School Liaison Program

Sandia Base Elementary School
Phone: 505.268.4356
21001 Wyoming SE
Kirtland AFB, NM 87116
Fax: (505) 260-2028
Website: http://sandiabase.aps.edu/
Grades: K-5
Colors: Blue & Yellow
Mascots: Mustangs

Van Buren Middle School
Phone: 505.268.3833
700 Louisiana SE
Albuquerque, NM 87108
Fax: 505.260.6654
Website: http://vanburen.aps.edu/
Grades: 6-8
Colors: Black & Gold
Mascots: Falcons

Highland High School
Phone: 505.265.3711
4700 Coal Avenue SE
Albuquerque, NM 87108
Fax: 505.348.8503
Website: http://highland.aps.edu/
Grades: 9-12
Colors: Navy & Yellow
Mascots: Hornets

Kirtland AFB has unique educational opportunities within commuting distance to the base- Albuquerque Public Schools (APS) is the nation’s 35th largest district. With enrollment of 70,000 children from Albuquerque and surrounding areas including Laguna and Isleta pueblos, APS is one of the largest and most diverse school systems in the nation. There are many options to expand educational opportunities within APS through transfers to other schools in the district and a wide variety of charter schools associated with APS.

There are many additional educational options available in the Kirtland AFB area. Families who reside off base have opportunities for their children to attend schools in APS, Rio Rancho, Bernalillo, Los Lunas, Belen, and Moriarty-Edgewood. In addition to these other school districts, there are also public funded charter schools and private schools in the area to choose from as well as homeschooling opportunities. I encourage you to explore your options. Additionally, we have 99 accredited preschool and prekindergarten programs in the surrounding area, with another 70 prekindergarten programs in the local schools. There are also virtual school options and many homeschooling families and communities. As a result, we have students in many different schools all over the area.

There is a large population of military connected families that live in the northwest corner of the city and attend schools in the Volcano Vista High School cluster. This includes Tierra Antigua ES, Ventana Ranch ES, Sunset View ES, Tony Hillerman MS, and Volcano Vista HS.

The school year typically starts in our area around the first week of August and gets out for the year before Memorial Day. The school year started for students in the Albuquerque Public Schools district on August 3, 2023, and most other schools in the area start around the same time.

APS changed their school start times this year, with the high schools start time at 8:40 AM, most middle schools start time at 9:15 AM, and elementary schools starting at varying times (7:30 AM, 8:05 AM or 8:40 AM).

For the surrounding school districts, the school day starts early for high school students at around 7:20 for most public schools. Public middle schools typically start around 8:15 AM and elementary school vary with either an early start (7:30–8:00ish AM) or late around 9:00 AM.

In New Mexico, a child must turn five years old by August 31 to start in a public school kindergarten. Private schools can and do take younger students. If your child completes kindergarten in an accredited private kindergarten and are academically ready, they can start in first grade in the public schools the following year. They will have to demonstrate academic readiness and may be placed in kindergarten if the school determines they need additional time in kindergarten.

If your child did not turn five years old by the cutoff date, but you move after your child has started kindergarten in your previous location and you are an active duty family, the Interstate Compact for the Educational Opportunity for Military Students allows your child to enroll in kindergarten.

You can find this information on the New Mexico Public Education Department’s NM Vistas website at https://nmvistas.org/

Most elementary school students living in base housing attend the boundary school, Sandia Base Elementary School. With over 300 schools in the area, we have military connected students attending many different schools, so most schools do not have a high percentage of military-connected students enrolled.