Piedmont Pulse
Piedmont USD - Week 3 Update >>>
October 6, 2025
Dear PUSD Families & Staff:
It was great seeing so many parents and staff at this year's Oktoberfest on Saturday. Thank you to Boosters for hosting this event, which provides critical funds for our athletics programs. And, a special thanks to all of the volunteers and sponsors who made this event happen, including our students who helped serve. And, I have to say that this year's Oktoberfest fashion was fabulous, with more lederhosen and dirndl dresses than I have seen in a long time. Nicely done!
In Partnership,
Jennifer Hawn, Ed.D.
Superintendent
Throughout the last month, I have written about our efforts to align high school course offerings with students interests and needs. To this end, we have reviewed other high-performing high schools to compare course catalogs, we have surveyed students to better understand their course preferences, we have met with high school students to gather informal feedback, and we have discussed at a 9/12 Board Workshop and the 9/22 Board meeting.
We have also discussed changes with administrators, teachers, and counselors to broaden our perspective on how the proposed changes may impact students' high school experience and future college and career opportunities. One point we hear from staff is the concern about student well-being related to the number of AP courses a student may take. That is, if we offer more AP courses, students will feel compelled to take them in order to maximize a student's effort to take the most rigorous course load available. This is an important point and one we should consider carefully. Will students take all of the APs made available, and will that impact their stress and overall well-being? Given our college-going community, I would acknowledge that the answer is likely yes to both questions.
However, the issue is more complex than whether to offer versus limit APs to ensure student wellness. Local context matters. A key factor to consider is the variety of offerings for students at all grade levels. I would argue that we have done a wonderful job of providing students with a smooth transition from 8th grade to 9th and 10th grade related to rigor. Where we have room for growth is in our non-STEM offerings at all grade levels. This year, we added AP Seminar and opened it up to grade 10 and above. What a wonderful course addition for all grades. Even better, 10th grade students have an AP option in addition to AP Computer Science Principles (another outstanding course, by the way).
In order to further open up opportunities for students, at next week's Board meeting, we will be looking at our high school graduation requirements to eliminate requirements that are not essential to meet the UC A-G requirements. We will also consider additional honors and AP offerings in a variety of subjects. The goal is to expand opportunities for students to explore their interests. One subject that we have few AP options for is History/Social Studies. We currently offer AP US History. Years ago, we offered AP European History; however, after the teacher left, so did the course. A review of similar high schools shows that we are alone in offering only one History/Social Studies AP. Moreover, student survey results indicate a strong desire for AP World History, which we are proposing to the Board as an offering for next fall. Finally, meetings with members of the History/Social Studies department indicate a desire to explore other options for students, including Honors and AP courses. We are excited to continue these conversations.
Ultimately, the goal is to enhance student opportunities through course offerings that align with students interests and needs. We are grateful to our staff, students, and parents for their input on our course proposals that we are recommending for approval at Wednesday's Board meeting.
The Board’s development and approval of a Strategic Plan in March 2023 included four strategic priorities, including “Creating an Environment to Thrive.” This priority includes the following:
“Cultivate a culture of caring, belonging, and trust that will provide students and staff with the support they need to foster connections and truly engage in meaningful learning. Provide green, open spaces for students and staff to unplug and recharge in a welcoming and natural setting.”
To these ends, the identification and development of a plan to cultivate green spaces throughout our campuses is presented in this green space report, prioritized according to two categories: first, locations that are or could be used by students and staff, and second, locations that are perimeter or adjacent spaces that are high traffic and highly visible.
For groups who wish to sponsor or volunteer, please contact Pete Palmer at ppalmer@piedmont.k12.ca.us. A special thanks to Pete, our groundskeeping team, and our custodial team for ensuring our schools are wonderful green spaces for our students and staff to thrive.
Green Space Sponsors will have a gratitude sign posted at the Green Space location. PMS Parents and Class of 2025...your signs are in the works!
We will continue our focus this year on community engagement opportunities, including meetings planned throughout the school year on topics related to our District goals. We invite you to consider joining any of the meetings this year on a range of topics, which will be held online and in person. Be on the lookout for invitations to follow from each Committee leader. The community meeting schedule for 2025-26 is linked HERE.
October Meetings:
October 6 - District Technology Advisory Committee (DTAC) - Tech Plan Development - Today at Havens Library at 4PM.
October 7 - Parent Night - ELA Adoption Implementation: We are excited to share that district leadership will be convening a Parent Information Night next Tuesday, Oct. 7th with respect to our new elementary English Language Arts curriculum, Fishtank Learning. As you may be aware, PUSD is in its first year of implementation with our new literacy curriculum and this meeting will provide an opportunity to share progress updates and valuable information about how we are supporting literacy development in the tri-schools.The meeting will take place in the Ellen Driscoll Theater at Havens Elementary from 6:00-7:00pm on Oct. 7th. All are welcome.
October 9 - Budget Advisory Committee (BAC) - Revenues: A Deep Dive
October 16 - Superintendent's Advisory Committee (SAC) - Cell Phone Policy Feedback
October 20 - Diversity Equity Inclusion and Belonging Committee: DEIB Program & Goals
October 23 - Curriculum Committee - Elementary Performing Arts
October 29 - Facilities Steering Committee (FSC) #2 (tentative)
Thank you to the students and parents who who wrote to AC Transit officials and/or attended the AC Transit Board meeting two weeks ago to restore Bus 33 service to upper Piedmont. To those surveyed families, I recently sent out an opportunity to write to AC Transit to restore service. If you would like to join in this letter-writing effort, we could use your help to advocate for this critical transportation need.
Linked HERE is information below to assist you in sending a letter via email to the AC Transit staff and Board. We believe advocacy from our PUSD community can make a difference in calling attention to this important matter and potentially leading to the restoration of bus service to upper Piedmont.
Piedmont Unified School District
Email: communication@piedmont.k12.ca.us
Website: www.piedmont.k12.ca.us
Location: 760 Magnolia Avenue, Piedmont, CA, USA
Phone: 510-594-2600