The Deer Valley Unified School District (DVUSD) Governing Board has approved the name “Inspiration Mountain School” with the mascot of a Knight and colors of Royal Blue and Black for the Elementary #32 school currently under construction at 5757 Inspiration Mountain Parkway near 57th Avenue and Happy Valley Road.
This recommendation comes following an initial survey that was open to the DVUSD community from December 15, 2021 to January 5, 2022 to collect ideas for its name, mascot, and colors. All suggestions from this survey were carefully reviewed during a school naming community meeting, which was attended by future Inspiration Mountain School students, families, community members, and potential staff members. The group gave input on the suggestions and narrowed the list of ideas.
The community then had the opportunity to select their favorite options in a final voting survey. DVUSD received more than 800 votes from future students, families, staff, and community members. The DVUSD Governing Board approved the name, mascot, and colors at a recent meeting.
Dr. JoAnn Schwarting was named as the principal for Inspiration Mountain School. After serving four years in the United States Navy, Dr. Schwarting earned a Bachelor of Arts in Education from Arizona State University (ASU), a Master of Arts in Educational Administration and Supervision from Northern Arizona University, and a Doctorate in Education Leadership and Innovation from ASU. The current DVUSD Principal of the Year, Dr. Schwarting has served the Deer Valley Unified School District since 2005. She taught seventh grade English language arts at Desert Mountain School for seven years. She then transferred to Desert Sky Middle School where she assumed the roles of instructional coach and assistant principal. Most recently, Dr. Schwarting spent the last six years leading Desert Mountain School as principal.
Though it is bittersweet leaving her current school, Dr. Schwarting is up for the challenge and eager for the opportunity. “I am absolutely thrilled to be given the honor of serving this beautiful community. My goal is to nurture a school environment that is caring and connected,” she says. “I believe partnerships are necessary when educating our students, so I’m looking forward to developing strong family and community ties.”
Late last year, the DVUSD Governing Board approved school boundaries for the new school. Several boundary options were developed after two community input meetings and three Governing Board meetings. View the approved boundary maps and see additional information at dvusd.org/boundary32.
The new school opens in August 2022 and will initially serve K-6 students with the infrastructure in place for future expansion to a K-8 campus. Learn more about the new school, and sign up for future updates via e-mail, at dvusd.org/InspirationMountain.
