Kayenta Unified School District

In fiscal year 2012, Kayenta Unified School District’s student achievement was slightly higher than peer districts’, and the District’s efficiency in noninstructional areas was mixed, with some costs higher and some lower than peer districts’, on average. The District’s per pupil administrative costs were similar to peer districts’, on average, but the District needs to strengthen controls over its computer network and systems. The District’s plant operations costs were much higher partly because it provided employee housing and had some unique facilities that other districts typically do not have. However, the District also had excess space at its schools. To its credit, the District has taken steps to reduce some of this excess space, but more needs to be done. The District’s food service program operated efficiently with a much lower cost per meal than peer districts averaged, and although the District’s transportation costs were higher, the long bus route times limit the ability to reduce these costs. Finally, the District did not ensure that bus preventative maintenance was systematically performed.