After years of planning, the Hesperia High School Center for the Arts has transitioned from a dream into a reality.
Hesperia Unified School District officials hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Tuesday for its new 40,500-square-foot multi-use facility, designed to serve students from Hesperia and the surrounding High Desert area.
During the ceremony, Hesperia High School Principal Michael Everett greeted leadership partners, district officials and community leaders to the new campus facility on Maple Avenue.
Everett explained that the uniquely designed facility will offer medical services to students and the community via Providence St. Mary Medical Center staff, while also serving as a student arts center.
After the ribbon cutting, Everett introduced the student Select Ensemble, which sang “Come Alive.”
A trio of drama students also sang “Who I’d Be” from the upcoming production “Shrek the Musical.” For more information about “Shrek the Musical,” visit https://our.show/hhsshrekthemusical.
Decades in the making
Everett said since the campus opened in 1984, over 15,000 students have graduated from Hesperia High, with performing arts students showcasing their talents in the school cafeteria, the gym, at other schools, churches and any place that “would take us in.”
“That changes with the class of 2026,” Everett said. “This group, and generations moving forward, gets to call this theater their very own.”
The centerpieces
The centerpiece of the facility is the main theater, with over 500 fixed and lighted numbered seats, and approximately 18-foot-tall by 35-foot-wide digital LED video wall mounted toward the back of the large stage, which includes multiple curtains, lighting and a sound system.
Behind the stage are furnished green rooms, dressing rooms and a variety of classrooms.
Another centerpiece at the facility is a spacious lobby with a concession area and multiple monitors to view stage productions.
The facility includes the “black box,” a soundproof drama classroom mini theater with professional lighting and sound.
The choir room, which includes large windows to allow natural lighting, overlooks the campus football stadium.
The building also includes a large band classroom, flex spaces, offices, restrooms, and a reception area.
Health services
The building’s community resource center, a partnership with Providence St. Mary Medical Center in Apple Valley, includes urgent care, behavioral health and community service resources.
DLR Group Architect Alex Gordon told the Daily Press, “We’ve never designed a building like this before, so this was a learning experience for us.”
Gordon added that the design process for the facility started five years ago, with all key players from the school district and medical providers.
Gordon said the result is a “next generation educational facility” that has separate entrances for students and those in the community.
Erickson-Hall Construction was contracted to work on the project.
If you build it
Holding back tears, District Superintendent Dr. Michelle Smith said she’s excited for the special day as a HHS alum, former teacher and principal, and parent of a HHS drama student.
Smith said “innovation” is “the culture” of Hesperia High and is demonstrated in the design of the building, the use of state funding, and the partnerships with medical providers.
The second word Smith highlighted was “perseverance,” especially demonstrated by former students who performed in unusual venues.
“They say, ‘if you build it, they will come,’” Smith said. “But here in Scorpion Country, our tenacious and talented staff and students didn’t wait for it to be built.”
Smith explained that staff and students rose up and succeeded despite the lack of adequate facilities.
“In the case of Hesperia High School, rather than ‘if you build it, they will come,’” Smith said. “I believe that if you build it, they will feel appreciated and valued, as every single student deserves to feel.”
Providence St. Mary Medical Center CEO Randy Castillo said that “without hesitation,” he and the medical provider accepted the invitation to partner with Hesperia High and the district.
Castillo said the partnership is part of leveraging a relationship with IEHP, Kaiser Permanente and Choice Medical Group in serving the community.
When stars align
District Board President Eric Swanson told the audience that when first elected to the district in 2001, his three goals included Hesperia High obtaining a science wing, a football stadium and performing arts center.
Swanson said, “We have all three,” after the stars aligned and the funding was found.
In December 2023, students, high school staff and community leaders attended the groundbreaking of the event center, which was constructed at the east end of the campus near the parking lot.
During that time, Hesperia City Manager Rachel Molina said she and her daughters graduated from the school.
Molina shared that one of the things her daughters were passionate about was advocating for a performing arts center at Hesperia High.
“As a Scorpion mom, I attended lots of performances put on by the drama department, but always at another campus,” Molina said. “It is really admirable the way Hesperia Unified School District took to heart the needs of their students.”
The event center project met federal funding criteria because Hesperia High School serves a high number of low-income students, students with disabilities, English learners, racial and ethnic minorities, students experiencing homelessness, and children in foster care, according to district officials.
Daily Press reporter Rene Ray De La Cruz may be reached at RDeLaCruz@VVDailyPress.com. Follow him on X @DP_ReneDeLaCruz
This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: What Hesperia High School says of new Center for the Arts
Reporting by Rene Ray De La Cruz, Victorville Daily Press / Victorville Daily Press
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