Sedona-Oak Creek Unified School District

The Sedona-Oak Creek Unified School District (SOCUSD) is a school district headquartered in Sedona, Arizona. It operates Sedona Red Rock High School as well as the West Sedona School, which serves students in grades K through 6.

The district includes portions of Yavapai and Coconino counties.[1] It includes Sedona, as well as Village of Oak Creek (Big Park).[2] It also includes Red Rock.[3]

The formal name is Sedona-Oak Creek Joint Unified School District No. 9 of Yavapai and Coconino Counties.[4]

History

In December 1990 a referendum involving voters in both Yavapai and Coconino counties was held on whether this district should be created. 2,321 of 2,509 voters approved creating this district, a result characterized by the Arizona Daily Sun as a "landslide".[5] The district came into existence after June 30, 1991.[6] The district included land formerly in the Flagstaff Unified School District, Cottonwood-Oak Creek Elementary School District, and Mingus Union High School District.[1]

There had been a previous proposal submitted to the Arizona Legislature to create a bi-county school district in the area in the 1960s.[7][8]

At the time the Sedona district formed, Sedona students continued to attend Flagstaff for high school.[9] The majority of the territory of the district was created was in Yavapai County, along with most of the voting base, so Yavapai County became the district's county of jurisdiction.[6]

Schools

  • West Sedona School (K-6)
    • Flagstaff USD previously operated the elementary school in Sedona.[7] The facility has a community swimming pool which opened in 1975.[10] It was formerly a K-8 school.[11] In 2008 many older buildings were replaced with new ones.[12]
  • Sedona Red Rock High School (7-12)
  • Red Rock Academy (K-12, alternative)

It previously operated the K–8 school Big Park Community School, which opened in 1994.[12] However, the school district voted in May 2020 to close the school due to budget deficit concerns.[13] According to Randy Hawley, a member of the board of trustees, the district was having trouble having enough money to operate Big Park Community School, and the number of students had declined.[14]

References

  1. ^ a b "Comprehensive Annual Financial Report Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 2016" (PDF). Sedona-Oak Creek Unified School District. p. 2 (PDF p. 11/167). Retrieved 2024-12-28.
  2. ^ "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Yavapai County, AZ" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. p. 1 (PDF p. 2/3). Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved 2024-09-12. - Text list
  3. ^ "School District Map" (PDF). Yavapai County. Retrieved 2024-12-28. - Indicates locations of unincorporated areas.
  4. ^ "SEDONA-OAK CREEK JOINT UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT No. 9 OF YAVAPAI AND COCONINO COUNTIES" (PDF). Yavapai County Education Service Agency. Retrieved 2024-12-28.
  5. ^ "Landslide vote allows Sedona school district". Arizona Daily Sun. 1990-12-12. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ a b "Legal No. 9048 [...] Canvass the Sedona Unified School District Election, Held December 11, 1990". Arizona Daily Sun. 1991-03-19. p. 14 – via Newspapers.com. - This is in the public notices section and is a primary source.
  7. ^ a b "Bi-County School Bill Hit: Senate Unit Refuses Its Introduction". Arizona Daily Sun. Vol. 17, no. 154. 1963-01-31. pp. 1-2 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Bi-County Foes Wire Legislators". Arizona Daily Sun. Vol. 17, no. 192. 1963-03-16. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ Rothschild, Becca (1991-08-21). "Dropout rate falls at FUSD". Arizona Daily Sun. p. 5 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Sedona seeks funds for pool". The Arizona Republic. 1978-05-02. p. C-6 – via Newspapers.com. - The article talks about a "Sedona School District" and yet this district was not established until 1991.
  11. ^ "West Sedona School". Sedona-Oak Creek Unified School District. Archived from the original on 1998-06-28. Retrieved 2024-12-28.
  12. ^ a b "Comprehensive Annual Financial Report Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 2016" (PDF). Sedona-Oak Creek Unified School District. p. 3 (PDF p. 12/167). Retrieved 2024-12-28.
  13. ^ "Sedona–Oak Creek School District to close Big Park Community School".
  14. ^ Altavena, Lily (2019-06-12). "Squeezed by declining enrollment, Arizona's rural schools are suffering". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved 2024-12-27.