The Queen Creek Unified School District Governing Board announced this afternoon that they are calling for a bond election to support the needs of the rapidly-growing population of the district.
Voters in the Queen Creek Unified School District No. 95 (QCUSD) failed to approve a bond of up to $286 million requested by the school board last November, but massive growth has them asking voters again to support local students.
Enrollment at QCUSD has grown 80% from 2016-2021 and is expected to grow another 31% in the next five years. According to data analytics from Applied Economics, nine of the district's 14 schools will be near or over capacity by school year 2023-2024.
The district is asking voters to consider a bond of $198 million for projects over the next five years to help fund construction of new schools, expansions to existing schools, upgrades to facilities, security features, new buses, and other improvements to address the rapid growth of Queen Creek’s population.
"Queen Creek Unified School District enrollment has grown nearly 150 percent in the last decade. Some of our newest schools are already nearing their capacity limits. Our priority at the district is to continue providing premiere-level education to our students with small class sizes, enrichment opportunities, and the resources they need to become future leaders." said Amber Stouard, chief financial officer for QCUSD.
Proposed projects include two new elementary schools, renovations to Queen Creek High School's athletics, arts and classroom facilities, the completion of Eastmark High School, classroom expansions for elementary schools, and more. For a full list of proposed projects by school, click here.
