Arizona. Dept. of Education

A few school districts in Arizona are already heading back to school, but will there be enough teachers to fill classrooms? As of late, things are looking pretty dire, and the salary is the main reason teachers say they're looking for new careers to help pay their bills.

SB 1159, introduced by State Senator Rick Gray, allows people without a bachelor's degree to start and finish their training as a teacher while in college.

The Arizona measure comes four years after voters rejected a smaller voucher expansion after an unprecedented mobilization by teachers opposed to using tax dollars for private education.

Arizona public school teachers woke up to a rather pleasant surprise on March 8, when Arizona's top education official announced a new program could mean some extra funding for their classroom projects.

The Arizona School Boards Association, which has found itself being targeted by Republican lawmakers who have long opposed its efforts to lobby for local school boards, is leaving the National School Boards Association.

Arizona schools could be forced to close because they can’t legally spend more than the $1 billion the Legislature has already appropriated for the current school year.

Currently, public schools in Arizona face more than $1 billion in budget cuts by March 1, partly as a result of a spending limit that was approved by voters in the 1980s. The state's Superintendent for Public Instruction, Kathy Hoffman, painted a bleak picture for education during her State of Education address on Feb. 8.

During his state of the state address, the GOP governor proposed setting aside $1 billion for desalination, or the process of removing salt from sea water, and bring that water to Arizona.

A teacher residency program modeled after medical residencies is launching in Arizona this winter.

The court rejected opponents' arguments that Proposition 208 required a 2/3 vote to be enacted as required for tax increases imposed by the Legislature. But the court said it can’t yet tell whether the money it raises can be legally spent so it sent the case back to the lower court.

The agreement on school vouchers and a handful of other disputes ended a stalemate between the House and Senate that held up the final pieces of the Arizona budget.

Business owners who make enough to be affected by Proposition 208 would have the option to pay a 4.5% tax rate, the same as they paid before voters imposed the 3.5% surcharge.

The Bradley Academy of Excellence had falsified its attendance records, with former CEO Daniel Hughes reporting fake students in order to increase funding.

Republicans called the measure already passed by the Arizona Senate a lifeline for 600,000 low-income students who would become entitled to state funding for private school tuition.

According to a statement, an exception will be made for counties that have "high" COVID-19 transmission based on CDC guidelines, including Coconino, Yavapai and Pinal counties.

The Arizona Dept. of Education held a virtual job fair on Saturday and more than 1,000 people attended to connect with recruiters in their school-related fields.

For the first time since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction is now advocating for some schools to begin planning to re-open campuses.

The Arizona Dept. of Education says every public and charter school in the state will be eligible to receive at least $150,000.