In this edition ...

• New Board Officers
• 2024-25 district calendar is available
• Trustees approve Joint Use Agreement with the City of Mountain View
  
• Re-Imagining Castro Elementary School
• In January: School Information Nights, Enrollment for next year
• High Fives: Crittenden wrestling, Mistral tree lighting
• District and schools’ holiday schedule
  

The school-year calendar for next year is now available online here.

MVWSD took the final step on Dec. 7 and formalized its commitment to protecting public access to school fields when the Board of Trustees approved the last revision of the Joint Use Agreement (JUA) with the City of Mountain View.

After the City Council discussed the JUA on Sept. 12, MVWSD presented solutions on Sept. 21 that resolved the final two sticking points in negotiations about how school fields are maintained and rented. This paved the way for the City to craft a revised agreement that delineates how the residents of Mountain View access to close to 100 acres of school land after school hours in exchange for ongoing field maintenance by the City.

“I am so proud to work for a Board of Trustees that really values the community. Even though negotiations were paused by the City in 2022 and by MVWSD in 2023, our Board continued to protect the schools’ value to the community, which was evident in their request to the City to find common ground on the JUA and their approval of this JUA. Throughout the process, MVWSD had the community in mind,” said Superintendent Dr. Ayindé Rudolph.

One of the many benefits for residents is the proximity of school greenspaces to neighborhoods for access by every resident for casual recreation, as well as for the below-market rate rentals of school fields for youth and adult sports.

“We’re proud to live in a community with a gem like Shoreline. But on a daily basis, our residents use school fields more often. Our Board continues to signal the importance of accessible open space in every neighborhood that MVWSD serves for the next decade,” said Superintendent Dr. Ayindé Rudolph. MVWSD will continue this community-minded approach in working to find a mutually-beneficial solution for sharing Shoreline revenues more equitably between the City and District.

To view the JUA agreement, click here.

Re-Imagining Castro Elementary School

In recent years, Castro Elementary has experienced an increase in the numbers of students who are not meeting academic standards in English language arts and math. Since the pandemic, there has been a significant increase of students in this category.

At the Dec. 7 Board meeting, staff and the Trustees discussed preliminary plans for how to increase access to high-quality and culturally-responsive educational experiences and support for students at Castro that result in increased academic outcomes over time.

The Board will form an ad-hoc Educational Roundtable group for research and exploration as the first step of the multi-year Re-Imagining Castro project. This group will consist of Castro teachers and staff, Castro students when appropriate, Castro parents, administrators and Trustees. For links to the presentation, please click here.

In January, the Mountain View Whisman School District will be opening student enrollment for next fall starting Jan. 22 through Feb. 9. Parents of new and currently enrolled students are asked to register their students for next fall during this period.

To help new families learn more about school options for elementary school students, virtual school information nights will be held on Jan. 10 (neighborhood schools) and Jan. 11 (choice schools). The transitional kindergarten meeting is on Jan. 18. In-person school exploration events for Kindergartners incoming to all school sites are on Jan. 17 at Theuerkauf Elementary and on Jan. 24 at Mariano Castro Elementary. Click here for all of the meeting details: http://mvw.sd/meetings. Click here to learn about which program is right for your young learner: mvwsd.org/kinderready

Please check www.mvwsd.org/register for how to locate your neighborhood school, how to explore school options and the four steps to register during the enrollment period held January 22 to February 9.

1st place: Uriel L.
2nd place: Anthony H.
3rd place: Adam D., Ismael V.
4th place: David S.

On Dec. 7, Uriel L. won County Finals making this the first time Crittenden has won County Finals in over 50 years!

The wrestling team is in its second year after not having a school team for decades, and currently ranks in the top four schools in the league. Thank you to the coaches and staff for their hard work and congratulations to the students!

Mistral at City Tree Lighting: Mistral Elementary hosted a craft booth at the City of Mountain View’s Tree Lighting Ceremony on December 4th. Families had lots of fun with the holiday crafts!