Without the distraction of construction or major upheavals this year, Portola Valley School District is focusing time and resources right where it belongs — on its 708 students.
“I see this year as one of consolidation and inquiry,” says Superintendent Anne Campbell. “We need to take the time to figure out the next steps” in the investigative learning model, launched at Ormondale last year, and develop an assessment piece to evaluate what we’re doing. “That’s huge,” she says.
Teachers are exploring and piloting teaching strategies to increase student achievement and engagement in learning as illustrated by the “investigative learning” projects at Ormondale last year. Students became interested, motivated and involved, for example, in the creek study and “the chick” project, extending their learning beyond teachers’ expectations.
“We’re also focusing on skills our kids will need to know to be a ‘global student’ in an increasingly complex and interrelated world,” says the superintendent, as the district begins its second year in the strategic planning process.
This summer teacher Anna Henderson delved into student STAR test scores and progress reports, pulling together information to develop a prototype for ongoing assessments of each child that could continue from kindergarten through eighth grade and be readily available to teachers.
Superintendent Campbell sees this prototype as having “great potential” for teachers to better understand how a student learns and the effectiveness of various teaching strategies.
Teachers, working on K-8 teams, are developing district standards in language arts by grade levels that most likely will go beyond the state curriculum standards, said Ms. Campbell. The teachers also will look at differing learning styles and how students learn.
The district has made huge advances and a substantial investment in the use of technology to further learning opportunities for its students. A visible investment is two new laptop computer carts on wheels, each with 25 laptops, that can be rolled into a classroom at Corte Madera. Two new “ActiveBoards” have replaced “whiteboards” and the earlier blackboards in two Ormondale classrooms.
The technology crew has worked long and hard over the summer to make improvements, such as changing the district Internet provider to Comcast, increasing computer capacity 10 times, and installing new servers. Nine document cameras were purchased for Ormondale.
Tom Keating, a former college professor and director of education and technology at the Tech Museum in San Jose, is the district’s educational technology coordinator. Michael Bray is the network administrator. Lee Applebaum provides tech support at Ormondale; Brett Fishman does the same at Corte Madera.
There will be a school board election Nov. 6 when voters choose two trustees to serve four-year terms on the board. Three parents, who have been involved in school activities, have stepped forward as candidates. They are: Judy Mendelsohn, Steve Humphreys and Brad Turner. Incumbents Karen Jordan and Teresa Godfrey did not seek re-election.
Following is information on the district’s two schools, where classes started Aug. 27.
ORMONDALE SCHOOL
200 Shawnee PassPortola Valley
Phone: 851-1777
Jennifer Warren, principal
Grades: K-3
Enrollment: 330
New principal. Jennifer Warren, Ormondale’s new principal, has made it her mission to contact each of the school families to introduce herself and welcome them to the school. And she’s enjoying meeting and getting to know students, her staff and parents. She takes over from Principal Eva Gal, who retired in June after guiding Ormondale for 20 years. Ms. Warren, an experienced elementary school teacher and an assistant principal, is completing a doctor of education degree from the University of Pennsylvania.
Small classes. Most classes have 20 or fewer students. There are four classes each of kindergarten, first, second and third grades. A combination first-second grade class was formed before school opened with Peggy Jacquot as the teacher.
New teachers. Ormondale welcomes three new teachers. Adam Ahlbach, long-term substitute in first grade for Jennifer Bloom-Smith last year, joins the first-grade team. Joining the second-grade team are Suzanne Fast, who relocated to the Bay Area after teaching elementary school in Las Vegas for five years, and Kerry Guinn, former math specialist at Pinewood School in Los Altos Hills. The Spanish position is in the process of being filled.
Focus. Ormondale staff is continuing its journey of developing the “Global Student” — one who is prepared to navigate the myriad of opportunities that the 21st century holds, says Ms. Warren. The Ormondale model includes a strong foundation of core knowledge as well as the “investigative learning” model, developed last year. The staff will continues to learn and grow by reflecting on the innovative work done last year, analyzing data, re-evaluating needs, and refining and enhancing practices to best meet the needs of all students.
Programs. Among programs continuing this year: the Pride Assemblies with character education themes, a science fair, Reading Recovery, and Art in Action.
Service Learning. Students and teachers will take part again this year in district-wide programs that focus on building community. Third-graders already have launched a program to educate other students about having “waste free” lunches this year at Ormondale.
Bountiful garden. The large school garden continues to be a focal point for science projects and opportunities for service learning.
Back-to-school night. Parents and guardians will come to school Thursday, Sept. 6, to meet teachers and learn about classroom programs. The times are: 5:30 p.m. for new kindergarten families; 6 p.m. for first grade; 7 p.m., assembly with Principal Warren for all; and 7:30 p.m. for second and third grade.
“Turkey Trot.” Save Saturday, Nov.17. The school’s PTO is sponsoring the third annual Turkey Trot, a 5K and 10K run and walk and a kids’ walk at Ormondale.
Child care. New Horizons School-Age Center, a private organization offering child care for schoolchildren from ages 5 to 13, is located at Ormondale in the portable classroom adjacent to the kindergarten playground. Ajmir Thompkins is the director. For information and fees, call 851-5671.
CORTE MADERA SCHOOL
4575 Alpine RoadPortola Valley
Phone: 851-l777
Joel Willen, principal
Grades: 4-8
Enrollment: 378, up 23 students from last year. The eighth-grade class graduating was smaller than usual.
Class size. Classes will average 21 students in grades 4-5; and 22 students in grades 6-8.
New teacher. Jason Braun is the new instrumental band teacher, taking over from Wiatt Grant. Mr. Braun has taught in the Redwood City School District and in the Boston area. He brings experience teaching a wide range of instruments, including band, strings and guitar, and plans to develop programs this year for strings and guitar.
Focus. Corte Madera staff is in its second year of implementing the district’s five-year strategic plan. The focus is on language arts; “math mastery maps,” a process to track student math skills in grades 4-8; and the adoption of new science materials at each grade level.
Building character. Principal Willen and teachers will continue to work on building character among students, helping them to interact positively with each other. A copy of “Corte Madera School’s Levels of Behavior” has been sent home to parents.
Mobile laptop carts. New to Corte Madera this fall are two laptop carts on wheels that each house 25 laptop computers for use by students in the classrooms.
Garden grows. Teachers and students from various grades will be involved in school garden projects, such as the native plant area, and growing produce to be distributed through organizations that provide food for the homeless.
Watch “Panther News.” Students in TV-video production electives will produce the school news bi-weekly over closed-circuit TV, under the guidance of teacher Brigetta Brown.
Overnight field trips. This year’s overnight field trips, approved by the school board, will take fourth-graders to “Gold Country” at Old Oak Ranch in Sonora for three days, Oct. 10-12; seventh-graders to Yosemite Nov. 26-30; and eighth-graders to the Washington, D.C., area May 11-16.
Back-to-school night. Parents are invited to return to school Tuesday, Sept. 4, from 5:10 to 8:45 p.m. to learn about school programs and meet teachers.
Back-to-school picnic. This annual event is Friday, Sept. 7, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., in the upper-grade eating area.
Principal’s Forum. The first of Principal Joel Willen’s forums for parents will be Friday, Sept. 14, at 8:45 a.m. in Room 1001 at Corte Madera.
Information night. Principal Willen is scheduling a high school information night for parents of eighth-graders.
PORTOLA VALLEY SCHOOL DISTRICT
Corte Madera School4575 Alpine Road, Portola Valley
Superintendent: Anne Campbell
Call 851-1777. www.pvsd.net
Change of plans: Research campus to leave Menlo Park, make way for more housingJune 12, 2026 6:46 pm