Chee Dodge Elementary celebrates completed school access safety project

Parents and school staff at Chee Dodge Elementary now have a redesigned vehicle entrance meant to replace years of cramped drop-off traffic, speeding cars and safety worries along U.S. 491 in Ya-ta-hey. The completed access project was marked with a June 10 ribbon-cutting that put the school’s busiest traffic point in the spotlight, not just the ceremony.

The improvement focuses on the daily flow that shapes mornings and afternoons at the PK-5 campus: parent drop-off, school bus movement and pedestrian safety for children walking into class. Navajo Nation officials said the old layout had high traffic speeds, limited turning room, inadequate acceleration and deceleration lanes, and visibility problems that contributed to accidents and numerous close calls involving buses and motorists. The new entrance is intended to give drivers a clearer approach and create a safer, more orderly pickup and drop-off zone.

Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren attended the June 10 visit with representatives from the Navajo Nation Department of Transportation, Gallup-McKinley County Schools officials and community partners. The project was funded by the New Mexico Department of Transportation and the Navajo Nation Department of Transportation, following a Road Safety Audit supported through the New Mexico Capital Outlay Program. School officials later thanked Nygren and the Navajo Division of Transportation for taking time to view the completed road work at the campus.

Chee Dodge Elementary had already warned families that road construction on U.S. 491 began April 23, 2026, including work on a new southbound turn lane. That detail mattered for families driving from Gallup, Ya-ta-hey and nearby communities, where school traffic can stack up quickly when buses, parents and through traffic meet at the same entrance.

The project carries added weight because Chee Dodge Elementary serves 251 students and about 94% are economically disadvantaged, according to U.S. News Education. For a school community that depends on predictable bus routes and safe curbside access, even a relatively small road project can change the rhythm of the school day. At a campus named for Henry Chee Dodge, the completed entrance now stands as a practical fix to a problem families had been living with every day.