Dysart Unified School District
Dysart Unified School District is an "A" labeled school district in Maricopa County, Arizona. It serves the cities of El Mirage and Surprise, and a small portion of Youngtown and Glendale near Luke Air Force Base.
History
The district was founded by Nathaniel Dysart (died 1957) who was a rancher in the valley[1]. The district itself, the main facility, and Dysart road (which runs from Peoria to Avondale) are all named after him. Prior to 2001, the district had only 5 elementary schools, and 1 high school.[2] However, due to the exponential growth of the City of Surprise (and El Mirage), the district became one of the fastest growing districts in Arizona. In the 2000s, the district built at least 1 school per year. By the end of the 2000s, the district had a total of 24 schools. In 2013 however, 1 elementary school was closed due to low numbers and reopened as the current location of Sundown Mountain, the district's alternative school.[3]
Elementary Schools
Elementary schools in this district serve grades K-8 in the following schools:
- Ashton Ranch Elementary School
- Canyon Ridge Elementary School
- Cimarron Springs Elementary School
- Countryside Elementary School
- Dysart Elementary School
- El Mirage Elementary School
- Kingswood Elementary School
- Luke Elementary School
- Marley Park Elementary School
- Mountain View Elementary School
- Parkview Elementary School
- Rancho Gabriela Elementary School
- Riverview Elementary School
- Sonoran Heights Elementary School
- Sunset Hills Elementary School
- Surprise Elementary School
- Thompson Ranch Elementary School
- West Point Elementary School
- Western Peaks Elementary School
High schools
| Information | Dysart | Shadow Ridge | Valley Vista | Willow Canyon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Location | El Mirage | Surprise | Surprise | Surprise |
| Year opened | 1963 | 2009 | 2006 | 2003 |
| School colors | Red, white, black | Burgundy, gold, black | Purple, black, silver | Midnight blue, silver |
| School mascot | Demon | Stallion | Monsoon | Wildcat |
| Principal | Amy Hartjen | Michael Hawkins | Roberta Lockhart | Jayne Wieferich |
| Enrollment | 1,612 | 1,752 | 2,467 | 2,125 |
Information Technology
In December 2009, Dysart Unified School District became the first Arizona School District to switch nearly one-third, or 3,000 of their desktop computer systems to a Linux based operating system from the proprietary Microsoft Windows. The executive director of business services for the district estimated that the switch saved the district nearly $108,000 in what would have been used to pay for an annual license fee for the Windows OS and Office software. The upgraded systems were approximately five to six years old, and were said to be too old to invest in upgrades to the latest Microsoft product. After revisions in April 2010, the Arizona Department of Education now requires public and charter schools to consider free and open source software in development of new IT plans.[4]
References
- ↑ "The man that Dysart Road is named after". www.historyadventuring.com. Retrieved 2018-01-16.
- ↑ "Dysart Unified School District No.89 - Schools". 2006-02-18. Archived from the original on 2006-02-18. Retrieved 2018-01-16.
- ↑ "Desert Moon in Surprise closing as elementary school". azcentral.com. Retrieved 2018-01-16.
- ↑ Wang, Amy. "Dysart Unified School District saves more than $100,000 by switching computer operating systems". azcentral.com. Retrieved 27 March 2011.
Dysart Unified School District http://www.dysart.org/