Arizona Education Network

The new Common Core Standards created by a panel of members of the National Governor’s Association and the state superintendents of education were released yesterday for public comment. Arizona was an early supporter of the development of these new Common Core Standards and touted its commitment to adopt the standards in their application for the Race to the Top grant.

In This Issue:

* Budget Special Session Starts Today: The Writing is on the Wall for Public Education in Arizona
* Arizona Auditor General Report on Classroom Spending 2009: A Closer Look News Under the Radar
* Four Steps You Can Take to Support Public Education in Arizona: Vote, Vote, Vote, Vote

On Friday, March 5, Governor Brewer called the Legislature into a seventh special session to begin work on two budgets. The first budget assumes the passage of Proposition 100, a 1% temporary sales tax which would generate $1 billion in revenue to close the budget deficit. The second budget assumes the failure of Proposition 100 and will contain drastic cuts to close the budget deficit.

The House rejected an effort to put income limits on the privated school tax-credit program; refusing to establish a “means test” or income requirement for those applying for private school scholarships paid for by the tax-credit program.  The private school tax-credit program which was represented to create choice for those with limited means starts to run the risk of [...]

Doug Lemov and Deborah Loewenberg Ball, education researchers, identify 49 teaching techniques that contribute to excellent student outcomes. In math, students whose teacher got an above-average M.K.T. (Mathematical Knowledge for Teaching) score learned about three more weeks of material over the course of a year than those whose teacher had an average score, a boost equivalent to that of coming from a middle-class family rather than a working-class one.” In essence, an educator just knowing the subject matter is only one contributor to student learning.

The Department of Education announced yesterday (March 4, 2010) that Arizona was not chosen for phase one of the federal Race for the Top grant. Arizona can apply for the second round of grants in June, 2010.

As Yogi Berra once said, “It’s déjà vu all over again.” It seems like yesterday that we were looking at the 2008 Auditor General Report on Dollars Spent in the Classroom trying to explain exactly what is considered “classroom spending.”

Schools Around Arizona are Closings Due to Budget Constraints

In an effort to work within the anticipated budget the state legislature is providing schools to educate our students, many school districts are beginning to look at the necessity of closing some of their schools.

The Arizona Education Network urges Arizonans who care about the economic future of the state to pass the 1% temporary sales tax.  The tax, which will automatically repeal on July 1, 2013, will dedicate two-thirds of proceeds to education and one-third to health and public safety.  These are areas which have already experienced major budget [...]

The Arizona Legislature is asking voters to temporarily raise the sales tax by 1%, until May 31, 2013. The election will take place on Tuesday, May 18, 2010. The following is information that will explain the proposition’s potential impact.

Welcome to AEN’s 2010 Voter Guide: Resources you need for the May 18, 2010 special election!

Here you will find important dates, voter registration links, and a listing of county voter registration and election information.

The Arizona Republic is running a series about the next decade in Arizona called Arizona 2020, A Framework for the Next Decade. The article focuses on six categories: Education, the Budget, the Border, the Government, the Economy and the Vision of AZ. Two of these categories are of great interest to the Arizona Education Network.

In another blow to fiscal responsibility in AZ, four bills have successfully passed out of the House Ways and Means Committee in recent weeks, which would expand the private school tax-credit program if adopted. Three of these bills would increase private school tax-credit contributions allowing an approximate loss of $60 million to Arizona’s general fund, and would require nearly 8,000 students to transfer from a public school to a private school in order for these programs to be, at best, budget neutral.

The Arizona Legislature finally agreed to refer the decision to the voters on Tuesday, May 18, 2010.

Arizona Education Network takes a closer look at the private school tax credit program and its history in order to understand the evolution of the program, the issues that have been raised and the potential changes in the future.

As the Arizona budget continues to increase, legislators have been busy finding ways to further diminish the general fund. Several bills are making their way through the legislature under the guise of private school tax credit reform that would drastically increase the amount of the tax credit deductions for private school tuition.

On Monday, February 1st, Governor Brewer issued a proclamation, calling for a sixth Special Session to run concurrent with the regular session. Voting began in the Senate Tuesday, where legislation passed and has been transmitted to the House and was later assigned to the House Committee on Rules.

The Pentagon has received anecdotal evidence suggesting military troops are avoiding deployment to Hawaii because of poor funding of its public education system.

Response by Southern Arizona lawmakers to questions about the budget (including education) by the Arizona Daily Star. Article includes responses from Paton, Flemming, Alvarez, Young-Wright, Lopes, Bedford, Garcia, Aboud, Farley, Bradley, Lopez, Patterson, Heinz.

Arizona public school districts are responding to charter school models with innovative programs, and some are offering their own charter schools.

December state payments to Arizona’s three public Universities were finally made on January 21, 2010. The Arizona Republic is reporting that the payment did not include the amount owed the universities from the general fund; only the tuitionheld by the state was remitted.

Education Week has recently released its annual Report Card on American public education, and it shows mixed results for Arizona.

January 15, 2010

Governor Brewer released her Fiscal Year 2011 Budget Proposal plan to the public this afternoon.  You can view the full budget proposal, summary and related information via this link.
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The Arizona Education Network volunteers will be reviewing the detailed budget information over the weekend.  You can find education funding and budget highlight excerpts from [...]

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The recent issue of  The Atlantic looks into the hotly debated question of what makes a good teacher.  Proposals in the new Race to the Top standards will require teacher compensation tied to student performance.  Under this teacher accountability model, identifying teacher excellence will be even more important.  The article points out that; “[s]tates must try to identify great teachers, figure out [...]

It’s beginning of a new year and a new legislative session began this week. This update recaps the end of the last legislative session and provides information on what to expect going forward.

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Update to post below:
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US Census Department Figures show that the Arizona population increased 28.6% from April of 2000 to July 2009.
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During the same period, average daily membership (the term used to refer to the total enrollment of students through the first 100 days of the school year) in Arizona schools increased 22.7%.  (According to a report [...]

Arizona Excels at School Choice; Fails in School Investment
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Arizona enters the new decade as the national leader in school choice.  Arizona parents can choose to open-enroll their children in the public school that best meets their needs, choose among almost 500 charter schools or even receive a tax credit funded scholarship to offset some [...]

Monday, January 11, 2010 Governor Brewer will deliver her much anticipated “State of the State” address, in which she will promise to “right our ship” and “bring Arizona back home.” Governor Brewer’s address signals the return of Arizona lawmakers to the Capitol where they will begin work to address the state’s budget crisis.

New Orleans is now the first major U.S. City with a majority of their students in charter schools (61% of all students in 2009-2010), according to U.S. News & World Report.  The New Orleans public school system was devastated in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and needed to be rebuilt from scratch. Since the pre-Katrina New [...]

The Arizona Republic reported that private school tuition tax credits that are earmarked for individual students may be in violation of federal law.

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AEN members recently participated in a webinar titled “What to Expect: Arizona’s Race to the Top Application,”  presented by Arizona  School Boards Association [ASBA] and the Arizona Association of School Business Officials [AASBO]. The featured speaker was Mesa School District Superintendent Dr. Debra Duvall, who serves as a Special Advisor to Governor Brewer on the Race [...]

A fifth special session has been called by Governor Brewer to address the remaining $1.6 billion deficit.

In this update we will cover two recent questions from AEN subscribers regarding Arizona spending statistics… How does our state compare and how much are we spending on education?

An Op Ed letter was recently sent to the Arizona Capital Times, in which a high school student from Lake Havasu High School discussed the disparities in public funding in her area.

A recap of recent legislation as it pertains to education.

Governor Brewer signs legislation cutting $300 million from state’s K-12 and Department of Economic Security budgets. Governor and majority party will meet following Thanksgiving holiday to discuss scheduling a fifth special session to address $2 billion dollar deficit.

The Arizona Education Association is suing to block new rules regarding how teacher contracts are offered and how layoffs are accomplished in Arizona.

The Governor called the Arizona state Legislature into special session to address the $2 billion budget deficit.

A bi-partisan task force met in the House today for a second hearing covering investigations of School Tuition Organizations (STOs) and reform of the private-school tax credit program.

Arizona State University President Michael Crow was named one of the top 10 college presidents by Time Magazine this week. Time cites increased research funding and national merit scholars as some of the factors that led to this honor.

Lawmakers have been called back to Phoenix by Governor Brewer for a special session to address the budget deficit, now at $2.2 billion. House Majority Whip Andy Tobin said the deal that legislative leaders have reached with Gov. Jan Brewer would include $140 million in cuts to K-12 education. This would be to tackle the budget that was due June 30, 2009, now more than four months late.

Gates Foundation to take a more active role in education.

Az education forums heat up in light of the pending economic meltdown.

On Wednesday 10/21/09, the full 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed its April 2009 decision that the Arizona School Tuition Organizations Program for private schools is unconstittutional.

The Arizona JLBC (Joint Legislative Budget Committee) now projects a 2010 budget shortfall at $1.959 Billion (Oct. 22, 2009).

The Arizona Republic and the East Valley Tribune have each published their respective analysis on private school tax credits, school tuition organizations (STOs), how they are meeting the spirit or intent of the tax credit legislation, transparency of programs and costs, and the players/organizations involved.

In response to a warning by Governor Brewer that some services may face cuts or elimination, Senator Russell Pearce suggested specific cuts to education.

In the wake of $133 million in state cuts to education, Arizona school districts have opted to place overrides or bonds on the November 3, 2009 ballot. The Arizona Education Network encourages voters to vote “YES” to these overrides or bonds so that these school districts can restore funding back to levels necessary for educating Arizona’s future.

While school districts budgets are based on the budget of September 4th (in which Governor Brewer vetoed cuts to education), most districts are not basing actual spending on the budget. There is a precedent – in January the legislature took back $133 million from schools. With a mounting deficit yet to be closed, school districts expect mid year cuts again. In addition, any cuts that cause the education budget to fall below 2006 funding levels may endanger federal aid.

The Associated Press (AP) is reporting that unless the Governor and Legislature act soon the Arizona Department of Revenue and the Corporate Commission will have to make drastic cuts and may even run out of funds.  The AZ Department of Revenue has only $40.6M after the veto of an expected $67 million dollar proposed budget.  [...]