District Newsletter – May 28, 2025

Dear families,

We are ready to celebrate the end of a successful school year and to shift our focus to prepping for next school year! We are sending out one last newsletter to provide information on new school start and end times, high school graduations, summer meals for children, and the district’s summer office schedule should you need us June to August.

School starts up again on August 19^th. As we begin the next school year, 18 schools will have new start and end times. We have aligned school times across the district to be on either an early start or late start schedule. Your school principal has shared the 2025-2026 start and end times for your school.

I’d like to share our reasons for making the schedule changes.  Our district was audited by the Legislative Auditors Office in 2022 and 2024. The auditing team found significant issues with student busing, mostly due to inconsistent and often conflicting school schedules. These inconsistencies made transportation difficult to manage and created logistical challenges for families with children in multiple schools.

In addressing this, we aligned school schedules across two start and end times and, for many schools, increased the amount of student instructional time on short-day Fridays.

Additional instructional time is strongly correlated with improved academic outcomes. Several schools across our district have already extended their learning time in pursuit of higher student achievement. While the Friday changes promote alignment and expanded learning opportunities for students, we also recognize that these adjustments impact our educators as they work to balance the demands of teaching and planning.

I’ve appreciated the opportunity to hear from many dedicated educators throughout this process. Your feedback and perspectives are invaluable as we navigate this shift together.

We understand that meaningful change takes time, but we believe these adjustments are essential steps toward ensuring all students have the time and support they need to thrive.

Have a wonderful summer, and we look forward to seeing you in August!

Sincerely,

Elizabeth Grant, Ph.D.
Superintendent
Salt Lake City School District

High School Graduations

Congratulations to our graduating seniors! The dates and times of our high school graduation ceremonies are listed below. (Please note that the four graduations at the Huntsman Center on May 30 will be livestreamed.)

As we celebrate our 2025 graduates, please remember that confetti of any kind is NOT allowed at district graduation events either inside OR outside the graduation venue. Last year, the district spent tens of thousands of dollars on confetti cleanup fines both inside and outside the Huntsman Center, funds we’d much rather invest in our schools and students. Please help us by leaving the confetti at home.

Please note: Trax services will NOT be available to the Huntsman Center between May 24 and August, including on May 30. Please check the UTA website for more information, including bus routes to get to the Huntsman Center.

School	Date	Time	Location	Livestream
East High School	May 30, 2025	7:00 PM	Huntsman Center	YouTube
Highland High School	May 30, 2025	4:00 PM	Huntsman Center	YouTube
Horizonte Instruction and Training Center	May 30, 2025	9:30 AM	Huntsman Center	YouTube
Innovations Early College High School	May 29, 2025	6:30 PM	Highland High School	N/A
Salt Lake Center for Science Education	May 29, 2025	5:00 PM	A. Ray Olpin Student Union Ballroom at the University of Utah	N/A
Sky View Academy	June 9, 2025	9:00 AM	Utah State Correctional Facility	N/A
West High School	May 30, 2025	1:00 PM	Huntsman Center	YouTube

 

Free Summer Meals for Children

Free lunch for ALL kids ages 0-18 will be served from June 3-August 8 at the Salt Lake City Library, at several parks, and at many schools across the city. Each location has a unique schedule, so please check the district website for the times and dates for the site you plan to visit.

Free breakfast and lunch will be served at our summer school meal sites only when summer school is in session (June 9-July 17).

All meal sites will be closed on these holidays:

• Monday, June 16 (Juneteenth holiday observed),
• Friday, July 4 (Independence Day),
• Thursday, July 24 (Pioneer Day), and
• Friday, July 25.

For more information, visit the district website. If your child has special dietary needs, please contact Lydia.Hales@slcschools.org or call us at (801) 974-8380.

Summer Food Distribution

The district and the Salt Lake Education Foundation have partnered with the Utah Food Bank to offer regular food distributions at our community learning centers this summer. This collaboration is part of our ongoing commitment to support students and families by helping meet essential needs.

Glendale-Mountain View Community Learning Center (1388 Navajo Street, SLC, UT)
 June 12, July 17, and August 14
 2:00-3:00 PM

Liberty Community Learning Center (1078 S. 300 E., SLC, UT)
 June 18, July 23, and August 20
 2:00-3:00 PM

Rose Park Community Learning Center (1105 W. 1000 N., SLC, UT)
 June 2, July 7, July 21, August 4, and August 18
 1:00-2:00 PM

Summer Schedule

During the summer, the district switches to a four-day, 40-hour work week. That schedule, combined with summer holidays, means all district offices, schools, and facilities will be closed one day each week, starting Friday, June 13, 2025, through Friday, August 08, 2025:  

• Friday, June 13  
• Monday, June 16 (Juneteenth holiday observed)
• Friday, June 27
• Friday, July 4 (Independence Day holiday)  
• Friday, July 11  
• Friday, July 18  
• Thursday, July 24 (Pioneer Day holiday)
• Friday, August 1  
• Friday, August 8  

The Child Nutrition Department, Horizonte Instructional and Training Center, and essential construction staff will continue to work five-day schedules.

2025-26 School Year

• August 19: First day of school!

Please check your school website for registration and back to