Principal's Message

Dear Friends and Family of Excelsior Elementary School,

The staff and I welcome you to the 2026–2027 school year! I am thrilled to join the Excelsior community as your principal. I am also eager to collaborate with you to foster a supportive learning environment where every child can truly thrive.

At Excelsior, we embrace "The Garden Grove Way." We are fully committed to providing a rigorous and supportive academic experience that motivates all learners to meet high expectations. Having spent 25 years in the district as a teacher and administrator, I know firsthand that students flourish when the school and the home connect deeply. Working together, we will equip our students with both the academic and personal skills needed for lifelong success, preparing them to thrive as confident, responsible citizens in a diverse society.

Our dedicated staff focuses daily on delivering an exceptional learning experience. To support this effort, this website serves as a vital resource for information. We highly value your input and encourage you to stay active in your child's daily school life. Please check this site regularly, stay connected through ParentSquare, and reach out to us whenever you have questions or concerns.

We look forward to a year filled with growth, achievement, and wonderful memories!

Sincerely,

Summer Hughes

Our School

Welcome Excelsior students, families, and community!

Here at Excelsior, we pride ourselves on being part of a close knit community that is working together to help students succeed.

Our school has a strong record of academic excellence as students consistently outperform the state average on rigorous state testing.  We also offer a variety of free after-school interventions and enrichment opportunities in reading, math, drama, art, and robotics.  Our new STEAM Lab called the Collaboratory fosters a fun environment for students to explore science, technology, engineering, art and math.  In this new academic environment, teachers work together as grade level teams to bring about student success. We also have 1:1 technology with teachings integrating innovative technology lessons into daily curriculum.  We are proud that Excelsior was recognized for academic success this year when we were named to the 2017-2018 California Honor Roll, a prestigious recognition that we also received in 2015 and 2016.  

Outside of the classroom, students enjoy field trips that bring learning to life in new and exciting ways.  We also have fun school-wide goals including our 1 Million Word Reading Goal for sixth graders and our 100 Mile Club for active scholars. 

We appreciate the strong support we receive from Excelsior parents.  The PTA meets monthly on Thursdays after school and works hard to hold fundraisers so that we can send all students on fields trips and bring in new exciting assemblies. Their main goal is to encourage students to work hard in school and be of good character. Parents are encouraged to come to our monthly Pastries with Parents meetings, to serve on school committees (PTA and School Site Council), and to participate in supporting classrooms and school events. We know that parent engagement is critical to student success!

We look forward to another productive school year! Please call us or visit our office for questions, comments, or concerns.