Fairmeadow Elementary School

Fairmeadow Elementary is the neighborhood school for a large part of south Palo Alto, in the Eichler neighborhoods around East Meadow Drive. It shares a block with JLS Middle School and backs onto Mitchell Park, so its students grow up with a park, a library and their future middle school all within a few hundred yards. The California Department of Education counted 404 students in the 2025 to 2026 school year, about 8 percent of them in transitional kindergarten.

This page goes deeper than our overview of PAUSD elementary schools. It covers the campus history as the district records it, school life, the 2026 to 2027 bell schedule and Fairmeadow's detailed drop-off rules. We do not rank schools or report test scores. The California School Dashboard has official data.

Location and campus

The address is 500 E. Meadow Drive, Palo Alto 94306. The campus sits between JLS on one side and Mitchell Park on the other, a short walk from the Mitchell Park Library and Community Center. Middlefield Road is to the east and Alma Street and the Caltrain tracks to the west.

The Fairmeadow neighborhood across East Meadow is known for its circular streets of Eichler homes, a plan credited to the architects Anshen and Allen. PAUSD's 2018 facilities profile describes the school as six single-story buildings and one two-story building in an elongated U on a 5.5 acre site.

History

An Eichler-era campus

Before the schools were built, the land belonged to farmers who sold it to the developer Joseph Eichler. JLS's own history page and Wikipedia both say Eichler donated the land for JLS and Fairmeadow. Our Eichler homes history covers the tracts that grew up around them.

The district's facilities profile dates the administration building and two classroom wings to 1950. A multipurpose building and a library in a relocatable followed in 1956. Note that the Fairmeadow tract itself was built from 1951 to 1954, so the school's exact opening year is less certain than the profile suggests. Treat 1950 as the date of the first buildings in district records.

Later changes

In 1972 the district built the Jackson Hearing Center along the boundary with JLS. It was later converted into standard classrooms and space for specialists. The Building for Excellence program renovated classrooms and the office in 2003 and added a new library building. Strong Schools bond money paid for a two-story wing of eight classrooms around 2011 and a library addition in 2012. The 2018 profile also notes two oversized relocatables housing the Bessie Bolton child care program.

The school's name comes from the Fairmeadow tract and the meadow streets around it. Neither the school nor the district publishes a longer explanation.

Programs and school life

Fairmeadow follows the district's elementary program, with PAUSD music and physical education, library time and art supported by Palo Alto Partners in Education (PiE). Third graders take the district's bike safety course in the fall. The school is a TK site, one of seven in PAUSD.

The school calendar gives a sense of community life. In November 2026 it lists a Family Library Night with a Diwali celebration on November 13 and a Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day on November 18. After the bell, the park next door does a lot of work. Many families cross to the Magical Bridge Playground, an inclusive playground designed for children of all abilities, or head into the library. The park's lawns and creek path also make an easy meeting point for parents who walk in for pickup. Fairmeadow has no choice or immersion program. Families who want one apply through the district lottery explained in our choice programs guide.

Bell schedule basics for 2026 to 2027

The early release days for 2026 to 2027 are September 4, October 30, November 20 and December 18, 2026, then April 2 and June 1 to 3, 2027. The Fairmeadow daily schedule page has the latest times.

Attendance area and feeder schools

Fairmeadow is one of the most often listed schools in neighborhood guides for south Palo Alto. Palo Alto Online and Palo Alto Weekly profiles have named it for Adobe Meadow, Walnut Grove, San Alma, The Greenhouse, Greendell and parts of Charleston Gardens, Midtown and South of Midtown. Some of those areas split with El Carmelo or other schools, so the School Finder on PAUSD's school placement and transfers page is the only reliable check.

The guides list JLS and Gunn High School as the next steps. If Fairmeadow is full in a grade, the district may overflow a new student to another school in the cluster and add the child to the Fairmeadow waitlist. Our enrollment guide covers registration.

Drop-off, parking and safe routes

Fairmeadow asks families to treat driving as a last resort. Its getting-to-school page encourages walking, biking, skating and scootering. It also links the city's Walk and Roll map for the school. Report any crash involving a student to the Palo Alto police at (650) 329-2413, even if no one is hurt. Then tell the school office so staff can file a district incident report.

Rules for drivers

• Front drop-off zone: next to the blacktop at the front of school. Pull up to the white stop line if no cars are ahead and have children get out on the right side, next to the sidewalk.
• Front lot: staff parking during the morning rush from 8:15 to 8:40 a.m. Do not park there to walk in.
• Mitchell Park: the school's preferred option. Park in the park's spaces and walk across to the Mitchell Park gate.
• East Meadow: street parking is possible, but follow the park path to the Mitchell Park gate rather than walking through the school lot.
• The shared driveway: never use the driveway between Fairmeadow and JLS for drop-off or turning around. It is for staff and school buses during school hours.
• Speed: 25 mph in the school zone and 5 mph on campus. Avoid U-turns on East Meadow.

The school also asks drivers to obey no-right-on-red signs near school crossings and to yield to the many young walkers and riders. PAUSD does not run buses for most elementary students.

PTA, PiE and after school

The Fairmeadow PTA holds general meetings during the year, including virtual sessions. It runs its own website linked from the school's home page. PiE pools donations across the district for elementary staff and programs. Parents can also serve on the School Site Council.

For child care, the school lists providers that offer pickup at Fairmeadow, including Palo Alto Community Child Care (PACCC) and Right at School. It notes that neither the PTA nor the school endorses a particular provider. Independent vendors teach fee-based after-school classes on campus. Our after-school programs guide explains the options.

Frequently asked questions