Welcome to the site of the Northwest Elementary, which will be located at the corner of King Blvd. and Wilpet Road, in the Northwest area of Rio Rancho, New Mexico.

Cielo Azul Elementary School
"Cielo Azul" means "Blue Sky" and clearly represents what we'll see over our school every day! The name was decided by the School Board on Monday night (9/10/07) based on submitted ideas gathered by the Principal, LaVonna Archuleta. The Board also decided on two more items that will further define our new school: Our mascot is the "Ravens", and our school colors will be sky blue and white (makes sense, right?). To the left you can see our NEW LOGO designed by Jennifer Huard at The Right Shade of WOW.

Our address:
1550 34th Ave. NW
Rio Rancho, NM 87144
891-8526 ext. 210 (temporary phone number)

Cielo Azul Update (5/6/08):
NOTE: There will be an informational meeting for parents on Thursday, May 15th at 6:30 PM in the cafeteria at Colinas del Norte to discuss the following message from Mrs. Archuleta. (Click here for district-wide registration information.)

"We are all anxiously awaiting the opening of our beautiful new building and our new school.   We would like to give you an update on our progress and how the transition into the new building will be accomplished.

Construction of the new building is proceeding very rapidly and the contractor is making good progress.  However, as you may be aware from news accounts, the new building will only be partially completed when school begins this August.  The classroom wing housing upper grades (3, 4, and 5), along with the cafeteria, gym, library, and administration offices should be complete before school opens.  However, the primary wing (Kindergarten and grades 1 and 2) will not be ready for occupancy until late September.

Our current plan is that students in grades 3, 4, and 5 will attend classes in our new building. Students in Kindergarten and first and second grades will stay at Colinas del Norte for the first few weeks of the school year until their classroom wing is completed.  Although they will be in a Colinas classroom, they will be taught by a Cielo Azul teacher who will move with them to the new school and will stay with them throughout the school year.  We anticipate moving those classrooms housed at Colinas over to the Cielo Azul campus during the Fall Break, October 8-10.  Beginning on October 13, all students will be reunited at Cielo Azul.

Our teachers are working hard to make our first school year a very positive experience for students, regardless of which campus they attend for the first few weeks.  We are still working out some of the details, but we will provide full school bus services, food service, and after-school programs for students at both sites.  As the move is completed, our students, staff, and parents will all be able to share the excitement of being all together in a new facility.  We are already planning a grand opening ceremony in November to celebrate everyone being together in our new building.

We know you may have questions about the new school and the move, so we are scheduling an informational meeting for parents on Thursday, May 15th at 6:30 PM in the cafeteria at Colinas del Norte.  Associate Superintendent Carl Leppelman and I will be there along with some of our Facilities and other RRPS staff to further explain the planned move and answer your questions. 

Thank you for your understanding and support as we begin the exciting process of creating a new school community.  If you have questions before the meeting or over the summer as we move closer to the start of school in the fall, you can contact me at 891-8526 ext. 210 or e-mail me at larchuleta@cdne.rrps.k12.nm.us."

LaVonna Archuleta is the new principal. Mrs. Archuleta has 22 years of experience in education. She has worked in the Rio Rancho School District for 7 years, 5 years as the Assistant Principal at Enchanted Hills Elementary and 2 years as the Principal of Colinas del Norte Elementary. She has worked in Albuquerque and Floyd, New Mexico in various teaching assignment.

Some pictures from our ground-breaking ceremony and initial construction!

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