It’s back to school for most the 90,000 Albuquerque Public Schools students today, and it has been a little more challenging for the district to open doors at some schools this year.

Severe flooding in at least two schools, including at Manzano High School, meant APS maintenance crews working overtime to dry up the mess and get the classrooms and gym operational. APS spokeswoman Johanna King said that at Hodgin Elementary in the Northeast Heights, the flooding damaged floors but no books were damaged, allowing school to open today.

In addition to the cleanups, APS opened four new schools this year, but all of the schools are at temporary sites because construction at their campuses is not complete.

At the new Atrisco Heritage Academy high school, staff worked Monday to get its temporary site at the vacant Bernalillo County Courthouse at Fifth and Tijeras NW ready for the 500 freshmen expected today. The school will eventually move to a state-of-the-art $120 million campus off of Rio Bravo on the far Southwest Mesa.

Three new elementary schools also are on temporary campuses. They are Sierra Antigua Elementary in the Northwest near Ventana Ranch; Helen Cordero Elementary on the Southwest Mesa and Sunset View, also on the West Side. All three elementary schools will move to their permanent campuses this spring, said King.

APS has an update of all its construction on its Web site.

We’ll be keeping an eye on busing issues on the first day of school, as APS anticipates more students riding the bus this year because of gas prices. If the bus companies are not prepared it might make for a lot of students waiting around for a second bus. It was too early to tell that this morning, but it’s something APS has said it will keep the public informed about today.