Faculty and over 350 Paularino Elementary students kick off the school year

Paularino Elementary staff had their hands full shuffling over 350 kids in and out of classrooms on this school year’s first day of instruction Monday.

There were “first day jitters, especially for some of those littles,” principal Annalisa Schwartz said. “There were also tears, but not as many as we thought there would be, which is great.”

Paularino Elementary students wait to get picked up after the first day of school on Monday.

(Eric Licas)

Teachers and faculty were especially mindful of kindergartners and transfer students who were seeing their campus for the very first time, Schwartz said. They were ready to point kids in the right direction and keep things running in an orderly fashion, setting the tone for the remainder of the year.

“We’re talking about behavior expectations throughout campus,” Schwartz said. “How do you sit at the lunch tables; y’know things that we probably take for granted, doing it every day. But maybe for some they’ve never had to sit at a table and unpack their lunchboxes before.”

Josefine Giani embraces her 4-year-old daughter, Maia, after the girl’s first day of school at Paularino Elementary on Monday.

(Eric Licas)

Students and staff made it to the closing bell without any major issues, Schwartz said. Some kids held hands with teachers or new friends as they were guided to the lawn in front of the school to wait for their rides.

Four-year-old Maia Giani smiled from ear to ear when she spotted her mom, Josefine Giani, out of the crowd of parents and guardians waiting near the campus’ entrance on an 85-degree afternoon in Costa Mesa. She said her first day was “good,” but it was obvious she was ready for it to end as she ran into her mother’s embrace.

A parent waits for children to finish their first day of school at Paularino Elementary in Costa Mesa on Monday.

(Eric Licas)

Not all of Paularino’s students were ready to go on day one, however. Susana Leal and her daughters, 6-year-old Iris Mata and 9-year-old Itzel Mata, spent Monday afternoon in Paularino’s main office signing up for the classes.

They emigrated from Morelia in the Mexican state of Michoacán and just arrived in Costa Mesa on Aug. 7. Leal speaks limited English and was guided through the enrollment process by Araceli Cruz, one of the school’s administrative staff.

Leal said the schools her children attended in Mexico had high rates of “delincuencia,” and were unsafe due to the presence of criminal cartels in their neighborhood.

Although the young girls’ mother was worried about the challenges her kids might encounter as they adapt to completely new surroundings, she’s certain their move to Orange County will lead them to brighter futures, Cruz explained, translating for Leal. When she asks them about their old home, her kids tell her they never want to go back, according to Cruz.

“I want to make a lot of friends and study a lot,” Itzel Mata said.

Araceli Cruz helps Susana Leal register her children for classes at Paularinio Elementary on Monday.

(Eric Licas)

Susana Leal and her children, Itzel Mata and Iris Mata, sign up for classes in the main office at Paularino Elementary School on Monday. The family just moved to Costa Mesa earlier this month.

(Eric Licas)