About 900 Scottsdale Students Will Change Schools After the Board Voted 3-2 to Close Copper Ridge and Laguna, a Move Expected to Save $2.7 Million

Families at two Scottsdale schools are preparing for a bigger move next fall. The Scottsdale Unified School District governing board voted 3-2 on Oct. 6 to close Copper Ridge K-8 and Laguna Prep, a decision FOX 10 Phoenix reported affects roughly 900 students. District data put the expected savings at about $2.7 million.

What the Board Decided

The vote closes Copper Ridge, a K-8 campus, and Laguna Prep, also known as Laguna Elementary, after the 2026-27 school year. KTAR News reported that an earlier attempt to delay the decision failed before the final vote, and that the closures will save the district more than $2.5 million.

The board chose the option that affected the fewest students and saved the most money, according to ABC15 Arizona. Board members Amy Carney and Carine Werner voted no.

This is the second round of closures in two years. Scottsdale Unified previously approved closing Pima Elementary and Echo Canyon School as the first phase of a plan to deal with falling enrollment.

Where Students Are Expected to Go

Before the vote, the district laid out three options for public comment. Under the plan that matches the board’s decision, Copper Ridge students would move to Desert Canyon, and Laguna students would be split among Redfield, Anasazi and Cochise elementary schools, Arizona’s Family reported in September. A Desert Canyon K-8 merger remained a possibility under that plan.

That option was estimated to affect 773 to 872 students, far fewer than the more than 2,100 students touched by each of the other two options. FOX 10 reported that students will be redistributed under an approved boundary model.

Parents should expect to hear from the district about final assignments, transportation and enrollment steps before the 2027-28 school year begins.

Why Scottsdale Unified Is Closing Schools

The main reason is fewer students. The district serves about 23,000 students, and enrollment is down 26% since 2010, KJZZ reported. FOX 10 said the district has lost more than 6,000 students over that period.

KTAR reported that the seven schools the board considered in its options have a combined capacity of 7,194 seats but enroll 3,296 students. That gap means many buildings are running well below what they were built to hold.

When the options were first presented in September, Superintendent Scott Menzel said the district had unused space and that the state was not providing support to offset the funding lost as enrollment dropped.

Board member Matthew Pittinsky said he regretted the effect on families but believed closing schools was the more responsible path. He argued that cutting programs and staff, raising class sizes and compromising security should be last resorts. The district had also been facing an anticipated $7.8 million to $9 million budget shortfall, according to KJZZ.

Concerns From Parents and Board Members

The vote did not come easily. Carney said the district had not exhausted alternatives for strengthening the schools before closing them. Werner joined her in voting no.

Some parents questioned the data behind the options. KTAR reported that Phase 2 committee members said the district did not review financial data or building capacity when choosing which schools to consider. The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office also said the district violated open meeting laws while drawing up the options, though it could not order a fix because the committee had finished its work.

Parent Carolyn Walsh, whose child attends Laguna Prep, told KJZZ in September that the district had listed the school’s capacity as 638 students when she said the real figure was 891, and argued that options that might have kept Laguna open were removed because of it.

For some families the change is personal. Laguna parent Micah Desjardins, whose son is autistic, told ABC15 the school is three minutes from his house if something goes wrong. He said his family may consider other options, including private school.

A Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Scottsdale official also raised concerns about serving Laguna students, since the club program sits across the street from the school.

What Families Can Do This Year

Students will finish the 2026-27 year at Copper Ridge and Laguna. ABC15 reported that Laguna parents have vowed to make the school’s final year count.

Governing Board President Donna Lewis told ABC15 that her heart is with the families who will be hurting during the transition.

Families at both schools can use the coming months to visit their likely new campuses, ask about after-school care near the new schools and check how bus routes will change. Parents of children with special needs may want to ask early about how services and support staff will transfer.

District leaders have not announced plans for the Laguna campus. With enrollment still falling, more decisions about Scottsdale Unified buildings may come in future years.

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This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.

Image: Richard N Horne – CC BY-SA 4.0/Wikimedia Commons