The school was a pioneer of bilingual education in 1963, when it began teaching through the mediums of English and Spanish with two groups of students (English- and Spanish-speakers).

The architecture is Mediterranean Revival style and was constructed under the auspices of the Works Projects Administration and completed in 1936.

On September 3, 1963, Coral Way Elementary opened its doors as the first publicly funded bilingual program in the US with students from two different native-language backgrounds.

With funding from the Ford Foundation, school district leaders (Dr. Pauline Rojas, Dr. Joseph Hall, Dr. Rosa Inclán, Mr. Ralph Robinett), teachers, and paraprofessionals, which were referred to as "Cuban aides," implemented a bilingual curriculum where students were taught academic content through two languages.

The remaining goals addressed long term outcomes such as cross-cultural understanding and positive contributions to society.