Congratulations to the Boys & Girls Club of Sonoma Valley 

Youth of the Year and Members of the Year Winners!

Andrea Ayala Hernandez, BGC Youth of the Year Andrea Ayala Hernandez, a 12th grader at Sonoma Valley High School, has been part of BGC-Teen Services since her freshman year, seeking a place to serve her community and grow into the leader she wanted to become. Through her involvement in Teen Services, especially the Keystone program, she helped raise nearly 900 dollars for a scholarship for graduating seniors, built connections with the elderly, and worked to transform the program to better serve her community. Her leadership extends beyond Teen Services; she serves as President of a Hispanic club, and Financial Advisor for her student government. Andrea has learned that true leadership is not about having all the answers, but about learning, growing, and facing challenges with confidence. She has spoken with local representatives, advocated for meaningful change, and inspired her peers to take action. Now aspiring to become a travel nurse, Andrea hopes to use her strength and empathy to bring calm, care, and hope to those who need it most, embodying the purpose and belonging she has found through her journey.

Members of the Year (K-8th):  Altimira: Jesús Aguado El Verano: Jayden Castellanos  Flowery: Camila Piedra Sassarini: Andrew Perez Maxwell Clubhouse: Sofia Lopez Contreras (attends Sassarini) Athlete of the Year: Amari Sotto-Harris (attends Prestwood) We are so proud of our incredible students on their well-deserved recognition! Thank you to our partners at the Boys & Girls Club for your continued support and collaboration, it truly makes a difference.

A Message from the Board regarding the Superintendent Search 

Our district partnered with the Sonoma County Office of Education (SCOE) and consultant Mr. Brandon Krueger to facilitate the Superintendent Search process. Mr. Krueger resigned at the end of October due to personal reasons. We sincerely appreciate the work he completed and the progress made during his time supporting our district. All materials and information gathered through his efforts have been turned over to Ms. Kristen Ugrin, Sonoma Valley Unified School District’s Director of Human Resources, who is now coordinating the next steps.

Thank you to everyone who participated in the stakeholder input sessions held in September and October. Your feedback and perspectives remain an essential part of the process and will continue to guide our search.  Please be assured all input provided remains strictly confidential.

Currently, Ms. Ugrin is working to identify a new consultant who will continue the search from where Mr. Krueger left off. The district will provide an update and hopes to introduce the new consultant at the November 13 Board Meeting, or no later than the December 10 Board Meeting.

The Board of Trustees may only discuss and make decisions regarding the Superintendent Search during publicly noticed board meetings, which ensures that all steps are conducted appropriately and with full transparency. The Superintendent Search Update is on the agenda for the November 13 Regular Board Meeting.

We understand that there may be curiosity about the progress of the search. Please note that all information about applicants, candidates, or interviews remains confidential to maintain the integrity of the process. Please be assured we will continue to keep you informed by providing accurate information.

We remain committed to a thorough, professional, and confidential search process that results in the selection of the best possible leader for our district.

Thank you for your continued patience and engagement.

2024-2025 California Test Results Are Now Available The results from the state tests your children took last school year are available online. These results show the big picture for the state, district, or an entire school. They do not include your child's individual score report. To see your child's individual report, you can: -Access the Powerschool Parent Portal -Check Parent Square for a video report link -Ask your child's school to print a report for you What tests are included? -CAASPP (English Language Arts, Math, and Science) -ELPAC (English Language Proficiency Assessment for California) California Spanish Assessment results will be available in December 2025. Overall results for CAASPP and ELPAC on the California’s Assessments website. Local Control Accountability Plan (LCAP) Survey Our district values your feedback!  We are currently seeking input from our Sonoma Valley Unified  families on the development of our Local Control Accountability Plan (LCAP). The LCAP describes the goals, actions, services, and expenditures that districts will use to support positive student outcomes aligned to the eight state priorities.  Please take a moment to provide us with your input by completing THIS LCAP SURVEY by December 17, 2025.  If you need a paper copy of the survey, please reach out to your school site.  Thank you in advance for helping us to create the best schools possible for our students, staff and community. Our School Community on the Move! Fun and smiles at the Flowery and Prestwood Jog-A-Thons and the Sassarini Color Run — and we can’t wait for El Verano’s event this spring!  Special thanks to Rachael Hairston Photography for the beautiful photos from the Sassarini Color Run. SVUSD Negotiations Update On October 30, 2025 VMTA informed the District’s negotiating team that they prefer to issue their own updates moving forward. While we had appreciated the opportunity to provide joint recaps of our meetings, we will now share our own summaries with the community. We welcome any questions you have about this process. Negotiations Process Valley of the Moon Teachers Association (VMTA) and the SVUSD Negotiations met on October 30, 2025 for the fourth session. During the process, when both sides agree on changes to an Article, they sign off and it is called a “Tentative Agreement “(TA). We continue to discuss changes to a limited number of Articles in the collective bargaining agreement. Making Progress We have reached a tentative agreement (TA) on Article 6 Hours of Employment, Article 11 Class Size, and Article 17 Extra Pay Assignments. The teams discussed Article 15 Salary and Salary Schedule Placement and Article 18 Health and Welfare. Medical Benefits SVUSD strives to have a competitive salary and benefits package to help attract and retain staff. The District is not proposing cuts to the benefits packages. Our goal is to make the District’s contribution to the benefits plans equitable for all employees. We offer all full time employees the choice of three medical plans, Kaiser, non Kaiser HMO, or a PPO at a 90/10 cost sharing. This means SVUSD pays 90% of the total premium cost for single employee, single employee +1, or family for the three plans. During this round of negotiations, our district proposed switching the PPO plan “Platinum” to “Gold” at the 90/10 cost sharing starting in January 2027. The District shared the following information with VMTA: ● The Choice plan referenced in the collective bargaining agreement is no longer offered; ● There are 24 employees on the Platinum plan; ● The cost to our district for continuing to offer Platinum at the 90/10 split is approximately $225,000 more per year than the Gold plan option for 24 employees. Salary VMTA proposed a salary increase. ● The cost of a 1% increase for VMTA unit members is approximately $236,000 annually not including automatic step increases for those eligible employees. ● Our district has a “me too” implied clause with all employees. The cost of 1% for all employees is approximately $425,000 annually plus automatic step increases for those eligible employees. Next Steps First Interim Budget Report will be presented at the December Board meeting. Negotiating teams will continue to discuss salary and health and welfare benefits at our next meeting in December. In the Spotlight: Recognizing the Dedication & Excellence of SVUSD Staff Treytcy De Haro Martinez, Child Welfare and Attendance Specialist Q: How long have you been working for SVUSD? A: 6 years Q: What's a moment from your time at SVUSD that made you feel proud to work here? A: When students who have graduated reach out to me and let me know that the work we did together has helped them. Q: Reflecting on your journey, who was a mentor or champion in your life who helped you get where you are today? A: Mr. Donnelly  - Economics teacher at the high school.  Q: If you could share one piece of wisdom with our students—something you wish you had known earlier in life—what would it be? A:  Its ok that you don’t know who you are now or where you are going now, it is part of the transformation of life, and its part of growing up. Q:What's a song that always puts you in a good mood? A: Beautiful Crazy, Luke Combs Q: If you could have any superpower for one day, what would it be? A: Reading people’s minds. Nick Pappas, PE & Fitness Teacher at Altimira Middle School; Strength and Conditioning Coach and Linebackers Coach at Sonoma Valley High School Q: How long have you been working for SVUSD? A: 3 years Q: What's a moment from your time at SVUSD that made you feel proud to work here? A: Opening the weight room every morning at 7 am. And Starting a fitness elective. And when students get their first pull up. Q: Reflecting on your journey, who was a mentor or champion in your life who helped you get where you are today? A: Deets Winslow Q: If you could share one piece of wisdom with our students—something you wish you had known earlier in life—what would it be? A:  Effort is more important than outcome. Q: What's a song that always puts you in a good mood A: Lil Boo Thing Q: If you could have any superpower for one day, what would it be? A: To fly. Katie Hahn, Principal at El Verano Elementary School Q: How long have you been working for SVUSD? A: 4th year as Principal of El Verano, 10 years total in Sonoma Valley. Q: What's a moment from your time at SVUSD that made you feel proud to work here? A: When I go out on my campus in the afternoons and see and hear, the whole campus is alive, with ViVo, Baile Folklórico, the FRC and more.  It's the center of life for a lot of people in the community.  There are a lot of enriching experiences during the day and after school. Q: Reflecting on your journey, who was a mentor or champion in your life who helped you get where you are today? A: Jillian Beal, I learned how to be a principal from her.  She always shared with me how to be a good leader, how you build relationships and leverage them to bring everyone along together for a cohesive, collaborative team.   Q: If you could share one piece of wisdom with our students—something you wish you had known earlier in life—what would it be? A: It's not about how easily things come to you, its about putting in the time and work to learn something or get good at something. Q: What's a song that always puts you in a good mood? A: “If you want me to stay” -Sly and the Family Stone Q: If you could have any superpower for one day, what would it be? A: Flying, it would be so fun.