Six out of 10 college students within the Santa Barbara Unified College District are socioeconomically deprived. Practically 10% are unhoused. About 13% have disabilities, and 15% are emergent multilingual learners.

Nonetheless, the district has a 95% highschool commencement charge.

These statistics had been among the many data shared Thursday by Hilda Maldonado, superintendent of the Santa Barbara Unified College District, on the annual State of Our Colleges occasion hosted by the Santa Barbara Training Basis.

“I need to be sure to thank your principals, our academics and our cupboard for getting us there,” she stated.

Maldonado, employed in 2020, appears to have hit her stride as superintendent.

Pedro Paz, government director of the Santa Barbara Training Basis, launched Maldonado, who glided up the steps and onto the stage because the uplifting track “Without end Younger” by Alphaville soared by means of the audio system of the Carrillo Recreation Middle.

“That’s my stroll out track, in case you’re questioning,” Maldonado stated. “Welcome, good morning and buenos dias.”

About 200 folks had been in attendance, together with educators and elected officers.

Maldonado talked about how training and studying have been reworked, punctuated by the COVID-19 pandemic. A Mexican immigrant, Maldonado stated she by no means might have imagined the expertise of in the present day’s world and that studying would have taken place on a display screen.

To exhibit, she introduced up a video of the substitute intelligence program ChatGPT on a big display screen. She enter, “What’s data, instructing and studying?” and this system displayed a speech, defining data, instructing within the twenty first century and “how academics at the moment are facilitators and guides.”

She learn from the Chat GPT textual content: “Total, data, instructing and studying within the twenty first century are characterised by rising entry to data, student-centered approaches, expertise integration, digital literacy and a shift towards lifelong studying.

“These modifications mirror the necessity to put together people for the more and more complicated and interconnected world, see.”

Maldonado joked: “There’s my speech. That’s all it is advisable to know,” which incited laughter from the gang.

Maldonado painted an image of teamwork and collaboration and hammered house the theme that expertise is a unifier. What was created for a number of, serves the wants of all, she stated.

The district has about 12,000 college students. Of that, 61% are Latino, 31% are white, 2.5% are Asian, 2.8% are two or extra races, and almost 1% are African-American/Black college students, Filipino, Pacific Islander, and American Indian.

She praised the change to Common Entry, which mixed honors and school preparatory college students into single school rooms.

“That is fairness in motion,” Maldonado stated. “We’re not speaking about it, we’re doing it, and I’m so happy with our academics and directors for adapting and innovating — however most significantly, asking us to do the best work.”

She mentioned how the district has invested in skilled improvement for academics. The district has spent greater than $5 million on hiring “specials” academics at each elementary faculty to show artwork, music and PE.

“This enables our elementary academics to make use of the time to organize and work on methods to enhance their observe whereas the scholars are with their ‘specials’ academics,” Maldonado stated. “Job-embedded studying time is an revolutionary strategy to collaborate.”

Maldonado stated that for the primary time since 2007, all elementary academics may have a typical set of supplies to show studying.

“When instructing children learn and write, it’s essential to have the best instruments for academics,” Maldonado stated, explaining that the district had accredited the Wit & Knowledge/Fundations curriculum.

Adopting new tutorial supplies was an enormous activity and began in January with an analysis course of that was deliberately designed to incorporate academics from each grade stage and college, emergent multilingual learner specialists, special-education specialists, literacy and language specialists, principals and directors, Maldonado stated.

About 200 folks collect within the Carrillo Recreation Middle to listen to Superintendent Hilda Maldonado discuss concerning the state of the Santa Barbara Unified College District. Credit score: Joshua Molina / Noozhawk picture

One of many highlights of Maldonado’s speech was when she confirmed a video of emergent multi-language college students explaining why studying is essential.

One little one stated, “Once I learn I additionally really feel like I’m within the seashore the place the waves are crashing. It makes me really feel peaceable.”

One other scholar within the video stated, “It takes me to a spot and I get to folks myself into different folks’s sneakers.”

Maldonado stated she imagines a world the place there are e-book festivals, writing contests, studying gardens the place college students can curl up with a e-book underneath a tree, movie star visitor readers in school rooms, and a multicultural pageant that celebrates studying and opens home windows on the world.

“What if we held a literacy week within the cities of Goleta and Santa Barbara, the place we rejoice studying and writing to assist inspire children to learn, convey the thrill of studying to college students of all ages, and make all youngsters really feel protected, valued and welcome?” Maldonado stated.