Sequoia Middle School has earned authorization as an International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme school. The designation makes Conejo Valley Unified the first district in Ventura County to offer IB education from transitional kindergarten through 12th grade.
Families can see the program up close at Sequoia's Future Bears Information Night on Thursday, Nov. 19, at 6 p.m. Sequoia said the event will include campus tours and details about programs available to incoming students.
The Newbury Park campus, which serves 798 students in grades six through eight, received the authorization alongside Newbury Park High School's grades nine and 10, according to a district announcement earlier this year. The IB Middle Years Programme, or MYP, covers grades six through 10. That means all Sequoia students and NPHS freshmen and sophomores participate.
The authorization capped a multi-year candidacy. Teachers trained on IB unit planners and incorporated IB design cycles into daily lessons. The Sequoia and Newbury Park High IB MYP coordinators met to align on unit planning, grading and vertical articulation, according to a December 2025 district update. A three-day consultant visit evaluated both schools' readiness before the International Baccalaureate Organization granted final approval.
The pathway is now complete. CVUSD operates three IB-authorized schools. Cypress Elementary in Newbury Park covers the Primary Years Programme for grades TK through five. Michele McDonald, Cypress Elementary's principal, has said the program benefits TK-5 students as they develop skills as "inquirers, thinkers, risk-takers and communicators." Newbury Park High School already offered the IB Diploma Programme for juniors and seniors. With the new MYP authorization at Sequoia and NPHS, a student can follow an unbroken IB track across all 14 grade levels.
The district said CVUSD is home to three of 6,200 IB-authorized schools in more than 160 countries.
