ARVADA, Colo. — The start of summer was bittersweet for students and staff at Arvada K-8. Wednesday was the last day for the school in the Jefferson County Public Schools district.
"We’re really sad," fourth-grade teacher Cathy Margolis said. "We're excited to see the kids looking forward to summer but we’re really sad to see them go."
Margolis knew seeing the students walk out of Arvada K-8's doors Wednesday would be their final time as "Timberwolves."
"I think that’s going to be the hardest goodbye for me today is saying goodbye to all the students," Margolis said.
Fellow fourth-grade teacher and Margolis' teammate, Suzanne Morales, shared the same feelings.
"For me what’s really hard is when you’ve been in a school a long time and your students give you hugs and say hi," Morales said. "The relationships will come but you’re starting over. Relationships with teammates, staff, missing everybody."
The JeffCo school board voted to close Arvada K-8 at its October 12, 2023 meeting. The district said declining enrollment due to low birth rates contributed to the decision.
"We're a family here at K-8, so its’ going to be really hard for us to leave but I want to thank the families and the students because they’ve impacted my life in such a positive way," Margolis said.
Along with Arvada K-8, the district closed Coal Creek Canyon K-8 and Moore Middle School at the end of the 2023-24 school year. The district said Arvada and Coal Creek are the district's smallest K-8 schools.
The district said while the decisions were difficult, it did offer the opportunity for staff to keep jobs in JeffCo, if they wanted to stay.
Margolis said she's staying in the district and will be transitioning to teaching fifth grade at Lawrence Elementary. The teammates tried to stay together, but Morales said she is planning to teach fourth grade in another district.
"She’s like my sister, my best friend," Margolis said, looking at Morales. "She’s supported me in so many ways."
District Associate Chief of Communications Kimberly Mahugh wrote in an email to 9NEWS, there were 547 students enrolled at Arvada K-8 in the 2023-24 school year, "making it the district’s 2nd smallest K-8 school."
- 37.5% of students have enrolled in North Arvada Middle School
- 25.8% of students will attend Lawrence Elementary
- 6.1% of students have enrolled at Secrest Elementary
- About 30 students open-enrolled into various other schools across the district.
Margolis and Morales said since the school board vote came down, they've been trying to console students and make them feel confident as their paths diverge.
"This is a part of life," Morales said. "We move, we change, things happen. So it’s life. There’s both emotions."
"We’re all continuing in different directions is what I told my students, and just be the best you can be whatever that you go to," Margolis concluded.
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