Manaugh Elementary School was built in 1955. With its new red brick and sizable windows, it was a beauty for its time. It had gleaming asbestos tile and single-pane windows that opened. The electrical system was a cost savings as one circuit served two spacious classrooms. Innovations happened and building codes changed multiple times, over multiple years. The Montezuma-Cortez School District maintained the building well. It was regularly painted, the roof redone several times and when carpet became popular, this was added and replaced when needed.
Imagine if you had purchased a 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air new, top of the line. With its curves and lines, this vehicle was a head-turner. Another beauty for its time. Over the years, you changed the oil, delicately washed and waxed the exterior, and made the kids keep their feet off the seats. You regularly serviced the engine and kept the dash clean. In the summer, it was a smooth ride with the AM radio going loud and all the windows rolled down. In the winter, the heater blasted and, at least, kept the front-seat passengers warm and toasty in Colorado winters. Of course, you always kept good tires on the car.
Fast forward to 2022, and the beloved Bel Air’s transmission failed. It’s pretty well over for this vehicle, unless you can afford a new transmission. If you brought the Bel Air up to today’s standards with seatbelts, air bags, electric windows and door locks, this would become very expensive, very quickly.
The Bel Air is like Manaugh now. The difference is with school building codes, if 50% of a building were upgraded, the owner must bring the remainder of the structure up to today’s code.
Manaugh systems are ’50s vintage, to be generous. While the building is safe, it’s not up to today’s standards. The electrical system is stressed due to the demands of technology. The water in the pipes is sometimes brown because of rusting pipes; there is no HVAC system and other deficiencies. To bring all the systems up to today’s code would be an astronomical expense. Really, more than the school district can afford.
The other huge issue, which you’ve all heard about, is the lack of teachers. We would have started the year with only four certified teachers at Manaugh Elementary. This is not feasible or fair to the students. Looking at class sizes, we determined that Manaugh students could be moved to Kemper and Mesa schools, and the class sizes would still be workable and within our own standards. In addition, we are fully staffed at both these schools.
Other Cortez schools were built in the 1950s. Eventually, it will be necessary to ask voters to support the building of a new, up-to-date elementary school. The construction of a new elementary school is more reasonable and pragmatic than keeping Manaugh on life support and pouring money into a building that will be razed at some point. Today’s standard for this size school would be about 35 acres. Conceptually, a new elementary school would comprise three halls: grades K to 1, 2 to 3 and 4 to 5. This discussion has started and will be ongoing.
It’s never an easy choice to close a school. It’s so much more than a building. Much of our population walked the halls of Manaugh, made friends for life, met their future spouses and found their community. My job, along with the school board’s, is to make this decision based on what’s best for our schoolchildren. This would be to close Manaugh and, at some time, look at building a new school.
Tom Burris is the superintendent of the Montezuma-Cortez School District.
