NAMPA, Idaho — The Vallivue School District will welcome students to two new elementary schools next year after voters passed an $80 million bond in 2023. This initiative aims to address overcrowding and plan for future growth in the district.
Travis Poulsen, who will become the principal of Falcon Ridge Elementary, currently serves at Lakevue, which has over 900 students in a building designed for 800.
"We're going to have a good chunk of those kids coming this way," Poulsen said. "Right now, there's no space, really, to add more classrooms. We're at full capacity, and so it'll make a big difference in just bringing the numbers down and have more classroom and flexibility to do the things that they need to there."
George Zickefoose, the future principal of Warhawk Elementary, has worked in education for 38 years and is currently an assistant principal at East Canyon, which is also over capacity.
"So East Canyon is right over there, and it's 800-ish. We bumped over 800 throughout, and kids have moved around. But most schools will be in the four or under four hundreds," said Zickefoose.
Within a mile and a half of Warhawk Elementary at Linden & Franklin, 3,000 more homes are planned for construction. School leaders expect Warhawk to hit capacity five years after its opening.
Poulsen, who spent eight years as a special education director, noted that Falcon Ridge will host many district programs, easing the burden on neighboring schools.
"I'm excited that I'm partnering with Desert Springs. Currently, we have one of our special ed programs for some of our most intensive students that just struggle with emotion regulation and behavior and social-emotional," Poulsen said.
The overarching goal of opening these new schools is to reduce elementary class sizes across the district.
"Oh, 100%. Way better for students," Zickefoose emphasized.
"Totally. Class sizes will completely be at a much better level. And the district's very committed to that," Poulsen added.