Arrowhead High School's students have recently achieved record high ACT scores and Advanced Placement results. Our School Report Card rating is the highest possible: Significantly Exceeds Expectations. While our students are thriving academically, our facilities are aging rapidly and have fallen behind area districts. Two capital referendums proposed since 2024 failed to win voter support. Both referendums were about getting all Arrowhead students and staff under one roof.
Community member feedback was clear: cost and tax impact were primary concerns. At the same time, maintaining two aging buildings is not a good use of tax dollars. Therefore, a new plan to update the North Campus at a reduced cost has been developed.
The most viable strategy to get everyone under one roof at a lower cost/tax impact is to plan for lower enrollment. With resident and non-resident enrollment decreasing, the School Board is considering an option to serve only students and families that live in the Arrowhead community. This means that AHS would no longer accept non-resident students. It is hard to justify asking Arrowhead taxpayers to fund a larger facility to accommodate out-of-district students whose families do not pay local property taxes.
By focusing on Arrowhead families, $79 million is needed for a much smaller addition and fewer renovations to the North Campus. The tax impact would be almost half of what was associated with the last referendum.
To gauge community support, a short survey will be sent to households around the first week of October. Please complete the survey so the School Board can receive as much community feedback as possible.
