Mountain View Los Altos Union High School District Superintendent Eric Volta said the student who drew a chalk swastika at the Los Altos High School campus Oct. 20 was 14 years old and did not have a history of discriminatory behavior.
“This student did not have a history of any kind of hate-based activity. There was also nothing in their possession to lead me to believe this was part of who this person is,” he said in a phone interview Wednesday.
Administrators at the high school reported Monday that a student drew a swastika with chalk at 1 p.m. on a ledge on the school campus.
Volta said school administrators determined consequences following the incident. He said he could not release other identifying information about the student.
“I can say with all confidence it was properly handled,” he said. “I am hoping this person learns from their mistake.”
Principal Tracey Runeare said in an Oct. 20 email to parents that the vandalism was immediately removed and followed by a swift investigation from staff.
“We will not tolerate acts of hate or antisemitism on our campus and are most appreciative to those who report concerning matters to us,” Runeare said in the message.
“We encourage everyone to continue working to ensure our campus is a safe space for everyone. LAHS is to be a protected space where the focus is on learning and community.”
Volta commended the Los Altos High School administrators for their response.
“I think the issue was handled swiftly,” he said. “I truly commend Principal Runeare. As soon as it was reported they documented it, and they got it taken off.”
Maya Bujanover, co-president of the Jewish Student Union, said she was alarmed and appalled by acts of antisemitism that appeared to be more pervasive.
“As a Jewish student and leader of JSU, it’s my mission to make Jewish students feel more welcomed on campus, and I am disappointed at our community for allowing this kind of hate to persist without real accountability,” she said in an email.
In February, an anti-Semitic post on Instagram targeted the MVLA district. The post was published by an Instagram account called “@los.altos.nazi.party” whose profile picture overlaid the Los Altos High School logo with a swastika. The post included a Nazi party propaganda poster that included the phrase “Society, Culture and Politics.”
The post location was set in Los Altos High School, and the caption read “We meet on Tuesday next week in the quad.”
The post was removed and an investigation was quickly launched, but there have been no arrests or developments in the case, said Saskia Lagergren, Los Altos Police Chief.
Other recent incidents include swastikas graffitied on Mountain View High School’s campus in September 2024; swastikas drawn on lockers in the boys locker room at Blach Intermediate School in the Los Altos School District in December 2023; and weeks before that, two female Jewish students at Egan Junior High School said that an antisemitic remark and gesture was made to them.
Runeare said in the phone interview that the events – though “enraging” – were “isolated incidents.” She urged education as a means of dispelling the incidents.
“Schools are reflections of what’s happening in the community,” she said. “I think it happens with lots of different types of behavior, good and bad.”
