Official Student Newspaper of Henry M. Gunn High School

The Oracle

Official Student Newspaper of Henry M. Gunn High School

The Oracle

Official Student Newspaper of Henry M. Gunn High School

The Oracle

Source: PAUSD Board of Education

District identifies five priorities in updated PAUSD Promise

Kaitlyn Chen, Lifestyle Editor September 23, 2023

In May, PAUSD identified the following PAUSD Promise priority areas for the 2023-24 school year: Innovation, Serve and Celebrate Others, Mental Health and Wellness, Early Literacy, and Equity and Excellence. The result of detailed reflection on annual reports and feedback from community members, the...

PAUSD, City of Palo Alto adopt eco-friendly transportation services

PAUSD, City of Palo Alto adopt eco-friendly transportation services

Anne Dong, Forum Editor April 17, 2023

Palo Alto’s transportation services have become more environmentally friendly in recent years through ongoing efforts to promote sustainable practices. Palo Alto Unified School District has started by replacing some older diesel school buses for greener electric ones. The district recently received...

Following Elimination, winner Kyra Xue looks back

Following Elimination, winner Kyra Xue looks back

Raphael Semeria, Managing Editor April 16, 2022

On April 1, Gunn’s annual Elimination came to an end with junior Kyra Xue as its winner. While Xue did not participate in Elimination in previous years, she remained competitive and enthusiastic. In the end, she survived  throughout the game’s entirety and had the most eliminations: 23. “Elimination...

Editorial: Student involvement, extracurriculars should be determined by passion, not college prospects

Editorial: Student involvement, extracurriculars should be determined by passion, not college prospects

The Oracle Staff March 8, 2022

Given the highly competitive nature of schools in the Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) as well as others in the Bay Area, conversations surrounding GPAs, test scores and extracurricular endeavors are always present. In turn, many students feel the urge to go above and beyond in order to...

COVID transparency survey

PAUSD administration should improve transparency regarding COVID-19 cases

Raphael Semeria, Managing Editor February 11, 2022

In the past year, billions of dollars in COVID-19 relief have been allocated to schools in order to provide students with safer learning environments. Now, the skyrocketing number of cases and transmissibility of the Omicron variant has led many Americans to once again ask schools to take extra safety...

PAUSD combats staff shortages with new initiatives

PAUSD combats staff shortages with new initiatives

Irene Tsen, Managing Editor February 11, 2022

Following the recent Omicron variant surge, the Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) has faced a substitute teacher shortage due to increased staff absences. To continue in-person instruction, the district has implemented new measures to address the shortage, including calling for parent volunteers...

New state-wide program offers free lunch for all students

New state-wide program offers free lunch for all students

Chris Lee, Managing Editor September 17, 2021

Along with other schools across the state of California, the Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) has begun to provide free meals for all students for the 2021-22 school year due to new national and state policies. Free school lunches were initially offered by the federal government as part of...

Freshman Lise Desveaux attends classes behind plexiglas.

Students Return On Campus

Raphael Semeria, Managing Editor April 25, 2021

Since March 9, the Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) has reopened its secondary  schools, allowing staff to resume working from campus while giving students the option to attend Zoom classes on campus or at home. The initiative, first mentioned during a board meeting in February, hopes to bring...

Update: Superintendent Don Austin announces new plan potentially reopening middle school, high school campuses by early March

Update: Superintendent Don Austin announces new plan potentially reopening middle school, high school campuses by early March

The Oracle Staff February 9, 2021

Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) Superintendent Don Austin announced a revised reopening proposal at Tuesday night’s school board meeting that could have 7th to 12th grade students returning to classrooms as soon as early March. For students to be able to return in-person, Austin said, Santa...

Zora Zhang

In the room where it happens: Recent criticism around PAUSD’s decision-making process speaks to the need for effective communication when managing a public health crisis.

Jessica Zang, Features Editor and Assistant Business Manager December 17, 2020

Transparency questioned For weeks, virtual classrooms buzzed with both worry and excitement about reopening elementary schools for in-person learning. On Sept. 29, hordes of students, parents and teachers alike powered on their Zoom applications to tune into a virtual Palo Alto Unified School District...

Superintendent Don Austin cautions secondary schools highly unlikely to reopen given Santa Clara Countys purple tier status

Superintendent Don Austin cautions secondary schools “highly unlikely” to reopen given Santa Clara County’s purple tier status

Julianna Chang, Managing Editor November 17, 2020

In a Tuesday press conference with The Oracle staff, Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) Superintendent Don Austin cautioned it was “highly unlikely” secondary schools would be reopening due to Santa Clara County’s recent move into the purple tier of COVID-19 cases. According to Austin, middle...

Karna Nisewaner

Karna Nisewaner

Sophia Stern, Business Manager, Social Media Editor November 12, 2020

Karna Nisewaner, a parent of two elementary school students in the district and former Chair of the Palo Alto Community Child Care board, is running for the School Board this November on a platform of district transparency. Nisewaner decided to run after feeling dissatisfied by the school board’s...

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