News & Announcements

Welcome to the new school year! We are excited for the first day of school, Wednesday, August 10. The teachers have been working hard and are ready to provide a fun and challenging year for your children, and we are excited to begin the year. We have many new students and families joining us this year, and we’ll probably enroll more before the first day of school!
Please see the full letter

Dear Families of Santa Cruz County,
Our hearts are broken as we learn of the loss of 18 children and a teacher in a devastating act of violence today at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. As educators and parents, we grieve with the families
of the victims and the Uvalde community. Please see the joint letter from all Santa Cruz County school districts.

This week, we are celebrating Staff Appreciation. At our April Board meeting, the BDUESD Board of Trustees passed a resolution recognizing the work we strive to accomplish with our students and community.

Earlier this school year, Bonny Doon Union Elementary School District was encouraged by our partners at the SC County Office of Education to apply for state recognition for our work during 2020-2021 distance learning. I am extremely proud and excited to announce that our district is selected by the state for recognition.

Today represents a major milestone for our schools, as the statewide masking mandate is set to expire at midnight. When students and staff return to school on Monday, March 14 – as well as
during any school events this weekend – masking will be strongly recommended, but no longer required. Please read the attached letter with important information.

With declining case rates and hospitalizations, today Governor Newsom announced that after 11:59 p.m. on March 11 masking indoors for schools and childcare facilities will transition from being required to being highly recommended. Until after March 11, schools of Santa Cruz
County will continue to require students and staff to mask while indoors. After this date, masks will remain “highly recommended” for all students and staff, regardless of vaccination status.

One of the first lessons we teach our children is to respect others – to treat each other as we would want to be treated even when we may disagree. Unfortunately, in recent weeks some in our community have fallen short of that mark. We’ve been dismayed to witness as teachers and staff in our county have been cursed at by parents while children are present over disagreements around COVID-19 mitigation policies.

Thank you to the roughly 80% of our families who responded to our survey regarding our outdoor masking policy. Ninety percent of survey respondents support changing the outdoor masking policy to optional and
encouraged.

While the statewide indoor masking mandate lifted today for vaccinated individuals in certain locations, the current statewide mandate requiring indoor masking in schools remains in place. This mandate is not at the discretion of districts. Please see the attached letter for further information.

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have been committed to protecting our school community by closely adhering to guidance from the California Department of Public Health (CDPH). Under operative executive orders, State Public Health Officer Orders, Cal/OSHA Workplace Safety and Health Regulations, and provisions of the California Health and Safety
Code, schools must comply with orders and guidance issued by the California Department of Public Health and relevant local health departments to limit the spread of COVID-19 and protect public health.

Most recently, following this guidance has been challenging when on January 12, CDPH produced two contradictory models for notification, contact tracing, testing, and quarantine.