The Littlefield Unified School District #9 began in the homes of local residents in the early 1900's. The district was officially established circa 1924.

The 1926-27 School year exhibited a tremendous group of students attending at the one room school in Littlefield (pictured on the right).

The attendance/grade book that school year was dominated by a few family names: McKnight, Leavitt, Peterson, Frehner, and Reber.

The Average Daily Attendance (ADA) was 12.425 during the month of February that year, proving that even in the early days, SAIS counts were a problem!

Not much changed for the next 60 years within the district. Dessie Reber's grade books demonstrate fluctuating enrollment through the 60's and 70's. (anywhere between 5 and 15 students in the entire district!)

The same prominent community names existed on the rolls with the addition of a few move-ins such as the Harris and Jones families.

One interesting fact is that of the seven students enrolled in the district in 1964, at present two are practicing doctors and another a very successful entrepreneur. All seven students belonged to one of three families: Peterson, Reber, and Harris. All three family names reside in Littlefield to this day.

There were years during the late 70's and early 80's where only one or two students were enrolled at the school. This was particularly challenging when the lesson required "group activities". Another interesting fact is that one student who attended during this time is currently employed by the Clark County School District at the highest level of compensation.

Growth began to occur in the district during the latter part of the 80's. At first there were two new modular buildings added to the school and soon the school had several beautifully painted modular buildings dotting the perimeter of the property. By 1992 enrollment at the school approached 100 students.

Throughout the 20th century, all students attending the Littlefield School were taught up until 6th or 8th grade. Students then proceeded to Virgin Valley High School located in Mesquite, Nevada where they were able to participate in programs and graduate from an accredited institution.

A Certificate of Educational Convenience (CEC) was created for all students by the Mohave County Superintendent authorizing the district to use Arizona funds for tuition of students attending Virgin Valley High School.

In 1999, Beaver Dam Elementary opened and a new era began. Unprecedented growth continued, prompting discussion among the Board regarding the prospect of a new high school in Beaver Dam.

There was a lot of controversy over the prospect of a high school for many reasons including:

• Is there a sufficient number of students to justify a separate building?
• Would the district be able to offer a respectable academic and extra-curricular program?
• Can the district afford the cost of staffing and maintaining another facility?

With wisdom beyond their own, the Board of Education determined to build a High School, opening in 2003. Students who would be graduating from Beaver Dam High School in 2006 remained at the Elementary School their freshman year and all subsequent students would also attend the entirety of their elementary and secondary education within the district.

In 2002, an eight classroom addition was added to the Beaver Dam elementary school to accommodate continued growth in addition to providing space for the additional secondary students.

In the meantime, two modular buildings were brought from the Old Littlefield School to Beaver Dam where they were remodeled. This provided four additional classrooms to be utilized by the secondary students and would eventually become the Beaver Dam Middle School.

After a drawn-out battle, Beaver Dam High School opened it's doors in the fall of 2004.

Looking to the Future

In the near future the distirct is looking forward to:

• BDHS- Addition- Weight room, six classrooms, team rooms, Stage, landscaping, etc.
• Football Field
• BDMS- Sport Court, Office Building, Locker Building, landscaping.
• Littlefield School Renovation—District Offices and Pre-school.

The addition of another elementary school in Scenic is also very anticipated.

To see more photos of the school district's history see our gallery