New School Facility Housing Unique Alternative Education Program Set to Be Built in Rio Rancho6/3/2024 Plans are now settled for the construction of a new 50,000-square-foot school building that will be a part of the Rio Rancho Public Schools system. The Independence High School will go up at the intersection of Northern Boulevard and Ontario Place on the north side of the city at a currently vacant site. That school is defined as an alternative educational facility which puts an emphasis on students at risk of dropping out. According to the New Mexico Public Education Department, a unique feature of the school has seen the existence of what is called “The Well,” a brightly lit, open-concept space, designed to encourage conversation and instruction. The current Independence High School, measuring 28,000 square feet, is located at 421 Quantum Road NE. According to district documents, the current high school has a capacity of serving around 200 students, while the new structure will be built to house up to 350 students. The new $26 million building project is being funded out of an $80 million bond that was approved by around 71% of district residents last fall. That bond also included funding for electric, heating, and cooling upgrades to three elementary and middle schools as well as the Rio Rancho High School. As planned, once work on the new Independence High School is completed, the original structure will become the home to the new Special Services Support Center. Rio Rancho Public Schools has a current enrollment of more than 17,200 students, a double digit increase in the past two decades, reflecting the larger population growth of Rio Rancho itself which has gone from just under 52,000 two decades ago to more than 104,000 today. By Garry Boulard
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