Principal's Message

August  19, 2024

Dear Longfellow Elementary School Community, 

I am honored to be joining your community at Longfellow Elementary School. I have been the Principal of Elementary School in San Francisco for the past year, a K-5 Spanish Dual Immersion campus fully enriched by community arts. I worked with the staff for the student success readiness grant, and I increased visibility through school campus beautification, community circles, and newsletters. I support a strong sense of belonging so every student can succeed. Over my 20 years in education, I can say that equity is at the forefront of my background, and I will ensure that every student feels valued, supported, and heard while having the tools to reach their highest potential. I started my journey in education in 2002 as a push-in reading intervention teacher in elementary school while earning my multiple-subject teaching credential in Santa Barbara, where I am originally from. I became a 2nd-grade- and 4th-grade teacher, then taught Science and Arts in middle school and Computer Science and Animation in high school. The course that I taught at the high school level was an advanced placement course that provided college credit for students going on to college within the pathway program. 

Throughout my educational teaching journey, I was privileged to teach art internationally in Stockholm, Sweden, in the EU International Baccalaureate Program. I also had the privilege of spending time in Istanbul, Turkey, learning about the educational system and the culture while becoming a resident there. In San Francisco, I trained in person with Carol Dweck in growth mindset and restorative practices in culturally relevant pedagogy under Zaretta Hammond. I am fully supportive of rigor amongst culturally and linguistically diverse students. 

I am married and have two sons; one is five years old, and my other son just turned one. I am of Latina heritage; my mother is Mexican American, and at home, my sons learn four languages: English, Kurdish, Turkish, and Spanish. I grew up between Santa Barbara and south Texas (San Antonio and Laredo), where I grew up on ranches, tending horses and swimming and surfing with my dad in the ocean as much as possible in Santa Barbara. I conducted my administrative research and Master’s fieldwork in Educational Leadership in Santa Barbara and Sonoma. 

I will be an open source of communication and will continually strive for quality systems that benefit students, staff, and parents/guardians. I come from a background in education and animation and have worked on significant animation productions. This enriching background helped me see what schools needed for students to gain an edge in the industry by having the technology to succeed. 

I will work tirelessly to meet students where they are and ensure growth to achieve excellence; I know we can do this together. I can always count on students and staff to resolve their issues. I firmly believe in equity and building solutions so that schools can run efficiently and be improved for the benefit of our students. Together, we can strengthen our resolve to support students and realize that we are here for each other to make a positive difference in the lives of our students, colleagues, and Longfellow families. I look forward to meeting you soon as we prepare for the new school year together in 2024-25! 

Best Regards, 

Kath Cuéllar Burns

Incoming Principal, Longfellow Elementary School

 “Together We Can Make A Difference!”

“Juntos podemos hacer la diferencia!”