Nipomo High School seniors return to their former elementary schools during annual ‘Grad Walk’

NIPOMO, Calif. -- Soon-to-be graduating Nipomo High School seniors returned back to their former Nipomo area elementary schools on Monday during a popular annual event held this time each year.

Nipomo High School's "Grad Walk," allows seniors who attended one of the three Nipomo elementary schools with the opportunity to visit their old campus and catch up with past educators and staff members.

"It's really fun to be back and see old people that I have been wanting to see for a really long time," said former Dorothea Lange Elementary student Alexis Acosta. "It's just a fun place to be. It brings back so many fun memories and there's so many things to talk about."

Nipomo High School principal John Denno said the event has been going on for five years and is held to celebrate the school district and community wide effort that's needed to help support students educational career from the very start at elementary school all the way up to graduation.

"It's so powerful," said Lange principal Deborah Schimandle. "We have them (as elementary students) and we're always thinking of preparing them for their future career, and as students and citizens, so to see them with their gowns on and preparing to move onto that next chapter of their life is just really powerful for all of us."

Late Monday morning, seniors were bused from the high school to one of three nearby Nipomo area elementary schools, Nipomo, Dana and Dorothea Lange.

When students arrived, they were greeted with cheers from staff members, many of whom the students had not seen since their 6th grade promotion six years earlier.

"It feels amazing," said former Lange student Chloe Wells. "There are a lot of old memories that came back to me and I love to see all the old teachers that are still here and the janitor and it's really a refreshing memory and I love it."

For more than an hour, students were able to roam around the campus, play on the playground, eat lunch, visit classrooms and speak with the students.

"It's good to inspire little kids," said Wells. "They were talking to me about what high school is like and I got to share my experience with high school."

Many students who had not visited their former campus noted how much smaller in size it felt.

"It's crazy," said former Lange student Dylan Anderson. "Everything looks the same. Nothing's changed, but it's really small. All the kids are really small, but I like it. I miss it."

"It's kind of like overwhelming, but also very sentimental and bittersweet because everything just seems so much smaller now," said Chloe Echeverria. "I've seen some old teachers and my old principal and so it's just so weird seeing everything in the past, but in my grown body now."

Schimandle, who is retiring after spending 30 years in the Lucia Mar Unified School District, including stints at all three Nipomo elementary schools, added that this event provides staff members with a sense of pride and accomplishment.

"We feel really lucky to be able to see our kiddos and see the happy and see them heading towards that graduation day and just so happy Nipomo High School supports this and brings the students out to us,"
said Schimandle. "It really makes us feel like we're doing our job when we see our students that are prepared to move on to big universities or whatever they have going on in their next chapter or life." 

Nipomo High School will hold its commencement ceremony on Friday, June 9 starting at 5 p.m.