This new Marquez upper play yard was built after the fire.
Long-time Palisades resident Sam Lagana is the process of remediating his home, which is located above Marquez Elementary School. “It’s so nice to hear the children’s voices again,” he told CTN. “It’s nice to hear them playing.” Students returned to the campus at 16821 Marquez Ave, on September 30.
“Students are settling in at the interim campus,” new principal Lisa Timmerman wrote CTN. “We will be having tours on October 28 and November 4 at 8:30 a.m.”
Timmerman added, “On October 24, we are welcoming all former families who left over the last nine months. We would love to welcome them back.”
The number of teachers is the same as it was when the January 7 fire destroyed much of the Palisades, including two elementary schools, Palisades and Marquez.
That means any parent searching for small class sizes, this is the school to attend. It is a charter school, so applications are accepted outside of the attendance area.
Marquez offers physical education, art, music, science, robotics, and Lauren Hunter, a board-certified art therapist, who is funded through Cedars Sinai, is in the library.
The portable classrooms, library, administration building, kindergarten area, science room and music room, were new, with windows and air conditioning. The kitchen in the lunch building was sizeable, with all new equipment. There were several play areas on the 7.73 acres campus. A large new playground has been built in the “middle” third of the land.
If families would like to attend an open house, they can go to the website to sign up or just show up at 8:30 a.m. on the specified days click here.
“We are excited to welcome families to the campus,” Timmerman said.
When the school reopened three weeks ago, first grade teacher, Grace Winters, said, “I lost my classroom, and I lost my home.” Winters who had attended Marquez, Paul Revere and PaliHi said on September 30. “It’s positive to be here. This is a place to come back to, and it feels like there is life again.”