Facilities for Fall 2006

Board Takes Action to Address Growth
The Central Valley School Board has adopted a series of moves to accommodate student housing needs for the 2006/07 school year. The district is working to address facilities needs as it faces a growth rate of three times the rate experiences by the district several years ago. Click here for a Summary of School Board Action.

During the current 2005/06 school year, Central Valley schools have enrolled about 360 new students and expect another 375 additional students next year. This growth rate is roughly equivalent to one new elementary school full of students each year. Although these students are enrolling at all grade levels, the highest number are enrolling in our elementary schools. Without community support for a construction bond, which failed in March 2006, the district lacks the financial resources to build new schools.

Plan Uses Existing Facilities to House Students
A top priority for Board members is to make the best use of existing facilities to house students, while continuing to focus on providing quality educational programs for all 12,000 students in Central Valley Schools. Central Valley currently provides a variety of specialized educational programs housed in three former school buildings -- Barker Center, Keystone Center and University Center (the old University High School). In addition, Summit School is a non-traditional school for K-8 students operating in the former Blake Elementary building. After discussing the learning programs located in these four buildings and considering a variety of student housing options, the School Board has made a series of student housing and program location changes for Fall 2006.

New Student/Program Locations for Fall 2006 - click to read the most current information available about each location

• Central Valley Kindergarten Center (formerly Barker Center) -- will house all kindergarten students and teachers from Greenacres and Liberty Lake Elementary schools. The building will retain child care and preschool programs currently housed in the building in a single, shared classroom. 
• Barker High School and Learning Center (formerly Summit/Blake Elementary) -- will house former Barker Center programs which support students age 14+
• Summit School (formerly Keystone Center) -- this non-traditional school for grades K-8 is an Expeditionary Learning School offering learning experiences in an non-traditional setting. The Spokane Valley Learning Academy, a parent partnership program for homeschooling families of students in grades K-12 will continue to use space in the building, with the program's base of operations in the building's two portable classrooms.
• Central Valley Early Learning Center (old University High School) -- five of the six programs housed at Keystone Center will move to University Center. These programs include child care, Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program (ECEAP), Spokane Community College (SCC) Adult Education Program, Even Start and the Native American Program Office. The sixth Keystone Center program, Spokane Valley Learning Academy, will share space with Summit School.
• University Elementary Kindergarten at Ponderosa Elementary -- All University Elementary kindergarten students and teachers will move to Ponderosa Elementary, starting in 2006/07 to relieve crowding.
• Greenacres Middle School -- when students enroll at this crowded middle school and cannot be accommodated, they will be "overflowed" to attend school at Evergreen or North Pines Middle School for the 2006/07 school year.

District officials are working diligently to address and facilitate all the details related to the movement of staff, students and program for 2006/07. As detailed plans are finalized, information will be posted here on the district website.

For more information, call the Public Information Office at 228-5405.