Parent Newsletter #20: 12/12/25
Highlander News from the Principal's Office
Website | Phone: (510) 594-2626
Location: 800 Magnolia Ave, Piedmont, CA 94611
Instagram: @piedmonthigh
Bell Schedule (Regular) | Library Schedule
Road to Graduation | Athletic Newsletter
College & Career Newsletter | Yearbook Info
2025-26 School Profile | Student Handbook
Principal: Dr. Yoshihara | Asst. Principal: Mr. Marik
December 15
December 16
December 17
December 18
December 19
Calling all artists and writers! The Piedmont Anti-Racism and Diversity Committee (PADC) invites K-12 students to submit their art or writing inspired by the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
The art and writing will be showcased at the annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration on Monday, Jan. 19. (Check out last year’s amazing work!). All participants will be entered into a drawing to win one of 10 gift cards to Mulberry’s. The deadline is Wednesday, Jan. 14.
The theme of this year’s celebration is “Choosing our Future: Chaos or Community.” Students are asked to create a piece of art or writing imagining what they’d like our future community to look like.
Art should be made on 8.5. X 11 paper; writing should be limited to one page. It can be dropped off at the front office of your school or uploaded to PADC’s website. Please include your name somewhere on your work. If you are dropping it off, please fill out and attach this form.
More info is available at www.padc.info/artandwriting. Questions? Please reach out to Ellen Lee at hiellenlee@gmail.com.
During winter break especially – and throughout the year – parents can manage their child’s time on a PUSD Chromebook using the GoGuardian Parent App.
Get Started Quickly
- Download the GoGuardian Parent App:
- Open the app and enter the email address you use with the school.
- Check your email for the verification link and tap “Verify your email.”
- If using another device for email, select “Login with verification code” and paste the code from your email.
What Parents Can Do with the App
- View Chromebook browsing activity.
- Turn off internet access anytime after school hours.
- Block specific sites.
- Controls apply only to the school-issued Chromebook.
- More info: GoGuardian Parent for Guardians
PUSD is partnering with Inspirit AI to offer an in-person, 31.5-hour AI program hosted at Piedmont HS. The summer program will teach students in grades 6-12 fundamental AI concepts and guide them to build socially impactful projects such as safe ChatGPT bots, exoplanet search, self-driving car systems, and more! Stanford and MIT alumni and graduate students in AI will lead the program in-person from June 8-18, 2026. Separate middle and high school sections will be offered. Please read more information in the program brochure and apply here. Program contact: Jared Greene, jared@inspiritai.com.
Your Parents' Club Hospitality Team needs your support. The staff holiday luncheon is scheduled for Tuesday, December 16. Our wonderful parents will be serving it up with salad, satay, and sandwiches courtesy of Ann's catering. We would love some support for desserts, drinks, and coffee pods for the office and teacher's lounge. We've included a Signup Genius below to help us with this. Thanks in advance.
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/508044CA5AD2DA20-60792596-phsteacher#/
Your PHS Hospitality Team,
Cortney Allen, Cindy Hinman, Shilpa Patel, Heidianne Pillsbury
The Wellness Center will be providing snacks the week of Finals with tables on the quad Dec 16-19. Please volunteer to bring allergen free popcorn, granola bars, oranges and string cheese.
Please drop items off at the Wellness Center located in the library/30s building at the high school on Monday, December 15 between 8:30am and 12pm.
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C044EA9AD2EA1FC1-60665532-copy
Thank you so much,
Wellness Center Support Committee
This is a reminder that any volunteers completed during semester 1 must be submitted into Mobile Serve by January 10th, 2026. See the Student Handbook for more details on volunteering and the Piedmont Honors Society.
We are thankful for all the time parents put into volunteering, and so very thankful for the financial support that your families provide our schools. Together, our contributions make up nearly 7% of our school's budget. That might not seem like a large number, but believe us it makes all the difference. Imagine what our schools would be like without those funds. Larger class sizes, less qualified teachers, fewer counselors, and the list goes on.
So far this year, 49% of PUSD families have contributed to the Giving Campaign. It’s crunch time. Let’s not rely on only half of our families to carry our schools. If you haven’t made a gift, now is the time. Send a check to Piedmont Education Foundation at 401 Highland Ave, or give online at PiedmontEdFoundation.org/Donate.
As part of our ongoing efforts to minimize classroom disruptions and protect instructional time, snacks will be distributed only during brunch, lunch, and passing periods.
Please do not be tardy to class in your pursuit of snacks. Be healthy and be on time!
You may have noticed something different at the front of our school. Yes, it is the marquee. It is now operational, and we are getting training on its operation. We plan to test it next week and to use it to inform our community starting in December. We thank our community for their patience in making this a reality. Also, kudos to Mr. Palmer for helping this come to fruition.
Imagine 50+ teams, 100s of robot runs, 10s of presentations, 1 Champion. You can volunteer all day (9 hours) or part of the day (1, 2 or 4 hours). Join us and give back to local elementary and middle school students.
No experience necessary for any roles! We will provide all the skills and information you need to have a great day of volunteering.
This week's report was run from 11/3-12/5 (4 weeks). 189 students had perfect attendance during this period. This includes:
- No tardies (of any type)
- No absences (of any type)
Congratulations to Tung for such great attendance. Please email the Principal with your Crumbl cookie choice, and I'll personally deliver it to your class.
12/8: 33 tardies to period 1 (1/11/6/15)
12/9: 23 tardies to period 1 (2/3/8/10)
12/10: 21 tardies to period 2 (4/8/8/1)
12/11: 21 tardies to period 1 (6/8/2/5)
12/12: 12 tardies to period 27 (3/6/11/7)
We had a couple close ones this week...for the freshmen they had only one tardy on Monday and two on Tuesday--so close! Seniors were very close on Wednesday with only one tardy as well. Let's see if we can pull a no-hitter next week for continued rewards if a class can pull it off.
What is PPN?
Piedmont Parents Network (PPN) is a parent-run organization that holds monthly meetings to provide parents with the opportunity to meet, connect and discuss issues affecting their child, the school, and our community All parents of students at PHS/PMS/MHS are welcome - there are no membership dues - RSVP and show up!
When are the next meetings?
12th Grade:
Next Meeting: Tuesday, December 16: 7:30-9:00 pm
Facilitators: Sara Ironside, Jen Ferguson
RSVP: jen.c.ferg@gmail.com for more information
Meetings for the remainder of the year:
Thursday, January 22: 7:30-9:00 pm
Tuesday, February 24: 7:30-9:00 pm
Tuesday, March 24: 7:30-9:00 pm
Thursday, April 23: 7:30-9:00 pm
Tuesday, May 19: 7:30-9:00 pm
11th Grade:
Next Meeting: Thursday, January 22 from 7:00-8:30 pm. We are still looking for a host!
If you have thoughts, please fill out this form: Google Form for 11 Grade
Facilitator: Kristen Brett
RSVP: kbrett@srvusd.net
Meetings for the remainder of the year:
Wednesday, February 25: 7:00-8:30 pm
Thursday, March 26: 7:00-8:30 pm
Thursday, April 23: 7:00-8:30 pm
9th Grade:
Thursday, January 29: 7:00-8:30 pm
Facilitators: Judy Lin, Yoko Ichikawa, Anne Hawkins
RSVP: hawkins42@gmail.com for location information
Upcoming Meetings:
Friday, February 27: 8:45-10:15 am
Thursday, March 19: 7:00-8:30 pm
Friday, April 24: 8:45-10:15 am
Thursday, May 21: 7:00-8:30 pm