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Pinal County Supervisor Pete Rios
State Rep. T.J. Shope
State Sen. Barbara McGuire
So how do our elected officials see the current state of educational funding as it affects Pinal County and surrounding areas?
We took those questions to 13 officers holding positions in the state legislature and Pinal County government. We received replies from State Sen. Barbara McGuire (D-District 16), State Rep. T.J. Shope (R-District 16) and Pinal County Supervisor Pete Rios (District 1). Their answers are as follows:
Question: What is your opinion on the Education Budget enacted in early March by the Arizona state legislature?
McGuire:“The enacted budget continues the pattern of severe underfunding of our K-12 schools, community colleges and universities. The responsible approach to the budget crisis would have been for the Governor to work across the aisle and address the many education budget challenges in a bi-partisan manner. Unfortunately, this is not the path he has chosen. Pinal County schools will continue to face major challenges to putting more dollars in the classroom because they will have to tap funds designated for the classroom to cope with increased fixed costs and emergency repairs and maintenance.”
Shope:“The impact of the budget on K-12 schools throughout Pinal County will vary from district to district. In the Coolidge Unified School District for example, certified personnel (teachers) were recently given a 5% salary increase. I had spoken to superintendents from across our legislative district throughout the budget process as well as public charter school operators and I believe we incorporated some reasonable requests into the budget that will make the funding adjustments much more feasible.”
Rios:“Education absolutely took a big hit in the new budget. They may have earmarked more money for the classroom but these increases were peeled away like an onion elsewhere in the budget so that school districts ultimately end up deeper in the hole. For some districts, if they see any additional funding at all it will be due to growth in student attendance.”
Question: What about Pinal County community colleges getting state funding while community colleges in Maricopa and Pima counties losing all funding?
Shope:“Pinal County is obviously a different animal than Maricopa or Pima Counties. Ultimately, Representatives Coleman and Pratt joined my efforts to ensure that Pinal County’s Community College District wouldn’t suffer the same fate as Maricopa and Pima. We were successful because we were able to convince our colleagues in Phoenix that our tax base is radically different than the tax base of the two most populous counties in the state and therefore, we shouldn’t have taken the same percentage of adjustment as they did.”
Both McGuire and Rios said they are glad that Rep. Shope and the two other Pinal County representatives were able to save some money for the county’s community colleges.
Question: What about that lawsuit in which a judge ruled that the legislature was in violation of a 2000 voter-approved referendum setting levels of school funding through 2021? How should the state proceed?
McGuire:“Legislative leadership should stop stonewalling the settlement process and come to the table and negotiate a settlement in good faith. The plaintiffs in the lawsuit have been willing to negotiate since the very first ruling in their favor. I favor fully restoring the base level funding formula to the court ordered level. This would mean an additional $336,500,000 going directly into our schools; however, due to the budget constraints we are under I am in favor of phasing this increase in over a two or three year time horizon. The compromise you speak of would likely be doable if the legislature leadership would come to the table and negotiate.”
Shope:“My opinion on the lawsuit is the same as it has been since the first verdict was announced and that is that I hope both sides can continue to negotiate a reasonable settlement that doesn’t imperil every single other agency in state government but until that point, the appeals process should be allowed to play out.”
Rios:“The court order isn’t going away. Under the voter referendum, school spending should have gone up $316 million. The back pay order tops $1 billion. Affected parties need to work towards a compromise, as I don’t believe the state can get rid of the referendum’s mandate unless the people vote to reverse it themselves.”
Question: Were the budget cuts for JTED (Joint Technical Education Districts) and CTE (Career and Technical Training) programs justified?
Shope:“I am a strong believer in vocational education and it is my desire to bring back full funding of vocational education in the next budget cycle when our revenues should be in much better shape. There are plenty of vocational education advocates in the Republican Caucus and I know that when our revenues come in as projected, we will show our commitment to vocational education.”
McGuire:“No, we are not doing enough. Students who participate in CTE actually have a higher high school graduation rate than peer students and many graduate from high school with the skills necessary to find gainful employment in the workplace upon graduation.”
Rios:“Although JTED districts took a $30 million hit in funding, things could have been worse. What state officials should be considering is why any business would want to come to Arizona if we do not have an educated workforce.”
Question: Is going to a four-day school week as some districts are doing an acceptable way for school districts to trim non-classroom expenses?
McGuire:“I am not in favor of the four day school week. The school day is long enough already and the longer day will make it more difficult for teachers to keep students engaged. Additionally, the four day week imposes an undue burden on working parents who would have to find childcare for their children while they are at work.”
Shope:“I am an advocate of local school districts being able to make decisions that they feel will help their schools succeed. If a four-day week is a way to save dollars, then I believe it should be considered. I can tell you from the research that I have seen is that it does save money while at the same time, it does not harm the instructional value of education.”
As for the future, McGuire said, “After years of underfunding our education system, the challenge is so great that only bi-partisan problem solving and a willingness to look at the revenue side of the budget will truly begin to address the challenge. If the legislature is unwilling to do the job, the voters should do it for them. The teacher retention crisis is caused in part by low salaries but is also exacerbated by the heavy workload brought on by large class sizes. We are losing the numerical equivalent of a 100% turnover in classroom teachers every three to five years so if we don’t get our arms around this problem it is hard to see how we get about the job of increasing student achievement.”
James J. Hodl is a career journalist who has worked for newspapers, magazines and trade journals. A graduate of Southern Illinois University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Journalism, Hodl began his career as a reporter with the Palatine (IL) Herald and the Morton Grove (IL) Review before becoming editor of the trade publication Appliance Service News. In recent years, Hodl has had articles published in Consumers Digest, Good Housekeeping, Home Remodeling, Kitchens & Baths and Salute; and has contributed to trade publications serving the home furnishings, restaurant and casino markets. A native of Chicago, Hodl relocated to San Tan Valley in 2013.
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