COMMERCE CITY, Colo. — Adams 14 school district in Commerce City will consolidate multiple schools amid declining enrollment, the district said.
Tuesday night, the Board of Education voted 3-2 in favor of the consolidation.
The district said Hanson Elementary School and Monaco Elementary School will be merged into the Monaco building, and Lester Arnold High School will be moved to the former Hanson building. Those changes will take place by August, the district said.
The decision also calls for the construction of new lab classrooms in the Hanson building to accommodate the Health Professions and Human Services Academy at Adams City High School. It's unclear when that move would be made.
"The consolidation allows the district to continue providing students with a high-quality education while mitigating the adverse financial and educational effects of lower student enrollment," the district said in a news release.
The board also directed the superintendent to begin planning a phased merging of the district’s two middle schools, Adams City Middle School and Kearney Middle School, into one junior high school serving grades 7-8 by the 2027-28 school year.
"Consistent with statewide trends, Adams 14 has seen its share of declining enrollment at its schools, with Hanson and Monaco being the two schools with the lowest enrollment," the district said in the release. "The board’s decision comes after several community feedback meetings that started last school year and careful analysis."
Adams 14 has about 900 employees and 13 schools serving about 6,000 students, the district said.
The state removed Adams 14's accreditation in May after the district recorded the lowest ratings in the accountability system for more than 10 years. The Colorado Board of Education voted to restore the accreditation in September.
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