History of Pennekamp

As Manhattan Beach flourished in the 1950s, the school district purchased land in the southeast portion of Manhattan Beach to build a new elementary school. Construction began in July 1954. At the district’s direction, contractors utilized a unique building technique known as “Lift-Slab” to build the school. The technique involved pouring the roof on the floor slab and then raising the roof in one piece. This allowed the walls to be easily removed to extend or contract classrooms as demographics changed. The District received a commendation from the magazine “School Executive” for this farsighted and unique architectural design. The school, which opened in August 1955, was initially known as Curtis St. School. The original school included 12 classrooms, 2 kindergartens, a cafeteria-multiuse room, a miniature outdoor amphitheater and an administration/health building. Ed Greenblat was the first principal.

Over the years Pennekamp Elementary has continued to grow. In November 1956, three additional classrooms were completed. In the late 1990s portable classrooms were added to the site. The school has increased to an enrollment of just under 600 students. Many beloved teachers have served Pennekamp students over the years. In the early days teachers were required to live in the District and many boarded with families in the community. The teachers were required to teach Sunday school at the Manhattan Beach Community Church and were not permitted to marry. Today, Aurelia Pennekamp Elementary School is a thriving community of students, parents, teachers and administrators. Dale Keldrauk serves as the school’s seventh principal and under his guidance the school has achieved academic excellence while emphasizing character and good citizenship amongst its students.

On November 16, 1955, Curtis St. School was renamed Aurelia Pennekamp Elementary School. Aurelia Pennekamp served as nurse for the health departments of Manhattan Beach and Palos Verdes school districts for over 40 years. Only two other schools in Manhattan Beach are named after people who were responsible for laying the foundations of our school district: Robinson Elementary, named after former master teacher Opal Robinson and Begg School (now the transition site) named after coach and superintendent Foster Begg. Aurelia's friends called her "Penny".

The photo on the right was taken at her graduation from nursing school in San Diego circa 1922. It was said that Foster Begg consulted Penny on every move. Aurelia Pennekamp was born April 27, 1895 in Topeka, Kansas. She was one of five children and her family was one of the early settlers of Palos Verdes where her father was a bookkeeper for the Palos Verdes Land Project. All of the children, except for her brother Arthur, never married. Arthur had two daughters who have visited this school named for their aunt. Ms. Pennekamp was a lifetime member of the California Congress of Parents and Teachers (PTA) and retired in 1953. Pennekamp Elementary School opened in 1955 and was was dedicated in her honor. Aurelia Pennekamp passed away on October 5th, 1976 in Piedmont, California.

We would like to acknowledge Helen Sinsabaugh (1908 - 2000), legendary South Bay educator in English and journalism for providing the photos and information for this page.

Left to right: Margaret Tougaw- teacher Center St. School, Kay Dimmick, Evelyn Baldwin- secretary to the superintendent, Kay Dimmick's mother-in-law, "Penny" the school nurse, Helen Sinsabaugh teacher Center St. School.		Left to right: Aurelia Pennekamp, Margaret Tougaw (back), Kay Dimmick , Helen Sinsabaugh, Evelyn Baldwin.