Arizona's charter schools are not entitled to another $135 million of taxpayer funds, the state Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday.

Armando Ruiz started Espiritu Schools by bulldozing apartments on family-owned property to make room for a few portable buildings to serve as classrooms.

The former south Phoenix lawmaker stood on the school grounds in Phoenix in June 2014 and pointed to where a mountain of 10,000 tires once rose next to 300 rusty, dilapidated cars.

A threat from Arizona’s Senate president to make sweeping changes to how district-sponsored charter schools are funded came closer to reality March 25 and threatened the passage of a budget in the House.

A Maricopa County Superior Court judge ruled in favor of a group of charter schools on Feb. 3, saying the state cannot reduce voter approved-funds earmarked for teacher pay raises and the classroom to offset over payments in previous years.

Going into her term as president of the Arizona State Board for Charter Schools, Janna Day aims to continue to hold the institutions to higher standards through a more stringent application and renewal process, continuing her efforts from when she was first appointed to the board in 2010.

A Maricopa County Superior Court judge ruled in favor of a group of charter schools today, saying the state cannot reduce voter approved-funds earmarked for teacher pay raises and the classroom to offset overpayments in previous years.

Education officials in Arizona plan to seek a one-year delay in their ratings of schools as the state transitions to a new student assessment test.

Attorneys for charter schools will have their day in court Dec. 2 in an attempt to stop the state from taking almost $6 million from them.

Even as many districts and individual schools have ramped up their instruction, this year's implementation of a 2010 state law may mean an estimated 1,500 Arizona third-graders will be denied promotions to fourth grade for not meeting required reading levels

Among Gov. Jan Brewer's big three priorities for the 2013 legislative session, performance funding for K-12 schools was the one that got left behind.