Despite ‘modest gains,’ schools continue to see severe teacher shortage
By Lindsay Walker | Monday, Sept. 23, 2019
WASHINGTON - Arizona schools started this academic year with 21% of all teaching positions vacant, and nearly half of the teachers who were on the payroll did not meet the state's certification standards, according to a new report. And that was an improvement from last year.
Experts: $20 million for school suicide prevention welcome, more needed
By Lindsay Walker | Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2019
WASHINGTON - Education and government officials called a $20 million grant for suicide prevention programs in Arizona schools an important first step to deal with a growing problem, even as they said much more needs to be done.
Census: Arizona continued to lag far behind U.S. on school spending
By Miranda Faulkner | Friday, May 24, 2019
WASHINGTON - New Census Bureau figures show that per-pupil spending in Arizona's public schools was fourth-lowest in the nation in 2017, still mired at the back of the pack even though spending rose faster that year in the state than it did in the rest of the country.
New law changes how English Language learners are taught. But what comes next?
By Kelsey Mo | Tuesday, May 14, 2019
MESA – A new law aims to help students who don’t speak English natively succeed, but how will educators implement it?
Rebooting education: Federal and state funds bring high-speed internet to rural areas
By Faith Miller | Wednesday, May 16, 2018
A $1.8-million award, the result of a state and federal funding initiative, was granted to a group of schools and libraries in Yavapai County to improve broadband access for entire communities.
Feds no longer collect school shooting data, advocates left to scramble
By Kyley Schultz | Monday, April 23, 2018
WASHINGTON - As students walk out of classes to protest gun violence, the federal agency that had collected data on school shootings quietly stopped gathering it last year, leaving advocates scrambling to make sense of varied and sometimes conflicting private records.
School resource officers called a key safety tool, but critics fear discrimination
By Faith Miller | Tuesday, April 3, 2018
After the Parkland shooting, school resource officers have come under the public spotlight. Arizona has more than 100 officers at schools from Paradise Valley to Tolleson and Gov. Doug Ducey has pushed for more funding for officers on school campuses, while activists question the role of police at schools.
Vegan grocery store opens in Glendale, a first for Arizona
By Jamie Fossenkemper | Tuesday, March 27, 2018
Owners of a vegan grocery store in Glendale hope the store, which offers groceries completely free of animal products, will attract customers from the Phoenix area.
Virtual reality arcades entertain with immersive games
By Tristan Ettleman | Friday, Feb. 2, 2018
Virtual reality arcades are coming to the Phoenix area as the technology and industry grow.
Schools’ chief Diane Douglas remains lukewarm about AzMERIT test
By Monica Sampson and Paola Garcia | Friday, Sept. 15, 2017
PHOENIX – Diane Douglas, Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction, discussed her lukewarm attitude toward the AzMERIT test and seemed puzzled when asked about Proposition 305, a ballot measure asking voters to stop the expansion of school vouchers in Arizona. Recent AzMERIT results showed a slight improvement over the previous year.
Officials: Summer meals program rebounding after years of decline
By Joe Gilmore | Friday, July 14, 2017
WASHINGTON - Advocates and Arizona education officials say they are confident the summer meal program for low-income children will start to climb this summer, after five years of steady declines that saw meals served drop more than 50 percent.
Teachers speak out about working conditions, and they’re not happy
By Kendra Penningroth | Friday, May 19, 2017
WASHINGTON - For the past decade, the vast majority of Arizona counties have faced a teacher shortage at the beginning of the school year, and as school districts head into the summer many teachers expect more of the same.