April Superintendent's Update

Dear Hacienda La Puente Unified Community, 

April was an incredibly successful month for Hacienda La Puente Unified, as our students, teachers, and staff received top honors for their hard work and were recognized through various Districtwide events and end-of-year celebrations. 

Throughout April, our Visual and Performing Arts (VAPA) programs brought incredible talent and joy to our schools through a series of concerts, competitions, and plays Districtwide. On April 17, our fifth graders danced in the largest semi-finals in Conga Kids history, with 22 schools participating across the District. Shout-out to all our competitors and winners who will advance to the finals at LA Live on Thursday, May 16.  

This month, we also transformed the Hacienda Heights Community Center into a world of wonder for our District Arts Showcase on April 18. The showcase featured an array of expressive, symbolic, and poignant artwork from students of all ages, interactive activities for families, and an awards ceremony to celebrate the work of all our talented young artists. 

I want to thank all our dedicated employees who work behind the scenes to ensure the success of events like the Conga Kids semi-finals, Districtwide concerts, and the annual Art Show. It takes a village to orchestrate our events; we appreciate all you do.

Each month, we observe historical dates designed to educate our students on important issues and help build robust support systems within our community. In April, we participated in various classroom activities to celebrate Earth Day, partnered with the Department of Mental Health Promoters to learn more about various forms of neglect in recognition of Child Abuse Prevention Month, and held our annual Autism Awareness and Acceptance Walk to support and raise awareness.

On April 23, HLPUSD’s Personnel Commission hosted our Classified Employees Service Awards, presenting awards to members of our classified staff who have completed a significant milestone in their careers. Your positive attitude and unwavering dedication inspire us all, and we are truly grateful for your contributions.

We continued to show acknowledgment to our staff throughout the month by celebrating our administrative professionals and bus drivers, surprising them with fun decorations and gifts to show gratitude for their essential efforts.  

Lastly, I want to thank our entire District community for your understanding, patience, and support as our technology and administrative team worked to resolve our network issue. As we recover from the disruption, we have learned valuable lessons and silver linings. One, our District is a team – every member came together to ensure learning carried on for our students amid state testing preparation. Two, we are immensely privileged to have the wealth of technology that we have across our District, and while we are fortunate to have access to such state-of-the-art equipment and programs, no one is immune to technology issues. 

As a District, we have been reminded of this and have begun our work to enhance our systems further, and continue improving backup methods and updating our response plan and preparedness in the wake of future disruptions. On behalf of the Board of Education, we appreciate your collaboration and flexibility over the past few weeks and will continue to provide any updates to our families as needed. 

I look forward to finishing the school year off strong and celebrating the successes of our students with you throughout the next few weeks! 

As always, we are #ProudtobeHLPUSD.

Sincerely, 
Dr. Alfonso Jiménez 
Hacienda La Puente Unified School District Superintendent

HLPAprilSupUpdate.pdf