First Street Elementary is being turned into GEMS! What does this mean for the current students attending FSE? Making more space for students at GEMS sounds great, but do we really need to take over a whole other school?

Due to a school district board meeting on Jun 10, 2025, WPUSD decided that with all the new homes and apartment complex buildings being built within the next 6 years, there will be many more students attending Glen Edwards Middle and Foskett Ranch Elementary students that will eventually go to GEMS.

 Another option was to build an entirely new Middle School in this district, but WPUSD has a budget and turning First Street into GEMS is much more affordable and convenient. 

I think turning First Street Elementary into GEMS is an okay idea, but I’m not sure how it’s all gonna work out. One big problem is where all the kids from First Street are gonna go, because Foskett Ranch Elementary isn’t that big either. 

If they try to send everyone there, it could get super crowded, and I’m not sure how they’re gonna fit all the kids in. It feels like they didn’t really think about how to make enough room for everyone. I get that they want to make things better, but it seems like they should’ve figured out the space problem first.

I’m not sure how I feel about turning First Street Elementary into GEMS. It could be cool, but I have some big questions. Like, where are all the kids from First Street going to go? 

I do see where they are coming from, but after talking with more students from GEMS, I found that it is a common opinion that GEMS doesn’t need more space. According to WPUSD, First Street’s enrollment rates have gone down rapidly.