With an enrollment increase of 148% in the last 10 years, and student population increase of 33% expected in the next five, the Queen Creek Unified School District finds itself unable to build new facilities fast enough to accommodate demand.
The District has built five new schools in the last five years and has two more in development.
Stills it says nine of its 14 schools will be nearing or exceeding capacity in the 2023-2024 school year.
QCUSD has requested nearly $40M from the School Facilities Oversight Board, which it will combine with local funds and $198M in bond funding, if voters approve the November bond request. In addition to funding new space, the bond request would also fund improvements and maintenance for existing facilities.
Queen Creek, like most communities in the Greater Phoenix area, continues to see high rates of population growth. District officials point out that every new subdivision carries with it approximately 100 new families with children that will need to be served.
Funding through the SFOB is based on complex demographic and space needs formulations that are developed in consultation with social scientists to determine how much space is needed to serve the learning space needs for school districts. The formulations are complicated by issues like charter school enrollment – which draws students from the public school pool – population growth and student retention, among others.
At present, the District is also considering adding $5.5M in portable classroom space to accommodate demand, even though officials stress this is not desirable as a long-term solution, both because portable spaces are not built to the same standards as permanent facilities and they cost more to operate and maintain on a square foot basis. (Source)