Superintendent's Message

Dear Parents, Students and Staff:

Welcome to the 2011/12 school year!  This year will be one filled with excitement, new opportunities, and continued challenges.  Our challenges continue to come from ongoing state cutbacks in funding.  The excitement stems from an extraordinary staff who approach each day with energy and enthusiasm in support of the students that we teach.

We are a community in every sense of the word.  It is our community that rallied around our Save Our Schools (SOS) effort last spring that enabled us to rescind every one of the 53 layoff notices that our budget crisis forced our Board of Education to issue.  The effort raised nearly $500,000 and was coupled with parallel efforts in working with our four cities, the Las Virgenes Municipal Water District, and the Ernest Prete Jr. Foundation, that collectively generated over $1 million in one-time new resources to help us with the current year.  It also set the stage for the creation of T.H.E. (Together Helping Education) Foundation whose mission will be to provide ongoing financial support through coordinated efforts with our entire community, our local businesses, and our sister agencies.  

Our community has a history of supporting our schools as evidenced by the passage of Measure “R” and Measure “G” bonds bringing upgraded and expanded facilities to every site.  Currently, the bond funds are realizing a 20-year dream with the construction of professional Performing Arts Education Centers at both Agoura High School and Calabasas High School.  It is our community that supports our students with the Measure “E” parcel tax that has prevented further cuts to critical programs.

As part of our efforts to continue to integrate technology, while at the same time becoming more environmentally responsible, our Legal Notification Handbook is provided via our website.  Each family can obtain a copy by visiting www.lvusd.org.  If you would like a printed copy mailed to you, please contact our Educational Services Department at 818-878-5218.

I encourage you and your student(s) to read the handbook carefully and contact us with any questions you may have.  The handbook contains contact information as well as our 2011/12 District calendar.  It also contains a wide variety of required notifications including student rights, pesticide use, military recruitment on high school campuses, and other general policies and procedures which will likely affect you and/or your child(ren) at some time during their school career.

Our district’s Mission Statement, as well as our “District Dynamics,” point to the focus and vision of our Board of Education towards supporting every one of our students in a 21^st century education which will help ensure their future success.  I urge you to become involved in our schools and the district as a whole in support of that mission and vision. 

Our district website contains information on a variety of programs as well as upcoming events.  Consider making this your “home page” and build a partnership in support of the most valuable asset we have – our children.  I welcome your attendance at any of my bi-monthly forums during which we discuss not only issues facing the district, but any questions members of our community may have regarding public education within our region.  

Thank you for joining me and the other 1,100 employees of our district in "doing great things for kids!"

Sincerely,

Donald M. Zimring, Ph.D.

Superintendent