Lynwood Unified Elementary Students Showcase Dancing Skills
Lynwood Unified elementary school students showed off their dancing skills during the Conga Kids Spring Celebration event at L.A. Live on May 18. Latin, African, tap and hip-hop inspired dances were among the many performances that took place during the celebration. Student groups from Washington Elementary showcased their new routines after having been finalists in the Conga Kids dance competition in 2019, joined by students at Abbott, Roosevelt, Rosa Parks, and other Lynwood Unified elementary schools. Conga Kids is a non-profit program that provides young students across Southern California with social and emotional learning opportunities, focusing on self-awareness, responsible decision making, self-management, relationship skills and social awareness.
Nearly 500 Lynwood community members are expected to hit the streets for a 5K Run/Walk that will raise money for students through the Lynwood Partners Educational Foundation. The Foundation, a partner of the Lynwood Unified School District, is collaborating with the City of Lynwood and Aztlan Athletics for the city’s first 5K event in nearly a decade. The 3.1-mile route will start and finish at City Hall. All proceeds will benefit the Lynwood Partners Educational Foundation. Access to vendor and resource booths, and a raffle drawing for a new Mazda Mitsubishi are scheduled for the awards ceremony following the race.
Lynwood Unified Student Named 2022 Edison Scholar
Luis Sanchez, a Firebaugh High School senior with a passion for science and technology, has been named a 2022 Edison Scholar, receiving a $40,000 scholarship from Edison International to support his college education. Sanchez honed his engineering skills as a member of Firebaugh’s Project Lead The Way program, maintaining a 4.6 GPA while also serving as Firebaugh’s volleyball team captain and participating in numerous extracurricular activities. Sanchez will attend Stanford University, where he plans to major in electrical engineering technology. Sanchez hopes to develop innovative renewable technologies to help fight climate change in his future career.
Lynwood Unified Celebrates Student Talent at Annual Festival of the Arts
Hundreds of students, families and community members gathered to enjoy show-stopping performances, arts and crafts activities, and art displays from schools across the District during Lynwood Unified’s eighth annual Festival of the Arts and District Showcase, held April 30. The festival showcased the creative talents of LUSD students through dance, drama, painting and other artistic mediums, presenting their work and demonstrating how creativity can blossom when provided with a robust visual and performing arts curriculum. Attendees also had the opportunity to participate in raffles and giveaways.
Lynwood Unified Partners with City to Provide Broadband to Families
Lynwood Unified and the City of Lynwood are partnering with SiFi Networks to bring free and low-cost broadband to the community in an effort to reduce digital inequity. All Lynwood residents, businesses and government buildings will be included in the plan. Lynwood Unified will also provide students with devices and technical support. The City Council and Lynwood Unified’s Board of Education approved the resolution in February and hope to make the broadband services available within six months to a year.
Lynwood Unified Elementary School Celebrates Return of Venus Williams
Mark Twain Elementary School students welcomed professional tennis player and Mark Twain alumna Venus Williams on March 18, one of the many activities the school staged to celebrate Women’s History Month. Williams visited the campus to connect with the students, share information on the importance of Women’s History Month, and inspire them to keep following their dreams. Mark Twain students also participated in an empowerment march on March 24, carrying handmade signs with slogans that advocated for women’s rights and celebrated women’s contributions to society.
Lynwood Unified Finalizes New Strategic Planning Process
Lynwood Unified is fostering student and community success through its Strategic Planning Process, a collaborative project that aims to address the needs of the District community and students over the next five years. The Strategic Planning Committee will hold a series of meetings covering topics, such as global and local education trends, that will help the district align its goals and develop a strong vision for the future, receiving input from students, teachers, staff, families, and community partners.
Lynwood Unified School District and St. Anne’s Family Services leaders joined LUSD Board members, elected officials, and educators to celebrate a ribbon-cutting ceremony on March 14 that commemorated a new early learning center that was two years in the making. The facility, which features newly modeled classrooms with state-of-the-art learning tools, as well as kitchen and laundry areas, is the result of a partnership between the District, St. Anne’s, and the Los Angeles County Office of Education. Five classrooms, serving a total of 164 children, have been added at Lugo and Abbott elementary schools.
St. Anne’s Family Services will celebrate the opening of its ninth Early Learning Center at Lugo Elementary in Lynwood, California on Monday, March 14, 2022 from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. In partnership with Lynwood Unified School District and the Los Angeles County Office of Education (LACOE), St. Anne’s will deliver comprehensive resources for infants and toddlers along with supportive services for their families at Lugo and Abbot Elementary School campuses respectively. With nearly 20 percent of the Lynwood population living below the poverty line, St. Anne’s will address a critical need by providing educational and social services to help families thrive.
Lynwood Unified Joins Diversity and Leadership Fellowship Program
Lynwood Unified has partnered with Loyola Marymount University to bring additional administrative opportunities to Black and Latino educators in Los Angeles County through their Diversity and Leadership Institute Fellowship program. Inspired by the vision of Culturally Responsive School Leadership (CRSL), participants will explore their cultural identity and how it affects their leadership. The program will begin in the fall of 2022 and take place over 16 months through a combination of virtual and in-person sessions held in Los Angeles by local and national leaders in education. Directors of the program will select 20 participants across Los Angeles to join the program, five of which will be from Lynwood Unified.
