Carlos, local class sizes jumped to more than forty students; district-wide, enrollment increased from 340 students in 1940 to 2,249 students by 1949, and 3,388 in 1965. To accommodate this growth, the San Carlos School District opened several elementary schools to serve students in grades K–6. When the city's only middle school, Central Middle School, reached capacity, local School Board members studied potential locations for a second middle school. In particular, due to recent growth on the city's west side, locations near Carlmont High School in Belmont were considered. By March 1951, the district purchased a 20-acre site belonging to the Rosenau Estate, at a cost of $68,750, the present-day site of Tierra Linda. Devonshire Boulevard, which lies east of Tierra Linda's campus, was the original western boundary of San Carlos, meaning Tierra Linda was originally located within Belmont's boundaries. The site was transferred to the City of San Carlos in October 1956, several years after the school's opening. The school was constructed in 1952 and 1953 at a cost of $441,042. It opened in the 1953–1954 school year for grades 7 and 8, although this range of students later increased to grades K–8. Students who attended Arundel School and Heather School for elementary school were typically slotted to attend Tierra Linda. From the 1960s to his retirement in 1980, Ralph Howitt served as the school's principal, following his tenure at local elementary school Brittan Acres. In the 1950s, San Carlos developed additional neighborhoods west of Alameda de las Pulgas, including an annexation of 500 acres which provided homes for 6,000 residents. Enrollment at local schools increased through the end of the 1960s, but by the late 1970s, all San Carlos schools experienced declining enrollment. In 1982, with too few students to justify the opening of the school, the district closed Tierra Linda. Elementary schools served K–6 students, and all seventh and eighth grade students in San Carlos attended Central Middle School. By the 1990s, enrollment was predicted to increase in San Carlos schools. Elementary schools were reorganized to house students in grades K–4, and Tierra Linda officially reopened on September 5, 2000 to grades 5–8. Prior to the reopening, several new buildings were constructed on the site, including locker rooms, a gym, a music room, a library, a computer room, and the science wing. The school's office was remodeled in 2005, and a band room and art room were