Once May hits, many districts are hitting the final stretch of the school year. For some communities, they will see some big shakeups once this academic year ends.
Three Valley school district governing boards – Roosevelt Elementary School District, Phoenix Elementary School District and Cave Creek Unified School District – voted to close down a few campuses each by the end of the year. They all cite a decline in enrollment, which in part is due to decreasing birth rates and an expansion of choices for schools, leading to a decrease in funding.
The Isaac School District is currently in the middle of discussing possibly closing down two schools and its online academy due to the district being in receivership and financial insolvency.
As these districts and communities grapple with the big change, one Valley school district community has already dealt with it and has had about a year to adjust.
The Paradise Valley Unified School District’s governing board voted to close down three schools in 2024: Sunset Canyon Elementary, Desert Springs Prep and Vista Verde Middle School.
Families remember how difficult that was as they had to find new alternatives for their kids. ABC15 was there on the last day of school at Desert Springs Prep as parents hugged their kids, educators hugged their students and tears flowed for some of them.
Becca Salay’s two boys originally went to Desert Springs Prep, but after touring multiple schools, Salay chose for them to go to Copper Canyon. She told ABC15 that other families whose boys are friends decided to do the same.
“I’m definitely still a little annoyed at what I felt like was a lack of transparency a year ago or so,” she told ABC15. “But, my kids are thriving and they have great friends and I love the families in our school community. They’ve really made us feel like we’ve always been at that school.”
For Maria Wilson, whose two kids also went to Desert Springs Prep, she decided they would go to Sonoran Sky Elementary.
“I went and looked at seven different schools. Some in the district, some private, some charter. It was a rude awakening,” she told ABC15.
It was a challenge those families had no choice but to overcome.
Wilson said her first grader is doing well, but her third grader is still having a hard time connecting with other students. She told ABC15 both her boys are autistic and chose to go to Desert Springs Prep originally because of how well they worked with students with autism.
“It feels better now. It felt really, really hard and there was a lot of sadness,” she said.
Heather Schmitt, the president of the district’s education association, remembers how difficult it was for the staff affected as well. She told ABC15 she felt the district and its leaders did what they could to help during the difficult decision.
“We know we had a few folks that chose to retire early or move on from the district. We had jobs for everyone and I think that's the biggest, one of the biggest wins of that,” she said.
As these Paradise Valley families adjusted to new schools, with some possibly choosing to leave the district, other Valley school families are now going through the same process.
Salay advises those going through the closures to look at all their options.
“It's important that families do their research about what new schools their kids are going to or be going to or if they have a choice of where their child can go,” Salay said.
Wilson also agrees with that sentiment, making sure families look at all they can for their children. She also says parents should be open with their kids about this process as well.
“I’m sorry this is happening to them because it’s really tough,” Wilson continued. “Especially for parents like us. I have two children with IEPs. I thought, 'Where am I going to send my kids?'”
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As for the campuses in the district that closed down, Desert Springs Prep turned into the PV Online Academy, which houses teachers for students learning online. The district told ABC15 that Sunset Canyon Elementary is now the home of the James P. Lee Early Childhood Learning Center. Vista Verde Middle School still sits empty as the district is still planning on the future of the campus.
When ABC15 asked the district about savings with the closure of the three schools, a spokesperson said, “Now that the fiscal year has progressed, it’s difficult to isolate the specific savings directly tied to the school closures from other unrealized expenditures, as they are now reflected collectively in the overall budget. However, it is clear that our projected budget balance carryforward for the end of this fiscal year is significantly higher than what was estimated at this time last year. This increase is primarily due to the additional savings realized from the school closures.”
Even though some are occupying a few of the buildings, the district said for the unoccupied buildings, they’re seeing savings with utilities. And in the locations where there are renters, the income they receive from that offsets the operational costs and gives the district additional revenue. The spokesperson for the district says the largest cost savings is from the reduction in staffing as people decided to leave through natural attrition or other desires.
The governing board, last year, had also discussed possibly closing down Hidden Hills Elementary School. However, the board voted to keep that school open and there have been no other current discussions about this school and its operating as usual, the district said.
