Sierra Sands Unified Reshapes Education with Ambitious Reorganization 

For 50 years, the Sierra Sands Unified School District (SSUSD) has been at the heart of education in northeastern Kern County. Formed in 1974 through the consolidation of several small rural school districts in the Ridgecrest area, the district has a long history of adapting to meet the evolving needs of its community.

SSUSD’s history is deeply tied to the growth of Ridgecrest and the China Lake Naval Air Weapons Station, which supports research and development programs for the US Navy. The rapid expansion of the base in the 1940s led to a dramatic increase in student enrollment, necessitating the establishment of the China Lake Joint School District in 1945. Over time, various small districts merged, culminating in the formation of SSUSD as a unified entity. Covering 954 square miles, SSUSD now serves over 5,000 students.

“The base is [the region’s] largest employer,” said SSUSD Superintendent Dr. April Moore. “Our community is really well rounded. We’re isolated and rural but we are very tight-knit.”

Ridgecrest’s unique demographic, which includes a strong presence of research and development professionals from the base, has shaped SSUSD into what it is today. The district’s leadership, educators, and families have embraced innovation, showing a willingness to adapt and improve educational opportunities.

One of the ways the district is continuing to adapt is through a recent large-scale reorganization effort known as the R3 Initiative, which stands for Rebound, Reimagine, Rebuild. This restructuring includes boundary and organizational changes, the closure of a middle school, and the creation of both a new elementary school and junior high school. The community has shown remarkable adaptability and support for the changes, including passing a local bond measure last November to help fund these efforts and infrastructure upgrades.

Schools of Choice

Three new schools of choice are at the center of the ambitious initiative. Pierce Academy of the Arts is a TK-6th grade magnet school focused on visual and performing arts, while Vieweg STEM Academy is a TK-8th grade magnet school emphasizing science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. High Desert School is a 7th-12th grade independent study school that includes a Middle College program in partnership with Cerro Coso Community College. Each of the three new schools will open in fall 2025 on existing school sites that are being reimagined for this new purpose.

Pierce Academy of the Arts will replace Pierce Elementary School, High Desert School will be located on the Mesquite High School campus, and Vieweg STEM Academy will reopen the previously closed Vieweg back-to-basics school. Dr. Moore says SSUSD anticipates a new grant from the Department of Defense, which will go toward building a new campus for Vieweg STEM Academy in the future.  

“The bond will allow us to build new facilities to match these magnet school focus areas over the next six or so years,” Dr. Moore said. “We’re pretty excited about that.”

These new school-of-choice offerings ensure that students receive a well-rounded education while allowing families to choose a learning path that best fits their child’s interests and needs. While each school follows the core curriculum, they offer specialized focuses through the lens of their respective themes. These schools are also open to all students in the area, not just those living within the school boundaries.

“Equity was an important piece for us, making sure that it’s not elitist, it’s open to everybody,” Dr. Moore said. “We’re providing transportation to the schools of choice. We don’t want to be exclusive. We want to meet a need.”

And parents have been eager to sign their children up.

“In our initial survey, we asked: if we do this, will you send your student? And sure enough, the survey said yes. They are committing to these new learning opportunities that we provided,” Dr. Moore said.

In addition to the new schools, SSUSD is working on infrastructure improvements to upgrade aging and damaged facilities. In 2019, a devastating earthquake struck Ridgecrest, causing significant damage to several school buildings. Then, in 2023, Tropical Storm Hilary caused flooding and major water damage. Other improvements to the district include bringing in Wi-Fi-enabled buses and expanding digital access for students.

The R3 initiative is a massive project that is changing the landscape of the community. The restructuring will lead to the closure of James Monroe Middle School (6-8 grade) at the end of this school year. China Lake Junior High School (7-8 grade) will open in the fall of 2025 in place of Murray Middle School. All the elementary schools (K-5) had to adjust to include another grade level.

“It’s all interconnected,” Dr. Moore said. “Every school is being affected one way or the other.”

Meanwhile, the earthquake severely damaged Richmond Elementary School located on the base, causing it to be condemned. An entire new campus had to be built from the ground up while students used another school as swing space during the construction. Crews finished the rebuild early this year and SSUSD will host a ribbon cutting ceremony for the new campus in April. Classes will start up again at the new site in fall 2025.

Replacing an elementary school, and restructuring all the elementary and junior high schools in the area, while at the same time adding three new schools of choice, meant completely redrawing school boundary lines to balance enrollment.

“We had to change the boundaries, which is never an easy thing to do in a school district, and we did that with very little community pushback because we did it collaboratively,” Dr. Moore said.

Richmond Elementary School will host a ribbon cutting in April with classes starting in the fall.

Expanding Opportunities

The High Desert School independent study school is built for flexibility, offering a nontraditional path toward success. The middle college program is an innovative approach to education, blending high school and college coursework to provide students with a head-start on their higher education journey. All of Ridgecrest’s Alternative Education programs will have a home base of operations at the Mesquite High School campus. Principal John Cosner says this allows students to follow the path that works best for them.

“If you don’t like the traditional model, you now have something other than a continuation school to see if that meets your needs,” he said.

Cosner says Cerro Coso Community College has been a great partner to the school. The middle college program is particularly beneficial for middle-achieving students who may not have had access to early college experiences in the past.

“In this model, everybody gets better. Everyone gets more access,” Cosner said. “This partnership and this purposeful blending really maximizes student success.”

In addition to early and middle college classes made available through SSUSD’s partnership with Cerro Coso, the district promotes a number of certification and Career Technical Education (CTE) programs for students ready for workplace training. These pathways are designed to get students interested in career fields early and provide the necessary training so they can be hired immediately after high school.

“We have some really robust CTE pathways,” Dr. Moore explained. “We’re starting the pre-apprenticeship with aerospace engineering in conjunction with KCSOS. We have a lot of exciting programs.”

Principal Cosner with students on campus of Mesquite High School.

A continuing challenge in conjunction with the R3 initiative is hiring and retaining talented and passionate teachers to maintain rigorous education standards. With a national teacher shortage, Dr. Moore says small rural areas like Ridgecrest have had a harder time than most. She hopes opening these magnet schools will attract staff in the area who are interested in the arts and STEM fields.   

“We want to make positions available to our local people,” Dr. Moore said. “That’s what we’re promoting; if this is your passion, then this school might be the fit for you.”

With support from the community, SSUSD is proving that progress and innovation can thrive, even in the most remote areas.

“Our board, our community, and the staff have really stepped in,” Cosner said. “We’re designed to be a service to our community. I’m excited to see us be on this new trajectory.”