Dear Mt. Pleasant Community, 

In May, we celebrate our teachers and classified personnel. I extend my sincere gratitude to our fantastic team of professionals who work with students, families and community partners daily. Thank you for your devotion to our students’ education. Your efforts bring to life the goals and mission of the Mt. Pleasant Elementary School District! 

We had a wonderful time at Nuestra Herencia, celebrating heritage and traditions. Our ALAS and Mt. Pleasant STEAM students showcased their bilingualism and talents,

and families participated in a joyful evening. Thank you to our staff for

organizing such a fantastic event! 

We also celebrated the graduation of parents that worked with PIQE, the Parent Institute for Quality Education. The goal is to increase parents’ participation in their children’s education. Parents and guardians are role models, and their support is critical to their student’s approach to life! 

We are so proud of our Mt. Pleasant community!  

Sincerely, 

Dr. ElidaMacArthur 

Superintendent 

Please watch a special message from Dr. MacArthur

May is a month when we highlight our gratitude to our teachers, classified staff members, administrators and all the marvelous people that are part of the MPESD team. We recognize our team’s dedication to creating an amazing learning environment for every child, every classroom and every program. 

Their important contributions support our students’ education. Thank you for your work, because it helps shape the next generations, their success, and their role in our community. We appreciate every effort to collaborate with each other to support today, the leaders of tomorrow. Our students deserve our very best, and we are here for them.  

Celebrating our school nutrition professionals, School Lunch Hero Day is an opportunity to recognize the creative, hardworking, reliable, and dedicated heroes and heroines on our food service team. Our school food service professionals at MPESD are leaders in the nation in the monumental Universal Meals Program movement! This year marks the 10-year anniversary of School Lunch Hero Day, and we celebrated our nutrition professionals and their one-of-a-kind superpowers. 

See the highlights of our celebration of the

MPESD nutrition team in this video! 

We appreciate all the work and dedication our retiring team members have shared throughout their years of service at Mt. Pleasant. To our retirees we say: We will miss you and will always be grateful for your contributions to our school community! 

Donna Clubb 



Ms. Clubb joined our district in 1980 and has served as an Instructional Associate for the past 43 years at Mt. Pleasant, Ida Jew Academy, Robert Sanders and August Boeger. She has worked tirelessly and collaboratively with our teachers to ensure that the needs of our students were met. For over four decades, Ms. Clubb has poured her love and dedication into being a role model for our students, improving her skills to improve student learning and guiding our young scholars forward. She has consistently held her students to the highest expectations and shown her flexibility and understanding to address situations or needs in the student's best interests.

Ms. Clubb is friendly and collegial and one of the things that are most appreciated by her coworkers is that she is always present in her duties. We are sad to see her leave; but we are excited for her as she begins her next season of life. Congratulations, Donna, on your retirement!  

Celia Garcia 



Ms. Garcia joined our district in 1996. For the past 26.5 years she has supported us and our families in our Food Services Department. During her tenure, she has been at Foothill, Ida Jew Academy, August Boeger and Robert Sanders. Ms. Garcia’s warm smile puts everyone at ease and never hesitates to lend a helping hand, including supporting our district when custodial help was needed over the summer. Ms. Garcia’s organizational skills and pride in her work have been reflected in the countless events that have taken place during the years when celebrating school, district, and staff events. 

We will miss Ms. Garcia’s kindness and sense of humor. She has touched many lives, and we have no doubt that as she begins her new adventure as a retiree, she will continue to impact the lives of others as she brings them together. Congratulations Ms. Garcia on your retirement!  

Tami Hunter 

Ms. Hunter joined our District in 1998. For the past 25 years, she has served as a teacher in grades 4th through 8th at Foothill, Ida Jew Academy and most recently, as the 7th and 8th grade math teacher at August Boeger. 

We have seen her in many roles: an educator, a caring colleague, a team player, and a student advocate. She has this way about her that makes you feel seen, even in a crowd. She is quick to give you a warm hello and embrace and a beautiful smile. We are grateful for her tireless energy as she organized the annual 8th grade field trips to Washington DC, collaborated with the math departments in providing accelerated math instruction for students, and worked as a team leader with our School 2 Home network! In short, her kind and caring nature has touched her students' and staff's lives. She will be sorely missed. We wish her the best in her next life routines! Congratulations, Ms. Hunter, on your retirement! 

Mai Hong Vu 



Ms. Vu joined our district in 2001 as the Fiscal Advisor for SELPA. For the past 21 years, Ms. Vu has worked in our Special Education Department supporting 11 public school districts in Santa Clara County. During her tenure, Ms. Vu has shared her knowledge and expertise in fiscal management. 

Ms. Vu officially retired this past December and has been happily enjoying time traveling to exotic locations with her husband, family, and friends. She is also a proud grandma, who loves being able to spend more time enjoying her 3 grandchildren. In her spare time, Ms. Vu is an active volunteer in the community.  

It was a fantastic event! The celebration of Nuestra Herencia (Our Heritage) included music, dancing and art, while so many families united to honor their roots and traditions. ALAS and Mt. Pleasant STEAM students showcased their bilingualism and knowledge of culture. Being proud of each other’s heritage was a focal point! Thank you all for bringing back Nuestra Herencia at such a meaningful event! 



You can see part of Nuestra Herencia celebration with this video! 

With the goal of inspiring families to take an active role in their student’s education, August Boeger Middle School and Ida Jew Academy partnered with the Parent Institute for Quality Education (PIQE). Families took on this 8-week program and learned about topics such as FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid), how California schools are funded, Common Core state standards, college admission requirements, and much more!  

The program motivated many families to begin having conversations with their students about going to college and how to better support them. On Wednesday, April 26th, parents completed the program and had their graduation ceremony. The community came together to celebrate the graduates’ achievements and discuss how August Boeger and Ida Jew Academy have been making positive efforts to provide students with the best education. The ceremony took place at August Boeger Middle School where 50 parents received their certificates.  

Congratulations graduates! We are proud of your accomplishments and commitment to PIQE! 

Watch this video about the PIQE Graduation ceremony!

We would like to take this opportunity to share important updates about our MPESD Administrators. 

As you may know, we were conducting a principal search at Mt. Pleasant/Ida Jew Academy for the upcoming school year. During this process, Mr. Gilbert Rodriguez shared that he was open to growing the work in the ALAS program and STEAM focus at the MP/IJA campus. We have witnessed first-hand Mr. Rodriguez’s commitment to meeting the needs of both programs. As a result, effective July 1st, 2023, Mr. Gilbert Rodriguez will be the principal at MP/IJA and will continue to work collaboratively with the new site principal at IJA/VV to ensure that there is clear articulation and alignment of both programs.

We had received communication that Dr. Anjanette Winckler was chosen to be the new principal at IJA/VV. However, we have been informed that Dr. Winckler will no longer be taking this position, due to unforeseen circumstances. Our district is currently working to select a principal for IJA/VV, who will start in that role effective July 1, 2023.

We are also welcoming Ms. Jeannette Carson as our new Principal at Robert Sanders, effective July 1st, 2023. Ms. Carson has taught in various grades at both the elementary and middle school levels. In addition, she has also served as a school administrator in both public and private schools. Most recently, she has supported the Robert Sanders School Community as the interim principal. Ms. Carson possesses an undergraduate degree and a minor in Spanish from Pennsylvania State University, a Master's in Education from Lesley College in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and she completed her Administrative Services Credential at Santa Clara University.  

Thank you all for supporting the Mt. Pleasant Elementary School District Community! 

Enrollment is now open, and we are welcoming students in grades Preschool through 8th grade. We provide support with completing the enrollment packet. . Contact your school site for assistance. 

Early Learning starts at 3 years old! Our ALAS Dual Language Immersion program in English and Spanish (teaching students to be fluent, read and write in two languages) nurtures the academic and social experiences for bilingual students in TK-8th grade, where they thrive under the leadership of our amazing, accredited teachers. We work towards diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging in a collaborative setting. 

How to Enroll: 

Preschool: Linda Marqueda, lmarqueda@mpesd.org, (408) 223-3785 

TK-8th Grade Enrollment: Contact school site. 

During July 2023: Carlene Valenti, cvalenti@mpesd.org, 

(408) 223-3730 

Visit us for more information at mpesd.org 

Our programs include:  



Early Education: Preschool (ages 3+), TK and Kinder 

ALAS - Dual Language Immersion Program in Spanish 

Extended Learning: Before and after school care, and summer school 

Sunrise Club - Before School Care 

MPAS - After School Program 

Intervention/Tutoring support 

Sports (indoors and outdoors) 

Visual and Performing Arts/Theater 

Instrumental Music (Band) 

STEAM, Science and Technology 

AVID - Career & College Readiness 

Instruction by highly trained, experienced certificated teachers 

Our School Sites: 



August Boeger Middle School: 6th-8^th grade. 1944 Flint Avenue. (408) 223-3770 

Ida Jew Academy STEAM Program: TK-8th grade and 6th-8^th grade ALAS Dual Immersion Program. 1966 Flint Avenue. (408) 223-3750 

Valle Vista Elementary School: TK-5th grade. 1966 Flint Avenue. (408) 223-3750 

Mt. Pleasant STEAM Academy / IJA ALAS Dual Immersion: Pre-K-5th grade. 14275 Candler. (408) 258-6451 

Robert Sanders Elementary School: Pre K-5th grade. 3411 Rocky Mountain Drive. (408) 258-7288  

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) are core values at MPESD. We are committed to creating an anti-racist, compassionate and inclusive school culture where every individual is treated with dignity in our diverse community. Our DEIB lessons being shared in May are about Asian Pacific Islander Heritage Month, Jewish American Heritage Month, Mental Health Awareness, Cinco de Mayo, Mother's Day, Memorial Day. The character traits being recognized are Fairness and Equity. 

For the month of June, the lessons will focus on LGBTQ+ Pride Month, Juneteenth and Father's Day. The character trait being recognized is Pride. 

If there are questions or you are interested in learning more about DEIB, please reach out to your school to further the conversation. Thank you for supporting an inclusive school community! 

Supporting our students’ education and the school community in a welcoming and positive environment is so rewarding! Are you or someone you know interested in becoming part of Mt. Pleasant Elementary School District? MPESD is hiring for a variety of roles!  

Our small school district provides a warm and caring environment for students, staff, parents and guardians. Families know each other and are invested in the success of our schools. Our district is committed to making a positive impact in the lives of our students, and leadership is consistently focused on teaching the whole child. 

Growth opportunities are available for everyone. Education opportunities are available to employees who are interested in becoming teachers, and there are opportunities for teachers to study for an additional credential. As employees earn college units, their salaries are increased as they reach specific landmarks. And as employees show their dedication and skill set, they are rewarded by assuming higher positions within and above their classifications. 

MPESD is an opportunity to be part of a community dedicated to making a difference in the lives of students. The district offers employees a generous welfare and benefits package and an excellent state pension plan, and there are many job opportunities available in our school district that do not require a college degree. 

We invite you to learn more on EdJoin or connect with our Personnel Office at (408) 233-3720. 

Our Board of Trustees will meet June 14 and June 28, 2023.  

The job of the Board of Trustees includes the following: 

• Setting the vision and goals for the district 
• Adopting policies that give the district direction to set priorities and achieve its goals 
• Hiring and evaluating the superintendent 
• Adopting and overseeing the annual budget 
• Managing the collective bargaining process for employees of the district 

To learn more about these sessions, please visit our website.

Click here to watch our May 10^th Board meeting and click here for the May 24^th Board Meeting.  

Take a look at our MPESD Calendar for the upcoming academic year!