Mooooving traffic along

Danette Goulet

NEWPORT COAST -- The opening of Newport Coast Elementary School on

Monday was an “udder” success -- thanks in part to a parent who directed

morning traffic disguised as a cow to keep tempers down and the mood

light.

PTA mom Carla Hummel decided she would do her part to make sure the

first day went smoothly after tempers flared at pickup time the afternoon

of the school’s trial run two weeks ago.

As a safety precaution, parents are asked to loop around the block and

come down Ridge Park Road instead of making a left turn into the school’s

drive at congested drop-off and pickup times.

The parent directing traffic the afternoon of the trial run was on the

receiving end of some choice words and gestures, Hummel said.

“I just did it to lighten up the mood,” she said of her heifer

appearance. “They can’t be mad at you if you’re dressed like an idiot.”

The school, which sits on the corner of Newport Coast Drive and Ridge

Park Road in Newport Beach, was originally scheduled to open Sept. 5 with

350 students in kindergarten through sixth grade.

The $17.3-million school officially opened for business on Monday,

just shy of six months late.

“The first day was very exciting,” Principal Monique Van Zeebroek

said. “Waiting for it seemed like forever.”

Teachers and students were giddy with excitement to finally be

installed in the new school. So much so that the lack of grass and

missing walkway covers were barely noticed.

A combination of the close quarters they shared at Lincoln Elementary

School while waiting for the new school and the common bond of excitement

at being the school’s inaugural group, had the whole school community

already feeling like a family.

Parents hung out in the staff lounge, where they had supplied

breakfast goodies long after the day began. Then, as a special treat to

show their appreciation to the teachers, the PTA had Jerry’s Deli deliver

lunch.

“What I think is neat is that we were already a school, before we got

here,” Van Zeebroek said. “I already know all the kids and parents.”