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Casa Grande Union board weighs options for PACE after years of low enrollment
Summary
After several years of enrollment shortfalls, the Casa Grande Union High School District reviewed five options for PACE — including expansion, relocation, reintegration or closure — and agreed to further community engagement before the board decides.
Casa Grande Union High School District Superintendent Mister Lavender opened a Feb. 9 study session by presenting a multi‑year history of the district’s PACE program and the financial gap created by lower‑than‑projected enrollment. Lavender said initial New Schools Initiative grants provided seed funding, but attendance did not reach the modelled targets that underpinned staffing and facility plans.
“The first was a $100,000 installment for a planning year,” Lavender said, describing subsequent grants of $250,000 and $125,000. He told the board a final scheduled $125,000 payment was not received after the program failed to match enrollment projections used in grant calculations. Lavender said projected enrollment assumed 125 students at opening and increases of 125 students per year, but actual in‑person attendance was far lower.
Monic…
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