Pasadena Unified has high hopes for new school year after Eaton Fire: 'Our kids are so resilient'
PASADENA, Calif. (KABC) -- The Pasadena Unified School District had an emotional first day of school Monday as they welcomed back hundreds of students, many of whom lost their homes in the Eaton Fire.
Eyewitness News joined the students and teachers of Altadena Arts Magnet School at their temporary campus.
Since the fire, they've had to relocate to Allendale Elementary in Pasadena, but despite the change, some kids were thrilled to be back.
"Really excited! It's been so long since I've seen my friends," said a 4th grader named Henry.
The students have been through a lot since the fire, but you could hardly tell as their faces lit up with joy while meeting with their classmates and teachers.
"We had like 547 students at the time of the fires and over 200 of those students lost their homes," said Principal Dr. Dana Hill. "In every single class, about half those kids lost their homes, so they were comforting each other. It was like, 'I lost my home,' 'I did too!' so they didn't feel alone."
The Altadena Arts Magnet campus sustained too much damage from the fire. Over the summer, classrooms at Allendale were remodeled and on Monday morning, it was all smiles.
"We had to start a school from the ground up. There was nothing here and somehow, we made it," said Jose Guzman, a teacher at the school. "It was a tough year last year, but the kids pulled through."
And they certainly did.
"We hope this time next year, we'll be going back to their original campus," said Hill.
