Willis H. Warner

History of Willis H. Warner Middle School

In the early 1960s, the Westminster School District faced a substantial increase in student enrollment as families continued relocating to the growing city. By 1960, with only two intermediate schools — 17th Street and Johnson — operational, district leaders recognized the need for additional facilities in the eastern portion of the city. Despite initial complications concerning the Oasis Avenue site and the proposed construction of a pedestrian bridge over the flood control channel, plans for Warner Intermediate School proceeded.

Willis Warner Intermediate was designed in a similar way to Johnson, complete with an outdoor amphitheater and special buildings for vocational classes. Simultaneously, Anderson Elementary was also being constructed and completed before Warner was finished at the beginning of the 1961-62 school year. Consequently, the future Warner students would attend Anderson for the first half of the year. Indeed, even the first Warner PTA meeting was held in September at Anderson, with Marion Aguirre serving as its president. ”

WSD’s second intermediate school would officially open after winter break on January 2, 1962, under Webber’s Vice Principal Lee Harris, and dedicated later March 21, 1962, to Willis H. Warner, the Orange County politician, Huntington Beach Mayor, and Supervisor.

Though primarily known for his county-level service, Warner maintained early connections to Westminster. Notably, he owned a warehouse on the site where 17th Street School would later be built — a location pivotal to the landmark Mendez v. Westminster desegregation case. Elected to the Board of Supervisors in 1939, Warner oversaw critical infrastructure projects throughout Orange County, including Disneyland and regional flood control systems designed to protect the rapidly urbanizing Santa Ana River basin.