The SAUSD confirms graduations and proms are still canceled, not postponed

Many Santa Ana families are reeling from the SAUSD’s decision to cancel, not postpone, this year’s 2020 High School Graduations, Proms, etc. Our all Latino SAUSD Board of Trustees has failed to understand how important this is to our families particularly since presumably some of these graduates would have been the first grads in their families. And many of these students may opt to enter the workforce and forego college – so this would be their only chance to walk in a formal graduation setting.

Here is an update from the SAUSD spelling out what they plan to do instead of the usual graduations and ceremonies:

Dear graduating students and families,

The Santa Ana Unified School District (SAUSD) community is rallying around our high school graduates in multiple ways during the month of May to show support for the SAUSD Class of 2020, even in the midst of the global COVID-19 pandemic.

Out of concern for the health and safety of our students, families and staff, we have canceled all on-campus instruction through the end of the 2019-20 school year, and have also canceled all end of the year activities, including traditional high school commencement ceremonies. We are also not allowing any in-person gatherings at school sites to protect the health and safety of our community. These decisions were not taken lightly, and involved consultation with our local, county and state health experts and government leaders.

But just as we have shifted our attention from teaching in physical classrooms to delivering instruction through other methods through the end of the school year, we are also turning to other innovative ways to honor this year’s graduates.

As a District, SAUSD has launched a new multifaceted campaign honoring the SAUSD Class of 2020 by blanketing the community with thousands of physical and digital tributes.

These include:

• Billboards in locations across the City of Santa Ana honoring the SAUSD Class of 2020
• Lawn signs recognizing the SAUSD Class of 2020 to be placed at homes and businesses
• Posters recognizing the SAUSD Class of 2020 to be placed at homes and businesses
• Banners recognizing the SAUSD Class of 2020 to be displayed at local businesses
• SAUSD Class of 2020 banners to be displayed proudly outside each SAUSD high school

We are also working to replace our existing 170 street pole banners at locations across the City of Santa Ana with new banners highlighting SAUSD Valedictorians and Salutatorians from each high school.

Additionally, SAUSD is launching on Monday, May 11, 2020 the #SAUSDClassof2020 social media campaign featuring graduate profiles, college acceptance stories, inspirational messages to students, and the names and photos of the District’s Top 100 scholars.

For a personalized touch, all graduates will also receive a card signed by the Board of Education and myself, along with a poster recognizing the SAUSD Class of 2020 to hang outside their homes.

Community support for the SAUSD Class of 2020 campaign has been swift and widespread. The District has received more than 900 requests for lawn signs, posters and banners recognizing the SAUSD Class of 2020 from residents, parents, business owners, community members and local partner agencies.

To honor the unique spirit and values of each campus, school administrators are being encouraged to create specialized celebrations to recognize their Class of 2020.

Most of our schools are working on video celebrations featuring senior names and photos, remarks by school administrators and student speakers, and messages from the Board of Education and myself. These videos will be shown online, on the District website at www.sausd.us, and on SAUSD’s 24-hour cable TV channel: Channel 31 on Spectrum and Channel 99 on AT&T.

The scheduling of these videos is still being coordinated. The community is encouraged to follow SAUSD high schools and the District on social media, and to visit our special graduation landing page at www.sausd.us/Classof2020 for more information as we solidify celebrations.

I want to thank you for your support, patience and understanding during these challenging times. Our seniors have worked incredibly hard for their achievements and they deserve all the recognition we can offer them.

Sincerely,
Jerry Almendarez
Superintendent of Schools