Alumni Hall of Fame inductee Warren Crain has helped to bring creativity and design to the transportation field. As a designer for Toyota, Crain created and developed the Solara Toyota car that can currently be seen on city streets throughout the country.

A 1980 graduate of San Clemente High School, Crain is also an alumnus of Palisades Elementary School and Shorecliffs Middle School. Following his CUSD tenure, Crain went to California State University at San Luis Obispo where he received his undergraduate degree. Crain then enrolled in the prestigious Art Center of Pasadena where he specialized in automotive design for four years.

After completing his education, Crain was hired by Toyota Corporation and Calty Design Research, Inc. As part of his professional responsibilities, Crain traveled to Japan several years ago to present an automotive design as part of a company competition. He was pleased to discover that his design beat out all competitors and was chosen for production. The car he designed is what is now known as the Toyota Solara.

An outstanding example of excellence in education, Crain offers inspiration and motivation to all CUSD students. Crain is a Costa Mesa resident.

"Thank you for the honor of being inducted into the CUSD Alumni Hall of Fame. I appreciate the acknowledgment and would just like to say thanks to the many good teachers I had at Capistrano Unified. Their consistently high quality teaching was especially valuable to me," said Crain. Crain noted several educators who influenced his life, including Mark McElroy (fourth grade, Palisades), Ernie Welke (art, Marco Forster), Austin Buffum, (music, Marco Forster), Rick Delanty (art, San Clemente High), John Purvis (metal shop, SCHS), and Robert Heylmun (English, SCHS).