The Brief

Now almost two weeks since a series of wildfires broke out around Los Angeles, most school districts have reopened.

Three school districts, however, have had lingering closures:

• All of Pasadena Unified School District (Eaton Fire)
• The Malibu schools within Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District (Palisades Fire)
• A handful of schools within Los Angeles Unified School District (Palisades Fire)

Here's where things stand now.

Los Angeles Unified

The Palisades Fire destroyed Palisades Charter Elementary and Marquez Charter Elementary schools. On top of a massive cleanup effort, the district relocated the 410 students who attend Palisades Charter Elementary to the campus of Brentwood Science Magnet and the 312 students who attend Marquez Charter Elementary to Nora Sterry Elementary.

Nora Sterry principal Sara Lasnover said that on top of figuring out the logistics, she also wants to build bridges between the school's current students and those incoming, like through meet-and-greet activities.

" It's important to me that my students here feel that they are part of this change, not that the change is being made to them," she said.

Palisades Charter High School — an independent charter school in LAUSD — was substantially damaged in the fire. The school has delayed the start of its second semester, and plans to begin virtual classes on Jan. 21 as it looks for a physical campus.

Andres Chait, the district’s chief of school operations, said in an email statement that 2,189 students live in areas that are under mandatory evacuation, as do nearly 350 employees.

LAUSD is offering relief grants of $500 to displaced employees through relief funds. District employees can call the Wildfire Employee Assistance phone line at 213-241-2222 for more information on eligibility and application.

• LAUSD recovery guide

Pasadena Unified

Hundreds of Pasadena Unified staff members were affected by the Eaton Fire, and as many as 10,000 students may be displaced.

PUSD lost at least five campuses in the Eaton Fire:

• Eliot Arts Magnet Middle School
• Franklin Elementary (closed in 2020)
• Odyssey Charter School, South Campus
• Rosebud Academy and Oak Knoll Montessori (located on the same campus)
• Aveson School of Leaders

Two other schools, Altadena Arts Magnet and Webster Elementary, are in evacuation zones and have not yet been assessed, although the former is expected to be heavily damaged.

Many parents in PUSD — which serves Pasadena, Altadena, and Sierra Madre — said they are waiting for answers that district leaders said they aren’t in a position to give: When will displaced students get back to class? Where? What will the recovery look like?

On Friday, the district announced 10 schools will reopen Jan. 23, the first step in a two-phase reopening. The district said it's prioritizing getting students in less-affected schools back to class as soon as possible.

Superintendent Elizabeth Blanco said in a news conference Thursday that all schools will open by the end of the month, but that the timeline remains unclear because of cleanup effort logistics.

Families at several schools, including the three displaced charters, have said the district is ignoring them, a charge district officials rebutted in a school board meeting Thursday night.

“We are committed to making sure you will have a space for your schools within the PUSD,” Blanco told the attendees. “That’s the same for Eliot Arts and Altadena [Arts Magnet].”

Joshua McGuffie has a daughter at Altadena Arts. His family’s home is still standing, but his parents lost theirs to the Eaton Fire. His daughter has been able to attend one of the L.A. County Parks pop-up childcare options, for which he’s grateful.

He’s also very, very tired.

"Everyone is maxed out. No one has any bandwidth," he said. "If I don't know where my kid's gonna be in two weeks, that, like, knocks over the whole tenuous line of dominoes that I've desperately tried to set up to keep my life and my family's life together. And if the district could just help us by being as concrete as possible, that would be amazing."

• Pasadena USD recovery guide

Santa Monica-Malibu

More than 70 families in the district lost their homes, said Gail Pinsker, a district communications officer.

All schools survived the Palisades Fire, she said. One school, Webster Elementary, had recently completed repairs from a previous fire and reopened to students — one day before the Palisades Fire broke out. It and the other Malibu schools remain closed due to road closures, cleaning, power outages, and other maintenance issues that require power to fix, Pinsker said.

• SMMUSD recovery guide

What about the lost days of instruction?

On Jan. 14, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an executive order offering school districts flexibility in their recovery. One key element: a hold-harmless provision that exempts shuttered districts from needing the minimum number of instructional days this school year.

Two dozen school districts experienced full or partial closures because of the fires, although most children missed out on only one or two days of class. But for students in PUSD, Malibu, and a handful of LAUSD schools, they're looking at weeks of lost lessons.

District officials say right now, the focus is on students’ short-term well-being.

“We’re really focusing on their social-emotional health,” Pinsker said. “Our goal is to get schools open as soon as possible and then we will take a look at the future beyond that.”

When asked whether LAUSD will offer some kind of summer session or otherwise extend the year for students who have missed out, a spokesperson said the district is “in communication with state officials.”

But Karla Estrada, deputy superintendent of instruction, said in an email statement that the district will rely on the combination of interventions, tutoring, and social, emotional, and mental health initiatives that have been central to its COVID-19 pandemic recovery.

"We will continue this approach with schools that have been impacted by the wildfires and will provide differentiated resources based on the specific needs related to their recovery," she said.

What about the air quality?

Many families are still wondering what kind of exposure their children might have right now to harmful particulates. Although the Air Quality Index for L.A. looks good, it's also an imperfect measure.

LAUSD announced Jan. 14 that it would resume outdoor activity, however, “principals can still implement modified schedules based on local conditions and needs.” Chait, the operations officer, said the district will make those decisions in areas that are directly impacted by fire. Schools have N95 masks available for students who want them.

SMMUSD ended its "inclement weather" schedule late this week, Pinsker said. That allows for more outdoor activity, though she noted that students are still welcome to mask as they want. Classrooms themselves have MERV 13 industrial air filters in their HVAC systems, she said, which are “better than most residential units.”

Experts LAist talked to said parents should be mindful of their children’s outdoor activity; an N95 mask might be good for areas closer to the fires.

Will new school bonds help in the recovery effort?

All of the school districts with lost, damaged, or long-closed buildings also had school bonds that passed in the November election:

• In Los Angeles Unified: Measure US
• In Pasadena Unified: Measure R
• In Malibu: Measure MM

Bond language includes a list of projects that might be supported, categorized under general buckets like "safety" and "emergencies." District officials demurred on how bond money might be used for repair.

Pinsker noted, however, that this experience may help guide spending on future projects. For instance, previous SMMUSD bonds upgraded entryways — “windows, paint, doors and floors” — which she said held up well during the fires.

Saman Bravo-Karimi, PUSD’s chief business officer, said at the board meeting Thursday that federal and state grants and insurance money will be used to repair campuses, with limited — if any — use of district funds.

In the wake of the Eaton Fire, Altadena and Pasadena’s music community have really shown up to support fire survivors, especially fellow musicians who lost instruments and record collections.

That effort continues this weekend with a special donation concert at a Pasadena record store, with the aim of getting vinyl records back in the hands of survivors who lost their collections.

“You know, our name is Healing Force of the Universe, and I think that gives me a pretty clear direction… especially after the fires,” said Austin Manuel, founder of Pasadena record store, where Sunday’s show will be held.

The record donation effort is the brainchild of musician Brandon Jay, who founded the nonprofit Altadena Musicians after losing his home and almost all of his family’s instruments in the Eaton Fire. Through Altadena Musicians’s donation and registry platform, Jay said he and his partners have helped some 1,200 fire survivors get their music instruments back.

Brandon Jay.

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Robert Garrova

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LAist

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Now, that effort has fanned out to restoring vinyl record collections.

“All of that stuff evaporated for thousands of people,” Jay said. “Look at your own record collection and be like, ‘Wow, what if that whole thing disappeared?’”

You might know Jay from several bands over the years, including Lutefisk, a 1990s alt-rock band based in Los Angeles. He and his wife, Gwendolyn Sanford, composed music for TV shows, including Orange is the New Black and Weeds.

Jay plans to play some holiday tunes at Sunday's record donation show (which LAist is the media sponsor), along with fellow musician Daniel Brummel of Sanglorians. Brummel, who was also a founding member of Pasadena’s indie-rock sensation Ozma, said he was grateful to Jay for his fire recovery work and to Manuel for making Healing Force available for shows like this.

Brummel, who came close to losing his own home in the Eaton Fire, recalled a show he played at Healing Force back in March.

Ryen Slegr (left) and Daniel Brummel perform with their band, Ozma, on the 2014 Weezer Cruise.

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Even Keel Imagery

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“The trauma of the fires was still really fresh,” Brummel said. After playing a cover of Rufus Wainwright’s “Going to a Town,” that night — which includes the lyrics “I’m going to a town that has already been burnt down” — Brummel said his neighbors in the audience told him the rendition hit them hard. “It felt really powerful. And without that space, it just wouldn’t have occurred.”

Details

Healing Force of the Universe Record Donation Show
Featuring: Quasar (aka Brandon Jay), Sanglorians (Daniel Brummel) and The Acrylic.
Sunday, Dec. 14; 2 to 5 p.m.
1200 E. Walnut St., Pasadena
Tickets are $15 or you can donate 5 or more records at the door. More info here.

Topline:

The case: In September, the city settled a lawsuit brought forward by two brothers in their 70s who said they suffered serious injuries after an LAPD officer crashed into their car. Days before the $18 million settlement was reached, lawyers for the brothers said Feldstein Soto called an expert witness testifying for the plaintiffs and “attempted to ingratiate herself with him and asked him to make a contribution to her political campaign,” according to a sworn declaration to the court by the plaintiffs’ attorney, Robert Glassman.

The response: Feldstein Soto did not respond to an interview request. Her spokesperson said the settlement “had nothing to do” with the expert witness. Her campaign manager told LAist the city attorney had been making a routine fundraising call and did not know the person had a role in the case, nor that there were pending requests for her office to pay him fees.

What Jurado says: In a statement to LAist, Jurado said she wants to “make sure that the city’s legal leadership is guided by integrity and accountability, especially when their choices affect public trust, civic rights and the city’s limited resources."

What’s next: The motion needs to go through a few committees before reaching the full City Council. If it passes, the motion calls for the city attorney to “report to council in closed session within 45 days regarding the ethics breach violation and give updates to the City Council."

Every year in Santa Ana, Luis Cantabrana turns the front of his home into an elaborate altar in honor of La Virgen de Guadalupe that draws hundreds of visitors.

Along the front of the house, the multi-colored altar is filled with lights, flowers and a stained-glass tapestry behind a sculpture of the Lady of Guadalupe. Cantabrana’s roof also is lit up with the green, white and red lights that spell out “Virgen de Guadalupe” and a cross.

Visitors are welcomed with music and the smell of roses as they celebrate the saint, but this year’s gathering comes after a dark year for immigrant communities.

Luis Cantabrana stands in front of the stunning altar he built in front of his home in honor of La Virgen de Guadalupe. Every year, his display draws hundreds of visitors.

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Destiny Torres

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LAist

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Why do they celebrate? 

In 1513, the Virgin Mary appeared before St. Juan Diego between Dec. 9 and Dec. 12, asking him to build a church in her honor. Her image — a brown-skinned woman wearing a green veil with her hands together in prayer and an angel at her feet — miraculously appeared on his cloak.

To celebrate in Santa Ana, worshippers gathered late-night Wednesday and in the very early hours Dec. 12 to pray the rosary, sing hymns and celebrate the saint.

Cantabrana has hosted worshippers at his home for 27 years — 17 in Santa Ana.

The altar started out small, he said, and over the years, he added a fabric background, more lights and flowers (lots and lots of flowers).

“It started with me making a promise to la Virgen de Guadalupe that while I had life and a home to build an altar, that I would do it,” Cantabrana said. “Everything you see in photos and videos is pretty, but when you come and see it live, it's more than pretty. It's beautiful.”

The Santa Ana home's elaborate altar in honor of La Virgen de Guadalupe draws hundreds of visitors each year.

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Destiny Torres

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LAist

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Gathering in a time of turmoil 

Many also look to the Lady of Guadalupe for protection, especially at a time when federal enforcement has rattled immigrant communities.

“People don’t want to go to work, they don’t want to take their kids to school, but the love we have for our Virgen de Guadalupe,” Cantabrana said. “We see that la Virgen de Guadalupe has a lot of power, and so we know immigration [enforcement] won’t come here.”

Margarita Lopez of Garden Grove has been visiting the altar for three years with her husband. She’s been celebrating the Virgencita since she was a young girl. Honoring the saint is as important now as ever, she said.

“We ask, and she performs miracles,” Lopez said.

Claudia Tapia, a lifelong Santa Ana resident, said the Virgin Mary represents strength.

“Right now, with everything going on, a lot of our families [have] turned and prayed to the Virgen for strength during these times,” Tapia said. “She's a very strong symbol of Mexican culture, of unity, of faith and of resilience.”

See it for yourself

The shrine will stay up into the new year on the corner of Broadway and Camile Street.