In February, a U.S. senator ventured to Guadalupe to see firsthand how $1.9 million in federal funds helped bring the town “a much overdue community asset,” as the local superintendent described it.
Guadalupe Union School District Superintendent Emilio Handall escorted U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff (D-California) during a tour of the Early Learning Center—the city’s new school dedicated to transitional kindergarten (TK) students.
The center’s ribbon cutting took place in January after roughly four years of conceptualization, raising the necessary funding, and construction, Handall told the Sun. Schiff toured the campus with him about a month after the school’s grand opening.
“Sen. Schiff and his wife, Eve, are very down-to-earth,” Handall said in an email interview. “We toured the campus, met with staff, students, and even had a sit-down toward the end of their visit.
“My favorite part,” Handall said, “was telling the senator just how much of an impact this center will have on the students, families, and community of Guadalupe.”
The total cost of developing the new school was about $10 million, including $1.9 million that Schiff and fellow California U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla helped secure specifically to fund the facility’s outdoor playground.
“Their support is immeasurable and is an example of how government does help everyday Guadalupans,” Handall said.
The playground consists of four main areas, Handall said, and each was designed specifically to suit the needs of the Early Learning Center’s age range—3-to-5-year-olds.
“The swing set has a few swings that have larger seats and safety straps that allow smaller [children] and/or students with disabilities to enjoy the equipment as well,” Handall said.
Another of the four play areas is an all-weather hill with a rope for students to help pull themselves up, he explained. Both this structure and the swing set are great for developing gross motor skills, he added.
‘With the amount of space, age-appropriate play structures, and classrooms, residents of Guadalupe should be excited to bring their children to our Early Learning Center.’
—Emilio Handall, Guadalupe Union School District superintendent
Handall described another play area as “an inclusive whirly,” which was designed with all abilities and skill levels in mind.
“That is essentially a merry-go-round that sits flush to the ground and allows for all students to get on the structure, even those with physical limitations,” Handall explained.
Another area in the school’s playground is where students will find the age-old, family-friendly rocking animals, as well as “a very low balance beam” over a patch of grass, Handall said.
Serving up to around 200 students in eight different classrooms, the Early Learning Center is one of Guadalupe’s only child care options for parents of young children, Handall told the Sun in January, about a week before the school’s ribbon cutting.
Handall, who’s worked for the Guadalupe Union School District since 2018, described the city as a child care desert.
“With the amount of space, age-appropriate play structures, and classrooms, residents of Guadalupe should be excited to bring their children to our Early Learning Center,” he said via email. “Its construction has been a goal of mine, and it is surreal to have it built and available for our community.”
While federal and state grants covered the majority of the Early Learning Center’s $10 million construction budget, local entities stepped in to benefit the new school in other ways.
Thanks to support from Santa Barbara’s Audacious Foundation, the Early Learning Center completed its outdoor school garden in early March.
“This garden will be used for TK gardening and science-related learning,” said Handall, whose personal favorite plant in the new garden is the pineapple guava tree.
“I used to have one in my backyard,” he said. “I love pineapple guavas.”
Highlights
• The Santa Barbara County Department of Behavioral Wellness recently celebrated the opening of its new Behavioral Wellness Service Center on West Central Avenue in Lompoc. The new facility brings several key Behavioral Wellness programs—including the Youth Opioid Response substance use disorder treatment team and Homeless Outreach team—under one roof, according to the department.
• Twenty local students from schools in the Santa Maria Joint Union High School District participated in Cal Poly’s Migrant Speech and Debate Tournament on March 13. Speech coaches at Righetti High School, Pioneer Valley High School, and Santa Maria High School spent many hours mentoring students to help strengthen their public speaking, organization, and critical thinking skills, according to the district.
Reach Senior Staff Writer Caleb Wiseblood at cwiseblood@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in March 26 – April 2, 2026.