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4 firms submit bids to run ESA program
Four financial management companies put in proposals to run the state’s burgeoning Empowerment Scholarship Account program, the state treasury announced May 22.
Board of Education approves ESA handbook despite concerns
The State Board of Education voted to approve the Empowerment Scholarship Account handbook today, though two board members voted against adopting the final draft, citing frustration with accepting last minute “substantive” changes without sufficient stakeholder input.
Parents hit board with ESA complaints – again
The State Board of Education was once again hit by a wave of written and verbal feedback about the Empowerment Scholarship Account handbook but parents say their input is still failing to materialize in the newest draft of the handbook.
Legislative leaders want to pass budget ASAP, governor’s staff says it’s ‘false urgency’
Republican Senate leaders said on Tuesday that the Legislature is working with Gov. Katie Hobbs to pass the state’s budget in the next two weeks, citing an April deadline connected to federally allocated Medicaid funding, but the governor’s staff say it’s a play to create “false urgency.”
Bill to expand ESA reporting advances, barely
A bill that would expand reporting requirements for the Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) program narrowly passed the Senate Education Committee on Feb. 15.
Nation watches as Arizona’s universal ESA voucher fiasco fails
Universal ESA vouchers are already a dismal failure defunding our local public schools, threatening to bankrupt our state and raising red flags about taxpayer-funded discrimination. And the nation is watching as special interests rush to force through vouchers in other states before the cautionary tale of Arizona comes fully to light.
As session shifts into gear, bipartisan overtures turn to politicking
In the past few weeks, Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs and top Republican lawmakers have engaged in some public mudslinging.
Arizona offers blueprint for parental empowerment
The reverberations are echoing across Arizona, and across the whole nation – the Arizona Secretary of State’s Office announced last week that teachers unions’ last-ditch effort to overturn the state’s landmark universal school choice reform has failed. Now, America can look to Arizona’s first-in-the-nation model of a groundbreaking, statewide expansion of school choice to any family that[...]
Universal voucher system is ‘highway robbery’
In the eleventh hour of this legislative session, Republican majority lawmakers delivered a massive blow to Arizona voters by passing recently rejected universal Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) vouchers.
Six little letters threaten Arizona’s students
Most of us want the same things for Arizona’s schools: the opportunity for every child to succeed, transparency, accountability and flexible options for the unique needs of families. But two issues deeply threaten the ability for Arizona to achieve those goals – the AEL (Aggregate Expenditure Limit) and ESA vouchers (Codename: Empowerment Scholarship Accounts).
Concerns about education funding impact start, end of session
The 2022 legislative session started and ended with concerns about a constitutional provision voters approved in 1980 that limits public school spending – even if the legislature has already allocated the money.
Education plan is raw deal for Arizona’s students
Only an elite few will benefit from an unprecedented and unpopular expansion of education savings accounts, while more than one million Arizona public school students will continue to attend some of the lowest-funded schools in the country.
