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.
Despite drops, Arizona students outpace nation on SAT scores
WASHINGTON – Arizona’s college-bound students continued to score higher than the national average on all sections of the SAT, according to a College Board report released Wednesday. The state also... […]
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.
Arizona schools fail to reach academic benchmarks
A record 814 Arizona schools, or 42 percent, failed to get students to make adequate yearly progress in the 2010-11 school year, compared with 563 schools, or 29 percent, the previous year.
Budget crunch forces schools to cut back on nurses
As funding continues on a downward spiral, educators and administrators are faced with the daunting task of keeping schools staffed and operating. While the laying off of teachers grabs the majority of school budget-cut headlines, there is a whole other group that is just as vital to kids’ success in schools and whose numbers are also dwindling: nurses.
Huppenthal rejects findings of Tucson ethnics studies audit he commissioned
An audit of a controversial ethnic studies curriculum in the state’s largest school district showed the Mexican American Studies program complies with state law, but the state’s schools chief nonetheless declared the program illegal, a move that threatens to cost Tucson Unified School District 10 percent of its state funding.
Huppenthal to announce results of Tucson ethnic studies probe today
Superintendent of Public Instruction John Huppenthal is set late to announce the results of an audit his office commissioned that will show whether Tucson Unified School District’s Mexican American Studies program is in violation of state law.
Draft of TUSD Mexican American Studies audit in; decision on program’s fate looms
When school ends May 25 for the Tucson Unified School District, the countdown begins on what is to become of its Mexican American Studies program.
Auditors submitted a draft report on it, and Schools chief John Huppenthal is expected to make his decision on the program’s fate by the end of this month.
Tea Party Influence: New GOP legislators pushed ideological needle to the right
Friendly to faith-based legislation and deeply rooted in a small-government and fiscally disciplined philosophy, Arizona’s new legislators helped define and successfully push a conservative agenda at the Capitol.
Results of Tucson schools program audit delayed
The state is delaying release of an audit of the Tucson Unified School District's Mexican-American Studies program.
Policy in the budget — by the bills
As amended, the bill allows AHCCCS to adopt rules necessary to implement a program given available funds, providing the agency the ability to make changes to its services, eligibility and rates. Also, the bill contains an intent clause for certain transplant services that were eliminated last year to be funded, and a “notwithstanding” language that the Governor’s Office says gives the agency[...]
Payback, policy changes included in budget bills
Lawmakers this year said they strove to keep non-budget policy changes out of the budget package and, while many that were originally considered were removed, they couldn’t completely insulate the final compromise from policies whose ties to the budget are tenuous, at best.