Cameo to close in proposed Clovis schools plan

Cameo Elementary School will close, Lockwood Elementary will become a preschool center and the Freshman Academy will move to Clovis High School. Those are among recommendations Clovis Municipal Schools board members will be asked to consider in the coming month.

Superintendent Renee Russ led the board of education work study session on Tuesday morning. Russ said she and other school officials have informed impacted schools’ staff of the proposed changes but emphasized the board will have the ultimate say in any changes.

“We want to emphasize that we are just now starting the conversation period. We did take the last week or 10 days or so to go personally visit campuses that might be most directly impacted through recommendations,” Russ said.

Administrators along with a Facility Master Plan committee have been looking into data since last year.

Russ said the decision for these recommendations comes with a heavy heart and that it will be a difficult decision for the board to consider.

“We want to acknowledge that there is that emotional aspect. … You know, we want people to have that emotional attachment. We want people to have a good experience so that those buildings matter,” Russ said.

When considering the proposed closure and repurposing list, Russ said officials were often brought back to the subject of Cameo, which first opened in 1970. She said the building requires $39 million to replace and would take about $1 million to maintain repairs.

The need for change stems from a state requirement that 85% of a school’s capacity must be in use before it can be eligible for matching state funds, Russ said. A “matching” grant usually means the state picks up 68% of construction costs, she said.

Cameo is at 69% capacity, school officials say.

“The bottom line is our footprint is too large and we have to make decisions on how to shrink that footprint,” Russ said.

Despite the recommendation to close Cameo, Russ said school officials recognize what a loss it would be for residents to lose the community space there. She recommended the district maintain the playground and provide shaded areas for residents.

Another recommendation is to repurpose Lockwood Elementary to becoming an Early Childhood Center.

“We’re pretty late to the game as a district to the pre-k game, but since we’ve added pre-k it has grown and grown,” Russ said.

Corey Lucero, president of the pre-k programs, said the district’s need for a pre-k school is growing. She said they currently have 80 students on a pre-k waitlist.

Lucero said some elementary school facilities, specifically Los Ninos Elementary School, currently aren't tailored for younger kids. She said the facilities have inadequate bathroom facilities and space for changing tables.

Lucero said establishing Lockwood as a pre-k center would allow the district to better meet the unique needs of 3- and 4-year olds.

In addition to this transition, Lucero said the plan will be for Lockwood to receive minor renovations so it could be better situated for smaller children.

Executive Director of Strategic Planning & School Support Gloria Mendoza led the discussion of moving the Freshman Academy to Clovis High. She said this wasn’t a foreign idea to the board as this has been under consideration since the creation of the freshman facility.

The goal is to have a school within a school.

Deputy Superintendent Jay Brady said the freshman core classes will be isolated in one region of the high school campus, so ninth-graders will not routinely interact with older students.

With this transition the current Freshman Academy facility would be repurposed for an IAcademy wing (now at Lincoln-Jackson) and space for a student support services office (now at Cameo).

Executive Director of Talent Management & Development Mandy Carpenter said if the recommendations were to go through, then all 32 teachers from Cameo and Lockwood would be internally transferred to other elementary school sites.

The teachers will have a priority in placement for the 2024-25 school year, Carpenter said.

Carpenter said no teachers will lose their jobs, but some will ultimately be lost through attrition.

Here's the list of recommendations the school board is being asked to consider.

• To retire Cameo Elementary by May 2025 and repurpose community spaces within the campus by May 2024.

Cameo students will be rezoned to neighboring campuses. Approximately 120 students will be transferred to Sandia, 85 to the Arts Academy at Bella Vista and 50 to James Bickley Elementary.

• Consolidate the Dual Language Program at La Casita in August 2024.

This will move Lockwood and James Bickley’s bilingual program to La Casita. The Center for Teaching for Biliteracy will assist with merging the two programs and develop a common language allocation plan.

• Repurpose Lockwood to become an Early Childhood Center in August 2024.

Students will be rezoned to neighboring campuses La Casita and Parkview with some Parkview students then moving to Zia Elementary.

• Clovis High School Freshman Academy will have a Freshman Academy facility at Clovis High School in August 2025.

• Assets to be repurposed would be Lincoln-Jackson and possibly the Los Ninos Early Childhood Center, which could become a daycare for staff.

• Assets to be liquidated would be the existing Student Support building, Raintree Complex and previous Parkview property.

The CMS board is scheduled to meet at 5:30 tonight in the administration board room. No recommendations are scheduled to be approved until the board's April 23 meeting, officials said.

This is a developing story and will be updated.