Sierra Vista superintendent recommends closing at least two schools, including Joyce Clark Middle School

Terry Romo, superintendent of the Sierra Vista Unified School District, told the governing board at a work session that the district must close a minimum of two schools next year to close an estimated $5 million budget shortfall and recommended Joyce Clark Middle School as one of the closures. "We have continued to lose students, lost more than 2,000 students, over 3,000 empty seats," Romo said.

Romo and district staff presented results from a public survey the district administered: staff member Miss Weller said the survey produced 1,414 submissions and, after removing duplicates and entries that could not be verified, the cleaned total was 1,183. "After removing all those duplicates, took the number down to 1,183," Miss Weller said while outlining how responses were broken down by elementary, middle and high school stakeholders.

Romo framed the recommendation around facility utilization, student counts and staffing. She told the board that Joyce Clark Middle School (JCMS) ranked highest under the district rubric because closing it would preserve more district jobs than many elementary-closure scenarios. Romo said JCMS operates at a low facility-usage rate (roughly 26 percent) and that the district lost about 60 sixth-graders in the most recent year alone, increasing pressure on the budget.

Board members pressed Romo for specific savings. Romo said closing Bella Vista produced roughly $1.2 million in savings and estimated Joyce Clark-related staffing reductions at about $480,000; she said she and district staff have identified administrative and district-office reductions that also reduce costs but the board must still find $5 million in cuts for next year's budget. One board member asked whether the $5 million target was a one-year cut or spread over multiple years; Romo said the budget gap must be addressed for next year.

The board discussed trade-offs between preserving a stand-alone middle school and converting to K–8 models. Romo said keeping a middle school would likely require closing two elementary schools to reach the same savings. Several board members and one who identified as a former school nurse urged the board to weigh student social and emotional supports, noting the transitional role middle schools can play.

Members also asked about selling district property as a revenue source. Romo and staff cautioned that proceeds from property sales are typically restricted to capital uses and cannot be used for ongoing staffing costs. "Selling of this property will only be able to stay in capital," Romo said, adding that the district's property attorney is reviewing deeds to determine which parcels could be sold and whether federal or donor restrictions apply.

Board members noted additional uncertainty from state funding and pending legislation; Romo said she could not yet estimate the impact of state actions such as Proposition 231 until the district receives further clarification. Romo urged the board to set direction so staff can plan for placements, transportation, grants and other second-order effects.

The governing board will consider a formal vote on Romo's recommendation at its meeting on April 21; Romo said that if the board adds any additional closure beyond her recommendation a town-hall meeting would be required and the board could not vote on that additional closure until at least 10 days after the town hall. The board adopted the meeting agenda at the start of the session and later voted to adjourn the work session unanimously.

Next steps: the district will continue deed review for possible property sales, refine the staffing and site models for each closure scenario and provide the board with detailed savings estimates ahead of the April 21 meeting.