We're now just one week away from kids returning to campus in the Sacramento City Unified School District. Elementary students in the Meadowview neighborhood had a chance to check out a brand new school they will be attending.

Cesar Chavez Elementary is the first new school in the district to be built in nearly two decades. The campus combines two previous schools on one site: Edward Kimble Elementary, which was more than 60 years old, and Chavez Intermediate, which had been all portable classrooms.

Community members helped design the new look.

"Themes here were chosen by the students and staff and community," said Jennifer Quigley, school architect. "We had a lot of voting process that we went through."

Cesar Chavez Elementary also features 35 classrooms, an indoor sports court, and will have about 800 students.

"We are hoping to see an increase in attendance," Principal Sara Muns said.

But the district has been scrambling to hire enough teachers and staff. In June, they had 110 teacher vacancies district-wide, but that's now down to 38 positions, which they say is the lowest it's been in a decade.

Vacant teacher slots will be filled with credentialed substitutes.

"Our teachers are ready to welcome every single one of their kids on Monday, the 18th," Muns said.

Even though kids return to campus next week, there's still construction going on. The playgrounds are just a pile of dirt, along with what's supposed to be a two-acre soccer field.

"In a couple of months, we should see all the fields and the playgrounds and everything coming together," Quigley said.

This is one of three new school construction projects opening up this year, with money coming from a $750 million bond passed by voters in 2020.