A process is moving forward that could see an EVIT satellite campus opened in Fountain Hills, potentially occupying the former Four Peaks Elementary School building owned by the Fountain Hills Unified School District.

During the Aug. 10 regular meeting, the FHUSD Governing Board unanimously approved a Memorandum of Understanding between the school district and the East Valley Institute of Technology.

“We are going to mutually agree upon a commercial building inspector and split the cost on that inspection,” explained Superintendent Dr. Patrick Sweeney. “Per the terms of the agreement, we would be responsible for replacing or repairing infrastructure or structural issues identified during the inspection.”

If however, the cost of repairs is deemed too great, FHUSD retains the right to back out of the agreement at that time. According to Sweeney, it is not expected that such a situation will be an issue.

“I don’t expect that,” Sweeney said. “That building is, in general, in good shape. We know there are some things that need attention, but I’d be a bit surprised if we ran into a real big big-ticket item that had the effect of us saying, no, we can’t do that.”

Both FHUSD and EVIT plan to move ASAP on this process, with a handful of inspectors already preparing bids.

“I would hope we can get the inspection rolling within two or three weeks, max,” Sweeney continued. “I don’t know what their turnaround on that would be, but I would expect it to be pretty prompt.”

According to the terms of the agreement, EVIT would have access to the entirety of the campus, though Sweeney said he expects the program would need to grow into the building.

“It’s a 67,000-plus square foot facility,” Sweeney said. “I expect that, as opportunities become available, they would start to utilize more and more of the building.”

If the assessment goes well and FHUSD moves forward with repairs, the next step would be for EVIT to determine initial programing for the site. A needs assessment would establish what other modifications might need to be orchestrated, which would be carried out by EVIT from early January to late June of 2017.

The assessment would take into account local students, students in surrounding districts, the community and local businesses.

“Once they identify what programs would be attractive and grow enrollment, the next step is getting the building ready,” Sweeney said. “The end goal, assuming all of this goes through, would be for EVIT to be ready for enrollment in that building for the 2017-18 school year.”

While nothing is set in stone, Sweeney said that ideas being kicked around include technology classes, cosmetology, computer repair, business services, etc.

“Ultimately, those decisions are EVIT’s to make with input from us,” Sweeney said. “I’m very excited about this and see it as a win-win-win. It’s good for EVIT, it’s good for the district and it’s good for our kids. Add another win to it, I think it’s good for the town to have a viable use for that facility by an entity we have a good relationship with.

“EVIT has a long, solid track record of being successful and expanding these kinds of programs by attracting people to them, so I have confidence in their sense that they can make this a very successful program and I look forward to working with them to help build that.”