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…

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