Principal's Message
Welcome to the 2025-2026 school year!
My hope is that you were able to enjoy summer break as it is important to recharge and to find time for the things that bring you joy.
“Once a Matador, always a Matador.” It is a Monta Vista High School saying that speaks to being part of our Matador family and is true for all students, parents, and educators.
It is in this spirit that I want to welcome our incoming 9th grade students, the class of 2029, as well as all other students new to Monta Vista. To our returning students, welcome back and we look forward to a great year culminating in the celebration of the graduating class of 2026!
Below you will find a few items that I would like to share with you as we prepare to begin the new school year.
Focus for 2025-2026: Monta Vista High School continues to be a special place where we are proud to offer students a comprehensive high school experience. Educators at Monta Vista continue to look ahead to this 2025-2026 school year and beyond as we collectively think about the wellbeing of our students and how to support them for more equitable outcomes for all learners.
Throughout the school year, educators at Monta Vista will engage in professional dialogue to continue to look for opportunities to improve as a school for our students. Guided by educators at Monta Vista who care deeply about our students, we will continue our work to establish a culture of caring and wellness as this is at the heart of our work. We continue to focus on equitable learning practices here at Monta Vista. This includes a true belief that our work together as educators (equity, social emotional learning, and equitable grading practices) in course-alike collaborative teams can more positively and equitably impact student learning. Our educators here at Monta Vista want all students to feel valued, connected, and a sense of belonging to thrive during their time with us here on campus.
We are excited to be able to continue with some of our newer programming to expand our comprehensive high school experience for our students. In year three of our staffed wellness room, we continue to reimagine the space to make it more available for students to foster mindfulness and wellness throughout the entire school day. We will also continue to utilize social emotional learning curriculum with Wayfinder for educators to intentionally engage students in social emotional learning classroom practices that look to build purpose and belonging. Additionally, our staff will be learning about a helpful approach for both students and teachers, Universal Design for Learning, that looks to recognize variability, minimize learning barriers, and maximize learning access for all students.
Office is open: Our main office opens again for the 2025-2026 school year on Monday, August 4 and office hours will be 7:45am to 4:15pm. Our Monta Vista website also continues to be the source of the most up to date information throughout the school year.
Monta Vista 9th Grade/New Parent-Guardian Welcome Webinar: This evening webinar event is for parent/guardian(s) of rising 9th grade students and/or a new student coming to Monta Vista for the 2025-2026 school year. Join us on Wednesday, August 13 at 6:00pm for the webinar. Please see the event flyer here for more details.
Class of 2029 Matador Retreat: This day is for all members in the class of 2029 (rising 9th grade students). The event occurs on Thursday, August 14 and includes a freshman orientation and a freshman dance. Please see the event flyer here for more information as this is a recommended welcoming orientation for all in the class of 2029.
New Student Grades 10-12 Lunch: This event on Friday, August 15 is for new students to Monta Vista in grades 10-12. It is a wonderful meet and greet opportunity for new students that includes learning important information about our school. Please see the event flyer here.
Beginning of school: Tentative course schedules for all students will be emailed to students starting August 4. Students will have an opportunity to request course changes/corrections electronically via a Google Form that will also be included in the email. The email will come from noreply@fuhsd.org. Student final course schedules will become available on the first day of school, Monday, August 18. School and ID pictures will be taken during the first week of school on Tuesday – Friday. See the event flyer here for more information about Picture Day.
Continued bell schedule: Monta Vista continues to have a later school start time as part of a larger effort to support student wellness. We will be continuing with this bell schedule for the 2025-2026 school year as it features four block days, a longer brunch time, three tutorials, and a consistent start time of 8:30am. Our bell schedule can be seen on our website here.
Classroom modernization update: Thank you to the Monta Vista and FUHSD community for your support and passage of the Measure G Bond Program. These funds from Measure G allow us to move forward on our school facility modernization needs. Modernization of our F-Building #4 (instrumental music classroom) just completed and will be available for our students to use here at the start of this 2025-2026 school year. The modernization includes an increase in square footage for a percussion studio, instrument locker room, an increase in the number of practice rooms, updated fire systems, replacement of heating and cooling systems, new roof and gutter system, ceilings and floors, LED lighting, new technology and furniture. Thank you again for your support of our students and programs.
Important dates for the year:
- August 18 – First day of school
- August 22 – Welcome Back Dance (on campus evening event with more information to come)
- August 29 – Welcome Back Rally (on campus school spirit event during the school day)
- September 1 – Labor Day/no classes
- September 4 – MV Back to School Night (on campus evening event with more information to come)
- September 11 – 9th Grade Parent-Guardian Night (on campus evening event hosted by our MV Counseling Team with more information to come)
- See more important dates on the FUHSD Academic Calendar here.
I look forward to partnering with you for a positive upcoming 2025-2026 school year!
With Matador pride,
Ben Clausnitzer
Principal