Millions of life-changing dollars being invested in Guadalupe kids

Taxpayers in Guadalupe have made it clear – they want more money invested in their children and their schools. Earlier this month, voters overwhelmingly supported two measures that will bring big improvements.

KCOY 12 Central Coast News went in depth to get a closer look at where the money will be used and when we should see those changes.

The future just got a lot brighter for students here in Guadalupe. The school district is trying to become a one-to-one school district – meaning a piece of technology in the hands of every student.

Meet John Abril.

“I got a little girl who’s three.. and my son, he’s one,” Guadalupe father John Abril said.”They’re a handful but they’re pretty cool.”

Abril and his family live in Guadalupe. As parents, he and his wife had worries about the public schools when they moved here from Orcutt in 2010.

“Because it’s a smaller community,” Abril said.

But now, they’re becoming more optimistic.

“I don’t want them to be restricted in their education because they
lack something,” Abril said.

Just weeks ago, Guadalupe tax payers sent a strong message of support to their schools, approving bond measures M and N by big margins – more than 3/4’s. Those bonds will bring almost 11 and a half million dollars to improve the two local schools – Mary Buren Elementary and Kermit McKenzie Junior High.

“I think it’s going to be a great thing for everybody, you know, because parents won’t have to worry about their kids not getting everything they need in school,” Abril said.

6th year Guadalupe Union School District Superintendent Ed Cora says with the 800-plus homes being built in town, there was an even more critical need for these bonds to pass.

“I knew as they were being sold and as families started moving in, the families that have children grades K-8 will start coming to us,” Guadalupe superintendent Ed Cora said.

These bonds will make Guadalupe a one-to-one school district – meaning every student will have a piece of technology like tablets.

“If you don’t give them that technology piece in their hands, they won’t quite be ready,” Cora said.

Superintendent Cora pushed hard to convince tax payers the bonds could change the course of their kid’s lives.

“I cannot say enough of a huge thank you to the voters of Guadalupe,” Cora said.

They’ll be building a new 8-classroom building, a new gymnasium, two baseball fields and a new running track.

They’ll be replacing inefficient, aging windows and fixing rotting gutters, rusting ramps and safety concerns like old wiring, plumbing, heating and air conditioning.

“We have the best kids.. I know other superintendents in the area will
argue.. we have the best kids,” Cora said.

This is the first time this school district turned to the public, asking for their financial support. Tax payers, like Abril, will pay about 180 dollars each year over the next 30 to pay the bonds off.

“Looking forward to it,” Abril said.

Just down the street in Santa Maria, the Santa Maria Joint Union High School District is still waiting for the final results of their Measure H bond. In Guadalupe, it’ll take about six months for architects to draft their plans and another six months for those plans to be approved in Sacramento. So people can expect to see shovels in the ground in about a year.

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