Principal's Message

Dear Monte Vista TK-8 Families and Community,

First, I want to share my genuine sentiments for Lindsay Larson, who is progressing in her career path by accepting a Principal position at Olson Elementary in MPUSD. She will be an amazing principal as she was an amazing teacher, academic coach, assistant principal, leader, and colleague here at Monte Vista over the course of 13 years (since Monte Vista reopened). She has set a great example for future leaders at this site and has left a shining memory in our hearts.

This brings me to my annual reflection for this excitedly anticipated, upcoming 2025-2026 school year. 

My heart is full of gratitude for an amazing ten years of work here at Monte Vista! A great deal has changed over time during my stewardship here with MPUSD. When I began at the Soledad Dr. site back in July of 2015, there were just over 200 students, grades K-5, two teachers per grade level. The site needed extensive facilities support since it was recently reopened a few years before (after being closed for about ten years). No specific school model was in place and high quality curriculum was in transition. However, the handful of teachers and staff members that were there and the smaller amount of families attending the school at that time had big hopes and dreams for Monte Vista, bringing back some of its historical legacy and building a new grander one into the 21st century.

MPUSD too had similar hopes and desires for Monte Vista at that time as well as for the district in general. MPUSD was undergoing many positive and major changes with a relatively new Superintendent and newly appointed district leaders (and many new principals over time). The MPUSD Way (values) and vision/mission had just been revised or newly created along with the MPUSD pillars not too long after that. Honoring our past, helps us better shape and change the future with gratitude, wisdom, and resolution for progress and success. In fact, our district theme this school year is "Honoring the Past. Shaping the Future." Let's explore this last statement for a moment:

After ten years (or so) of work, Monte Vista TK-8 now has...

-->about 730 students

-->a larger (more renovated) campus

-->a longstanding school vision with a recently created school mission statement (see below)

-->a robust school model (The Mosaic Model) with rich arts, interests, STEAM, and sports programs during and after the school day

-->a staff of almost 100 employees serving the whole child, comprehensive needs of grades TK through 8th (with three teachers at almost all grade levels and many support staff, teachers, and specialists)

-->a rich and diverse community of families and students from all around the Peninsula with increasing opportunities and access points for student and parent involvement (PTO, Councils, Clubs, Events, etc.)

...AND

-->In addition, there is no doubt that high quality curriculum and instructional materials as well as frameworks for academic and social emotional learning are at every school site in MPUSD, and our Monte Vista staff is striving to use it with integrity (through professional learning support and structures) while infusing such efforts with the joy of inquiry and building collaborative, rigorous, equitable, and inclusive classroom communities.

I can say so much more. Just listing these seven bullets above, brainstorming such progress, can give much joy and humble pride to our work, making us only only want to work smarter and harder to shape a stronger future for MPUSD and Monte Vista TK-8. I would like to conclude with our newly created school Mission Statement, which took a few years to develop with various stakeholders, but was well worth the journey. It opens a new door for a new chapter for our school, soaring as a blue jay community to greater heights--as we aspired so many years ago. Jay jay, chirp chirp!

New School Mission Statement

At Monte Vista TK-8, we empower students to become lifelong learners capable of reaching their fullest potential through comprehensive inquiry-based learning and character building. By striving to provide a safe, inclusive, and enriching environment through partnerships with families, staff and community, we guide students to lead purposeful lives as global citizens.