Students, parents, staff and San Diego Unified School District officials this week dedicated new campus facilities at John Muir Language Academy in the Clairemont neighborhood.
The Spanish language-immersion magnet school serves students in universal transitional kindergarten through eighth grade, and attracts children from all across San Diego, according to a SDUSD news release.
The Wednesday celebration featured Spanish dance and music performances. There were also remarks from students, district leaders, and the school principal. The celebration included a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new two-story classroom and student services facility, along with a new kindergarten classroom building.
The upgrade includes a new locker building with a basketball pavilion; staff parking lot; a rearranged visitor parking lot with a drop-off and pick-up spot; and renovations to classrooms, restrooms, the multi-purpose building/kitchen and exterior playground, according to the district. Construction crews removed older portable classrooms.
Principal NeTassha Rendon, who started at Muir in November, said there were “a lot of people who invested their time and vision in this school to bring it to what it is today, and it shows.”
“I came to Muir when these facilities had already come to fruition and I was blown away,” Rendon added.
“We are proud of the fact that Muir and our robust dual-language programs create opportunities for students to learn and honor diversity in people and use the classroom experience as an opportunity to connect socially and academically,” said Dr. Lamont Jackson, SDUSD superintendent.
Sabrina Bazzo, a SDUSD board of education trustee, said the district wants to close the achievement gap and boost enrollment, and “these stunning facilities and modern learning spaces are helping us get there.”
Built in 1961, the campus was previously known as Anderson Elementary before turning into the John Muir School in 2005, officials said.
In 2016, the district replaced the school’s decomposed granite field with a synthetic turf soccer field. In late 2020, construction began on the campus transformation, officials said.
Other district magnet schools offer communications and community leadership; creative, visual and performing arts; global citizenship, international studies and internal baccalaureate; and programs in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, along with a STEM one that also includes the arts.
–City News Service