Sixty years ago the schools in and around Madera were on the horns of a dilemma. They were facing the demands of a determined state department of education to create a more efficient educational system by bringing the nine elementary school districts operating within the boundaries of the Madera Union High School into one unified district.
When the call for unification went out, the Madera Elementary School District consisted of Washington Elementary, Sierra Vista Elementary, John Adams Elementary, James Madison Elementary, James Monroe Elementary, Millview Elementary, and Thomas Jefferson Junior High School.
Madera High School formed its own Union High School District.