On Tuesday, November 3, 2009, a special election will be held in the Vail Unified School District of Pima County, Arizona. Registered voters will have the opportunity to help decide two important financial matters for the school district.
For more information, please read about the ballot issues on the Vail School District website.
Thank you for taking the time to study the issues.
*Image credit: Flickr, Theresa Thompson’s photostream.
Tags: Calvin Bakers, governor brewer's budget plan, letter to the editor
Opinion
Letter to the editor
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 06.08.2009
Brewer gets ‘A’ for honest budget plan
Re: the June 2 article “Brewer: Fix deficit by raising sales tax.”
Give Gov. Jan Brewer an “A” for honesty and courage. The budget proposal she developed honestly faces the fact that we cannot have our cake and eat it too. We cannot continue to cut taxes and sustain critical state services.
The governor could have joined the simplistic and popular “no tax” bandwagon. Instead she proposed a thoughtful and thorough approach to the … Continue Reading
Tags: Governor Brewer's proposed budget, letter from ASA, proposed fy10 budget arizona
The Arizona School Administrators recently wrote a public letter to Governor Brewer, responding to her proposed FY10 Budget.
The text of that letter follows:
Dear Governor Brewer:
This has been a challenging time for all of us in coping with the economic conditions faced by our state. As members of the Arizona School Administrators Association (ASA), hearing about the K-12 budget firsthand as part of the stakeholders meeting, was significant and deeply appreciated. It demonstrated to us, as an organization … Continue Reading
This story from today’s Arizona Republic details how the Legislature’s latest budget proposal represents a dramatic cost-shift to homeowners to make up for revenue shortfalls.
AZ Republic Article on Latest Proposed Budget
Bottom line: we would lose almost $7 million of assessed value (meaning we wouldn’t be able to bond for a complete new school even if voters did approve) AND homeowners in Vail would see 15% increase in their secondary homeowner taxes - instigated by the very legislators who pledged no new taxes.
Cal
The following article, entitled “School funding unites parents“ was published in the Arizona Daily Star on May 14, 2009.
Concerned by proposed state budget cuts to K-12 education, about 135 people hungry for answers flocked to a District 30 Town Hall meeting last week with state Rep. Frank Antenori.
Parents, staff and students from local school districts on May 7 filled the meeting room of the Kirk-Bear Canyon Library, 8959 E. Tanque Verde Road, for the discussion with Antenori, a Republican, who represents Legislative District 30.
The district includes Tucson’s far … Continue Reading
Tags: opinion piece arizona daily star, slippery slop state's education reputation at risk
The following opinion piece, entitled “Slippery slope: State’s education reputation at risk“ was published in the Arizona Daily Star on May 14, 2009.
Arizona lawmakers must resist the temptation to continue slicing away at the public-education system if our state is to make the strongest argument possible for retaining its military installations, such as Davis-Monthan Air Force Base.
Leaders of organizations dedicated to supporting the state’s bases sent a letter to Gov. Jan Brewer urging her to fight off cuts to education. We urge Brewer and legislators to … Continue Reading
The following letter was sent to all parents in the Vail School District on 5-4-2009.
BUDGET UPDATE
Last week, the Vail Governing Board approved contracts for returning certified teachers in the Vail School District. Unlike many districts across Arizona, the Board did not issue a RIF (Reduction In Force) notice to any teacher in Vail.
The decision to avoid any RIFs was not easy. While the District has the financial advantage of a well-planned reserve and continuing growth, no one … Continue Reading
Tags: how are k-12 districts responding to budget cuts, parents kids mobilize to fight school cuts, tucson citizen
* Are you curious about how K-12 districts across Pima County are responding to proposed budget cuts?
* Do you want to know what parents and students are doing to help, “save our teachers, save our schools”?
Read “Parents, kids mobilize to fight school cuts” (05-04-2009, Tucson Citizen).
Tags: action needed now on k-12 education, anne gibson, funding k-12 education az
Vail Governing Board Member Anne Gibson recently submitted a guest editorial to the Tucson Citizen on the topic of proposed budget cuts to K-12 education. In the article, she urges legislators to, “Act quickly. Act decisively. Act in support of K-12 education so that we can go about the important job of preparing our students and our community for the future.”
The article, entitled “Action needed now on K-12 education,” was published on May 3, 2009.
Please feel free to read the article and chime in with your thoughts/comments either here … Continue Reading
Tags: federal stimulus package and the vail school district, where are we going to land
Superintendent Calvin Baker wrote the following article for the Spring 2009 edition of the SouthEastSide Connections newsletter. As always, you are welcome to join the conversation by leaving your questions or comments on this blog post…
Where Are We Going to Land?
Reflections on the Federal Stimulus Package and the Vail School District 09/10 School Year
Peering anxiously through the windows of the small plane, we scanned the horizon for a glimpse of the runway. The challenging factors of blowing snow and darkness were … Continue Reading
