Freedom school has had a number of visitations over the last few months.  Everyone is so excited about what is going on in our classrooms.  We decided to give students a chance to parade throughout the school in order to visit other classrooms and see all of the wonderful things that are going on. 
      Our students and staff were very impressed with all of the evidence of learning and hard work that they saw in classes throughout the grade levels.  We got a chance to see where we've been and where we are going.  It was wonderful.

Freedom's annual Halloween parade was a real blast!  We all had a great time sharing costumes, candy, and fun.  There were some very creative costumes this year.  Click here to download a slide show of the festivities (PC only).  The slide show is a pretty large file, so be patient.  
        Friday Nov. 7th will be a minimum (furlough) day.  Students will be released at 11:30.  Monday and Tuesday there will be no school due to the Veterans' Day holiday.

      Because of a one-time grant, every family of 3rd and 4th grade students this year, will receive a Freedom School book bag and 6 reference books to keep at home. Families will receive these books from their child’s teacher at their conference time. We also will be awarding books and bags as incentives for students meeting goals of the Freedom Reading Challenge.
       We will also provide 3 education nights during the year, that are open to all families and will focus on how to use reference materials to assist your children in meeting grade level standards.
       A special “Thank you” to our Freedom Rotary Volunteers and our night custodians Alberto and Ruperto who spent several hours getting our book bags ready for families!

The school year is off to a smooth start. Students and teachers are settling into their new routines. We have a few new staff members to welcome to the Freedom family: Michelle Siprut de Ibarra (MEST), Laura Toby (BRT), Vanessa Stannett (4th SEI), and Woody Rehanek (3-5 SDC). Welcome to Freedom new staff, students, and families.

The new kindergarten yard is finally finished, and it looks great. District personnel, parents, staff, and community members worked hard tearing apart the old yard, and building the new one. Our incoming kindergarten students sure are enjoying their new playground. Our appreciation goes out to all that helped make this amazing transformation possible.

     On January 29th Freedom School was host to a group of distinguished visitors, including Jack O’Connell, State Superintendent of Public Instruction (at left) Diane Siri, Santa Cruz County Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Mary Anne Mays, Superintendent of Pajaro Valley Unified School District, Assistant Superintendent Central Zone Catherine Hatch, Pajaro Valley Board members Rhea DeHart and Sharon Gray, Baldrige in Education leaders Lisa Fraser and Ruth Miller, Alicia Laing, Janet Jeffries, Kathy Mitani and Gloria Pena provided the tour guides and very graciously opened their classrooms to all. Thank you Rosie Gomez for the wonderful photographs of our esteemed visitors.

Click here for more information about the visit

Click here to read the Register Pajaronian Article about our visitors.

     Jean Gottlob has accepted the district's offer to be the permanent principal at Freedom School.  The entire staff can finally breathe a sigh of relief. Jean stepped in half way through the year and held everything together.  She has proven to be a great principal, leader, and friend. Jean wrote that, "it is truly an honor to work with such a dedicated, caring and capable staff that make a difference in the lives of so many."   

     The STARS end-of-the year celebration was quite an impressive event. It was great to see so many parents who came to watch their children showcase the artistic talents they have developed in the afternoons.  Entertainment included Mexican folkloric dancing choreographed Julissa Chavez (Yolanda's daughter), who is only 15 herself! Kathy and Liz have done a great job this year coordinating a complex program designed to meet the individual needs of the students. Thank you to all of the teachers for going the extra step to support your students.

    The news is out about Baldrige at Freedom School. The conference presented last week in Santa Clara was an impressive effort.  "Implementation of Baldrige in an After School Program: Getting Results in a High Priority School" is a model that other sites are already looking to replicate.  Congratulations to Alicia, Gloria, Janet, Kathy, Liz and Susana for a job well done.

      Open House was very well attended. Many Parents, families, and community members took the opportunity to come in and celebrate the accomplishments of our students.  Teachers did a great job making parents feel welcome.  Many parents took the opportunity to fill out the online parent survey in the computer lab or in their children's classrooms.   

        Any parents who have not yet taken the survey, can do so by clicking here or on the parent survey link to the left.  The survey can be taken in English or Spanish.  You responses are very important to us. We will use this information to help make Freedom School the best place for your child to learn. We will share the results of the survey with you early next school year.

   Thank you to the Freedom School community for your contributions to our Third Annual Cesar Chavez Awards Assembly, whether your class participated from the audience or braved the wind onstage.  Committee/organizing members included: Anne Childers, Gloria Puga, Kathi Melville, Leticia Quintana, Lola Martin, Lynn Rivera, Maru Marquez, Sally de la Rosa, Patty Lockett, Priscilla Hedgepeth and Veronica Fernandez. 

    The event was made even more meaningful with the words of Tomas Alejo, Amador, Valdez, and Bob Rasmussen.  Thank You Dolores Correa and Teddy Morrison for your many years of dedicated service. We're going to miss you. 

Click here to see some photos from this spectacular event.