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District Overview

mission

mission

The mission of LLESD is to provide a model public education that is inclusive, engaging, and inspiring and lays the foundation for empathy, lifelong curiosity, a passion for learning, and global awareness. We do this by nurturing students' unique experiences, interests, and abilities and by providing a stimulating environment that supports wellness, academic success, and social-emotional skills. 
vision 2025

vision 2025

To build upon excellence in our District to create a model public education experience that is inclusive, engaging, and inspiring for all LLESD students as a foundation for their lifelong learning & future success.
 
values

values

1. Students First
2. Connection
3. Excellence
4. Equity
 
llesd Diversity & inclusion statement

llesd Diversity & inclusion statement

Diversity makes all of us stronger.
The Las Lomitas Elementary School District recognizes and celebrates diversity in the academic environment to foster cultural awareness, promote mutual understanding and respect, and provide role models for all students. We value the many cultures, ethnicities, national origins, socio-economic backgrounds, genders, sexual orientations, ages, religions, abilities, political views, and other perspectives that are represented in our staff and student body. Learning and work environments are enriched and improved by the contributions, perspectives, and presence of diverse participants and views.
 
In the classroom, the District supports the use of curriculum and practical experiences that reflect the diversity both within and beyond our school community to prepare its students to succeed in a multicultural world.  
 
We strive to reflect this diversity in our faculty and staff by hiring the best employees of all backgrounds who bring their unique talents and skills into our District. We are proud to have a diverse group of educators and staff who provide students with the highest quality education. This commitment to diversity is reflected in District practices and activities that promote diversity and mutual respect within the District workforce and student body.
 
As part of our educational mission, we will continue to develop and support culturally competent, transformational educational leaders who exhibit the cultural awareness, attitudes, knowledge, and skills necessary to create a welcoming and inclusive learning environment. We believe that these leaders will create inspirational learning experiences that encourage and motivate all students and staff to achieve their highest levels of performance.
 
WELCOME TO THE LAS LOMITAS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL DISTRICT

WELCOME TO THE LAS LOMITAS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL DISTRICT

The Las Lomitas Elementary School District (LLESD) comprises two award-winning schools in Menlo Park and Atherton, California. Thriving in the community surrounded by Stanford University and many of Silicon Valley’s world-renowned corporations, entrepreneurs, and scientists, Las Lomitas Elementary (TK-3rd grade) and La Entrada (4th-8th grades) consistently rank among the top in the state. However, the excellence in our district is never taken for granted. LLESD continually strives to raise the bar, providing students with increased educational opportunities.
 
The mission of the Las Lomitas Elementary School District is “dedicated to providing an exemplary comprehensive and continually improving educational program that meets the cognitive and social-emotional needs of each student and that reflects the changing needs of our highly global and technological society.” In partnership with dedicated teachers and staff, an engaged School Board, involved parents, and a community that values and actively supports education, students are guided to become thinking, caring, and contributing citizens in our ever-changing global society.
 
Our world-class reputation has resulted in the need to accommodate unprecedented growth. In November 2013, the community passed a school bond, and planning commenced to build permanent facilities to house students and staff.  In a district that is already embracing technology, new 21st-century classrooms will enhance the learning and engagement of students. Teachers are provided with opportunities to teach using cutting-edge resources and methodologies.
 
LLESD lives its mission for students every day by providing support, enabling academic rigor, and fostering interpersonal relationships.
 
HISTORY OF THE LAS LOMITAS SCHOOL DISTRICT

HISTORY OF THE LAS LOMITAS SCHOOL DISTRICT

original building

Let’s begin this story of a hundred years by taking a look at life around the turn of the last century—the time when the Las Lomitas School District started with one teacher, fourteen students, and a temporary classroom.

 
They were times none of us can remember and can scarcely imagine when the statistics are presented. Ninety-five percent of births took place at home. The average life expectancy in the United States was forty-seven. The leading causes of death were pneumonia and influenza, tuberculosis and diarrhea only then followed by heart disease and stroke.
 
A tiny fourteen percent of homes had bathtubs, and only eight percent had a telephone. There was a grand total of 8000 cars in the country and a scant 144 miles of paved roads.

The average wage was 22 cents an hour, and the average annual salary was between $200 and $400. Yet eighteen percent of households had at least one domestic servant. Only six percent of all American citizens had graduated from high school. Sugar cost four cents a pound and coffee fifteen cents; eggs fourteen cents a dozen. Milk was delivered in horse-drawn carriages and dipped from a large container into each customer’s pan.

California was the 21st most populous state with 1.4 million residents. Iowa had more people! The great San Francisco earthquake was still two years away. A furious local typhoid epidemic had just wound down. Two hundred thirty-six people had been diagnosed with the disease when the population of the general area was no more than 6000 and the nearest hospital was in San Francisco. Officials felt that many illnesses and even deaths were never reported in outlying districts such as that along the Alameda.

The area that became the Las Lomitas School District was an oasis of quiet, but the promise of more lively activity was just around the corner. Large estates in the neighborhood that became Atherton in 1923 had gardeners and servants. The few houses along the Alameda were small and were occupied largely by families of those workers. A few subdivisions were being laid out. Plans were in the works to turn the Altschul estate into La Loma Park, which promised elegant homes on sites unsurpassed anywhere in the valley. Properties were beginning to sell for $500 to $2000 an acre in the Barney tract. The large house of the Avy family sold for $19,000. Today’s Sharon Heights was still a few years away from becoming the Sharon estate with its mansion and elaborate grounds.

When the Searsville school on Sand Hill Road closed in 1894, the choices for school children were going to the Redwood City Grammar School on the site of today’s Fox Theater, to Central School on the site of the Cadillac Agency on El Camino in Menlo Park or to the new Portola School way out on Portola Road—each a long way for youngsters to travel every day. The parents banded together and devised a petition for a new district. Their efforts failed in 1896, but in 1904 the residents won the right to form their new district. They called it Las Lomitas, the little hills. The little schoolhouse they built soon became the center of the neighborhood, and the student population rose quickly.

The story of these one hundred years is told here primarily through the memories of people who have had a close connection with the schools in some way and for some period of time. It is our hope that readers can elicit from their words more than from a mere recitation of facts the true history and spirit of a school district that has had a special place in the hearts of most who have passed through its doors.
 
DISTRICT MANAGEMENT

DISTRICT MANAGEMENT

Superintendent: 
Dr. Beth Polito
(650) 854-2880 X4011
bpolito@llesd.org
 
Executive Assistant to the Superintendent :
Monica Salas

(650) 854-2880 X4012
msalas@llesd.org
 
Chief Business Officer: 
Mei Chan

(650) 854-6311 X4888
mchan@llesd.org
 
Assistant Superintendent:
Dr. Valerie Park
(650) 854-6311 X4017
vpark@llesd.org
 
Director of Student Services & Special Education:
Dr. Marta Grau Batlle
(650) 854-6311 X4021
mbatlle@llesd.org
 
Administrative Assistant to Student Services & Curriculum and Instruction
Amy Nordgren

(650) 854-6311 X4023
anordgren@llesd.org
 
Director of Technology:
Aidan Gould

(650) 854-6311 X4037
agould@llesd.org
 
Human Resource Coordinator:
Mark Jones

(650) 854-6311 X4031
mjones@llesd.org
 
Director of Maintenance & Operations:
Joyce Massaro

(650) 854-6311  X4030
jmassaro@llesd.org

Program Specialist, Student Services:
Julie Guaspari
(650) 854-6311 X4023
jguaspari@llesd.org
 
Wellness Coordinator:
Nell Curran
(650) 854-6311  X4022
ncurran@llesd.org

Principal, Las Lomitas Elementary:
Alain Camou
(650) 854-5900 X2107
acamou@llesd.org

Principal, La Entrada School:
Bjorn Wickstrom
(650) 854-3962  X3304
bwickstrom@llesd.org