Schools opened Monday in Iron County, and school district officials are concerned about cramped space due to a superabundance of new students.
And that has officials scrambling to find more room, especially in the secondary schools.Enrollments are expected to hit nearly 6,300, 800 more than started school last fall, said Iron School District Superintendent DeeEl Stapley.
The district has added 38 new teachers and portable teaching units to handle the 6 percent to 8 percent percent growth rate, Stapley said.
"Our growth is higher than is comfortable. Usually 2 percent to 4 percent is considered healthy," he said. "So we're in a situation constantly looking at ways to take care of kids."
Most of the influx is in secondary schools, he said. More than 1,600 students are expected to crowd into Cedar High School, which was designed for only 700 students.
And relief is a whole year away. When construction is completed on a new intermediate school next year, sixth and seventh grades will be in the new school and eighth and ninth grade students will attend the middle school.
A new high school, expected to be built within two years, also will help ease the burden on the secondary schools.