BREAKING GROUND: Students ready for new school

When Principal Art Ochoa arrived at Sunrise Acres Elementary School six years ago, he saw a school in desperate need of attention.

Although the plaque next to the school's entrance states the school's birth year is 1952, Ochoa found PTA documents dating back to 1946 when Nellis Air Force Base barracks were moved on site. The buildings have been added to and restored throughout the years, but upon looking at the state of the school, Las Vegas City Councilman Gary Reese agreed with Ochoa -- the students needed a new building.

"How can anybody expect their kids to learn in an environment like this?" Reese said.

The City of Las Vegas and the Clark County School District have worked out a plan to build the new Sunrise Acres on 9.4 acres of Hadland Park, located on the corner of 28th Street and Stewart Avenue, adjacent to the school's current residence. The park will be reduced to 4 acres and will be used by Sunrise Acres students during the day and by the city at night.

School district employees currently working in curriculum and instruction in a building on N. 9th Street and Bonanza Road will move to the old Sunrise Acres complex once the new school is finished, next January.

The replacement will give both parties more room and Sunrise Acres administration a chance to strengthen the community atmosphere between it and Martin Middle School, located across from the construction site.

The lines of communication have already been opened with combined after-school programs and suggestions from Martin's administrators on how to ready Sunrise Acres students for middle school life.

As a result, for instance, students learn to type in the third-grade so the lack of skill doesn't hinder them once they reach Martin.

"We intend to work with them as close as we can," Ochoa said.

The new building will provide more classrooms, as well as meeting rooms for classes and conference rooms for staff.

"This is a dream come true," Ochoa said.

"There's just so much more in that new set up," added Pamela Radke, assistant principal.

Reese sees the construction as the first step in rebuilding the area. Plans are also in the works for a 5.5-acre Neighborhood Services building on the corner of Stewart and Eastern avenues, as well as a "business incubator" to help establish businesses in the area, Reese said.

"The one thing we have is pride," Reese told 680 Sunrise Acres students who gathered for the ground breaking Feb. 20. "And the way to have pride is to work for it."

For Ochoa, the work is finally paying off.