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A Message from Riviera Elementary Principal, Christie Forshey

Riviera Elementary School is turning 70 years old! Did you or your child/ren attend Riviera Elementary School? Alumni, current and past staff members, and neighbors are invited to attend this special birthday celebration! 

Riviera Elementary School will celebrate its 70th Birthday on Friday, September 9th, 2022 from 3:30-7:00 p.m. Stop by to listen to live music, dine at food trucks and tour the 10-acre campus to see upgrades view murals, take a walking tree tour & more!  The Jammin Jellies (some band members are Riviera alum) and Mrs. Laura Savitz will provide free entertainment.

Happy birthday, Riviera!

Speaking of alumni, South High School graduating seniors visited Riviera Elementary School on June 14th. Graduates addressed the student body and shared Riviera memories and their plans for the future.  SHS graduates visited with past teachers, watched their K-5 movie memory slideshow in the cafeteria and danced the Chicken Dance. It was a very special day.

For more information, visit the Riviera Elementary School website at riviera.tusd.org


Riviera Elementary School

Originally bought in 1950 for $25,000, Riviera Elementary School sits on a 10-acre lot and serves the area of Torrance bordered to the north by PCH, to the west by the beach, to the south by Calle de Arboles, and to the east by Hawthorne Blvd. The school opened its classrooms to students 70 years ago, on  September 4, 1952.

What was life like in the U.S. the year Riviera Elementary opened?
  • Harry S Truman was president
  • Nearly 58,000 cases of polio were reported in the U.S, Dr. Jonas Salk developed the polio vaccine
  • The U.S. tested the first hydrogen bomb
  • Mr. Potato Head was introduced and was the first toy advertised on TV, More than one million were sold in the first year
Average prices:
  • A gallon of gas: 20 cents
  • A car: $1,700
  • A house: $9,050
  • A movie ticket: 14 cents
  • A loaf of bread: 16 cents
  • Minimum wage: 75 cents/hour