Supports Kyrene board decision to close six schools

Independent Newsmedia

School Closure

Kyrene school board votes unanimously to close 6 schools 

Education

Kyrene school staff concerned, hopeful about career future

OPINION — Kyrene School District has concluded its long-range planning process. The effort began when the district formed a Long-Range Planning Committee to examine potential school consolidation, followed by seven regional public hearings to receive feedback.

On Dec. 16, 2025, the Governing Board made the difficult decision to close six Kyrene schools due to declining enrollment. Colina, Estrella and Manitas will close for the 2026-2027 school year, while Akimel A-Al, Kyrene Traditional Academy and Pueblo will follow in the 2027-2028 school year.

While no person, myself included, wants schools to close, the Governing Board had to act to achieve $7 million in savings over the next five years. The closures will likely result in $5.8 million in savings. The remaining $1.2 million will be achieved by finding and creating efficiencies and generating new revenue streams.

Since Arizona provides most school funding based on the number of students enrolled, Kyrene could not continue to operate a footprint designed for 20,000 students with a little under 13,000 students attending today. Originally, the district’s proposal called for closing eight schools, and the board carefully weighed the community’s desire to keep more schools open with the financial realities to determine its course of action.

While this decision will cause short-term challenges, I am heartened by stories of how Kyrene rallied in a moment of need to support Sierra following its roofing issues. Both Altadena and Cerritos hosted Sierra students throughout the fall semester, and many Sierra students made the adjustment to a new campus within a few days.

Our Kyrene kids are resilient and will still have the opportunity to receive a quality Kyrene education if their current school closes. I intend to work with the Kyrene Community to move forward as One Kyrene to support our students, parents, faculty and staff during this transition and beyond.

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