A STEM-focused elementary school opening next school year in Riverside has paired with a space engineering company to mentor students.
Casa Blanca Elementary School, set to open in August, will emphasize hands-on learning in science, technology, engineering and math.
Collins Aerospace is based in North Carolina, but has a Riverside plant once known as Rohr, Inc. It designs aviation systems for commercial and military use.
Under the program, employees will work on STEM projects with students and staff members on the campus, which will serve the predominantly Latino neighborhood.
“For example, suppose sixth grade students are studying rocket stability by designing and launching paper rockets,” Riverside Unified School District spokesperson Liz Pinney-Muglia wrote in a Friday, March 7, email. “In this type of scenario, an aerospace engineer from Collins Aerospace may visit the classroom to discuss key engineering concepts, guide students through the design process and connect the lesson to real-world applications.”
The partnership will give students a connection to industry professionals, she said.
The program’s goal is “to inspire the next generation of scientists, engineers, and mathematicians,” Casa Blanca Principal Bernie Torres said in a Thursday, March 6, news release.
The campus will include students who live in the Casa Blanca area bounded by Jefferson Avenue and Mary Street and from Indiana Avenue to Victoria Avenue.
For the past 60 years, neighborhood students have attended six different elementary schools: Washington, Victoria, Jefferson, Harrison, Monroe and Madison.
Ground was broken on Casa Blanca Elementary School in 2023. It will educate up to 750 students, from preschool through sixth grade.
The campus will be the first school to open in the community since an earlier Casa Blanca school closed in 1967 as part of the school district’s plan to bus racial minorities into predominantly white neighborhoods to balance out the ethnic makeup of schools.
In 1965, Riverside Unified became the first district in a city of 100,000 or more to voluntarily desegregate schools. Since then, many neighborhood residents have advocated for a new school and an end to the busing of its students.
On Tuesday, March 4, Collins presented a $25,000 check for the school’s three labs and to buy equipment such as 3D printers, robotics kits, Lego education sets and sewing machines. The items will help children develop problem-solving, critical thinking and collaboration skills, Pinney-Muglia said.
Later this month, Collins will be honored by the Greater Riverside Chambers of Commerce as its 2024 Business of the Year for the company’s economic impact and community work that includes the upcoming partnership. The chamber’s 125th Inaugural Celebration is set for Thursday, March 20, at the Riverside Convention Center.
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