The Fountain Hills Unified School District Governing Board discussed the potential plan to consolidate schools at the meeting held Wednesday, June 29. The Board took no action, but discussed recent Facility Use Advisory Committee (FUAC) meetings, and their decision to recommend a consolidation plan.

The FUCA meetings were open to the public and meeting agendas and meeting minutes can be found on the Governing Board page of the FHUSD website (fountainhillsschools.org). During the meeting on June 7, the FUAC reached “the consensus that consolidation will be in the best interest of both the students and the district and that we will move forward with a recommendation to the Board to do so,” according to the minutes.

The Board explicitly said that consolidation would not happen during the 2022-23 school year. The Board could vote to approve the consolidation plan in the next few months, but the earliest any construction and renovation can begin is the day after school releases in May 2023.

The Board stated that as of the last FUAC meeting, the plan was to move sixth, seventh and eighth grades to the high school campus, and move pre-k through third grade classes to the current middle school campus where they will join fourth and fifth grades.

Board member Jill Reed sat on the FUAC and gave her thoughts as a committee member, Board member and parent to Fountain Hills graduates. She also said that the schools will have to change names after consolidation.

“When my students were younger, my son would’ve been one of the classes that was part of the separation at the old Four Peaks building,” Reed said. “I remember the trepidation of that. What’s going to happen to those third graders? Where are they going to go? They were so little still, and did we really want them on the campus with seventh and eighth graders?”

During the last move, third grade classes stayed at McDowell Mountain Elementary while fourth and fifth grade classes moved to Fountain Hills Middle. Reed said she was most concerned with parents of current rising fifth graders while considering options for this consolidation. Those students will be rising sixth graders when consolidation could begin, and Reed said the FUAC figured out solutions to keep young students from crossing paths with older students.

“Sixth, seventh and eighth grade would essentially have their own school,” Reed said. “They would be separated from the nine through 12. The committee talked about having six through eight stay on the same bell schedule that they’re on now so the bus schedule would stay the same. They would be on the upper part of the high school campus. They would have their own sections; they would rotate on a different bell schedule than the high school so there wouldn’t be a lot of interaction there with the high school kids.”

Sixth, seventh and eighth grade would consolidate into buildings G and F on the high school campus to maintain distance from the rest of the grades. The committee’s list of renovation projects at the high school includes painting all spaces in those two buildings, refurbishing the science room in building F, combining rooms F206 and F208, adding new gates and adding to existing gates for perimeter security.

The FUAC stated that renovations are estimated to cost $291,500 at the high school and $797,000 at the middle school. Renovation costs at the middle school will be higher because kindergarten and pre-k classrooms are required to have certain accommodations.

The middle school projects include four new single-use bathrooms, renovating two multi-person bathrooms, a new ceiling, a new playground location, new equipment for the playground, and more fencing around the campus’ perimeter. Other projects include adding a partition and interior finish work such as painting and carpeting.

Board members discussed two things they would do if they approved the plan. Considering the tight timeline for renovation, they discussed creating contingency plans, and they also discussed holding public meetings where parents can ask questions about the decision.

The Schools Finance Board has the possibility to acquire up to $483,830 in grant money, but the grants aren’t guaranteed. The Governing Board will ensure that it can afford the total renovation costs without grant money before breaking ground.

The Board will hold a special meeting at 5 p.m. tonight, Wednesday, July 13, where they will hold a public hearing on the budget for the 2023-24 school year. Following the presentation on the budget, the floor will open to questions and comments from the public.