Orange / Villa Park : Peralta Students Being Reassigned to 2 Schools

Because of the impending closing of Peralta Junior High School at 2190 Canal St., students are being reassigned to Yorba and Cerro Villa junior high schools.

Beginning in the fall, students living in the area bordered by Orange-Olive Road on the west, the railroad tracks on the north, the 55 Freeway on the east and Katella Avenue on the south will attend Yorba Junior High School, 935 N. Cambridge St.

All other students will be assigned to Cerro Villa Junior High School, 17852 Serrano Ave., Villa Park.

Peralta currently is the only school in the Orange Unified School District targeted for closing, but several others are under consideration as the district grapples with the dual problem of declining enrollment and balancing its budget.

In the 1970s, the district had more than 31,000 students, but enrollment has dropped steadily to about 24,600. In response, the district has closed four schools in the past two years. And the district is grappling with a $4.5-million deficit in its spending plan discovered last October.