Navajo reservation high school shutting it’s doors
Weekly Edition | February 13, 2012 | By: NP writer
A Navajo reservation high school closes its doors, the White Cone High school located in a small community in White Cone, AZ. The district’s governing board voted 3/2/0 to close the facility at the end of June.
Ganado High School to see a boost in enrollment for fall 2012, which is the closest high school and large enough to handle many more student.
The White Cone community is comprised of 1,963,706 acres. It is located in the southwest section of the Navajo Reservation.
The decision of the governing board said it was a ‘difficult one’. The Cedar Unified School District faced financial challenges to keep the school open. The school had programs like vocational and comprehensive programs. The board advises parents to enroll their students in neighboring high schools.
Danny Wright, the Interim Superintendent of the Cedar Unified School District said the Arizona School Facilities Board approved the construction of White Cone High School based upon projected enrollments between 200 and 250 students.
The White Cone High School was dedicated and opened for the 2005/2006 school year. The fiscal year 2006 100th day average daily attendance (ADA) was 111.6 students. The 100th day ADA for each subsequent fiscal year continued to decline. The ADA for fiscal year 2011 was 65.43 students.
“Unfortunately, the number of students attending White Cone High School from the surrounding communities has never been adequate to fund a comprehensive high school educational program.” said Wright
The current financial condition of the Cedar Unified School District and continuing funding reductions in public school budget capacity and State Aid to public education have forced the District’s Governing Board into a ‘No Win’ situation. According to a Press Release on February 9, by the district.
Mr. Wright emphasized the funding is just not a available to provide a quality comprehensive educational program to student choosing to attend high school in the Cedar Unified School District.
