The Atwater (California) Elementary School District has completed construction of Juniper Elementary School in Atwater.
The Merced Sun-Star reports that the $30 million project is the first new school to open in the district since 1995.
Juniper Elementary School will welcome 400 students when school starts Aug. 16.
A bond issue approved by voters in 2018 provided $20 million for the construction. An additional $10 million came from money in the district’s budget that had been set aside for several years.
The school has capacity for about 600 students from transitional kindergarten through sixth grade.
Juniper Elementary School features the first STEM lab on campus for any school in the district.
The school will also offer the first dual language immersion program in the district; students will be taught Spanish and English with the ultimate goal of those students being bilingual and bi-literate by the time they finish the program. Areas around the building are equipped with artificial turf; eliminating the need for mowers will cut down on noise pollution.
Juniper also features a multipurpose room, which includes a stage, lighting and sound system. Outside there are two soccer fields and three playground areas.
Juniper Elementary is the ninth school in the district and will help alleviate crowding at other campuses.
