Obama offers states more flexibility to meet No Child Left Behind
WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama unveiled a waiver program Friday that opens the door for states to sidestep education obstacles in the much-maligned No Child Left Behind law. The new program gives states flexibility in the use of federal funds and on No Child Left Behind deadlines – as long as states adjust school policies to be more in line with the White House.
Colleges decry budget cuts, sit atop $320M in cash
Community college officials came in full force to the state Capitol earlier this year to outline the potential ramifications for the proposed steep cuts to their budgets. Yet at the time they made their case, most college districts were sitting atop millions of dollars in cash reserves.
Looming fiscal crisis forces disparate education groups to work on new tax
Education groups from across the spectrum are putting their differences aside to work on a ballot measure that would raise taxes for K-12 education and put into place reforms that could fundamentally change the way schools operate in Arizona.
Education department settles with feds over English-immersion teachers
Arizona will no longer remove teachers from English-immersion classrooms if they use bad grammar or have heavy accents.
Board of Education wants quicker intervention in failing schools
As Arizona schools are days away from knowing where they stand in the state’s new performance rating system, the Board of Education has drawn up proposals to give the state more authority over low-performing schools.
Huppenthal to avoid witness stand in TUSD hearing
Superintendent of Public Instruction John Huppenthal will not testify in the hearing to appeal his finding that Tucson Unified School District’s Mexican-American Studies program is breaking state law.
Budget chief: Higher ed to take biggest hit from state’s rising health costs
Arizona’s colleges and universities will likely bear the brunt of budget cuts forced by rapidly rising health care costs, the state’s budget director told a Washington audience Tuesday.
TUSD board member calls Mexican-American studies a ‘cult’
Mark Stegeman, a Democratic member of the Tucson Unified School District governing board, used to be in favor of the Mexican-American Studies program, but he had an “epiphany” during a visit to one of the classes.
More university funding a tough sell with Legislature
Lawmakers are signaling that there won’t be any increases to the higher education budget, even as the Arizona Board of Regents works toward two goals that will require more money from the state – an end to tuition increases and a funding formula based on performance.
Hearing to test ruling against Mexican-American Studies
Attorneys for Superintendent of Public Instruction John Huppenthal aren’t planning on calling him as a witness in an administrative hearing to defend his findings that Tucson Unified School District’s Mexican American Studies program is race-based and promotes resentment toward a class of people. But that doesn’t mean he isn’t going to be questioned.
State’s 3 university presidents agree on uniform student funding figure
Arizona’s university presidents have agreed on a magic number that represents per student funding parity among the three institutions.
Student-funding proposal faces tough road
A proposal by the Commission on Privatization and Efficiency would radically alter the way school budgets are determined, but may face insurmountable hurdles if it surfaces in the Legislature.