4S RANCH - Brightly colored monarch butterflies lifted off small hands and fluttered out into the world Monday as students, teachers and parents dedicated Monterey Ridge Elementary School.

The delicate insects are a mascot for the six-month-old primary-grade campus, which is operated by the Poway Unified School District.

Addressing about 500 students who sat quiet and attentive despite the heat at an outdoor celebration, schools Superintendent Don Phillips said butterflies' early lives symbolize what lies in store for the youngsters.

"This is your cocoon for the next four or five years," Phillips said. "This is where you will grow, develop, get strong. And someday you will leave that cocoon and go on to great things."

The $40 million school is at 17117 4S Ranch Parkway. Opened last August, it joined Stone Ranch Elementary in serving kindergarten-through-fifth-grade students in this growing and upscale community west of Rancho Bernardo.

Monterey Ridge Elementary is the 34th in the district, which encompasses Poway and the surrounding communities of Rancho Bernardo, Rancho Penasquitos, Carmel Mountain Ranch, Sabre Springs and 4S Ranch. Poway Unified officials typically wait until schools have been open a few months before holding dedication ceremonies.

About 175 parents, district leaders and invited guests joined Monterey Ridge's students, faculty and staff for its dedication ceremony, which coincided with California Western Monarch Day. Balloons that mirrored the monarch's distinctive wing colors - bright orange, black, yellow and white - decorated the school's concrete courtyard.

Monterey Ridge Principal Rebecca Wardlow told those gathered that the students top the list of things those associated with the new campus and the surrounding community have to be proud of.

"There's an African proverb that says it takes a village to raise a child," she said. "At Monterey Ridge, it takes a community to raise our children."

Noting that the school's students will be part of the country's work force beyond the year 2050, Phillips said the campus has a responsibility to help prepare them for that. And school board Vice President Linda Vanderveen reminded listeners that grade schools help shape who people are and who they become.

She also said current Monterey Ridge students will share a unique and special memory.

"You're here the year it opened," Vanderveen said. "When you come back and visit, you will remember that."

During the dedication, which also featured students singing the song "We Are The Children," Wardlow accepted a $1,000 check for the school's reading program from Wells Fargo Bank and a plaque honoring Monterey Ridge for being energy-efficient. An extensive solar-power system that will generate half of the school's electricity helped it earn the award.

The celebration culminated with the butterflies' release. Representatives of the Encinitas-based Monarch Program handed out the insects to youngsters who held them gently until they flitted up and over onlookers' heads, drawing a chorus of "oohs" and "aahs."

Standing in a line of classmates waiting to return to the classroom after the event, fifth-grader Tyler Rossman said he loved watching the real-life versions of his school's mascot take flight.

"That was awesome," he said. "It just looked cool to see tons of butterflies flying away."

Parent Pam Howell, who enrolled her three sons at Monterey Ridge last month after the family moved to 4S Ranch from Georgia, said she loved everything about the school, including its teachers and energy efficiency.

"And you just feel so welcome here," she said. "My children love it. After transferring them across the country, you worry a little. But they settled right in, they've made a lot of friends, and they're happy here. And they're eager to go to school. You can't ask for more."

- Contact staff writer Andrea Moss at (760) 739-6654 or amoss@nctimes.com.