Portola High School

Opened August 2016!

Portola is the fifth and most recently built High School in the massive Irvine Unified School District. This "future-proofed" school opened in 2019 with excess capacity to promote additional students coming to Irvine.

Public-Private Partnerships benefited every stage of this schools development, but it shows most in the planning. Portola is the first school in the State of California completed before the associated housing development went up, allowing the school district to better handle the expected influx of new families. In the past, Developers would rush to finish housing while neglecting school infrastructure, which in turn caused a glut of students to be passed around between schools already at capacity. This reults in a loss of teaching efficiency and portable classrooms are brought in to add artificial class space.

Portola High School
This Theater was funded by the home owners at Great Parks and is intended as a joint-use community hub for concerts, plays, musicals, and other events.
Professional Grade Joint-Use Theater
Three court gymnasium at Portola High also represents a joint-use facility between the city of Irvine, the home owners, and the builders. Intended for use outside of normal school activities, the community can maximize the utilization of these public facilities.
Three Court Gymnasium
Safety is a priority for FivePoint. Many features, such as fencing integrated into the building construction, promote safety without hurting the aesthetics of the project.
Classrooms
Green Roofs save energy, and are an excellent way to spread and dissipate excess heat. The addition of garage style doors on the exterior of many classrooms give teachers the opportunity to teach outside in less confined spaces.
Living Roof and Science Classrooms
Classrooms and the main courtyard, with empty fields ready for a planned expansion behind. This school was constructed with extra room for students, which means kids have a place to go to school before they show up at Great Parks.
Landscape
Main courtyard at Portola with the major buildings all in the foreground. Student Center on the right, Theater and Administration directly ahead, cafeteria and classrooms off to the left.
Courtyard
Rear/Street-view of the science classrooms and Student Center. The building on the right houses a two-story library and study lounge with floor-to-ceiling windows on the front side.
Back of Library/Student Center
This multi-story facility houses a spacious study area with floor-to-ceiling windows as well as a fully stocked library.
Library and Student Center