New classes of elementary and middle schoolers filled the halls of Solis Park School in Irvine on the first day of school Thursday, Aug. 18, breaking in the latest — and, for now, last — new campus to be built in the city.
The 108,000-square-foot campus will serve the residents of the Great Park Neighborhoods. It’s Irvine’s fifth kindergarten through eighth-grade school and the final school campus the city has planned, said Irvine Unified School District spokeswoman Annie Brown.
Elements such as a science and art outdoor courtyard and “state of the art music and science classrooms” were included in the school’s design “to foster discovery, curiosity, collaboration and innovation,” Brown said in an email.
An innovation lab — where students can take part in activities such as robotics, engineering or video production — and spaces for special education learning are also featured on campus, as well as an indoor gym and fitness center.
Solis Park, located just west of Irvine Boulevard, is the latest school to welcome students since Loma Ridge Elementary opened its doors in 2019. Between 2013 and 2019, at least one new school opened each year in the fast-growing city.
Zoe Tan, 11, right, checks out a zero-gravity chair as Chase Arredondo, 11, left, looks on during their first day of school at the new Solis Park School in Irvine on Thursday, August 18, 2022. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Mayer Mahut, left, helps his son Zayer, 5, with his name tag as he starts his first day in kindergarten at the new Solis Park School in Irvine on Thursday, August 18, 2022. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Solis Park School principal Heather Phillips, center, welcomes a new kindergarten student for the first day of school in Irvine on Thursday, August 18, 2022. The new 108,000 square-foot campus is the fifth and last new K-8 school planned in the Irvine Unified School District. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Aleksandra Likhova, right, watches as her children, Alisa Mingazova, 4, center, and Vasilisa, 2, right, play on the new playground at Solis Park School in Irvine on Thursday, August 18, 2022. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Sixth grade students listen to their teacher Patrick Compton, left, on their first day of school at the new Solis Park School in Irvine on Thursday, August 18, 2022. The 108,000 square-foot campus is the fifth and last new K-8 school planned in the Irvine Unified School District. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Solis Park School sixth grade students give their answers to the question posed by their teacher on their first day back from summer break in Irvine on Thursday, August 18, 2022. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
The new playground at Solis Park School has a Sensory Tunnel installed in Irvine on Thursday, August 18, 2022. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
The new Solis Park School welcomed students for their first day of school in Irvine on Thursday, August 18, 2022. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Kyo Nagatomi, left, library coordinator for Irvine Unified School District, works with Nhi To, center, and Lara Ralston, right, library media techs, to organize the library at the new Solis Park School in Irvine on Thursday, August 18, 2022. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Kindergarteners respond to their teacher during their first day at the new Solis Park School in Irvine on Thursday, August 18, 2022. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Students check out the Student Commons at the new Solis Park School on the first day of school in Irvine on Thursday, August 18, 2022. The building design and modular furniture allows for students to move out of their classrooms to collaborate in groups. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Julie Hanaoka, left, office assistant, helps Yalda Shewa and her son Morteza, 4, in the administration office at the new Solis Park School in Irvine on Thursday, August 18, 2022. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
A science classroom features a large roll-up door, left, to allow students to move outdoors for special projects and assignments in Irvine on Thursday, August 18, 2022. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Zayer Mahut, 5, left, claps to the music during his first day of kindergarten at the new Solis Park School in Irvine on Thursday, August 18, 2022. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Trans-Glide equipment installed on the playground of the new Solis Park School allows wheelchair bound students to recreate in Irvine on Thursday, August 18, 2022. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
The new Solis Park School welcomed students for their first day of school in Irvine on Thursday, August 18, 2022. The 108,000 square-foot campus is the fifth and last new K-8 school planned in the Irvine Unified School District. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Fourth grade student Michelle Nwabude listens to her teacher on the first day of school at Solis Park School in Irvine on Thursday, August 18, 2022. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Students arrive for their first day of school at Solis Park School, the newest elementary school in the Irvine Unified School District in Irvine on Thursday, August 18, 2022. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Parents help their kindergarteners hang their backpacks before class on their first day of school at the new Solis Park School in Irvine on Thursday, August 18, 2022. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Upgrades to another 28 older schools in the district have either kicked off or have been finished thanks to Measure E, passed by Irvine voters in 2016. The measure approved selling bonds to raise $319 million to fund renovations of existing schools, aiming to “ensure all students, not just those in newer neighborhoods, have access to modern learning environments and technology to provide educational equity for all IUSD students,” Brown said.
Some of the projects funded by Measure E include the new performing arts center at Woodbridge High and science, music and innovation labs at several schools around the district.
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