Kira Weibel was in eighth grade when the COVID-19 pandemic closed the student’s Altadena charter school, severing important community connections. As weeks and months of online learning and isolation continued, Weibel fell into a deep depression.
A year later, that changed as the Avison Global Leadership Academy reopened and resumed social interaction. But now, Weibel and thousands of other students living through the pandemic are battling another historic disaster: the Eton and Palisades fires. The fierce fires that swept through the foothill communities of Altadena and the coastal enclave of Pacific Palisades changed their lives forever, destroying homes, disrupting schooling, canceling extracurricular activities and tearing tight-knit school communities apart.
"This pandemic has had a really hard impact on my mental health, but getting back to a normal schedule, going to campus and seeing everyone there has really been empowering," said Weibel, a senior at Ivison. "It's all gone now... it's all gone."
The 14,000-student Pasadena Unified School District is under a state of emergency, with five school buildings severely damaged or destroyed. All 24 of the district’s campuses have been closed since January 8, with staff, students and parents suffering serious injuries. Traumatized by loss. The school district is scheduled to announce reopening plans Thursday.
But concerns are growing as the education of thousands of children is once again thrown into disarray.
The district leases space for charter schools on three campuses — Ivison Academy, Odyssey Academy and Pasadena Rosebud Academy. The district-run Eliot Arts Magnet school was also damaged, possibly beyond repair, as was Franklin Elementary School, which closed in 2020. In total, these schools educate approximately 1,500 students. Additionally, at least two private schools were destroyed, St. Mark's School in Altadena and the Waldorf School in Pasadena.
Nearly half of the Pasadena School District's employees live in evacuation zones, and officials are still working to assess how many families and school employees have lost their homes. Many left the area to live with relatives or friends in the San Francisco Bay Area, Joshua Tree, Oxnard and Fullerton. It’s uncertain how many people have the resources to teach, consult or run a school — even remotely.
The district began offering a self-directed online learning option on Monday that will last until at least Friday as the community awaits reopening plans. Crews have removed more than 10 tons of debris and disinfected the campus. School staff and volunteers distributed hundreds of grab-and-go meals each day, while the district and its partners provided housing assistance, child care, mental health resources and other support.
“We are deeply aware of the profound impact this disaster has had on our community,” said District Sgt. Elizabeth Blanco said in a statement. "We recognize the critical role schools play in all communities in Pasadena, not only to educate our children, but to connect and support our communities. We are committed to coming together, rebuilding and ensuring our students and families well-being and success.”
Yet some educators want to move quickly. State law requires public school districts to make available space to independent charter schools, the superintendents of Aveson, Odyssey, Rosebud and Alma Fuerte said in a letter to Blanco on Wednesday. They asked for more timely and transparent communication, collaboration in recovery efforts, and immediate support in finding temporary facilities for students. More than 200 school families and staff lost their homes, including leaders from Pasadena's Rosebud and Iveson schools, the letter said.
Pasadena district officials did not respond Wednesday to a request for comment on the letter.
In interviews this week, students described the terror of fleeing the flames, frantically grabbing for their cats, dogs, guitars and other most prized possessions, then realizing their homes were lost forever.
Iveson senior Brayden Funes saw video of where his house once stood, with only piles of black and gray ash remaining. He didn't cry. But he lay on the floor for an hour, dizzy.
"I just didn't know what to do. I didn't really understand it," he said during a group interview this week with 10 Iveson seniors, part of a group of 500 or so students who attend various The campus serves students in grades K-5 and 6-12. "Like, I feel like I could wake up in bed at any moment and it's just a dream."
Iveson counselor Sally Spangler reminded students that there is nothing a fire can destroy. "We have each other. That's the most important thing... We have each other. So it's not lost."
Odyssey South Charter School emphasized the same message at a gathering this week at Victor Lugo Park in San Gabriel.
The Altadena school campus burned, displacing 372 students in transitional kindergarten through eighth grade. Another campus in Altadena survives.
On Tuesday, about 100 families, staff and faculty gathered 10 miles south of the devastated West Palm Street campus for the first time since setting off for winter break last month. Dozens of classmates chatted happily under the pine trees, played football on the sunny grass, climbed on the playground equipment, and devoured pizza.
But "it didn't feel good," said principal Bonnie Brimecombe, who noted through tears the incongruity of the moment. "It's nice to see them smiling, but that's not what we should be doing today. That's not why we should be gathering together."
Overall, about 40 per cent of households surveyed by the school said their homes had been destroyed, Brimecombe said. Four staff members at both campuses lost housing, including the principal of another school, Odyssey Charter School, which has more than 450 students.
For children, parties in the park are a popular pastime.
"I feel really good because I haven't seen my kids in a month," said Audrey Whitesides, a 9-year-old third-grader who lives in Tujunga. She wryly explained that she had been fighting with her two siblings for the past few weeks, so she welcomed the opportunity to reconnect with school staff member Mejia Orozco.
Orozco, who lives in Pasadena, said the gathering was a reminder that "this is temporary and we will get through this as a community."
A key question is when and how damaged schools can reopen. Campus leaders are always looking for space in the community.
Rosebud Academy Charter School in Pasadena has developed a unique back-to-school plan: a series of field trips during the week starting Jan. 21. Potential trips could include visits to the Orange County Zoo and Aquarium of the Pacific.
Shawn Brown, the school's founder and executive director, said she hopes this week's field trip will "buy us a little more time" as administrators search for a new location.
Altadena Schools, which educates 175 students in kindergarten through eighth grade, has leased space at the district's former Loma Alta Elementary School since 2014. About 35 Rosebud families lost their homes, and about 20 others were displaced by evacuations and losses. power. Brown and five other staff members also lost their homes.
"Even in the morning, when the sun comes up and the lights come down, our schools are still on fire," Brown said.
She and her colleagues initially considered moving to an online program, but are now trying to find a physical space — such as a church or portable classroom. "There are a lot of parents who really need to go to school right away and we really want to get kids back and try to help parents," she said.
Maryam Hadjian said if Ivison can't find a facility large enough for lower and high school students, it could reopen for a hybrid schedule, with each group of students attending in person for two days and everyone in Meet on Friday for a day of community service. , an English teacher. But that could take weeks to happen, Hadjian said.
Another significant loss was the private Pasadena Waldorf School in Altadena. The school's Scripps Hall, a landmark Craftsman-style house built in 1904 by a member of the Scripps newspaper publishing family, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is the centerpiece of the school's K-8 campus, which houses fewer than 200 students. Among families, staff and faculty, 35 people lost their homes.
"Being on that campus, there's a sense that you're on a very special piece of land," said Stuart Brawley, a school donor and annual fund officer who lost his home. “It’s like a woodland with classrooms scattered around it.
“We’re not leaving, but it’s definitely going to be a long process,” said Brawley, who also teaches at the high school and organized an online fundraiser for the Waldorf school. "Who wants to live in a town that burns down? You open the front door and stare at the wreckage."
Another 100 Waldorf students attend an independent high school and kindergarten on another campus, which survived the fire.
Brawley said that while another campus is being preserved, it's unclear when students will be able to attend classes there again. "It depends on air quality, water quality" and other factors, he said.
He said the private school's administration was looking for new sites for churches and other venues. So far, he said, schools have not considered moving to online learning. “Many faculty, staff and families who must go online don’t have a safe and quiet place to do so,” he said.
Odyssey, which was founded in 1999, is also focused on finding a new campus and hopes to find a suitable location to reopen on Jan. 21. It does not plan to reopen virtual schools online.
Brimecombe said she initially hoped South Campus students would be moved to Odyssey's K-8 facility on West Altadena Drive. But authorities said the property would be unusable for up to two months due to water contamination and other problems.
“You feel sad because we just lost our campus, but when you look around you see — that’s where our students lived ... and that’s just rubble,” Brimcomb said.
Although the Alma Fuerte Charter School was not damaged or under evacuation orders, school leaders are urging Pasadena Unified Schools, which owns the school's building, to get permission to reopen.
Third-grader Sofia Virgena-Avila said she drove to a food pantry at Madison Elementary School in Pasadena on Tuesday with her mother, sister and pet Chihuahua Mia While receiving bags of food, she missed her teachers and classmates. Turkey sandwich, carrots, cereal, orange and chocolate milk.
"I love learning and we do fun things," Sophia said, showing off a colorful bracelet she made at school with beads that read the word "kind."
Altadena City Council President Victoria Knapp said "everything is up in the air" at the Elliott School of Art. His son Grayson attends the school, which has about 400 students in grades six through eight. The original middle school was built nearly a century ago and became an arts magnet school in 2013. The school has just completed a new federally funded building to provide free after-school classes in visual arts, dance, drama and music. Now it's gone, along with a treasure trove of student art and a 400-seat state-of-the-art auditorium, Knapp said.
Her family lost their home and nearly everything they owned, including the Lego projects her 17-year-old son Hendrik had built throughout his life. He was devastated, had a panic attack and burst into tears, but seemed to have calmed down after spending the night with friends. Knapp said social and emotional support is crucial for students, even as their digital connections help them retain a sense of community.
“The kids are very adaptable, pretty flexible and very technical,” Knapp said. "So I think if they knew it was going to be short-term, I think that would be OK."