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RRPS Says School Needed ; District Makes Appeal to State

Posted on: Friday, 5 August 2005, 18:00 CDT

Rio Rancho Public Schools officials went before the state Thursday to explain why they need a high school before they need another mid-high.

The officials appeared before the state's Public School Capital Outlay Council to ask for help building a new high school, expected to cost more than $73 million. The hearing was held at Jimmy Carter Middle School on the West Side.

Al Sena, RRPS executive director of facilities, told the council that Rio Rancho is "exploding with growth."

"Meeting this need will be very difficult without assistance from this committee and the state," he said.

Recently, the Rio Rancho school board voted to change the organization of its schools to provide better alignment with the state, alleviate overcrowding at Rio Rancho Mid-High and address future growth at Rio Rancho High. The board has decided to move ninth-grade students back to the high school. Currently, ninth- graders attend the midhigh alongside the district's eighth-grade students. The mid-high enrollment is beyond the school's 1,800 capacity, according to Sena.

Sena said the district had considered building another mid-high to solve problems with overcrowding at the existing mid-high. He told the council that after examining the situation, the district decided the most cost-effective and useful solution is to build a high school first.

The district hopes to open a new high school by 2009 and at that time shift the district's ninth-graders to the high schools. The district will convert the mid-high into an eighth-grade academy and build an additional eighthgrade academy six years from now.

Sena told the council that plan will save taxpayers millions. He said building an eighth-grade academy instead of a mid-high costs about $18 million less.

The New Mexico Legislature recently gave the district $2.8 million to purchase between 160 and 180 acres from the State Land Office to build the high school.

The governor also gave $600,000 of his capital outlay money.

The council asked Superintendent Sue Cleveland when the school would acquire the land.

She said the deal is almost complete and that it is just a matter of completing the proper paperwork.

Source: Albuquerque Journal

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