Grow With Muroc

When I go through my mother Marion Deaver’s files, I never know what I am going to come up with.

For instance, last week I was looking for some more information other than what I had so I could write a column on Tehachapi’s Mountain Festival. Instead I found an employment brochure for the Muroc Schools.

There is no date on the brochure, but it says the district is unified, which happened in 1953, according to the current district webpage.

As I have mentioned before my brother Mike rode the bus each and every day to Edwards to attend Desert High School, even though there was a brand new school, Mojave High School, across the street from where we lived in Mojave on “O” Street. Problem was Mike was a sophomore when they opened the school, it started with the freshman class.

Every morning as he climbed on the bus for a 25 mile slow ride, he got to look longingly at Mojave High School’s red brick buildings right there.

The Muroc brochure is typical, showing the beautiful Red Rock Canyon, water rushing through the Kern Canyon, winter scenes, the Borax open-pit mine, and Joshua trees as some of the nearby places one could visit “close by” if they accepted a position at Muroc Unified School District.

Those of us who grew up in the desert appreciate its beauty and don’t consider it a wasteland. That was not always true for someone traveling from other areas to Edwards or Boron looking for a job.

The front cover shows a photo of Desert High School, and proclaims “good salaries, modern schools, clear dry air, opportunities for advancement, good housing, winter sunshine, (and of course) group insurance.”

The brochure encourages people to come, by stating, “The adage that many come to the desert, but few leave is well supported by the facts. Ten years ago there were fewer than 10,000 persons within a 30-mile radius of Muroc School District. Now, 50,000 is a conservative figure.”

It further announced that, “We don’t claim to be Palm Springs, but we do have the same winter sun and crystal clear air. The difference is that you can have it with a good salary while it costs wealthy vacationers $50 a day.” (Don’t you wish you could stay at Palm Springs today for $50 a day?)

The writers of the document listed rentals, many fully furnished, others including a stove and refrigerator going from $79.00 to $99.00 per month depending on if they were apartments, or one, two or three bedroom homes. Rents also included electricity and gas, it said.

Homes and apartments were listed in Boron, North Muroc, Desert Lake, and Boron. One could buy a home from $10,000 to $14,000.

Salaries for teachers ranged from $4,600 to $7,750 per year, depending on education. A new teacher with no experience would receive $4,600 per year. Experience brought that up with $100 per year, up to eight years. Credits for additional college were $100 for each eight-semester hours up to 72.

Tenure was granted after three years. “Hospitalization insurance” was granted as was sick leave, which accumulated.

And, an active teachers’ club was listed and was said to have “done much to upgrade salaries and promote the status of teachers in the community to that enjoyed by other professionals.” (There were no unions for certificated employees back then.)

The schools listed were Edwards Elementary School, West Boron Elementary School, and Gephart Elementary School. Under construction were Boron Junior-Senior High School and Forbes Avenue Elementary School at Edwards.

Today the direct website says it has approximately 2,000 students enrolled in its schools. The district was founded in 1911, with one teacher and less than a dozen students. The school was located at Edwards. Boron students were bused to the school.

In 1929 a school was built in Boron for students who lived there. Today there are two comprehensive high schools and two k-6 elementary schools.

Students today earn top awards in everything from leadership, scholarship, sports and fine arts.

The district has gone from miners to flight test pioneers sending their children to these schools.

And sometimes the students get to see from really fantastic flight tests in the skies above them.