Isabella Project mural unveiled at Glen City highlights gaps in early childhood education in Santa Paula

Community members, school staff, artists and students gathered at Glen City in Santa Paula to celebrate a new Isabella Project mural and to connect the public-art installation with a push to expand access to early childhood education.

Moderator opened the program by saying the new art pieces will be available to the public daily and that the initiative is intended to “develop a discussion, and the discussion has to be about early childhood education.” The moderator thanked the superintendent, the superintendent’s staff and the school board for work on the issue.

Presenter emphasized the scale of the problem in Ventura County, saying, “Presently right now in Ventura County, 12 thousand 3 to 4 year olds don't have access to early childhood education,” and explaining the developmental rationale: “By age 5, 90 percent of the brain development is completed,” the presenter said, arguing that high-quality early learning and wraparound services help children enter school ready to learn.

A second presenter put those needs in local context, saying nearly 20 percent of Santa Paula residents live at or below the federal poverty level, 12 percent lack health insurance and 31 percent of children live in single-parent homes. That presenter endorsed the Isabella Project as part of an effort to make high-quality early childhood education more accessible to Santa Paula children.

School staff described how conversations with Doctor Aguirre and his team about a children’s festival and public-education opportunities led to the mural project. School staff invited students from Glen City’s K–6 program—“we are almost at 700 students here that we're serving at Glen City,” the staff member said—to read poems in English and Spanish as part of the program.

A student recited a short poem about dreaming; a teacher offered a land acknowledgement and read a bilingual poem written while teaching poetry at Glen City, asking that the mural bring dialogue and artistic endeavors to the community.

Moderator named local artists linked with the project, including MB Hanahan and Checo, and introduced Checo to speak. The artist described difficult weather and that the work was made primarily with straight paint: “Probably 95% is a straight paint,” Checo said, thanking the school and community and saying the project began with a first meeting last December.

Organizers framed the mural as both an arts event and part of broader community efforts to lift early-learning opportunities for local children. No formal motions or votes were recorded during the event; the program concluded with artists and students thanking the audience.

The mural and related festival activities are presented by organizers as part of a push to increase awareness and community engagement around early childhood education in Santa Paula; organizers did not announce specific funding commitments or policy changes at this event.