Low enrollment and test scores led the Mapleton School Board this week to vote to close two struggling schools and to make other changes in the small district in Adams County.
The board decided to shutter Welby New Technology High School and the Enrichment Academy.
Welby is below the state median in improvement in all subjects, according to the district. With an enrollment of 201, it is just half full, and student achievement has slipped — 7 percent of students were proficient in math, 17 percent in writing and 38 percent in reading.
At Enrichment Academy, a K-6 school with an enrollment of 207, students are 31 percent proficient at math and reading and 26 percent proficient at writing. The school is half-filled, and improvement rates are at or below the state median, officials said.
At Welby, students did hands-on work with computer technology in an environment that encouraged one-on-one teaching, said school director Jon Mann.
“The kids were presented projects that demanded real-world solutions,” Mann said. “Relevancy is an important part of what we do.”
Still, enrollment and academic trends were spiraling downward and students at Welby were aware they will have to go elsewhere next year, he said.
“It’s tough, but they are rallying,” Mann said. “They are just filled with lots of questions.”
The Welby site next year will become a stand-alone facility for the district’s Montessori school, which is now at the shared Skyview Campus.
Also, the district is moving seven preschool classes from the former Mapleton High School building to other district facilities and adjusting class sizes districtwide.
This means lower teacher/student ratios for kindergarten, first and second grades and increased ratios for third through 12th grades.
“We need to make some difficult decisions right away in order to properly prepare for the 2010-2011 academic year,” Mapleton Superintendent Charlotte Ciancio said. “These decisions best preserve our mission and commitment to student success and achievement.”
Monte Whaley: 720-929-0907 or mwhaley@denverpost.com
