The J.O. Combs Unified School District is considering closing the Combs Traditional Academy campus and giving its alternative school a building of its own at Combs High School, starting with 2027-28, SanTanValley.com reported Friday. No vote has been taken, and the earliest one could come is the governing board's Nov. 4 meeting.
Superintendent Toby Haugen brought the recommendation to the board on Oct. 14. Combs Traditional Academy had 187 students, from kindergarten to sixth grade, on Oct. 12. Haugen offered two paths: send those students to other district schools, or move the program inside one of the district's elementary campuses.
Board member Lisa Horne suggested a third, converting an existing elementary into the academy and keeping its principal and staff.
Combs Center for Success, an alternative school with both online and in-person students, now shares the academy campus. Haugen proposed moving it to a separate building at Combs High with its own entrance and parking. He said bus riders there currently leave about half an hour early and would get a full day after the move.
Fewer students, tighter budget
Haugen said the district signed up 317 kindergartners in 2021, compared with 203 this year, and that most schools are under half full, apart from Ranch Elementary and Combs High. The district budgeted for 3,470 students while the state projects funding for 3,329, a gap of about $735,000 at $5,215 per student; after a gain from online enrollment, he put this year's shortfall near $135,000.
The academy's salaries and benefits run just under $1.1 million against about $975,000 in state money for its students. District staff also estimated that the $3.07-per-1,000-gallon water fee Queen Creek begins charging in January will raise the district's water costs, now about $196,000 a year, by roughly $157,000.
