TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Tucson Unified School District is taking a closer look at declining enrollment and whether it has more school space than it needs.
According to a TUSD analysis, about 39,180 students were enrolled during the 2025-26 school year. But the district has room for more than 67,000—leaving roughly 28,180 empty seats and a facility utilization rate of just 58%.
For teachers and staff, those numbers raise serious concerns. Jim Byrne, president of the Tucson Education Association, said the data brings big questions for the people who work in the district.
"I think #1 for teachers and staff, support staff too, it's what's going to happen to my job? Do I get to stay in the district? What happens with those types of either closures or consolidation, merger? What does that stuff look like?" Byrne said.
Some campuses stand out in TUSD's analysis as having the lowest enrollment utilization: Santa Rita High School, Booth-Fickett Magnet School, Utterback Middle School, Catalina High School, and Innovation Tech High School. However, this is not a closure list.
Byrne said there is more to consider than simply how full or empty a school is.
"There's other socioeconomic and racial and ethnic factors that goes into it as well, language being a big one, certainly in a place like Tucson as well." Byrne said.
This is not the first time TUSD has faced decisions like these. The district's analysis shows nine schools closed in 2010, followed by 10 more campuses in 2013 as enrollment continued to decline.
Byrne also said whether a community has already experienced school closures should factor into any decision-making process.
"Those are things that folks have raised in previous committee sessions are like, let's make sure we're not like hitting, doing like a double whammy and this community's got to see yet another closed school in their neighborhood," Byrne said.
For families, TUSD is currently considering options that include changing which grade levels are offered at a school, combining schools onto one campus, or potentially closing a school altogether. Any eventual recommendation would go before the TUSD Governing Board, which Byrne said can approve it, make changes, or send it back.
Families have the opportunity to weigh in at a TUSD Facility Plans Community Meeting on Sept. 21 from 6 to 8:30 p.m. at Sahuaro High School (545 N. Camino Seco).
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Jacqueline Aguilar is a multimedia journalist at KGUN 9. Born and raised in Yuma, AZ., she is no stranger to the unforgiving Arizona heat. Now this U of A wildcat is excited to be back in Tucson and is looking forward to involving herself in the community. Share your story ideas with Jacqueline by emailing jacqueline.aguilar@kgun9.com or connecting on Facebook, Instagram or X.
