PHOENIX - After spending months at other schools, Kyrene School District officials said students with Kyrene de la Sierra in Ahwatukee will return to their campus at the start of 2026.
What we know:
In a statement penned by District Superintendent Laura Toenjes, it was announced that Sierra students will return to the school on Jan. 6, 2026 for the start of the second semester.
"We can’t wait to welcome students and staff back to a safe, clean and fully restored Sierra campus," read a portion of the statement.
Per the statement, students with Sierra will be given assignments to complete at home and submit for attendance credit on Dec. 19, in what district officials call an "asynchronous learning day."
Dig deeper:
On Dec. 4, we reported that a formal air quality testing was scheduled for the following day.
On Dec. 18, district officials posted the test results. The test was conducted by a company named Dominion Environmental Consultants, and officials with Dominion wrote that "all levels of detected chemicals were [significantly] reduced or eliminated from the initial inspection on August 4, 2025."
"No roofing products related chemicals were found from the December 5, 2025 laboratory report,' read a portion of Dominion's report.
Dominion's report also noted that while the level of Total Volatile Organic Compound (TVOC) was elevated for air samples collected in two hallways within the building, data indicated that cleaning product chemicals are the major contributors to the TVOCs.
In their Dec. 4 update, district officials said crews conducted a deep cleaning inside the school building.
"The indoor air quality conditions have largely improved since August 2025. The air quality within Sierra is acceptable for students and staff occupancy," read a portion of Dominion's report on the air quality.
The backstory:
On Aug. 3, Kyrene announced that students at Sierra will move to remote learning due to air quality concerns. A subsequent report found high levels of TVOC.
The school was undergoing a roof replacement project at the time.
The district later sent all students at Sierra to Kyrene Altadeña Middle School and Kyrene de los Cerritos Elementary School. Both schools share the same campus in the Foothills area of Ahwatukee. Ahwatukee is part of the City of Phoenix.
The Source: Information for this article was gathered from the Kyrene School District's website, with supplemental information gathered from previous, relevant FOX 10 news reports.