Grossmont Union High School District Dedicates Two New Career Technical Education Buildings at Chapa
EL CAJON, CALIF. – Grossmont Union High School District (GUHSD) announced today that construction has been completed on two new Career Technical Education (CTE) buildings on the campus of Chaparral High School in El Cajon. A ribbon-cutting and building dedication ceremony was held for the new facility on Wednesday, Sept. 24. Numerous CTE business partners attended the dedication.
With a construction cost of $7.5 million, the project included the construction of two new steel-framed buildings, totaling 14,555 square feet of space. The buildings feature specialized classrooms for the campus’ entrepreneurship focused cosmetology, floral design, culinary arts, technology, art and construction technology programs, as well as student and staff restrooms. Roughly one-quarter of Chaparral’s students participate in CTE’s four sequenced pathways for a two-hour instructional block daily. CTE classes utilize higher levels of academic and applied skills in preparing students for college and careers and all CTE teachers have California teaching credentials and industry experience.
The buildings take advantage of natural daylighting throughout, with high clearstory windows and Solatube skylights, which were designed to meet the energy efficiency standards of the Savings by Design program. Site upgrades included a new quad/courtyard area, wrought iron fencing, drought-tolerant landscaping and a water-saving drip irrigation system. The new classrooms are furnished with state-of-the-art equipment and replicate real-life business practices.
The building dedication was attended by Ralf Swenson, GUHSD Superintendent; David Napoleon, principal of Chaparral High School, Brenda Davis-Landini, floral design teacher; Miranda Harle, 12th grade floral student; and Harriet Bossenbroek, immediate past president of Rady’s Children’s Hospital Auxiliary and a GUHSD business partner.
Proposition U is a $417 million general obligation bond measure passed by voters in November 2008. When combined with projected state funding, the consolidated program budget is $601.7 million. The program makes significant progress toward the modernization of district schools, providing classrooms and equipment for Career Technical Education, multi-purpose facilities to support the superintendent’s vision for the arts in education, and the construction of a new high school in the Alpine/Blossom Valley area. More than $228 million in Prop U consolidated funds have been expended to date.
More information about the bond program is available at http://proph.build-guhsd.com.
About Grossmont Union High School District
Established in 1920, Grossmont Union High School District encompasses an area of approximately 465 square miles, including all of the cities of El Cajon, Santee and Lemon Grove, most of the city of La Mesa, a small portion of the city of San Diego, and the unincorporated areas of Alpine, Dulzura, Jamul, Lakeside and Spring Valley. Over 22,000 students are served by the district’s schools. The district consists of nine comprehensive high schools, two charter schools, one continuation high school, two alternative education sites, four special education facilities, a middle college high school program, a Regional Occupational Program (ROP) and an adult education program. The district employs 1,950 full-time employees, as well as hundreds of hourly employees, making it the largest employer in the East County. More information about Grossmont Union High School District can be found at www.guhsd.net.
