New Design39Campus Opens in North San Diego

Design39Campus, a preschool through 6th grade school, is part of the Poway Unified School District

After much anticipation, a new, state-of-the-art school is opening its doors in San Diego’s North County, welcoming hundreds of students to the unique campus.

Design39Campus (D39C), located at 17050 Del Sur Ridge, is the newest school to open in the Poway Unified School District. Class officially begins Wednesday but on Saturday, parents and students got a chance to check out the campus, meet teachers and explore the learning space.

“I’m pretty impressed – super excited. It looks like they came up with some great ideas,” said parent Marcos Getchell.

His daughter will be attending D39C and he’s looking forward to seeing her progress at the school, which is all about breaking the mold of traditional education.

For instance, instead of teaching in regular classrooms, educators will teach in collaborative “pods” and strive to use modern methods to reach their students and make them passionate about learning.

Getchell said the environment will be great for his daughter, who’s a kinesthetic learner.

“Looks like she can study sitting down, standing up or on her head if she wants to, so we’re excited about that,” he said.

For now, D39C will teach students from preschool through 6th grade. In years to come, it will expand to teach students through 8th grade. The school will serve students living in the northern communities of 4S Ranch, Del Sur and The Lakes.

Sonya Wrisley, principal of D39C, said 860 students are enrolled in the school this year. At full capacity, in approximately three to four years, the campus will enroll 1,450 students.

Wrisley said the school’s tech-savvy layout will complement a more hands-on curriculum and aid in the school’s mission to individually tend to every student.

“We’re personalizing learning for our students. We’re going to meet each child exactly where they need to be. If they’re ready to fly and move on in the curriculum we’ll help them do that. If they need to go a little bit slower in some areas, we’ll slow down and help them with that,” said Wrisley. “We’ll do exactly what each child needs.”

Mother Gina Sciarrino hopes the school is a fit for her son, Franco.

“I feel like more hand on interaction is going to get my child focused and excited,” she said.

“Having a different style of education – this is a new opportunity,” added Franco.

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