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PUSD Families, Neighbors and Community,
As we near the end of the academic year, we celebrate the remarkable achievements of our students, as they embark on new chapters in their educational journeys.
However, our District is under significant financial strain and we've had to take steps this year to arrest the ongoing and persistent deficits in our annual operating budgets. This has led the Board to make extremely difficult cuts to positions across PUSD, affecting central administration as well as in the classroom, even in the midst of recovering from the devastating fires. Our financial condition is due to a variety of factors... from declining enrollment, increased District costs, expiration of one-time COVID recovery money, as well as State and Federal funding uncertainties. Districts across California are experiencing similar risks, some more than others.
To help shed light on these fiscal challenges, why they happen and to explore opportunities to improve Public Education funding altogether, I invite you to my District 4 community forum — "Public Education Funding 101" — this Tuesday, May 20th, 6:30pm at James Madison Elementary School to talk about the varied funding landscape of public education, and how the community can advocate for change at the local level and beyond.
My guest panelists will be PUSD Superintendent Elizabeth Blanco, Former Board of Education, fiscal policy analyst Patrick Cahalan, as well as Representatives from State Senator Sasha Renée Pérez’s office to shed light on where we are this year financially and how the proposed state budget may impact PUSD next year. It will be engaging and informative and it’s a chance to get to know each other.
I hope to see you there.
Thank you for your engagement and your support of our public schools.
Scott Harden
Pasadena Unified Board Trustee, District 4
Your Board at Work
Stay connected to the business and actions of the PUSD Board of Education.
Coming Up...
May 22 Regular Board Meeting
PUSD Education Center, Room 236
4:00pm Special Recognitions
4:45pm Closed Session
7:15pm Open Session
The Board will meet in regular session to address the following topics:
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Recognition of the Black History Month Living Museum and LA County Math Field Day
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Staff presentation on English Learner progress as well as The Governor's May revise impacts
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Public hearing and approval of the 2025-2026 Special Education Budget and Service Plan
Events
Keeping you in the loop on goings-on around the District
PUSD District 4 Community Forum:
Public Education Funding 101
Meet your PUSD Board Trustee Scott Harden and engage in a discussion about how we fund public education. Learn about the ins and outs (and ups and downs) of how your tax dollars fund our public schools and how you can advocate for change. Refreshments and Spanish interpretation provided.
Topics
Here are some of the important issues the Board is discussing:
Fiscal Stablization
The Superintendent has led an effort to create a Financial Stabilization Plan to ensure that the District has the means to reverse the trend of a growing operating deficit.
Resources
These are some handy sources of information when engaging in productive conversations about issues the District faces.
Learning and Advocacy
Learn how California’s education system works, so you can make a difference.
PEN is an independent grass-roots nonprofit organization that promotes family participation in public education to benefit all students in Pasadena, Altadena and Sierra Madre. PEN provides parent education programs and services to help parents explore, evaluate, and engage with their public schools as well as representing a collective voice for parents with the Pasadena Unified School District.
Data Resources
These sources allow you to start your advocacy journey, monitor school and District progress, and compare student success across schools and Districts.
The Dashboard is an online tool designed to help communities access important information about TK-12 schools and districts. The Dashboard features easy-to-read reports on multiple measures of school success. Accountability plan metrics are linked to dashboard indicators at the district and school site level.
Additional reports are available on DataQuest, including more detailed information about school performance, test results, student enrollment, English learner, graduation and dropout, school staffing, course enrollment, and special education enrollment by program setting.
CAASSP reports test scores from the Smarter Balanced Assessment System (ELA and Math), CA Science Test, CA Alternate Assessments, and additional optional tools. These standardized tests provide necessary achievement data to
comply with federal laws.
The ELPAC is used to determine and monitor the progress of the English language proficiency for students whose primary language is not English. It assesses four domains: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. ELPAC scores are one of the criteria for English Learner reclassification.
Ed-Data is a partnership of the California Department of Education, EdSource, and the Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team (FCMAT). It allows users to create graphs over time of education data, provides access to financial information, and allows for comparisons between districts.
Special Education Indicator Report
Indicators aligned with state and national targets publicly available in a weird word doc.
School Accountability Report Card (SARC)
Lots of the same stuff as the Dashboard, plus school-level details on curriculum, facilities, class sizes, staff like counselors, and some salary information.
California Healthy Kids Survey
The California Healthy Kids Survey (CHKS) is an anonymous, confidential survey of school climate and safety, student wellness, and youth resiliency.