Schools grieve over losses in Metrolink crash

"Everyone was just so sad," said Tatevik Sarkisian, 13, an eighth-grader at the school. "We lost a really good person," added her friend and classmate, Meline Teroganisian, also 13.

It was a sad day at many Southern California schools, as students, teachers and administrators struggled with the loss of parents, staff and alumni in the crash, which claimed 25 lives.

At Oaks Christian School in Westlake Village, students and faculty returned to classes stunned by the loss of beloved English teacher Paul Long. He had just begun his second year at the school but had impressed everyone with his passion for teaching, his spiritual guidance and his gentle and humble manner.

Moorpark High School grappled with twin losses -- recent graduates Aida Magdaleno, 19, of Camarillo, and Maria Elena Villalobos, 18, of Moorpark. Alumnus Antonio Martinez was injured in the crash.

"They were both exceptional young ladies with a bright future ahead of them," said Anna Merriman, assistant superintendent of the Moorpark Unified School District. "It's absolutely shocking. Everyone is in mourning around here, and everyone's heart is broken."

Villalobos' mother is a secretary at Campus Canyon, an elementary school within the district, Merriman added.

Counselors were available at all schools in the district, and teachers with affected students were notified to be on alert for signs of distress, Merriman said. Grief counseling was also available for faculty and staff, she said.

It was much the same in the Simi Valley school district, where administrators were still trying to tally the names of families who lost loved ones, said Bill Waxman, director of secondary education.

"Multiple schools have been affected," he said.

And in Newhall, school officials sent crisis counselors to Hart High School to help students affected by the death of student Kari Hsieh. The school held a moment of silence after an announcement at 8 a.m., spokeswoman Pat Willet said.