National School Lunch Week: Fillmore Unified/Chef Brigaid Partnership Transforms School Meals

The Fillmore Unified School District is proud to spotlight the incredible work taking place in our Child Nutrition Department, where nutritious, delicious, and scratch-made meals are becoming the new standard. Through an exciting partnership with Chef Brigaid, a team of professional chefs dedicated to transforming school cafeterias, our district is re-imagining what it means to serve healthy and appealing school meals.

Chef Brigaid has been working hand-in-hand with our talented kitchen staff to provide professional training, develop flavorful and balanced menus, and shift away from prepackaged and processed foods. The focus is on fresh ingredients, thoughtful preparation, and culinary creativity—all while maintaining compliance with USDA nutritional standards.

This initiative supports several key goals. Increase student participation in the meal program, reduce outside food brought onto campus, and expose students to diverse, cross-cultural dishes that broaden their palates and sparks curiosity about food.

One recent example of this effort was a “Lunch Pop-Up” event, which showcased a vibrant, globally inspired menu of Jerk Chicken Skewers with coconut rice and black-eyed peas, macaroni salad and chutney dipping sauce, and fresh mango sorbet for dessert.

Fillmore Unified remains committed to providing our students with fresh, flavorful, and wholesome meals every day. With the continued collaboration between our Child Nutrition team and Chef Brigaid, the future of school lunch in Fillmore is looking brighter—and tastier—than ever.

National School Lunch Week is being celebrated from October 13–17, 2025, to promote the National School Lunch Program and the importance of healthy school meals. The annual event, created in 1962 by President John F. Kennedy, highlights how school meals are vital for children's health, academic performance, and success. The 2025 theme is "Taste the World," encouraging schools to celebrate global cuisine and student diversity through special menus and activities.

School Administrator Week

This week, we celebrate Week of the School Administrator, and give a huge Thank You to all Fillmore Unified School District administrators! Your leadership—supporting students, empowering teachers, partnering with families, and keeping our schools moving forward—makes a real difference every day. We’re grateful for your dedication, your heart for “Students First,” and the countless behind-the-scenes decisions that help our kids learn and thrive. Thank you, FUSD administrators! 🙌📚💙

National Custodian Appreciation Day

🌟 Happy National Custodian Appreciation Day! 🌟

Today — and every day — we celebrate the incredible custodial team who keeps our schools clean, safe, and welcoming for students and staff. From sparkling classrooms ready for learning to hallways that greet us with warmth and pride, our custodians go above and beyond to make our campuses shine.

They are always ready to lend a hand with any project, bring positivity to every task, and build strong connections with our students and staff. With their hard work, dedication, and those warm smiles that brighten our days, we can always count on them to get the job done.

💙 Thank you for everything you do to make our schools a better place — we are truly grateful for you today and every day! 🙌✨

State Assembly Member's Representative Tours Fillmore High

Fillmore High School Principal, Mrs. Francis (right), showing field representative Reyes features of Fillmore High's new Anatomage table used in Anatomy and Physiology courses.

On Monday September 29, 2025, Atticus Reyes, Field Representative for California State Assemblymember Steve Bennett, who represents the 38th Assembly District, visited Fillmore High School (FHS). Reyes toured the campus and learned all about Fillmore High School's Career Technical Education (CTE) program and its pathway offerings.

Fillmore Unified School District Superintendent Christine Schieferle said, "Students taking Anatomy and Physiology courses use the Anatomage table, one of the most advanced human-based 3D anatomy and medical education system tools. This state-of-the-art platform offers digitized human cadavers, superior medical learning tools, and realistic 3D anatomy experiences. Students at FHS receive high-quality, relevant learning experiences to prepare them for college, career, and life experiences."

Rio Vista Recognized as Promising Learning Community School

Congratulations to the students and staff at Rio Vista Elementary for success in raising student achievement and your recognition as a Promising Practices Professional Learning Community at Work.

Promising Practices schools are recognized for building a strong foundation based on the PLC concepts, implementation of these concepts for at least one to two years, clear evidence of improved student learning over that period.

Recognized Promising Practices schools are listed on AllThingsPLC.info, where they share implementation strategies, structures, and performance with other educators interested in improving their schools.

Collaboration tools, articles, research, blog posts, and other related resources are also available on the site.

San Cayetano Elementary Receives $1,000 Sage/Corwin Library Grant

San Cayetano Elementary was selected to receive a $1,000 library grant through the Sage/Corwin Books for Schools Library Grant program. This grant is designed to enhance library collections and services. The funds may be used to purchase new books, update collections, and support innovative library programs and materials that benefit students.