Verbatim: Paly staff recall shock, uncertainty during 9/11
September 12, 2018
Although most Palo Alto High School students did not live through the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attack, many staff members still possess vivid memories of the event. The Paly Voice asked teachers and administrators about their initial reactions when they heard the news.
![Shounak Dharap, president of the school board of Palo Alto Unified School District, announced Friday morning that Superintendent Don Austin separated from his superintendent position at PAUSD. Corbin Dodd, an Ethnic Studies and AP Seminar teacher at Palo Alto High School, said that Austin's separation from the district surprised him and his colleagues. "Negotiations are happening right now, so there's a lot of talk about the school board and the superintendent, but it [Austin's separation] wasn't on my radar, and I don't think it was on the radar of any of the teachers I've spoken to," Dodd said.](https://palyvoice.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/IMG_7950-300x225.png)
