San Diego Unified School District officially opened its newest elementary school, Thursday.
Nipaquay Elementary in Mission Valley was named in honor of the indigenous people who first lived on the land where it now sits.
“We strived to represent the truth of the original people of this territory,” said Olympia Beltran who is Native American and a member of the San Diego Human Relations Commission. She was also part of the committee that helped the school district come up with a name for the campus.
Nipaquay translated means “a second home.” The land along the San Diego River belonged to the Kumeyaay nation for 600 generations before Europeans colonized the area.
The naming committee considered the history and the future of students who will pass through the campus.
“They feel comfortable here. They feel it’s a place to grow. They learn and explore and feel that this educational space is their other home,” said Beltran.
San Diego Unified School Board trustees began discussing a new school in the Civita community of Mission Valley back in 2008. An environmental impact study preceded years of planning and approvals. A ribbon-cutting ceremony, Thursday, officially opened the school to students in universal TK through second grade. Each year a grade level will be added until there is a 5th-grade class.
Nipaquay has hybrid classrooms that are indoor and outdoor learning spaces, there’s a collaborative library and dedicated playgrounds designed for exploration and learning.
There is an academic focus on environmental science and science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics (STEAM), which is supported by a sustainable design that incorporates solar power and energy efficiency.
Kerly Sanchez-Silva and her husband, Mario Silva, enrolled their 4-year-old, Othnair, this fall. The family speaks Spanish, Portuguese and English. The Silvas are committed to diversity, inclusion and the mission of their new history-making school.
“Why not have your second home be something special? Somewhere you can learn and become someone who can change the future,” Sanchez-Silva said.
Her husband agreed, “This school did take a big part in honoring Native American history, the history of people from the past, as well as integrating what’s going to happen in the future,” Silva said. “It teaches the kids the importance to know where they come from so you can understand where you’re going.”
