2 New Schools Opened; 2 in Progress

The school district has opened two new schools since 2002 and has two more schools in progress.

Placentia’s newest school, Melrose Elementary, opened its doors to students in 2004. The school was instrumental in relieving overcrowding at Rio Vista Elementary and bringing another neighborhood school to Placentia.

In Yorba Linda, Lakeview Elementary welcomed students in September 2005. The school is located in the Vista del Verde community.

Two more new schools are planned: Gualberto J. Valadez Middle School in Placentia and Yorba Linda High School.

Valadez Middle School, situated in the southwest area of Placentia, is scheduled to open in the fall of 2008. In addition to providing a neighborhood school for the surrounding community, the new school will play a big role in alleviating overcrowding at Kraemer Middle School, reducing student enrollment from the current 1,600 to an anticipated 800. It is expected that Valadez Middle School will also serve approximately 800 students.

This new sixth-through-eighth-grade school is named for beloved pioneer educator Señor Gualberto J. Valadez who taught in Placentia schools from 1939 until 1983 and is fondly remembered for his inspirational teaching, founding after-school sports programs and providing adult education classes for parents.

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Yorba Linda High School 2009

Yorba Linda’s first high school is on schedule to welcome students in the fall of 2009.

The school district purchased the initial 15-plus acres of land in 2002. Most recently, the school district opened escrow to purchase the final 50 acres.

The new high school will help reduce student enrollment at the high schools. The district’s goal is to have high schools that range between 1,600 to 2,000 students.

Yorba Linda High School will be the culmination of a long-awaited dream of the community. Realization of this dream has truly been the result of a public and private-sector partnership between the Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District, the City of Yorba Linda and local developer Shapell Industries. Funding for the school will come from Measure Y, state matching funds and redevelopment dollars.

A groundbreaking was held in 2007. The site is located at the corner of Fairmont and the future Bastanchury extension, north of Yorba Linda Boulevard.

The Board of Education has retained the firm of WLC Architects to design the school.

Yorba Linda High School Construction
"Live Camera":
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Middle School to Open in Placentia

Valadez Middle School, situated in the southwest area of Placentia, is scheduled to open in the fall of 2008. In addition to providing a neighborhood school for the surrounding community, the new school will play a big role in alleviating overcrowding at Kraemer Middle School, reducing student enrollment from the current 1,600 to an anticipated 800. It is expected that Valadez Middle School will also serve approximately 800 students.

This new sixth-through-eighth-grade school is named for beloved pioneer educator Señor Gualberto J. Valadez who taught in Placentia schools from 1939 until 1983 and is fondly remembered for his inspirational teaching, founding after-school sports programs and providing adult education classes for parents.

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22 Schools Modernized in Only 4 Years



In the four short years since the community’s overwhelming approval of Measure Y, 22 schools have been modernized and three additional schools are scheduled for modernization this coming summer.

Under the state matching grant formula districts receive dollars to modernize schools that are 25 years or older. The PYLUSD had 22 schools that met this criteria. These schools, which are the district’s oldest schools, were in dire need of repair.

“For the first time in a long time, the physical buildings match the sense of pride that we have always had in our schools,” stated teacher Don Gebler. “We give our students the best teachers, best education, best materials, and now we are giving them the best educational environment.”
Many of the newer schools (Bryant Ranch, Parkview and Travis Ranch) are receiving other improvements such as additional parking, a multipurpose room, playground equipment, or new classrooms. Another project being considered for construction is a district music hall to be located on the El Dorado High School campus. The district has increased the budget for this project to $4 million and is working with architects, the community and staff to determine if this amount will be sufficient to reach the quality standards needed for our district’s outstanding music students.

The school district is also building a two-story fine arts and women’s locker room building at Valencia High, the district’s oldest school which opened in 1933.

Modernized Schools

Additional Projects

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What Is Modernization?

Modernizing our schools included more than just carpet replacement and new paint.

School interiors underwent extensive demolition and remodeling which included state-of-the-art technology infrastructure, new heating and air conditioning systems, new fire alarms and other safety features, as well as improvements that met Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standards.

Classroom interiors were rebuilt with more efficient lighting, built-in desks, and teaching walls with ample storage to allow for more spacious classrooms. In order to provide students closer proximity to computer areas, technology pods were also added, as appropriate, between every four to six classrooms.

At the elementary schools, new playground equipment replaced decades-old structures, ensuring greater safety for our students. Parking lots at many schools were added or expanded. Middle schools now feature “synergy labs,” which are expansive classrooms surrounded by physics, engineering or technology-related stations, and high schools were provided state-of-the-art science labs.

While the primary focus of the district’s modernization efforts has been on classroom interiors, projects also included school health offices, libraries, teacher workrooms, and lunch shelters—all possible thanks to Measure Y!

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Spacious, Brighter Classrooms

New Playgrounds for Safety

New Science Labs

Expanded Parking

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Wall Street Gives PYLUSD an A+!

Based on the district’s sound financial status, Standard & Poor’s gave an A+ rating to the district’s bond and Moody’s Investors Service issued a AA3 rating. These high ratings allow the school district bond to be much more desirable to investors and resulted in hundreds of thousands of dollars in savings.

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Measure Y Captures State Dollars for Local Schools

Using the $102 million Measure Y funds as a starting point, PYLUSD has been able to fulfill the initial vision of its planned building program by combining state matching money with local developer fees and redevelopment dollars to achieve a total program budget of $395.2 million.

State construction dollars are finite and are awarded to those school districts that have available matching dollars, such as a bond, and have submitted appropriate building plans and supporting documentation. Thanks to the community’s approval of Measure Y, the school district was ready and has already received the first $68 million of an anticipated $141.8 million in state construction dollars that would have gone to other school districts.

Thank you, Community!

$395 million building program

Thank you, Community!
Measure Y helped our schools!

 

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