Parents walked children by the hand through an arch of navy, blue, gold and white balloons Wednesday morning at Gledhill Street Elementary School, where colorful bookbags, first-day photos and a few tears marked the start of the 2026-27 school year at Los Angeles Unified.
Ashley Vazquez watched as her 6-year-old daughter, Elizabeth Correa Vazquez, cried before beginning first grade. Her five-year-old son, Mateo N. Correa Vazquez, was also nervous as he prepared to start kindergarten.
“He’s nervous because this is a big school for him,” Vazquez said. Mateo previously attended an early education center next door, she said.
Across Los Angeles Unified, students returned to classrooms Wednesday, Aug. 12, as the nation’s second-largest school district began a new academic year amid recent academic gains, concerns over immigration enforcement, the aftermath of the Lineage fire and longer-term financial pressures that could eventually reshape schools.
By the end of the day, Superintendent Andrés Chait said preliminary attendance was slightly above 90%, roughly comparable to last year. District officials said the figure was running above the preliminary attendance rate at the same point on the first day last year; the final first-day attendance rate in 2025 was 92%.
“LA Unified is back, and more importantly, our students are back,” Chait said.
District officials also said enrollment had surpassed district projections, though Chait cautioned that enrollment can be difficult to gauge on the first day of school and said the district expects to have firmer numbers by Thursday or Friday.
At Gledhill, families gathered on the playground after passing beneath the balloon arch, where some stopped for photos with “Rampage”, the Los Angeles Rams mascot, and team representatives. Students were also handed Rams towels.
For Erica Bello, a first-grade teacher beginning her 20th year in education, the morning brought two first days at once. As she prepared to lead her students inside, her own daughter, beginning kindergarten, ran toward her. The teacher briefly stepped away and wrapped her in a hug..
“I’m just looking forward to getting to know the kids,” Bello said. “It’s an exciting new start.”
Inside her classroom, she checked students’ name tags and cheerfully walked them through breakfast choices before beginning the day. Bello said she is also looking forward to reduced screen time for younger students, which she hopes will create more opportunities for hands-on learning.
“I feel like when kids are able to touch things, they’re a lot more engaged,” she said.
Chait , who visited Gledhill before continuing to other campuses, including schools in San Pedro, East LA and other areas Wednesday, said the district’s new approach to screen time is intended to strike a balance between technology and other forms of learning.
“The biggest changes that we’ll see will be primarily at the elementary school level” Chait said, adding that kindergarten and first-grade students generally will not use screens except for limited purposes such as certain assessments.
Chait, himself an LAUSD parent, said he dropped off his daughters at their LAUSD middle school Wednesday morning. He said he was happy to see his daughters begin another school year, but “also a little bit sad, ‘cause they’re getting older on me.”
He said he saw a similar mix of emotions among families throughout the morning.
“It’s just obviously a lot of excitement, a little bit of anxiety,” Chait said. “The kids definitely have a little bit of nerves, even if they try to act like they don’t.”
Principal Consuelo Padilla said Gledhill is growing even as LAUSD overall continues to grapple with declining enrollment. She said the school has about 407 students this year, up from 383 last year, and is looking to add another teacher.
Board member Kelly Gonez, who represents East San Fernando Valley, said students at school sites should see relatively little impact from budget reductions this year because the district concentrated many of its cuts away from campuses.
“There will be no impacts, really, of the budget reductions at our school sites this year,” Gonez said, though she acknowledged that LAUSD faces significant financial challenges in future years.
Gonez said no schools have yet been identified for consolidation, but she expects some consolidations could occur in the Valley as discussions continue.
Later in the morning at Reseda Charter High School, large letters in shades of blue, red, yellow and green spelled “WELCOME BACK” across the front lawn. Inside, students inside an advanced math class huddled in small groups around whiteboards standing in front of them, talking through a problem and writing out possible solutions.
Nicole Guardado, a sophomore, said she was still readjusting after summer.
“I’m still kind of processing everything,” she said. “I’ve got to regain myself now that school’s starting.”
She said she will take chemistry and play volleyball this year and is focused on getting good grades and improving at her sport. She also hopes the school can eventually offer students more opportunities in areas such as arts and college-level classes.
Senior Kimme Jamison, who serves as student body president at the high school, said one of her priorities is making school feel more engaging for students.
“School should not be boring,” she said. “Who wants to be somewhere for eight hours a day and there’s no enjoyment?”
She said she hopes to organize more events and build school spirit while finishing her final year at Reseda. She would also like to see more career-oriented courses, including additional pathways tied to fields such as health and medicine.
Principal Pia Maria Damonte said Reseda received additional support this year, including social workers, attendance staff and counselors focused on graduation.
English teacher Luis Duarte said his classes are generally in the mid-20s and that he has seen increased support for ELD (English Language Development) learners and other students during his decade as a teacher.
Asked what should be protected as LAUSD faces spending reductions, Duarte pointed to smaller class sizes and services for students with the greatest needs, including English learners, Black students and immigrant students.
Chait said families should not expect dramatic changes at campuses this school year.
“The lived experience at the school will feel very similar to last year,” he said. “In fact, in some cases, you may even have more staff in certain areas.”
But at an afternoon press conference at Belvedere Middle School in East Los Angeles, Chait stopped short of making the same promise for 2027-28.
Asked where the district would look for savings, Chait said LAUSD would first continue examining non-labor spending and reductions to central-office positions, while trying to preserve services closest to classrooms.
He said the district will have to make “strategic and thoughtful” decisions this year as it carries out its fiscal stabilization plan and continues pressing state leaders for additional education funding.
The first day brought renewed attention to schools near the Lineage warehouse fire, including Belvedere.
Chait said preliminary attendance at schools in the area affected by the fire was 91% to 92%, slightly higher than the districtwide rate.
Board Vice President Rocío Rivas, whose district includes communities affected by the fire, said reopening campuses does not mean the district’s work is finished.
“Cleanup continues. Community concerns remain, and we must remain vigilant,” Rivas said, adding that she would continue pushing for independent monitoring, transparent reporting of environmental results and clear standards for additional protective measures.
Immigration enforcement also remained a concern as students returned.
Chait said some enrollment losses appear to be connected to immigration enforcement and that in some cases families have remained in Los Angeles but are keeping their children home.
“Our responsibility is to continue the outreach to those families,” he said, and to make clear that district schools remain safe places for students.
Back at Gledhill, Zahara Nakiyaga and her 5-year-old daughter Zayda Kiggundu, seemed much more ready for kindergarten than she had been for transitional kindergarten a year earlier.
“She’s been ready the whole week, telling me she’s ready to go back to school,” Nakiyaga said.
For Vazquez, leaving her two nervous children behind was emotional.
“I see them crying, and I get overwhelmed,” she said. “But it’s fine. It’s just a couple of hours.”