Newhall School officials celebrated the unveiling of millions of dollars in upgrades from Measure E at Peachland Elementary this week.

Several students joined Santa Clarita Valley officials on stage in thanking the district of the improvements to the more than 50-year-old campus, including a new kindergarten, play area, lunch area and classrooms.

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The work was included in the district’s long-term budget for Measure E, which was approved more than five years ago by more than 66 percent of district voters.

The construction replaced outdated modular buildings with state of the art skylights, AC, desks and other education-related enhancements meant to provide students the most 21st century classrooms the voter-approved, $60 million bond could buy.

These most recent additions accounted for about $10.3 million, according to figures provided by the district.

Upgrades for the students and teachers include new interactive smart boards, an interlocking desk design to improve mobility, energy efficient lighting and a slew of other enhancements all intended to make the classrooms more integrated with the state’s move toward standardizing the Common Core classroom. Common Core is a set of sweeping educational reforms approved statewide about two years ago, which has required intensive but unfunded technological upgrades at K-12 campuses statewide.

One of the basic tenets of Common Core is a focus on students’ ability to work together and tackle challenges collaboratively, said Ronna Wolcott, assistant superintendent of business services for Newhall, which a lot of the design considerations. The district will also benefit from a significant cost savings due to the energy efficient lighting and heating, she added.

The first phase of renovations included Special Education, Preschool and TK/Kindergarten buildings, which had been completed and occupied as of January.
The second phase included eight new classroom buildings.

Other renovations included additional fencing, concrete work, hydro-seeding and landscaping, sealing and striping of hardscape areas and installation of new drinking fountains, officials said.