The Rancho Santa Fe School District's updated logo now features an American flag above the R. Roger Rowe School roofline. The board gave final approval at a special meeting Thursday, Sept. 17.
The flag addition caps a months-long redesign. The board first approved a new logo in June, replacing the district's eagle mascot with an illustration of the campus in white, blue and terracotta red. The district's 1927 founding year and its mission statement, "discovery, learning and growth," run along the bottom.
Trustee Paul Seitz proposed adding an American flag, and Trustee Annette Ross brought the idea forward at the August board meeting, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune. The board reviewed options with flags of various sizes and positions at its Sept. 10 meeting before settling on a final design Sept. 17.
Graphic artist and school parent Erina Ruggeri placed the flagpole on the right side of the entrance, matching the actual flagpole on the school's La Granada frontage. She fit it in without removing any second-story windows from the illustration. Because the logo is small, the flag does not depict all 13 stripes and 50 stars.
The district will move forward with the flag version even though the previous logo had already been printed on school documents, centennial keychains for students and personalized Yeti mugs given to technology and maintenance staff. Those mugs recognized staff work over the summer on classroom redesigns ahead of the district's 100th year.
The board approved a $2,000 expenditure for Ruggeri's design work when it adopted the original logo at its June 18 meeting.
First meeting without Zoom
The Sept. 17 session was also the first board meeting held without Zoom livestreaming. The board voted Sept. 10 to end the six-year practice of streaming meetings virtually, a policy that began during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Seitz proposed the change at the Aug. 20 board meeting. "The Zoom is more hassle than it is benefit … It was fine for COVID but like anything with COVID, it should go away … I think it's more distraction than needed," he said at the time, as reported by the Union-Tribune. Members of the public must now attend in person to participate.
Board Vice President Kerry Vinci said at the Aug. 20 meeting that only about two people tuned in via Zoom per session, usually a reporter. Neighboring Solana Beach, San Dieguito Union High School and Encinitas Union school districts all continue to livestream their meetings. Del Mar Union School District does not livestream but posts video recordings online within two days.
What's next
The district's centennial celebrations begin with the opening of a 50-year time capsule at an adults-only event Monday, Oct. 5, at 5 p.m. in the Performing Arts Center.
