All that you touch, you change. All that you change, changes you. The only lasting truth is Change.

~Octavia Butler

Dear Community,

It is with great sadness that I announce my resignation from Presidio Hill School. The beauty of this school reaffirms itself daily in my eyes. The thought of no longer being here is heartbreaking, but, unfortunately, necessary. My reasons for departure are simple-- I am moving back to Los Angeles to be with my wife and to pursue my art. Karin and I have come to this discussion after many long nights of perplexing bemusement and deliberation, flip-flopping many times before deciding to take this path.

PHS is my home, and I love it. But one of the great things we teach, learn, and instill at this great institution is the need to follow your heart. This is an extremely hard thing to do when you have to leave part of your heart in the place you’re leaving. Last night I wrote this poem, and I’d like to share it:

You are more than tomorrow
For me you are Now
For now I walk awkward w/you
And watch my limbs grow in strange places
Like fig trees and uncomfortable smiles on picture day
For now I am acne and faces grown wild
“Lleepant” and funny animal-shaped letters on page
Hallways of hustle & hello
Hugs—
I am faster than the wind and so small
On this greentop,
scraped knee and tears—
For now I am frozen fuzzy peas in Ziplock
Thursday soup and Monday Megas
I am “Stupid!” & “Nah-uh!” & “Shut up!”
To tell you I am leaving—
& your eyes will stop.

My eyes will try to tell you it’s okay—for now.

I have had such an amazing time at PHS, and we are working like mad ants to find the right person to fill this pivotal and necessary position. But I am not gone yet, there is still lots of work to do, this year, to assure diversity at PHS. If you have time, please attend the Culture Chat Night on April 20th and dream brightly.

Love, Light, and Laughter,

Mohammed Soriano-Bilal
Dean of Multicultural Programs & Services

For almost two years, the eighth grade class organized and followed through on a number of different fund raising ventures for their recent class trip to Costa Rica. The trip was amazing. We arrived in San Jose early Saturday evening. Our group leader, Fritz, greeted us as soon as we stepped off the airplane. After gathering our bags, the kids filed onto the mini bus and we went to our first hostel/hotel, 10 miles from the airport. The kids had a lot of nervous energy on the first night and everyone was tired from a long day of traveling.

We woke up early the next day, and took off for Monteverde, which would be our home for the week. Monteverde is located in the mountainous region of the country so the weather was far cooler compared to San Jose and other surrounding areas. In order to get to our hostel, we had to put on our heavy backpacks and embark on a 3-mile hike into the cloud forest. The hike was an adventure, as many of the kids had never experienced such a thing. After a couple hours of hiking, we reached our destination and everyone was thrilled and amazed at the sight and location of our hostel. It was situated on a hill, overlooking Arenal, a volcano west of Monteverde. The view was spectacular.

We stayed at the hostel for three days. Each morning, we would rise early and get the day started with an extremely cold shower, a cup of coffee, gyopinto (eggs, rice and beans) and some ping-pong. The hostel had two floors and the second floor had a deck with rocking chairs and a hammock, overlooking the volcano and the beautiful landscape. What a great way to start a morning!

During our time in the cloud forest, we worked on the trails as part of our community service, hiked to a waterfall and played around in the cold water, went on a night hike, played ultimate Frisbee, watched a slide show about the animals living in the area, hung out with our guides that work at the hostel, played cards, played more ping-pong and had a great time. On the Thursday before we left, we spent the day at a small school in the area with a student body of 20-25 kids, grades 1-5. The kids had been expecting us for quite some time and were excited about our arrival. We played soccer in the morning, swapped songs and dances with their kids and spent the remainder of the day constructing a mural outside of the school. We had an amazing day.

We left the cloud forest early on Friday morning and took off for the beach. We spent the day sitting in the shade and swimming in the water. By the end of the day, everyone seemed ready to head back to San Jose so we could get ready to take off the next morning. We left the next day. The hard work that comes with fund raising paid off for this group of eighth graders. They put a lot of time and effort into raising money and earned their trip because of the energy they put into making it happen. I commend them for their hard work and thank them for making the trip so memorable.

After nearly a year of preparation our eighth grade trip is now over. Costa Rica is one of the most spectacular places I’ve ever seen. One of the major highlights of the trip was the Sky Trek. Those of us who were able to muster enough courage, soared through the windy Costa Rican air with nothing but a carabineer attaching our harness to the cable more than 500 feet above the ground. I do not regret doing the Sky Trek, but after about the second cable the sky walk was looking a lot more appetizing, but I think I was the only one that thought that. Other highlights were the ranger station in the cloud forest, the night hike, the bumpy bus rides, and the five hours we spent burning our feet on the sand at the beach. Over all it was a great experience. Our chaperons were hilarious and the bonding we did as a class was phenomenal. Thanks to everyone for supporting us by using the yellow pages and buying baked goods and tamales! We appreciate it!

~Autumn, 8th grade guest write