Groundbreaking held for long-planned new Guadalupe school campus

GUADALUPE, Calif. – A groundbreaking ceremony was held Wednesday morning to officially celebrate the beginning of construction for a long-planned new school campus in Guadalupe.

Located in the new Pasadera housing development, the 17.6 acre site will become the home of the new Guadalupe Junior High School and Guadalupe Early Learning Center (ELC).

With Guadalupe Union School District (GUSD) school board members, administration, staff on hand, plus local government officials, as well as Guadalupe city and community members in attendance, shovels were ceremoniously dug into the ground to commemorate construction work beginning on the project, which has been in the works for about 30 years.

"Without the tremendous support of the Guadalupe community, these new much-needed and much-anticipated facilities would not have been possible," said GUSD Superintendent Dr. Emilio Handell. "The citizens of Guadalupe overwhelmingly approved four bond measures in the span of six years. First passing Measures M and N in 2016, and then Measures V and W in 2022. The schools represent incredible opportunities for the children of Guadalupe and the generosity of its citizens."

Once the new school is built, GUSD will adjust the configuration of its three campuses. The new junior high will be for students in the 7th and 8th grades, Kermit McKenzie Intermediate School will be for students in 4th through 6th grades, Mary Buren Elementary School will be for students in kindergarten through third grades, while the new ELC will be for preschool and transitional kindergarten students.

The new junior high will accommodate 480 students and include 16 classrooms, an 11,000-square foot multipurpose building/gymnasium and library. The ELC will support 192 students on its site adjacent to the junior high school.

Combined, the new junior high and ELC will cost $45 million and are scheduled to be open for instruction beginning in the fall 2025.