About Us
OUR VISION
Each child… College, Career and Community Ready.
OUR MISSION
Our mission is to cultivate identity, purpose, and agency within each student so they graduate ready to transform their own and others’ lives.
The Sunnyside Unified School District was established on June 6, 1921. In 1956, SUSD became a unified district (K-12) for the first time with the construction of Sunnyside High School. SUSD has grown from the modest one-room adobe building to the present day 21 school campuses. Today, the Sunnyside Unified School District is the second-largest district in Southern Arizona serving more than 14,000 students and families. Located in a culturally and linguistically rich community and surrounded by two Native Nations—the Tohono O’odham and Pascua Yaqui Tribe—our learning community is flanked by an aerospace and innovation corridor, such that our district is positioned to lead our students into the 21st century through excellence in pedagogy, world-class career and technical education, and a legacy of athletic excellence and passion for the fine arts.
Sunnyside serves families with children from birth to grade 12. The Sunnyside District has a technology-rich digital learning environment where all students (K-12) have laptops or iPads assigned for use daily in classes and throughout the school year. Instructional content is primarily online which includes a unique and innovative curriculum that is current with today’s learning needs.
The nationally recognized Ocotillo Early Learning Center is the District’s high quality, developmentally appropriate early childhood center serving children ages birth to five of all abilities in an inclusive, nurturing, stimulating environment. Programs include Title One preschool, early childhood special education, Parents As Teachers, Family Literacy and a fee-based pre-school program. Below is a graphic representation of the schools and grade levels in our District.
Established in 1921 the Sunnyside Unified School District is the second-largest district in Southern Arizona serving more than 14,000 students and families. Located in a culturally and linguistically rich community and surrounded by two Native Nations—the Tohono O’odham and Pascua Yaqui Tribe—our learning community is flanked by an aerospace and innovation corridor, such that our district is positioned to lead our students into the 21st century through excellence in pedagogy, world-class career and technical education, and a legacy of athletic excellence and passion for the fine arts.
SUSD Profile of a Graduate
SUSD’s Profile of a Graduate provides an unparalleled level of clarity that aligns our mission, vision and the work. It outlines the five competencies key to each student’s journey towards graduation.
SUSD Land Acknowledgement
We acknowledge that we gather as the Sunnyside Unified School District in a culturally and linguistically rich community on the land of the Tohono O’odham Nation and Pascua Yaqui Tribe, past and present. We honor with gratitude the land itself and the Indigenous people who have been stewards of the land. As a learning institution, we commit to learning how to work, serve, educate and uplift our youth while maintaining a diverse and inclusive environment with respect and appreciation of all.