CARMEL VALLEY —— Principal Dave Jaffe stood in the parking lot of Canyon Crest Academy on Tuesday, reflecting on the school's asphalt-and-trailer-classroom birthplace.

When school starts on Aug. 30, students will begin the first full year in the nearly complete campus. The freshmen attended classes in the trailers for four months last fall before moving into a completed building late last year, Jaffe said.

"Starting in such a small space, and now moving into a larger physical space is analogous to what (the students) are going through right now," said Jaffe, a veteran of 13 years in San Dieguito Union High School District. "They are maturing —— they —— and we —— started small and are growing."

Construction workers poured concrete Tuesday in the school's center courtyard, a concrete pad that divides the school's completed front area and buildings from the rear gym and theater. Construction fences still ring the property, and workers are racing the clock to ready the school for the first day of school in two weeks.

Still under construction, the gym and theater are scheduled for completion in January, Jaffe said.

Last year's freshman class of 363 will return with another 70 students as the school's sophomores when classes commence on Aug 30. Those freshmen, guided by 23 teachers and a support staff of seven, began shaping the school's culture by sharing a tight triangle of 21 trailers in the parking lot.

"Starting in the fall in the trailers, nobody knew what to expect," Jaffe said. "We found it was such a small space, there was no place to hide. We were all connected. We really came together as a cohesive culture."

This year's crop of freshmen will grow the school to about 900, Jaffe said. Another 25 teachers have joined the staff, bringing the number of teachers to 48. Two counselors, an assistant principal, a part-time school psychologist and support staff will round out the workforce.

Jaffe's immediate challenge will be to wrap the new teachers and students into the school and help them understand that they too must help continue to shape the culture. The sophomores will act as ambassadors for the incoming freshmen, giving tours of the $103 million school on 55 acres just north of State Route 56 at Carmel Valley Road.

"Any kid who comes to this school in these next three years is part of the founding class of the school," Jaffe said.

As a "school of choice," Canyon Crest accepts students from throughout the 85-square-mile district that stretches from Carlsbad to Carmel Valley, though a majority of students reside in San Dieguito's southern end. The school will offer the traditional high school activities except for football and cheerleading, Jaffe said. The school will focus on art and technology.

Jaffe and the teachers are working on a selection of academic programs that complement and expand the traditional academic classes, he said.

For example, in addition to the standard array of math classes, a nationally established engineering program called "Project Lead the Way" will offer students training in the principles of engineering, biotechnology, and aerospace engineering during the regular school day.

Another new program, the Envision Project, created and led by Assistant Principal Brian Kohn, will expand the daily offerings in performing arts, fine art and digital art with after-school classes. Students will apply and audition for the after-school classes taught by professionals dancers, musicians and digital and video artists.

For Jaffe, building school culture is all about creating relationships, and offering meaningful and integrated curriculum.

"The single most important way to create the culture is to hire the right people —— people with the ability to connect with kids," he said.

Contact staff writer Philip K. Ireland at 760-901-4043 or pireland@nctimes.com.