SCOTTSDALE, AZ — The Scottsdale Unified School District is reviewing four schools for potential closure at the end of this school year, and a timeline is now in place for a decision.
Superintendent Scott Menzel said the board plans to discuss the closures at a meeting on September 8. That will be followed by a public hearing on September 22.
“There will be many opportunities for people to weigh in and express their opinion,” Menzel said at a recent board meeting.
He said the board is expected to make a decision on October 6 but that could push back to October 27 if board members have lots of questions.
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The district is weighing three options:
- The first would close Laguna and Redfield schools.
- The second would shut Laguna and Desert Canyon schools.
- The third would close Laguna and Copper Ridge schools.
Laguna is the only school that appears on all three lists.
The nearby Virginia G. Piper Branch of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Scottsdale has already spoken out against the closure.
“We can be there to help them. But we can help them best if the school stays open,” said Christian Sanft, the club’s area director, about the students the club serves.
The latest closures come after Echo Canyon School in the Arcadia neighborhood shut its doors in May, closed along with another campus due to declining enrollment.
This year, there are no cars in the Echo Canyon parking lot. No kids on the playground. The only people spotted on campus on a recent day was a groundskeeping crew.
Now the district faces more tough choices.
"I will also say it’s not easy in terms of the conversation we have to have,” Menzel said.
Families at the four schools being reviewed for closure will get more information in the mail next week.
Email ABC15 Reporter Anne Ryman at anne.ryman@abc15.com, call her at 602-685-6345, or connec
