In about two weeks, the communities at 10 Tucson Unified School District schools will learn which campuses will be recommended for closure or consolidation, the superintendent said at Tuesday night’s Governing Board meeting.
The timeline for the closures — the first for Southern Arizona’s largest school district in more than a decade — is now clear: Superintendent Gabriel Trujillo says he will meet in person with principals followed by the faculty of each school recommended for the changes during the week of Oct. 19.
After he connects with principals and faculty, families will receive a letter with more detailed information about recommended consolidations and closures including an invite to meet with Trujillo at an on-site school meeting, he said Tuesday night.
Those gatherings set up three key dates:
• The Oct. 27 governing board meeting, moved to Palo Verde High School to accommodate an anticipated larger crowd because the meeting is dedicated to public comment on the school closure recommendations.
• A Nov. 17 legally-mandated public hearing where the community can also comment.
• The Dec. 8 vote by the TUSD Governing Board will determine which campuses have been approved for closures or consolidation.
Final TUSD public reconfiguration meeting
Oct. 7, 5:30 – 7 p.m., online only
Register here
Closures and consolidations will be rolled out over the next two years, the district says. Enrollment decline due to lower Pima County birth rates and families using Empowerment Scholarship Accounts to homeschool or attend private schools have cost the district revenue and caused the need to close, district officials say.
The district held three community meetings over the last few weeks to get feedback on TUSD demographics, enrollment and financial data. More than 300 people, including staff and community members attended the in-person meetings. TUSD will hold a virtual community forum Oct.7 from 5:30-7 p.m.
TUSD schools with the largest enrollment decline by percentage over the last three fiscal years include: Booth Fickett Math/Science Magnet, Cragin Elementary and Sahuaro High School, according to Arizona Department of Education data.
Auditor General reports find financial, compliance issues at ASDB, fraud charges in Sahuarita
The Arizona State Schools for the Deaf and the Blind failed to collect revenue, may have graduated students who did not qualify and did not do proper staff background checks. Those are among the findings in two reports from the Arizona Auditor General’s office.
A three-year forensic financial audit found ASDB failed to collect millions in potential revenue, including billing and payroll issues.
In its 12-page response to the audit, ASDB says it agrees or will implement recommendations for all 26 findings.
The separate performance audit states ASDB did not follow protocol when it relocated its campus from Tucson’s west side to Oro Valley this school year.
The review also says teacher background checks were not reviewed, some substitute teachers did not meet requirements, communication with families was inadequate, and more than two dozen graduates may not have met requirements to earn diplomas.
In a 15-page response, ASDB agrees or will implement recommendations in all 42 findings except the four it disagreed with, the letter states.
“ASDB had multiple operational, financial, educational, and compliance issues, potentially impacting student/staff safety and educational quality, reducing monies available for its operations, and limiting transparency about its future operations,” the report says.
ASDB administrators declined Arizona Luminaria’s interview request.
“The recently completed audits of ASDB found there was no evidence of fraud or intentional wrongdoing. ASDB will continue to do what is statutorily required for a state agency and will make appropriate changes to our current policies to ensure all audit findings are addressed,” ASDB spokesperson Tricia Beckham told Arizona Luminaria via email.
In the Sahuarita Unified School District, a former cheer coach and registrar at Walden Grove High School has been charged with four felonies including fraud and forgery.
The Sahuarita district reported alleged financial misconduct by Denise Montano (also known as Denise Cook, according to the auditor general’s report) and an investigation by the auditor general found she may have allegedly diverted more than $12,000 and forged documents to cover it up.
Teacher declares city council candidacy
Teacher Kasey Hopper, a certified orientation and mobility instructor, has filed the paperwork to run as a Democrat for Tucson’s Ward 2 City Council seat in 2027.
Hopper, who is legally blind and has a guide dog named Chance, is an instructor at the Tucson School for the Blind. He previously worked at The Arizona Schools for the Deaf and the Blind for 14 years.
“I think listening is huge right now,” Hopper said. “And I think it’s just the political world we live in, I feel like we’re being talked to a lot. Whether it’s local, whether it’s state, whether it’s federal, it doesn’t matter. I feel like as a constituent of the country, I feel like we’re getting talked to. And I want to run my campaign by listening.”
Hopper will run against community organizer Ethan Rigel in the primary. Council Member Paul Cunningham announced he will not seek reelection after serving on the city council since 2010.
Read the whiteboard
🏫 More than two dozen schools were closed in the Phoenix area in recent years and more are on the horizon.
✏️ Private school is more affordable in Yuma thanks to ESAs, but there are limits.
🚌 Nogales Head Start programs could be affected by English-only rule.
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