Why did we change middle school boundaries?

In the fall of 2009, middle schools in Rio Rancho will become grade 6-8 schools and high schools will become grade 9-12 schools. Our three existing middle schools, which are currently grade 6-7 schools, are at or close to capacity just with students in sixth and seventh grades. Unless some adjustment is made, these schools will be hundreds of students over capacity when the schools begin to serve three grade levels.

 

Simple Explanation: If you live in the blue-shaded area, your child moves to the new middle school. If you live in an area shaded any other color, your child remains at his/her current middle school. (Click the map for a larger view)

 

Therefore, the district plans to use the 8th grade wing and core facilities of the current Mid-High school as a fourth middle school. This will require the creation of an attendance zone for the new middle school and adjustment of the boundaries for the three existing middle schools.

 

The last comprehensive boundary changes at the middle school level occurred in 1996 with the opening of Eagle Ridge Middle School and Mountain View Middle School’s move into a permanent facility. Since then, there have been some minor adjustments to align with elementary boundary changes and adjust for enrollment increases in the north end of the district, but no major realignment.

 

The creation of the fourth middle school will require that significant numbers of students move from their existing schools to the new school at the Mid-High campus. In 2009-10, the adjustment will affect more than 1,100 students who are currently in grades 5-7.

 

What if I want my child to stay at his/her current middle school?

• Parents who wish to have their children remain at their current middle school may apply under the district's Open Enrollment policy. Principals consider these requests on a space-available basis. Parents are responsible for providing their own transportation. For information, contact the Principal at your child's current middle school.

Does this change the current High School boundary?

• No. The high school boundary is Northern Blvd. Students living north of Northern will attend the new Cleveland High School, and students living south of Northern will attend Rio Rancho High School regardless of which middle school they attend.

Does this change current Elementary School boundaries?

• No. The elementary boundaries remain the same.

How did we arrive at the new boundaries?

• Click here to read background information on the various options considered.

Click to view the new Middle School Boundaries.

Click to view the High School Boundaries.

 

Background information:

• How did the Boundary Committee and the School Board develop the new boundaries?
• How did enrollment and growth data affect this decision?
• How will the current Mid High building function as a middle school?

Comparison of old and new middle school boundaries based on elementary school attendance areas:

Elementary school attendance zone	School students currently attend	School students will attend in 2009-10
Cielo Azul Elementary	Mountain View	New Middle School
Colinas del Norte Elementary
North of 28th Ave.	Mountain View	New Middle School
South of 28th Ave.	Eagle Ridge	Eagle Ridge
Enchanted Hills Elementary
Rivers Edge 1 and 2	Mountain View	Mountain View
East of NM 528 and South of Corrales Rd.	Mountain View	Mountain View
North of the Barrancas Arroyo and West of NM 528	Mountain View	Mountain View
South of Barrancas Arroyo, west of NM 528, and East of 40th St.	Mountain View	New Middle School
West of 40 St.	Eagle Ridge	New Middle School
E. Stapleton Elementary
North of Northern Blvd.	Eagle Ridge	Eagle Ridge
East of 40th St. alignment (including Vista Hills)	Eagle Ridge	New Middle School
Between Broadmoor and 40 St. alignment (including Loma Colorado)	Eagle Ridge	Eagle Ridge
Area bordered by Unser/Idalia/Chessman/Abrazo	Lincoln	Lincoln
West of Broadmoor except "Abrazo triangle"	Eagle Ridge	Eagle Ridge
Maggie Cordova Elementary	Lincoln	Lincoln
Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary	Lincoln	Lincoln
Puesta del Sol Elementary	Eagle Ridge	Eagle Ridge
Rio Rancho Elementary	Lincoln	New Middle School
Sandia Vista Elementary	Mountain View	Mountain View
Vista Grande Elementary	Mountain View	Mountain View

Baseline data used by the committee in considering boundary adjustments:

Note: Colinas del Norte is not currently a “pure feeder” school. Students living north of 28th Ave. are zoned to Mountain View. Students living south of 28th Ave. are zoned to Eagle Ridge.

 

Stapleton, which is zoned to Eagle Ridge, is not currently “pure feeder” -- about 52 students living south of Chessman and Idalia Rds. and north of Abrazo attend Lincoln.

Capacity:

School	Capacity
Eagle Ridge	900
Lincoln	875
Mountain View	900
Mid-High (including 250 in portables)	1300

The capacity data used by the committee was provided by the RRPS Facilities Department. It is based on program capacity. This defines how many students can be housed in a school based on what educational programs are housed in classrooms.

For example, PE and music classes are larger than a typical middle school class in the core subjects, and special education programs, English-language learner programs, and some elective programs are smaller. Program capacity is typically somewhat smaller than a school’s capacity if every classroom and learning space were filled with the maximum number of students.

The capacity figures also factor in available, classroom-ready portables on the campuses. Mountain View has no portables (the site cannot accommodate them). Eagle Ridge and Lincoln have portables, but they are either being used for other purposes or are not suitable for use as classroom space.

Therefore, the only school with classroom - ready portables is the Mid-High, with a capacity of about 250 students in portables. The capacity figure for the Mid-High includes the current 8th grade wing, facilities and classrooms in the core (including the cafeteria and Media Center, lab facilities, and fine arts facilities), the athletics and music spaces in the gymnasium building, and portable classrooms.

The capacity figures do not include the current 9th grade wing; the use of that building is discussed in section 5 later in this report.

 

Growth and development:

In the past two years, growth in Rio Rancho has slowed considerably from a high of 8.5% annual growth in the school district during the 2006-07 school year.  The district grew by 1,200 students that year.

The most current enrollment figures indicate the current rate of growth is in the 2% - 2.5% range.  This is still a significant number -- about 350 in an enrollment of more than 16,000 -- but is considerably under the growth rate that has prevailed since 2002.

The district expects that the growth rate will continue to be relatively flat this year, but as the economy eventually improves, development in Rio Rancho will once again pick up.  Affecting this expectation are the impending arrival of employees from Hewlett-Packard, the impending construction of the UNM and CNM campuses, and new hospital construction by Presbyterian and (eventually) UNM.  All of these projects are likely to bring permanent residents into the city and encourage future economic development.

Home sales in Rio Rancho are down, but haven’t disappeared completely as evidenced by the district’s 2%+ growth rate.  Six major developments and several smaller ones are currently either selling homes or soon will be.  The major developments are:

• Cabezon, southern end of Rio Rancho, in the current Lincoln MS district
• Loma Colorado, central Rio Rancho, in the current Eagle Ridge MS district
• Northern Meadows, north-central Rio Rancho in the current Mountain View MS district
• Lomas Encantadas, northeast Rio Rancho, in the current Mountain View MS district
• Mariposa, north Rio Rancho, in the current Mountain View MS district
• Hawk Site, extreme northern Rio Rancho, in the current Mountain View MS district

As the City Center continues to develop with the arrival of CNM, UNM, and the new high school, growth in this area is expected to increase fairly dramatically. The bottom line is that there is growth in all areas of the district and so all of the future middle schools will be impacted.  Given that, the committee adopted a conservative, middle-of-the-road growth projection of 3% next year (2009-10) and 4% in 2010-11 for purposes of projecting enrollment growth within the proposed middle school boundaries.

Geographical distribution of middle schools:

One factor affecting the process of developing boundaries is the geographical distribution of three of the four middle schools.  The circles around the schools indicate an approximate 1.5 mile radius from each middle school. As the map shows, three of the four middle schools (Lincoln, Eagle Ridge, Mid-High) are located in a small geographic area. 

Significant areas of the city are within 1.5 miles of more than one middle school.  Also, large concentrations of population are closest to one middle school (Lincoln) that does not have the capacity to accommodate all students in its three closest elementary schools.

The committee considered proximity carefully in developing its proposals, but was not always able to accommodate all students within the closest middle school to where they live.

Plans for how the Mid-High campus will be used as a middle school and for the site as a whole

The district currently plans to use the eighth-grade wing and core facility of the Mid-High as a middle school for the next several years, pending the construction of at least one and possibly two middle schools.  The other part of the building (current 9th grade wing) would become the Career Technical Enrichment Center.  The Center will not be an independent “school,” but a facility that will provide high-level coursework to students enrolled at all Rio Rancho high schools (RRHS, Cleveland, Independence, and the Cyber Academy). 

We are well aware that having high school and middle school students on the same site requires separation of the programs and appropriate security.  In many parts of the country it is not at all unusual for two grade levels of schools to function on the same site, and they do so very successfully. 

The Career Technical Enrichment Center is still being developed, but the following provides some information about what is planned.

(Click here to view a building plan for how the current Mid High will be divided into the new middle school and the CTC.)

1. What is the philosophy of the Career Technical Enrichment Center?

The Center will focus on providing additional high-level course offerings for students coming from Rio Rancho’s high schools by providing a variety of services to meet the needs of ALL Rio Rancho students.   The Center will provide opportunities to further prepare our students for post secondary studies and the work force by participating in one-of-a kind programs that might not be feasible to offer at either or both high schools due to technology, equipment, staffing, or enrollment. The Center may offer evening courses and summer school as well and will most likely be on a non-traditional schedule, providing students with more flexibility to participate in the programs that they are interested in participating.  Certain programs will be phased in as funding, facilities and technology are available.

The Center will provide opportunities for all RRPS students and give relief to both high in terms of space and student population.

2. How will students get to the Center?

Students will be shuttled to and from the center to the high schools in a dedicated shuttle.  Students will not be driving to the center and will only spend a portion of their day at the center.  Students will be attending one of the high schools and come to the Center for specific programs.

3. What kinds of programs and/or courses will be housed at the Center?

Students will come to the Center for the specific courses needed and not for core courses.   The complete program has not been finalized yet, but under consideration are programs such as Project Lead the Way (an engineering program), ROTC, and health science courses tied to CNM and/or UNM.  As well, world language courses to promote and provide languages not currently being offered, or those that are upper level or have small numbers participating could be offered in this central location.  Arabic and Mandarin are immediate possibilities.  Upper level AP courses, such as AP science classes that have a lab component or those that have smaller enrollments are being considered as well.

Articulation agreements will be evaluated with CNM or UNM for dual enrollment credit to fulfill a district and state mandate.  The center may also focus on programs that lead to certification and/or college credit.  A Culinary Arts program is one example, other ideas being explored include A+ computer repair, CAD design, introductory aviation program, and some media arts courses, phlebotomy, health unit coordinator, and medical lab technician, EMT programs with CNM as well as business and marketing courses.  The Center will not be a degree granting institution but rather provide program support to the other high schools.

4. How will the Center be separated from the new middle school?

RRMH is currently built in two specific wings.  There will be physical barriers erected both inside and outside to provide separation between the two facilities. Students in the two facilities will not mingle at all.  Each will have its own parking area, bus area, and entrances.  Core facilities such as the cafeteria and gymnasium will be used by the middle school only and will not be accessed by Center students.  Additional staff parking will be developed to accommodate for staff of the middle school and the Center. A specific plan for security is being developed.

 

5. What other services or programs might be offered at the Center?

The center will offer a variety of services for the school district and community.  The following represents an overview of what the Redesign committee indicated as currently needed in the district.

1. On line classes through Cyber could be a part of the center.
2. A career and post secondary counseling center, providing testing, applications, and post high school preparation work.
3. Evening courses and summer school could provide additional opportunities for SAT, ACT, AP and other preparation classes.
4. After hours, the facility could also provide community resources in offering professional development, renting of rooms, and additional classes for the community as well as providing an additional site for UNM and CNM classes.

6. What is the timeline and does the Center have a name?

The Center will be fully operational by the 2010-1011 school year and has yet to have an official name.