A Rural Arizona Teacher’s Perspective on Education Issues

I am what people consider a natural-born teacher. From an early age I found myself being drawn to the profession, teaching five and six year olds how to do cartwheels and somersaults in the hours before my own gymnastics practice. I ended up coaching through my 20’s and even when I entered the United States …

There is a wealth of research demonstrating the long-term advantages of high-quality early learning experiences in a child’s earliest years. Children with access to quality early learning opportunities are more prepared for kindergarten. They have increased vocabulary, better language, math and social skills, and more positive relationships with classmates. And, as they go forward in school and life, …

During the 2008 economic crisis, some Arizonans lost their jobs or their homes, or both. With revenues down, the state budget was drastically cut, and education funding took a beating. After nearly a decade, Arizona is finally getting back on a stable economic path and is ready to invest in the future. Our recent poll …

Despite being near — or at, depending on the analyst — the bottom of the list for teacher pay nationally, Arizona’s voters continue to express the need for better K-12 education. According to a December 2017 poll via education advocacy group Expect More Arizona, the majority of the poll’s approximately 600 likely Arizona voters agreed …

Arizona voters say they support the idea of extending the Proposition 301 sales tax, which is set to expire in 2021. But when it comes to increasing the sales tax from its existing 0.6 percent, that’s where things get a little shaky, according to a poll recently released by Expect More Arizona. While 68 percent …