The Denair Lions Club has made many important contributions to the community over the decades. Quite a few of its high-profile projects have benefited the Denair Unified School District, the latest one being the installation of a new scoreboard at the high school baseball field earlier this year.

The updated scoreboard – which sits behind the fence in left-center field  — was a big hit with Denair’s players and fans this past season. It’s much bigger than the old one it replaced and shows each team’s score by innings in addition to overall hits, runs and errors. It also has a decorative truss with a big baseball framed with the words “Denair Coyotes” that was fabricated by the Lions Club.

On the back of the scoreboard is a sign that says “Welcome to Ron W. Cornell Baseball Park,” which honors the man who coached the Coyotes from 1972 to 2009.

The Lions Club spent more than $12,000 on materials and labor for the project, with the Denair High Boosters Club contributing $5,000.

Installation was completed in one day. Past Lions President and current board member Jeremy Rowell led the project, with assistance from some of his employees at Acme Electric in Turlock as well as other Lions Club members.

“We were approached by the school district last year to see if we could help,” Rowell said. “We were happy to do it.”

Anthony Armas, the high school’s athletic director, said the ongoing support of the Lions Club “is huge.”

“The Denair Lions Club has always contributed to our community in a big way,” he said. “They’ve contributed to so many things in our athletic department throughout the years that it’s hard to keep count. From stadium renovations to scoreboards to barbecues and everything in between — their support is crucial to not only our high school, but to the community as a whole.”

Rowell appreciates the kind words from Armas and other school officials, students and longtime Denair boosters, but said that’s not what inspires the 35 or so Lions members. 

“We don’t like a ton of recognition,” he said. “We just try to help the community.”

The Lions are not yet done at Ron Cornell Field, Rowell said. They are looking to upgrade the irrigation system for all the baseball fields at the high school.

In July, they will hold an event to raise more money for ongoing renovations at the Denair Gaslight Theater, where they already have made more than $120,000 worth of upgrades through the years.

Conservative and cautious. Those are the words the top two officials in the Denair Unified School District used to describe the proposed 2025-26 budget. The $22.6 million spending plan discussed Thursday night by trustees represents a $1.8 million increase over the current year.

“While the district is in a better position than last year, financial pressures remain,” said Daisy Swearingen, Denair’s chief business officer. “For example, the district is facing a projected 30% increase in property and liability insurance premiums next year, with early estimates showing a 41% increase in liability and a 31% increase in property coverage. These pressures — along with uncertainty in state funding and declining enrollment trends statewide — make planning especially complex.”

Swearingen called next year’s budget proposal “cautious,” though she voiced hope that the potential restoration of previously reduced state funding, and along with new proposed funding, could help offset costs related to critical needs such as Chromebook refresh, curriculum updates, tutoring, mental health services, and professional development for teachers and staff.

Superintendent Terry Metzger agreed, saying, “We budget and spend conservatively.”

“Our budget is a reflection of the priorities of the board and our stakeholders,” she added.

As in the past, Swearingen told trustees that salaries and benefits make up the largest portion of expenditures, constituting approximately 89% of the district’s unrestricted budget and about 82% of the total general fund budget. 

Thursday night was the required public hearing for the proposed budget; no action was taken. That will happen June 12 when trustees are expected to vote on it. All school districts in the state must pass their budgets before the 2025-26 fiscal year begins July 1.

The board also conducted one more public hearing Thursday night, this one on the district’s Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP), a three-year strategy that lays out how state, federal and other money will be used to serve students at the district’s four campuses. LCAPs are developed in conjunction with staff and input from the community gathered over multiple meetings.

Denair’s LCAP has three distinct goals, all with multiple actions to implement:

• Students will demonstrate skills that contribute to post-secondary success in the areas of technology, academics, social-emotional wellbeing, and life skills.
• By the end of the 2026-27 school year, an additional 20% of students will demonstrate, through local and state measures, authentic literacy (reading, writing and speaking) in all content areas, with an emphasis on math literacy (numeracy).
• 100% of Denair schools will be safe and positive school campuses, where all students can be successful.

“Our stakeholders told us to stay focused and steady,” Metzger said. “We have been making incremental growth toward our goals. There is good evidence that our actions are working. For example, we’ve been able to reduce chronic absenteeism and increase student achievement in English language arts and math through our multi-tiered systems of support.”

The superintendent also said voter approval last fall of Measure Z – a $32.4 million bond initiative — will allow the district to immediately upgrade its campus security environment.

“We’re now able to continue projects that make our campuses safer,” Metzger explained, pointing to security cameras, additional fencing and the redesign of the elementary campus and Denair Charter Academy next door to be single-point entry schools.

In other action Thursday, trustees:

• Trustees approved an agreement with the California School Employees Association (CSEA) on June 12, which includes a one-time payment equal to 4.5% of each employee’s annual base pay. That same one-time payment was also extended to unrepresented groups, including confidential, management, and administrative employees. The arrangement mirrors the agreement approved earlier this spring for certificated (teaching) staff.
• Listened as mental health clinician Lina Mateus reviewed data from 2024-25, highlighting strengths, areas of surprise or concern, success stories, and plans to address identified concerns for the upcoming year.
• Heard a report from the district’s principals about the iReady spring testing results.
• Approved a contract worth $107,289 with the Stanislaus County Office of Education for it to provide various services to the district, including teacher training and professional support, special education, health, technology and learning services, substitute teachers and graphics.

Though the regular school year is coming to a close this week, hundreds of Denair students and instructors already are making plans to participate in summer classes that will be held until late June.

For elementary-age children, summer school is a time for continued enrichment in core subjects like English, math and science to improve their knowledge and prepare them for the next grade level. Classes begin May 29 at Denair Elementary Charter Academy and run through June 27.

For high school students, summer is an important opportunity to earn credits in courses they failed so they can get back on track to graduate. Classes run June 2-30 at Denair Charter Academy.

At DECA, current transitional kindergarten through sixth-graders are eligible to participate in summer school. As of Monday morning, 215 students are signed up.

The focus of the program, explained Principal Robert Moore, is continued education and enrichment opportunities to keep students engaged during the summer.

“We want staff to take this opportunity to continue giving students the tools to become strong readers or even build upon the foundations that have already been established throughout the year,” he said. “We will continue to provide some interventions this year to strengthen our authentic literacy skills in small groups or individually as well.”

Moore said summer school teachers are encouraged to do longer projects that sometimes get squeezed out in the regular school year.

“The summer program really gives the opportunities to integrate science as well due to its hands-on and project-based nature,” he said.

Instruction that helps with students’ social emotional development also is part of DECA’s summer program, Moore said.

Classes at DECA begin at 8:30 a.m., but many students arrive beginning at 7:30 to take advantage of the free breakfasts that are offered. Classes run until 11:30 a.m. when students are fed a free lunch and have recess.

The afternoon enrichment includes a rotation of fun activities until 4:30 p.m., Moore said. There is a snack for students in the afternoon. Parents are allowed to pick students up any time after the morning instructional period ends. 

“I am excited for another successful summer program where we can continue to serve the families in the community by continuing to provide learning experiences and also giving students some shared experiences that will hopefully build their relationships with our school staff,” Moore said.

At DCA, the learning atmosphere is decidedly more serious than what exists next door at DECA. That’s because – for many students – the ability to earn a high school diploma is literally on the line. Students who have failed classes must retake them to receive those all-important credits that will allow them to graduate.

There are two tracks toward credit recovery available at DCA. Both have roughly 30 students enrolled this summer.

The first is independent study – where the students do the bulk of their work at home on a computer and come to campus once a week to meet with their teacher. This is the path taken by students who attend DCA the rest of the year. They can choose from courses in math, English, careers, art, history, science, physical education and computer literacy.

The second option is cyber high, which requires students to physically come to campus five days a week from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. This is the favored alternative of students who attend Denair High and need to make up classes in math, English, health or social science. They typically take one intensive online course at a time. Once they pass the first, they move on to the next one.

Andrea Ximena Padilla is the Denair High School Class of 2025 valedictorian thanks to her 4.26 grade-point average. The salutatorian will be Jack Ruane, who compiled a 4.15 GPA over four years.

Graduation is set for Friday, May 23 at Jack Lytton Stadium. Gates open at 6:30 p.m. and the ceremony begins at 7 p.m. 

Padilla and Ruane recently took time to answer some questions about their high school experiences.

Question: What are the key things other students should know about your academic success and how you achieved it?

Padilla: I would like other students to know that although I studied very hard and I absolutely love school, I realized that I cannot dedicate my entire time to it because balance is essential. School has always been my main priority, but I feel as though I found more about myself in the moments that I dedicated to non-academic activities such as sports or clubs, and most importantly spending time with my family and at church. This time allowed my brain to detox and perform well for academic success.

Ruane: Academic success definitely takes sacrifice. I was still able to have a great time in high school of course, but I truly believe to set yourself apart, it requires an extra level of dedication.

Q: How much time outside of regular class did you spend studying or doing homework?

Ruane: Honestly, I mostly did not study for tests and I would instead focus on my class notes and understanding. As for homework, I very rarely did it at home as I always used extra class time and free periods efficiently.

Padilla: I usually spent two to four hours doing homework a night.

Q: Which classes and/or teachers at Denair High had the most influence on you? 

Padilla: Mr. Wagner and Ms. North had the most influence on me. Mr. Wagner has been my teacher since freshman year for many subjects such as history, AP macroeconomics, AP U.S. government, and he’s even my track coach. Both my brothers were also taught by him and Mr. Wagner says he’s hard on me because he owes it to my brothers to help me succeed and reach my full potential. Because of him, I realized that I am much stronger than I think I am and he’s always pushed me to be the best version of myself. Whenever I feel overwhelmed with school, I talk to him and he gives the most honest and helpful advice. He always keeps me in check and I not only see him as a teacher but as a friend. Ms. North knows me better than most. She knows exactly what to say when I overthink an assignment or life in general. She’s been my teacher since sophomore year and has taught me pre-AP English, AP language and AP literature. Aside from literary help, I also confide in her during my moments of stress since her words give me clarity. Her class is the reason I have become so confident in my writing. She also does a great job of pushing me forward and challenging me to build my academic abilities. 

Ruane: Miss Hilton and Miss North had the most impact on me at Denair, since both of them went out of their way to help me get acclimated to a new school. They would both go on to aid me greatly through my senior year, and each gave me valuable advice considering my future.

Q: How many Advanced Placement classes were you able to take? Were you challenged?

Ruane: During high school, I took four AP classes — physics, literature, government and macroeconomics. These are some of the harder AP courses, but I was able to get good grades in each.

Padilla: I was able to take every advanced class offered at Denair since junior year and have taken every math honors class since freshman year. Last year I took AP U.S. history, AP English language and AP Spanish and passed each AP exam. AP language was a class where I felt my writing had improved the most. I thankfully found my own literary style within the many essays Ms. North had us write and I’ve stuck to it since. AP Spanish was also a class that I didn’t struggle with but rather learned a lot from. Spanish is my first language, but the class helped me truly broaden my vocabulary and become confident in writing entire essays in my native tongue.  This year I took AP macroeconomics, AP literature and AP government. AP economics is the first class I have ever truly struggled with. Although I am confident with math and reading, the math and reading in economics was something I could not get accustomed to because of the complex wording and various equations/ graphs we had to remember. It’s an entirely new subject that I’ve never learned before. I would spend a lot of time studying and asking Mr. Wagner questions which helped me start to understand its components, but I still don’t feel entirely confident in my economics skills (especially because it is only a semester-long class). After that semester is over, we transfer to AP gov and I’ve really enjoyed that class. I find it incredibly interesting learning all about how the country came to be, how the government works, and being able to truly understand the political news on TV. In AP literature this year I was able to practice the knowledge I had gained from AP language. I especially liked this class because Ms. North has the seniors do many fun assignments like recording yourself trying new food, writing an emotional essay about my time at Denair, and much more. I recently took my exams this week and I have to wait until July to see my scores but I hope I pass!

Q: What kind of culture of learning exists in your home? What has that meant for your success in high school?

Padilla: I come from Mexican Immigrant parents who have instilled the importance of discipline in my life. My parents never had to push me to study or tell me to stay in school because since I was little, I’ve put it upon myself to be academically driven. Through my own discipline, I have created my personal culture of learning in which my parents have proudly supported me. Their goal is to see their children have the bright future they envisioned for us when they immigrated to this country. Their sacrifices have constantly stayed with me as motivation to succeed, and thanks to them, I have continued my academic discipline in high school and become the valedictorian, which makes my entire family proud.

Ruane: Though my parents do not help me much with academics, I have learned from them how to have a high standard for myself and never give up through adversity. This gave me the desire to complete my work as close to perfection as possible.

Q: What should members of the community know about the quality of education at Denair High?

Ruane: The teachers at Denair truly care about your success in their class, and they are very helpful. As a new student, they did a great job of integrating me into their classes.

Padilla: Denair is a very small school, but it allows students to be closer to their teachers and classmates. This makes it super easy for students to feel at home on campus. Many times, I had to venture out to find opportunities, but it made me more passionate to work hard for what was not handed to me.

Q: Outside of class, what kinds of teams, organizations or clubs are you involved in? How important are extracurricular activities in preparing you for college and beyond?

Padilla: Outside of school, I carry a pretty packed schedule. I am the high school’s ASB president; and as for sports I have been a part of the high school’s cheer team and varsity soccer team for all four years. I was also named captain of both those sports this year. I also joined the varsity track team this year and I have continually placed in my 400-meter event and have made it to section finals. My sophomore year, I reinstated the Hispanic Youth Leadership Council, which had shut down due to COVID. I am now its vice president. I am also part of the school’s Friday night life club. I was also a leader for my church’s middle school youth group. These extracurricular activities have helped me manage a busy schedule and understand the importance of having a balance between academics and a personal life, which will help me as I continue the hefty study involved in college. All of these activities have also put me in a leadership role which has immensely helped me communicate with people, plan events and become confident in public speaking; this will help me in the career I pursue.

Ruane: Throughout high school, I’ve been obsessed with basketball and participated in it all four years. Though I struggled with injuries greatly, I learned the importance of developing passions through extracurriculars. Extracurriculars can help anyone learn skills that are applicable to real life.

Q: What is the right balance for teens busy with school, teams or clubs, and even part-time jobs?

Ruane: Each student obviously has their own circumstances and needs, but I believe that students should find out what they are passionate about and prioritize those things. School must always take priority, but after that, do what you love and run with it.

Padilla: I would say that the right balance for teens with a busy schedule is explained perfectly in the quote “Work hard, play hard.” It was very difficult for me to not feel burnt out with all of the studying I had to do, but I found it very beneficial to engage in physical activity like sports. I recommend doing the same because it allows you to focus on something outside of academics while engaging with friends. As I entered my senior year, I got to spend so much time out with friends and truly get the “high school experience” that I always wanted. It’s so important to carry on a social life because it’s refreshing to be around people that recharge your batteries when you’ve spent a long time working. It feels incredibly rewarding to work hard and have fun because you know you deserve it. We’re teenagers so we should be having fun as we work towards the future! Time is always there you just have to make it work for you.

Q: What are your college and career plans?

Padilla: I will be attending UC Merced in the fall and majoring in microbiology. Then after college I plan to go into medical school to become a doctor; specifically, an oncologist.

Ruane: I plan to go to CSU Stanislaus for 1-2 years and work at an investment internship, then transfer to a UC to complete a degree in finance. I plan on going into financial advisory and investment planning.

Q: What themes are you going to talk about in your graduation speech?

Ruane: During my speech, I will first express my gratitude and humility. I would then like to point to faith and ambition, and how both of those things are crucial to not just high school life, but life in general. Another theme I want to talk about is the strength of the Denair community and how the people here helped me make the most of one year at a new school. My classmates and teachers have not only contributed greatly to my success but gave me a sense of connection.

Padilla: I plan to center my speech around the memories my classmates and I have shared throughout our time together. I have attended DUSD my entire life (since preschool!), so I have grown up with the majority of my classmates and it will be one last time to reminisce on all our memories together. I’ll also encourage my class to look forward to the bright future that awaits us.

In the span of two short seasons, Denair went from softball also ran to runner-up for the Sac-Joaquin Section Division 7 championship. The fact that the Coyotes fell just short Saturday – losing 7-6 to Foresthill in the final game – does nothing to diminish how successful a season this was.

“We think we have sent the message on culture change,” said second-year head coach Andy Dayton. “These girls and community have seen a change. My assistant coach, Chad Boucher, and I will hit the ground running immediately getting these girls on board and push on the mechanics of the game and correcting anything and to make us better and give this community and girls what they deserve — a competitive and winning culture.”

Until last season, Denair had not won more than three games in 17 years. The Coyotes went 8-12 in 2024 and then finished fourth in the very competitive Southern League this season to earn the No. 2 seed in the Division 7 playoffs.

Denair (14-10) defeated No. 7 Elliot Christian of Lodi 20-10 and then knocked off No. 5 Vacaville Christian 13-3 to reach the championship game against top-seeded Foresthill (10-5).

Denair jumped in front with a run in the bottom of the first inning, only to see Foresthill rally to take a 2-1 lead after three innings.

Then in the bottom of the fourth, Denair erupted for five runs – three of them on a bases-loaded triple by Kenzie Prine. 

Unfortunately, the Coyotes’ 6-2 lead didn’t last long. Foresthill rallied for five runs of its own in the fifth inning to go back in front 7-6, which turned out to be the final score.

“We were just a tad off balance and not completely being ourselves. Just not quite as disciplined as what got us there,” Dayton said of the final game. “Credit to their pitcher. She just kept driving and keeping us off balance. We did have quite a few hits that went up the middle right to her. If they were off to the left or right a little, we’re talking a different game, but the ball didn’t bounce our way.”

Still, Denair has taken major strides to revive a program that has already come a long way in a short time. The Coyotes will lose two of their best players — pitcher Makayla Dayton and shortstop Havyn Boucher – to graduation but are expected to return most of the rest of the team.

“We’re losing our shortstop and pitcher this year,” Andy Dayton said. “They will all be back besides that. We have heard we have a decent crop of freshmen coming in with some experience.”