Second high school to open in 2009
by Kathleen Stinson

CAVE CREEK – The Cave Creek Unified School District governing board in early February will make a recommendation on a site to build a second high school set to open in 2009.

At last Tuesday's board meeting, the Cave Creek Unified School District heard presentations comparing the cost and academic advantages of building a second school on the north campus near Cactus Shadows High School or on the south campus adjacent to lower grade schools.

District Associate Superintendent of operations and finance, Dr. Kent Frison, said the majority of the cost differences are related to staff costs. Other costs such as electricity and gas would not be markedly different from one site to the other.

The board at a previous meeting narrowed down the search to two sites, one on the north campus and the other on the south campus.

Frison said it will cost the district less money in terms of staff salaries and benefits to build the new school on the north campus. It will cost $6.86 million to have the school at the north campus site compared to a projected $7.3 million if they build on the south campus.

If the north campus plan is approved, the new school would open with ninth grade classes the first year, with Cactus Shadows High School holding grades 10‑12.

If the south campus construction is approved, the first year would include only grades 9‑10. Cactus Shadows High School would remain open for grades 9‑12.

The district estimates that by constructing the new school adjacent to Cactus Shadows on the north campus, the schools could share some staff expenses including those for grounds keeping and the cafeteria.

If the district builds the new high school on the north campus, it could be sited on existing grounds already tended by groundskeeper.

Frison presented a second set of comparisons related to the new proposed school's third year of operation.

Under this scenario, both Cactus Shadows High School and the new school would serve all four grade levels. Option 1 sites the school on the north campus for an estimated staff cost of $7.32 million compared to the south campus at $7.98 million, for a savings of $663,710 on the north campus.

Dr. Debbi Burdick, associate superintendent of teaching and learning for CCUSD, offered information on the connection between school size and availability of honors, advanced placement and elective class sections.

Burdick said typically, the larger the school, the more opportunities for students in terms of availability of these types of class sections as larger schools have more students to draw from to fill classes.

She presented area historical data comparing school size to number of honors, advanced placement and elective class sections.

For example, Cactus Shadows High School in the academic year 1993‑1994 had 544 students and in language arts three honors, AP and elective class sections. With a current school population of 2,000 students, Pinnacle High School in Paradise Valley has 20 honors, AP and elective sections in this area.

Newly re‑elected board member Stephanie Reese asked Burdick if the district had considered an honors high school instead of a second general high school.

Cynthia Driscoll, chairwoman of a subcommittee of the Long Range Facilities Planning Committee, said they looked at different options such as opening a math and science or technology school, but that there was no clear consensus or support for these specialized options.

Newly‑elected board member Susan Clancy questioned whether the district had surveyed community members as to their preferences for a specialized school. Burdick said the district completed a survey in December of 2004.

“That's a long time ago,” Clancy said. "I would be curious to hear from the public now."

Burdick said Friday, although the board did not vote to conduct a new survey, it appeared there was consensus for one among the board members.

Reach the reporter at kathleen@thedesertadvocate.com.