Keone'ula Elementary — a new public school serving the rapidly growing 'Ewa area next to the Ocean Pointe subdivision — opens today for 476 students in grades K-6.

The school features a student services center, faculty centers in each classroom building and breakout rooms between every two classrooms, built as mini computer labs for 12 computer stations.

Students designated for the school have been taking classes for the first half of the school year at 'Ewa Beach Elementary while the new school was completed.

Keone'ula — which means "the red sand" — is named to represent the "regal" children who are the core of the community, according to schools superintendent Pat Hamamoto. The school sits on 12 acres donated by Haseko (Hawai'i) Ltd., and has space to accommodate 725 students in regular schooling, but 966 if it moves to multitrack in the future.

The entire school is computer networked and equipped for closed-circuit television and a multifunction phone communication system. All buildings except the 400-seat cafetorium are air-conditioned.

Keone'ula is designed with a playing field at every corner, and includes a two-story, 21-classroom building; two one-story, 10-classroom buildings; an administration building; and a library.

A Professional Learning Community has been created to help strengthen teachers' effectiveness in the classroom. The school also has adopted the looping concept, which means students remain with the same teacher for two years. Those in grades K, 1, 2, 3 and 4-5 will have the same teacher, while grade 6 will stand alone.

"Keone'ula Elementary is a school where performance excellence is everyone's goal," said principal Eileen Hirota in a statement. "And where 'pretty good' is never good enough."