Monday, officials announced late Sunday afternoon, after a wind-driven fire caused a district-wide shutdown.
This decision was made after considering school preparedness, weather forecasts, current outdoor conditions, and prudent encouraging fire suppression levels, according to LA Unified Schools Supt. Alberto Carvalho.
Carvalho said environmental conditions look promising and the school is ready.
“We have turned on all of our systems to provide continuous operation and airflow to the schools,” the superintendent said. “So the school has to be clean. The AC units are working. And we’ve done the necessary inspections, assessments and filter replacements. We also conducted a survey of staff.
The majority of Los Angeles County’s 80 school districts are scheduled to open.
Pasadena Unified and La Cañada Unified schools will remain closed, as will schools in Malibu, which is part of the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District. In the Santa Monica portion of the district, only Roosevelt Elementary School will be closed.
Pasadena Unified was particularly hard hit by the Eaton Canyon Fire, which broke out last Tuesday night and severely damaged or destroyed five campuses.
L.A. Unified Schools will have limited outdoor and athletic activities Monday, and masks will be provided to students and staff. The district said it will continue to monitor weather conditions throughout the night and will post updates.
Subsequent check-ins are based on the reality that fire and weather conditions can change rapidly. The 5am notice will be issued before the bus leaves the depot to begin its route.
Carvalho interacted with the district team assessing and preparing the campus, and was joined by West Side school board member Nick Melvoin and Carla Griego from the district’s east district, which was near the Eaton Canyon fire.
Carvalho, who visited Eagle Rock Elementary School in the late morning, said he was informed that “we are meeting our goals for all testing inside and outside the school.” …According to the reports I received, the quality of the filter and the level of cleanliness is better than we expected. ”
There were no mandatory evacuation orders in place around the school, but heavy smoke from the Eaton Fire blanketed the area and exposed it to wind. A car whose roof was struck by a fallen tree remained parked near the school Sunday morning.
Officials replaced all air filters at Eagle Rock and replaced filters at other campuses as needed, officials said.
Cleaning crews collected leaves and branches and created huge piles on playgrounds, sidewalks and even rooftops.
On Sunday, caretaker Scott Schneer was sweeping away leaves. But at the height of the storm, he raced across campus to secure loose windows — lest the glass break.
PTA President Amber Martinez praised the condition of the school following the inspection, but expressed concern that the school was not being properly maintained on an ongoing basis due to limited staffing.
The Palisades Fire caused more damage to several schools.
Marquez Charter Elementary School, a campus overlooking the Pacific Ocean, was destroyed by the Pacific Palisades Fire.
(Jason Almond/Los Angeles Times)
Palisades Elementary School and Marquez Charter Elementary School were destroyed and those students will not return to classes until at least Wednesday and at nearby campuses, Carvalho said.
Students who attended Palisades Elementary School will be transferred to Brentwood Elementary School Science Magnet in Brentwood, which borders Pacific Palisades.
Students who attended Marquez Elementary School will now attend classes at Nora Sterry Elementary School in the Sawtelle neighborhood south of Brentwood.
The plan is to keep the two relocated school communities in place, with the same teachers teaching the same students.
All four schools opened for the spring semester on January 6th.
Other schools in Los Angeles that closed Monday are in mandatory evacuation zones in either the Pacific Palisades or Santa Monica Mountains areas: Kenter Canyon Charter Elementary School, Canyon Charter Elementary School, and Paul Revere Charter Middle School. , Topanga Elementary Charter School, and Lanai Road Elementary School.
Palisades High School, an LAUSD facility managed by an independent charter school, suffered significant damage, with approximately 40% of the building damaged or destroyed, Principal Pamela McGee wrote in a post to the school community.
Paris High School, an independent charter school, will not open for the spring semester on Jan. 13 as previously scheduled.
District officials estimated that about 340 workers were living in the mandatory evacuation zone as of Sunday night. For these and other employees, the district will provide five days of paid leave.
Officials said they expected to use more substitute teachers than usual on Monday.
The next step will be to review the number of students affected by evacuations and fires, also based on recorded addresses, the deputy chief said. Pedro Salcido.
The district is working to create an informal network where people in the Los Angeles Unified community can temporarily share their homes with displaced residents and families.
Source link
