Dysart Unified School District is a school district in Maricopa County, Arizona. It serves the towns of El Mirage and Surprise.
Contents |
Elementary schools in this district serve grades K-8.
| Information | Dysart | Shadow Ridge | Valley Vista | Willow Canyon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Location | El Mirage | Surprise | Surprise | Surprise |
| Year opened | 1963 | 2009 | 2006 | 2003 |
| School colors | Red, white, black | Burgundy, gold, black | Purple, black, silver | Midnight blue, silver |
| School mascot | Demon | Stallion | Monsoon | Wildcat |
| Principal | Roberta Lockhart | Michael Hawkins | Dr. Tammy Hall | Anthony Capuano |
| Enrollment | 1668 | 825 | 2304 | 2169 |
In December 2009, Dysart Unified School District became the first Arizona School District to switch nearly one-third, or 3,000 of their desktop computer systems to a Linux based operating system from the proprietary Microsoft Windows. The executive director of business services for the district estimated that the switch saved the district nearly $108,000 in what would have been used to pay for an annual license fee for the Windows OS and Office software. The upgraded systems were approximately five to six years old, and were said to be too old to invest in upgrades to the latest Microsoft product. After revisions in April 2010, the Arizona Department of Education now requires public and charter schools to consider free and open source software in development of new IT plans.[1]