| Pasadena Unified School District | |
|---|---|
| Type and location | |
| Grades | Pre-K-12 |
| Location | Pasadena, California |
| District Info | |
| Superintendent | Jon Gundry |
| Students and staff | |
| Students | 20,084 (09-10)[1] |
| Teachers | 1,027 (09-10)[2] |
| Staff | 1,434 (09-10, non-teaching)[2] |
| Student-teacher ratio | 20.4 (08-09)[3] |
| Other information | |
| Website | http://pusd.us/ |
The Pasadena Unified School District is a unified school district that is responsible for the schools of Pasadena, California. As of 2011[update], it has 4 high schools, 3 middle schools, 2 K-8 schools and 16 elementary schools.[2] The number of elementary schools was reduced from 18 at the end of the 2010-11 school year.[4]
The district also serves the city of Sierra Madre and the unincorporated community of Altadena.
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In its early history, Pasadena had some of the highest performing schools in the state, largely due to a strong affiliation with the California Institute of Technology. Two schools in the area, Noyes Elementary (now closed) and Hale Elementary (now Norma Coombs Alternative School) were named after Caltech professors.
In March 1970, busing was ordered in the district after the federal court ordered desegregation of the public schools in Pasadena. This was a result of the city demographics of the time, which resulted in a "de-facto" segregation, with a large proportion of the African American population attending schools in the northwest area of the city (which was largely African American), and the white students attending schools in the east and southern parts.
Before the busing plan was implemented in September 1970, the proportion of white students in public schools reflected the proportion of whites in the community (54 percent and 53 percent, respectively). Shortly after busing began, a significant segment of upper and middle class families who could afford private schooling, pulled their children out of the public school system to avoid sending their children to schools on the opposite end of the city from their homes. The result was a boom of private schooling available in the city, and the reduction of state funding for Pasadena public schools as enrollment was reduced.
In 2002, Superintendent Percy Clark reduced the number of students bused in the district and expanded a policy of neighborhood schools.
By 2004 Pasadena was home to sixty-three private schools, which educated one-third of all school-aged children in the city, and the proportion of white students in the public schools had fallen to 16 percent.
For the 2009-2010 school year, Pasadena Unified mounted a drive to stop interdistrict transfers out of the district. This was mainly directed at children entering kindergarten, first, seventh, and ninth grades, citing these as "transition" years. They included first grade as a transition year because kindergarten is not required by the State of California.
In the 2009-2010 school year PUSD served 20,084 students. PUSD's enrollment has dropped by approximately 14% since the 2000-2001 school year.[1] As of the 2009-2010 school year, PUSD employed 1,154 certificated staff,[5] 1,027 of which were teachers.[2][6] In 2009-2010, the district also employed 1,307 classified personnel, 955 of which were full-time, 352 part-time.[2][7]
Every PUSD elementary student receives daily instruction in English Language Arts using the Open Court Reading language arts program. Middle and high schools use the Holt Literature and Language Arts curriculum. The PUSD Math curriculum is based on California’s mathematics framework which includes the Houghton Mifflin Mathematics curriculum for elementary schools and additional college-prep classes beginning in eighth grade. Curricular focus is also placed on History, Social Studies, Science, Art and Music, and Physical Education.[8]