New School’s Name to Honor Late Teacher

A new school in the Santa Ana Unified School will bear the name of Lydia Romero Cruz, a district elementary school teacher who died two years ago.

School board members voted Tuesday to name the all-portable elementary school at 1512 W. Santa Ana Blvd. after the beloved teacher.

The school will open next January.

Romero Cruz was a product of Santa Ana schools and went on to become a teacher at Fremont Elementary.

Friends, colleagues and family members asked that the new school be named in her honor because of her dedication to teaching the children of Santa Ana.

Board members said they hoped the children who attend the school will be inspired by Romero Cruz’s life.

The school’s namesake suffered a brain aneurysm and died in 1996 at the age of 35.

The board unanimously approved the change. They also had considered naming the school after Juan Pablo Grijalva, Orange County’s first settler.

Grijalva arrived in California on foot from Sonora, Mexico, and established the first rancho in Orange County, the Rancho Santiago de Santa Ana.

The explorer also established several missions in what are now Baja California and California.

Board members assured Grijalva’s family members they would consider naming a future school in his honor.