Welcome to the 2025-2026 school year! We're thrilled to kick off a new year and reconnect with all our exceptional students and families. Sun Valley prides itself on being a safe and inspiring place to learn, and we look forward to seeing everyone on our first day of school, Wednesday, August 20th. This will be an Early Release day from 8:45 AM to 1:30 PM.

The office is now open daily from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Please call (415-485-2440) or email Leslie Birnbaum (lbirnbaum@srcs.org) with any questions. We look forward to helping everyone smoothly transition from summer break into the school year.

Important Dates

Relationships are a key aspect of the Sun Valley experience. We hope you will join us for one of the following events:

8/19: Back to School Party at Sun Valley Park, 4 pm

8/20: Tea and Tissues at 8:45 am (Family members are invited to join the PTO for coffee, tea, and socializing in the MPR)

8/24: TK/Kinder/First Grade Social, 3 pm (location TBD)

Other grade-level socials will also be held. Stay tuned for the dates!

8/20 - First Day of School 8:45 - 1:30 (Campus opens at 8:30)

8/27 - Back to School Night 

• 5:30 - 6:15 TK - 2nd
• 6:15 - 6:45 Whole-school (MPR)
• 6:45 - 7:30 3rd - 5th

8/29 - Minimum Day 12:35 pm release

9/1 - No School (Labor Day)

Friday, 8/29 (After Back to School Night)

Tuesday, 10/14 through Friday, 10/17 (Fall Conference Week)

Tuesday, 3/17 through Friday, 3/20 (Spring Conference Week)

Friday, 5/22 (After Open House)

Wednesday, 6/10 (Second to last day of school)

Thursday, 6/11 (Last day of school)

Construction Update

Our construction team has been working diligently all summer to install air conditioning in the A-, B-, and C-wings. All classrooms and student spaces now have air conditioning. We have also updated our fire alarms to bring them into compliance with current code.

Front Loop and Garden Impact

The next construction project slated for Sun Valley is to move the school garden to open space at the end of the C-Wing (next to Room 9) and expand its square footage from 2.525 square feet to 3,390 square feet. The design for the new garden includes a Monarch Waystation, an orchard, shade, and a new teaching station for our Environmental Sciences teacher, as well as the same number of garden beds. 

The second part of the project involves redesigning the front parking lot and loop to make it more efficient and safe for students entering and exiting the school. While some of the front garden will be removed as part of revamping the front parking lot, the corner will still have a 1,020 square foot Monarch Garden/Waystation and potentially house the Sun Valley electronic marquee.

If all local and state authorities approve these plans, the new garden is expected to be built in the winter of 2025, as this is the optimal time of year to relocate the Monarch Waystation. The front parking lot is scheduled for reconstruction over the summer of 2026.

This project has evoked strong emotions from both our parent community and our neighborhood community. It is important to remember that the purpose of these changes is to improve student safety. I will continue to provide updates as this process progresses.

Reminders for Caregivers

• We will be offering free, drop-in morning care for students from 8:00 - 8:30 in the Multi-Purpose Room (MPR). 
• Free breakfast starts at 8:30 in the Multi-Purpose Room (MPR).
• The front loop of the school will be open for student drop-off. As you know, our parking lot situation has been quite impacted. Please park only in designated open spaces and avoid blocking the loop, parking on red curbs, double parking, or obstructing our neighbors’ driveways.
• Buses will run as normal. All students (including TK) may ride the buses starting the first day of school.
• We are a dog-free campus. This includes the front drop-off loop. 
• To maintain a safe campus, our gates are closed between 8:45 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. If you are joining us on campus, please check in through the front office. All visitors on campus are required to wear a badge.

Our Sun Valley Staff

Please join me in welcoming:

• Alex Alfaro Alvarez - Community Liaison and Administrative Specialist
• Ivonni Rondon - TK Teacher
• Hope Garrett - Kindergarten Teacher
• Sarah Welch - Library Media Specialist
• Cayden Katz - TK IA
• Judee Mussehl-Aziz - TK IA
• Yennifer Manchame - Night Custodian
• Shazzy Khorsandi - Youth-in-Arts Dance Teacher (Fall semester)
• Tara Pandeya - Youth-in-Arts Dance Teacher (Fall semester)

I am excited to announce our Super Star teaching and support teams for the ‘25-’26 school year:

• TK: Anna Wentz, Ivonni Rondon, Ann Perry, Katherine Brack, Cayden Katz, Judee Mussehl-Aziz
• Kindergarten: Julie Christy, Kelly Dupree, Hope Garrett, Bailey Hill
• 1st Grade: Cathy Klein, Ginger Langley, Karen Lloyd, Hannah Ritchie
• 2nd Grade: Paula de Blaauw, Nicole Franceschi, Susan Renati, Elijah Juri
• 3rd Grade: Michelle Giraud, Aimee Logan, Carolyn Robello
• 4th Grade: Ryan Hall, Kelly Jean Underwood, Lauri Peters
• 5th Grade: Casey Hodel, Grace Mosher, Helen Robinett
• Special Education: Leah Andrews (Psychologist), Ann Dill (Speech Therapist), Julie French (Occupational Therapist), Donna Senn (Learning Specialist), Annie Underdown (Instructional Assistant)
• Student Support: Meghan Greenwood (School Counselor), Melissa Werner (Instructional Coach), Lisa Bordley (Intervention Coach), Karin Broekhoven (Instructional Assistant)
• MTSS/Intervention: Melissa Werner (Instructional Coach), Lisa Bordley (Intervention)
• Enrichment: Elissa Greene (Arts), Maddi VanZandt (Environmental Sciences), Sarah Welch (Library), Coach Brian (PE), Shazzy Khorsandi (YIA Dance Instruction - Fall Semester), Tara Pandeya (YIA Dance Instructor - Fall Semester)
• Office: Leslie Birnbaum (Office Coordinator), Alex Alfaro Alvarez (Community Liaison/Administrative Specialist)
• Administration: Kristin Hancock (Principal), Jessaca Michaelsen (Assistant Principal)

Class Assignments

Teacher assignments will be available on Tuesday, August 19th, at 4:00 pm. The information will be released via ParentSquare, our primary communication tool. All caregivers should have received an email with instructions on how to create a login using the email address provided during registration. You will also receive the full class list, so your child can know who their classmates will be. 

PTO's Back to School Party

If you would like to find out your child’s class placement in person, our amazing PTO is hosting a Back-to-School party at Sun Valley Park on Tuesday, August 19th, at 4:00 p.m.

Please note that we do not change class assignments once they are posted, unless it is to correct a mistake. Our teachers and staff spend a great deal of time curating balanced classes based on several criteria. We believe it is crucial to adhere to our placement decisions to ensure as much equity as possible for our students. Thank you for your understanding. Teachers will follow up with welcome emails after class lists are announced.