If you've ever visited my blog, you've probably come to 3 conclusions about me: I'm totally in love with Lincoln, extremely passionate about real estate, and that my family is everything to me. My children are my "why" for everything that I do, including moving to Lincoln almost a decade ago and pursuing a career in Real Estate. As my oldest natural child approached kindergarten, I began to panic at the thought of her going to school in the school district where we resided. I knew I could provide her a better educational foundation elsewhere, so I got busy researching school districts in nearby communities. I found exceptional schools in beautiful high-dollar areas, but found that high-dollar areas have high-dollar housing expenses. The problem was that I didn't have high-dollars!
This was me; too much month at the end of the money. Regardless, I knew I needed to provide the best education possible for my babies. Somehow, I stumbled upon a growing community that offered reasonable housing expenses AND superior schools! Lincoln had it all and I quickly realized we were home at last! My daughter immediately began kindergarten at Creekside Oaks Elementary, located at the corner of First Street and Joiner Parkway. The school offered music and science specialists, an accelerated reader program, and a community garden as well as many other aids in my daughter's learning. I was thrilled to send her to a school that offered so many programs to enhance her learning experience.
A couple years went by and my niece joined our household and began attending Creekside Oaks as well. She loved it there and immediately flourished. My oldest son entered kindergarten at Foskett Ranch Elementary as part of the Special Day Class for special needs children with various diagnoses including Autism. Foskett Ranch was wonderful at facilitating my son's Individual Educational Plan, or IEP for short, and provided early intervention programs to ensure his academic success. These included: Occupational Therapy, Speech Therapy, and behavior support, to name a few. With a Distinguished California School Designation, I knew my little boy was in the right place!
By this time, I had both a second and fourth grader at Creekside Oaks, a kindergartner at Foskett Ranch, and was able to enroll my toddler in a Head Start Program in the neighboring community of Sheridan. Although the Sheridan Head Start location is no longer utilized, the program remains with school sites at the corner of First and O Streets in Lincoln and on the Carlin Coppin Elementary School campus as well. The program focused on language development, nutrition, and hygiene skills such as hand washing and teeth brushing. My little boy received the basics he needed to become successful in kindergarten. At the very end of that school year, we bought a house that fed into the oldest elementary school in Lincoln, Carlin C. Coppin.
Carlin Coppin also happened to be the school that housed the Special Day Class program for second and third graders, so my son who'd been at Foskett Ranch transferred over to Carlin Coppin. Meanwhile, my niece entered middle school at Twelve Bridges Middle School.
With a well-rounded curriculum providing a lot of academic support, Twelve Bridges Middle School demanded that students adhered to assignment deadlines. I embraced this as laying the foundation of accountability that kids should expect in the "real world', beginning with college. TBMS offered an annual opportunity for 6th grade students to visit the Outdoor Learning Experience, or OLE for short. OLE was something the sixth graders looked forward to the entire year and took place at the Lincoln High School Farm. I was thrilled that my children were thriving within a district offering so many opportunities for educational and personal enrichment! The educational foundation I so desperately wanted for my children was achieved by moving them out to Lincoln! 9 years after moving here, we've never looked back.
The Special Day Class for fourth and fifth graders was held at Twelve Bridges Elementary, so once again, my oldest son moved to another superior Lincoln school. To give you an idea, that means that my children have been to every elementary school in our district at one point or another except First Street School, Lincoln Crossing, and Sheridan Elementary. First Street School offers a special academic program for GATE (Gifted and Talented Education) identified students. I've heard nothing but good things regarding that program from other parents. Lincoln Crossing has a beautiful campus and offers many academic enhancement features as well. The important thing to note here is that Lincoln students are provided the fundamentals to succeed in school as well as life, all the while thriving within a community that truly cares about each students' future.
This coming year, my niece will enter Lincoln High School. We are extremely excited about the future! She can hardly wait to be a Fighting Zebra! Lincoln High School offers many classes that aren't in many other California High Schools due to budget cuts. Classes like Auto Shop and Home Ec that just don't exist elsewhere. If you're thinking of making Lincoln your new home, rest assured that your children can flourish within our community and our excellent schools. Go Fighting Zebras!!!
Visit the website for Western Placer Unified School District:
http://www.wpusd.k12.ca.us/index.html
As always, feel free to call me for more information. :)
Mitzi De La Cruz
CalBRE License 01929064
Real Estate Professional
Lyon Real Estate
cell~(916) 871-8132
e-fax (916) 746-7593 private fax no cover sheet required
email: mdelacruz@golyon.com
www.mdelacruz.golyon.com
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