Dear Laguna Community,
The last couple of months have tested us in ways we could have never imagined at the beginning of the school year. The response from you—our families, faculty and staff, our students, and our alumni—inspired us to persist and continue to drive us forward every day. I am so proud and excited to celebrate our community and honor our journey together in the coming weeks.
Owls Soar: End of Year Celebrations
The countdown is on for our eagerly anticipated end-of-year celebrations. On Friday, seniors returned to campus to pick-up special care packages from our senior parents, as well as their caps and gowns, as they prepare for their virtual commencement celebration on June 10.
|
|
The
Lower School
will kick-off the festivities with a
virtual story time
, including a surprise guest reader on Wednesday, June 3 from 7-7:30PM. Since all of our fourth graders are moving up to fifth grade on our Hope Ranch campus, we plan to honor them in September at the start of school. On Thursday, June 4, there will be a car parade on our Lower School campus by grade level for families and students to drive through the carline, wave goodbye to their teachers, and pick up their belongings and projects.
|
|
Working in partnership with S.B. County and Hope Ranch, we are thrilled to share that our
Eighth Grade
will be able to reunite on the athletic fields for a drive-in style closing ceremony celebration on June 4 at 4PM. Due to space restrictions, we must cap attendance at only one car per eighth grade family.
The culmination of our year-end festivities will take place on Wednesday, June 10, at 11:30AM as we honor the
Class of 2020
in a very special senior send-off. The live stream virtual celebration will be followed by a car parade on campus at 1:30PM for graduates to accept their diplomas and wave farewell to their teachers until the official in-person July 31 commencement ceremony. A link for the virtual celebration will be sent soon to all current Laguna families. You are welcome to share the link with extended family and friends. Alumni families are also invited to join the virtual celebration and we kindly request you RSVP to
Tina Braniff
by Monday, June 8.
|
|
Student Connections
This week, our Admissions team welcomed
more than 85 new community members
with Laguna’s first-ever Zoom Ice Cream Social. Before the social, a special Laguna swag bag was delivered to each new family. While we missed having everyone on campus, the new format allowed for families to join us from as far away as Atlanta, Georgia, and Majorca, Spain.
|
|
|
Class attendance continues to be strong, and students remain committed to their academic excellence. Many of our Upper School students eased into AP exams taken from the comfort of their homes this week. Seniors will begin their re-formatted
Senior Projects
next week, encouraging them to explore their passions and express their creativity. One student is working to raise awareness for the non-profit
School on Wheels,
which enhances education opportunities for children experiencing homelessness. Another is doing portraits of the Class of 2020, to practice her realism sketching and honor the people who shaped her high school career. Two other seniors are partnering on developing a video game. We will share all project presentations online on June 8.
On Tuesday, May 26, at 1PM, inductees to the
Cum Laude Society
will be honored at a virtual ceremony. These recipients are selected based on academic excellence (top 10% of the junior class, top 20% of the senior class), good character, honor, and integrity in all aspects of school life. We invite our entire community to join us
here on Zoom
.
|
|
Campus Life
Excavators and bulldozers arrived on campus, and major construction is underway for the new
Center for Science and Innovation
! Check out daily progress and
click here
to learn how you can support
Building on Strength: The Campaign for Laguna’s Future.
A new task force is working in partnership with the S.B. County Office of Public Health to outline and implement the necessary changes in our campus operations to reopen campus safely in September.
The Laguna family is tight-knit. Over the past several weeks, we’ve proven that although we are apart, we are in this together. Very much like our own students, our community embraced this challenge, rose above, and I believe we have come out stronger. I cannot wait to share in these special events with you, and I look forward to hearing the memorable accounts from teachers and students of what made this year truly unforgettable.
With warmest regards,
Rob Hereford
Head of School
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
