Kira Weibel was in eighth grade when the COVID-19 pandemic shut down her student’s Altadena Charter School, cutting off vital community connections. As weeks and months of online learning and isolation continued, Waibel fell into a deep depression.
That changed a year later when the school, Aveson Global Leadership Academy, reopened and social interaction returned. But now Waibel and the thousands of other students who have survived the pandemic are battling another historic disaster: the Eaton and Palisades fires. The ferocious blaze that tore through the hillside community of Altadena and the coastal enclave of Pacific Palisades left homes homeless, schooling suspended, extracurricular activities cancelled, and close-knit school communities scattered and their It completely changed my life.
“The pandemic took a big toll on my mental health, but getting back to a normal schedule, going to campus, and seeing everyone there was really healing,” said Wavell, a senior at Aveson. Ta. “And now everything is gone… everything is gone.”
The 14,000-student Pasadena Unified School District is in emergency mode after five school sites sustained significant damage or destruction, with all 24 campuses in the district closed starting Jan. 8 and staff, students, and parents is reeling from the trauma of severe loss. The district is scheduled to announce its reopening plan on Thursday.
But concerns are growing as the education of thousands of children is once again thrown into disarray.
The district leased space on three campuses to charter schools: Aveson, Odyssey and Pasadena Rosebud Academy. The district-run Elliott Arts Magnet School was also damaged, likely beyond repair, as was Franklin Elementary School, which closed in 2020. Together, these schools educate approximately 1,500 students. Additionally, at least two private schools were destroyed: St. Mark’s School in Altadena and Pasadena Waldorf School.
Nearly half of Pasadena School District employees live in evacuation zones, and officials are currently assessing how many families and school staff have been left homeless. Many have left the area and are staying with relatives and friends in the San Francisco Bay Area, Joshua Tree, Oxnard, and Fullerton. At this point, it’s unclear how many people have the bandwidth to teach, counsel, and run schools, even in remote areas.
The district began offering voluntary online learning options on Monday and is expected to continue through at least Friday while the community awaits a reopening plan. Workers are removing more than 10 tons of debris and disinfecting the campus. School staff and volunteers are distributing hundreds of grab-and-go meals each day, and the district and its partners are providing housing assistance, child care, mental health resources, and other assistance.
“We are deeply aware of the significant impact this disaster has had on our community,” said District Supt. Elizabeth Blanco said in a statement. “We recognize that schools in every part of Pasadena play an important role in not only educating children, but also connecting and supporting communities. We are committed to ensuring the happiness and success of our families.”
But some educators are calling for quick action. Aveson, Odyssey, Rosebud and Alma Fuerte school superintendents said in a letter to Blanco Wednesday that state law requires public school districts to make space available to independent charter schools. said. They called for more timely and transparent communication, cooperation in recovery efforts, and immediate assistance in finding temporary accommodation for students. More than 200 school families and staff members were left homeless, including leaders at both Pasadena Rosebud and Aveson schools, according to the letter.
Pasadena district officials did not respond to requests for comment on the letter Wednesday.
Shaking school community
In interviews this week, students described their horror as they desperately grabbed their cats, dogs, guitars and other most cherished possessions from the blaze and then realized their homes were lost forever. .
Aveson senior Brayden Funes watched a video of his former home, with only a pile of black and gray ash remaining. he didn’t cry. But he lay on the floor for an hour, stunned.
“I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t really understand,” he said this week in a group with 10 Aveson seniors among about 500 students attending separate campuses for grades K-5 and 6-12. said in an interview. “I feel like I’m about to wake up in bed, but this is all just a dream.”
Aveson counselor Sally Spangler reminded students of what the firestorm couldn’t destroy. “We have each other. And that’s the most important thing… we have each other. So it’s not all gone.”
Odyssey Charter School South emphasized the same message at a rally this week at Victor Lugo Park in San Gabriel.
The Altadena School campus was engulfed in flames, forcing the evacuation of 372 students from kindergarten through eighth grade. Another campus in Altadena survived.
On Tuesday, about 100 family members, staff and faculty gathered 10 miles south of the destroyed West Palm Street campus for the first time since leaving for winter break last month. Dozens of schoolmates chatted happily under the pines, kicked soccer balls on the sun-baked lawns, climbed on the playground equipment and ate pizza.
But principal Bonnie Brimcombe said: “I don’t feel good.” With tears streaming down her face, she realized the discomfort of that moment. “It’s so nice to see their smiles, but this is not what we should be doing today. This is not why we should be coming together.”
About 40% of families who responded to a survey sent out by the school said their home had been destroyed, Brimecomb said. At both campuses, four faculty and staff members were left homeless, including the principal of the other facility, known as Odyssey Charter School and home to more than 450 students.
For the children, gathering in the park was a welcome distraction.
“I haven’t seen my kids in a month so I feel really good,” said Audrey Whiteside, 9, a third-grader from Tujunga. With a wry smile, she explained that she was looking forward to the chance to reunite with school employee Mejia Orozco after spending the past few weeks arguing with her two brothers.
Orozco, who lives in Pasadena, said the rally was a reminder that “this is temporary and we’re going to get through this as a community.”
Uncertainty about reopening
A key question is when and how destroyed schools can reopen. Campus leaders are scouring the community for space.
Pasadena Rosebud Academy Charter School has decided on a unique return to school plan. It is a series of field trips that will begin on January 21st and last for a week. Suggested trips could include visits to the Orange County Zoo and Aquarium of the Pacific.
Sean Brown, the school’s founder and executive director, said he hoped the weeklong field trip would “buy us more time” as administrators work to find a new location. Ta.
The Altadena school educates 175 students from transitional kindergarten through eighth grade and has been leasing space at the district’s former Loma Alta Elementary School since 2014. Approximately 35 families in Rosebud are homeless, and another 20 or so are displaced due to displacement or loss. of power. Brown, like five other staff members, lost her home.
“Among them, [next] “When the sun came up in the morning and it was bright, our school was still burning,” Brown said.
She and her colleagues initially considered moving to an online program, but are now trying to find a physical location, such as a church or a portable classroom. “There are a lot of parents who need in-person visits. [school] “We really wanted to get the children back and help the parents in any way possible,” she said.
Mariam Hajan said that if Aveson cannot find a facility large enough for both the middle school and high school, each group of students will attend in-person for two days and then all come together on Friday for a day of community service. He said he may restart a hybrid program. , English teacher. But that could take weeks to materialize, Hajjan said.
Another big loss was the private Pasadena Waldorf School in Altadena. The school’s Scripps Hall is a landmark Craftsman-style home built in 1904 by members of the Scripps newspaper publishing family and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This was the centerpiece of the school’s K-12 campus, which enrolled just under 200 students. Thirty-five family members, staff, and faculty members lost their homes.
“There was a sense on that campus that we were on a very special piece of land,” said Stuart Brawley, a donor to the school and an annual fund officer who lost his home. “It was like a forest, with classrooms dotted around it.
“We’re not going away, but it’s certainly going to be a long journey,” said Brawley, who teaches at the high school and also organized the Waldorf school’s online fundraiser. “Who would want to live in a burned down town? Open the front door and stare at the wreckage.”
Another 100 Waldorf students attended another high school and kindergarten on another campus that survived the fire.
Although the campus was saved, it’s unclear when students will be able to attend classes there again, Brawley said. “It depends on air quality, water quality and other factors,” he says.
He said private school administrators are looking for new locations in churches and other locations. He said the school is not considering switching to online learning at this time. “Many staff, faculty and families who have to go online don’t have a safe, quiet place to do it,” he said.
Odyssey, which was founded in 1999, is also focused on finding a new campus, and says it hopes to find a property that can reopen on January 21st. There are no plans to reconvene online for virtual school.
Brimecomb said she initially hoped students from the south campus would be able to move into Odyssey’s K-12 facility on West Altadena Drive. But officials say the property will be unusable for up to two months due to contaminated water and other problems.
“You’re all sad because we just lost our campus, but when you look around, that’s where our students live…and it’s just rubble,” Brimcombe said.
Alma Fuerte Charter School was not damaged or ordered to evacuate, but it was closed by the school district and school leaders are asking Pasadena Unified, which owns the building, for permission to reopen.
Third-grader Sofia Virgena Avila drove to Madison Elementary School, one of the Pasadena-area food pantries, on Tuesday with her mother, sister and pet Chihuahua Mia to buy bags of groceries. He said he missed seeing his teachers and classmates. Turkey sandwich, carrots, cereal, orange and chocolate milk.
“I love learning and having fun,” Sophia said, showing off a colorful bracelet she made at school that had the word “kindness” spelled out in beads.
“Everything is up in the air” at Elliott Arts, said Altadena City Council President Victoria Knapp. His son, Grayson, attends a school with about 400 students in grades six through eight. The original middle school, founded nearly a century ago, became a hub for the arts in 2013. The school had just completed a new pavilion for conservation groups with federal funding and was offering free after-school classes in visual arts, dance, theater and music. It’s gone now, along with a treasure trove of student art and a 400-seat state-of-the-art auditorium, Knapp said.
Her family lost their home and almost everything they owned, including the Lego projects that her 17-year-old son, Hendrick, had spent his life building. Shocked, he had a panic attack and started crying, but he seemed to have calmed down after having a sleepover with friends. Knapp said that while digital connectivity will help maintain a sense of community, social and emotional support will be important for students.
“Kids are very resilient, they’re pretty agile, they’re very technical,” Knapp said. “So I think it’s okay if they know it’s going to be short-term.”
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