Education Reform

Too often, the traditional public-school model fails students and teachers. Charter schools, scholarship tax credits, and merit pay are giving students a better education and teachers a better career.

<p>Too often, the traditional public-school model fails students and teachers. Charter schools, scholarship tax credits, and merit pay are giving students a better education and teachers a better career. </p>

Phoenix, AZ – Governor Jan Brewer signed late Monday HB 2622, a critical piece of legislation that will expand the state’s groundbreaking education savings account program to over 100,000 newly eligible children, effectively doubling the program’s reach.

PHOENIX — Education-reform advocates won a key victory today, with a judge upholding the constitutionality of Arizona’s first-in-the-nation education savings accounts.

Friday, May 4th is the deadline for parents of students with special needs to apply for an education savings account for next school year.

The Wall Street Journal called 2011 the “Year of School Choice,” and with good reason. Thirteen states, including Arizona, passed or expanded choice-based reforms. Some two dozen other states considered similar legislation.

On April 4, Gov. Jan Brewer vetoed an expansion to Arizona’s education savings account program and drew attention to a subject that affects all Arizona educators and students.

Gov. Jan Brewer is poised to expand one of the most liberty-enhancing education reforms in U.S. history, the latest step in her growing legacy of meaningful education reform.

Arizona students are at risk of having fewer digital learning options if lawmakers do not reconsider SB 1259, which provides more options for students to pursue digital learning outside of their school district’s boundaries.

In 1947, military experts were trying to build an aircraft that wouldn’t lose control at high speeds so a pilot could fly faster than the speed of sound. Pilots were afraid to accelerate beyond the sound barrier for fear they would never recover control of their plane.

Every student in a failing school should have better options. In Arizona, the largest failing schools enroll a high concentration of Hispanic students— students that, nationally, are at a high risk of dropping out and have low college attendance rates. Among the 20 largest public schools that received a “D” on their state report card, 71 percent of the students are Hispanic.

Arizona operates three tax credit scholarship programs. Under these programs, individuals or businesses can donate money to school tuition organizations (STOs). These organizations award private school scholarships to students in grades K-12. Individuals and businesses can take a tax credit equal to their donation within certain limits when they file their taxes.

Q: What are tax credit scholarships?