School board elections in West Valley 2022: Candidates share ideas on K-12 key issues

Maricopa County has 58 public school districts. This year, 180 people have filed signatures to run for school board positions across Maricopa County.

The Arizona Republic sent a survey to all candidates who filed to run in 2022. We committed to publish their answers, to help voters in every school district make an informed choice.

What does a school board do?

A school board is responsible for setting the mission and policies of a district and makes some of the biggest decisions about how and what children learn.

Board members are responsible for allocating public resources, hiring and evaluating the superintendent, setting salaries for employees, approving curriculum materials and adopting the school calendar.  

Election Day coverage: Live voting updates | Arizona election results

Where can I find information about candidates in my district?

You can find out your school district by signing in to your voter information at BeBallotReady.vote.

Click on your school district to reach the information most quickly.

Because of the volume of answers, The Republic divided candidates' answers by region: Phoenix, East Valley and West Valley.

School board elections: Phoenix | East Valley | What school boards do

This article includes all responses received and will be updated as more candidates submit their answers. Send answers to reporter Renata Cló at rclo@arizonarepublic.com. The deadline is Oct. 12, the day early voting starts. 

Buckeye Elementary School District

Three people are running for two four-year seats on the Buckeye Elementary School District governing board.

Candidates include Danielle Cornell and incumbents Jane Hunt and Gina Ragsdale. 

Hunt declined to participate. Ragsdale did not submit her answers by the time of publishing. 

Introductions

Can you introduce yourself please? How long have you lived in Maricopa County, what do you do for a living, and any additional information about yourself you think voters would like to know about you. 

Danielle Cornell: "My name is Danielle Cornell and I am running for BESD#33 school board. I have lived in Maricopa County for over 15 years. 

"I have spent the majority of my career in higher education, with most of that time being in leadership roles. I am a mom of three children in the district and have spent time in the school and classroom as a substitute, volunteer and PTSA member. In our August school board meeting, one of the presenters (Daniel Parris of Project Momentum) discussed that if you are not within 100 yards of the front lines, you don’t know what’s really going on. The classrooms are the front lines, and to make good decisions, school board members need to educate themselves on what is happening on the front lines. I want to make sure I know what’s happening on the front lines so, as a district, we can address the real problems happening in the classroom." 

2020 election results 

Do you believe in the 2020 election results?

Danielle Cornell: "This question is irrelevant to the role of a school board member. Making nonpartisan issues partisan is one of the problems with our education system and our country." 

Main ideas

Based on the limitations and powers of a school board member, what’s your platform?  

Danielle Cornell: "Children come first, and the support of teachers comes closely after. I have seen decisions being made by people who have spent little time in the classroom who are often uninformed regarding what is best for students and teachers."

What do you believe to be the biggest issue impacting K-12 students in Arizona? 

Danielle Cornell: "The significant impacts of the pandemic on children’s education is a huge obstacle. So many children are behind academically and socially as a result of having their education disrupted and these students need support. The safety of our schools is also a huge priority, no parent or child should ever have to worry about if their school is safe. While I have ideas on how to resolve these problems, I believe that we will only identify the best solutions by bringing many voices and ideas to the table to find solutions to these significant challenges, including teachers, parents and community members. This will require encouraging increased participation from all of these groups in the school system." 

Diversity, equity and inclusion issues

How will you navigate the challenges regarding national rhetoric spilling into local schools related to critical race theory, social-emotional learning, LGBTQ inclusion, and equity issues? 

Danielle Cornell: "Political rhetoric has no place in schools. Parents should always be welcome to participate in their child's education and have 100% transparency on what is happening in their child’s classroom. Children should be taught, by parents and by teachers, that all people have inherent value and worth. They should be taught to be kind to everyone and appreciate the differences that make our world and communities unique and beautiful." 

Public education funding

How do you think the state should support public education? Do you believe in expanding school vouchers? 

Danielle Cornell: "The state must make education a priority. The recent increase in funding is a good step in the right direction, but more can be done. There is not currently a voucher program in Arizona. I assume that the question is related to the Empowerment Scholarship Account program which is often incorrectly referred to as a voucher. Since I believe that every student should have the opportunity to get the best education that will meet their individual needs, I believe that the more options a family has to get a good education, the better. The Empowerment Scholarship Account program is heavily regulated to ensure funds are spent properly but allows families to have many more options when seeking the best education for their children. The state and individual school districts must be more in tune with the needs of students, with no motivations other than a focus on each student, including financial motives. The goal should always be for a student to be educated wherever they will get their educational needs best met, even if it’s not at the public school they are assigned. I believe parents bear the responsibility of determining the best education for their children, no one else is more qualified to make that determination." 

Professional shortages

How do you plan to address teacher, education professionals and school nurse shortages? 

Danielle Cornell: "We need to support teachers in what they need in the classroom, including more involvement from administrators and parents to lend support in the classroom as well as addressing student behavior issues to ensure teachers are respected by their students. Making their job a bit less impossible will help retain current teachers and attract additional teachers. Additionally, ensuring that they are compensated fairly for the amazing work that they do, making that budget element a priority over others while holding teachers who are not fulfilling their roles properly accountable, will help with the current staffing issues in the state." 

Capital projects

Several schools in the Valley need long-term repairs and updates. What is your plan to fund renovations? 

Danielle Cornell: "It always comes down to priorities. There will never be enough money for everything (in a district budget or most household budgets). I am a fiscal conservative and believe that through prioritizing and eliminating unnecessary spending that the things that are most important can be taken care of." 

Additional information

Anything you would like to add? 

Danielle Cornell: "The other individuals running in my district have been on the school board for many years. Though I have not been on a school board before, I am a parent to children who are currently attending school in the district and I have spent time in the classroom recently and seen the current challenges. We need creative solutions to the problems we face, which are unlike any challenges that educators have ever faced before. I believe that a new face on the school board is exactly what is needed!"

Deer Valley Unified School District 

Six people filed signatures to run for two four-year seats on the Deer Valley Unified School District governing board. 

Candidates are Craig Beckman, Paul Carver, Stephanie Simacek and Tony Bouie. David Alvarado was removed from the ballot, and Melody Holehan-Kopas dropped out of the race.

Introductions

Can you introduce yourself please? How long have you lived in Maricopa County, what do you do for a living, and any additional information about yourself you think voters would like to know about you? 

Craig Beckman: "My name is Craig Beckman, and I’m running for Deer Valley Unified School District governing board. I’ve been an Arizona and Maricopa County resident for 10 years, residing within the Deer Valley Unified School District for eight years. I’m a local business owner — a full-service marketing and advertising agency specializing in marketing and communications for small-to-medium-sized businesses and nonprofits, both locally and nationally.

"I’m a father, a husband, and public education advocate. I have an 8-year-old in the district, and my 4-year-old will be attending a DVUSD school for kindergarten next year. I’m highly involved in my children's education and work to help other parents participate. For almost two years, I’ve been the admin of a Facebook group dedicated to the parents and guardians of DVUSD students, providing our nearly 5,000 members with district updates, helping them understand new policies, recapping board meetings to keep them informed, and fostering discussion that helps guide our community through the challenges of parenting." 

Paul Carver: "My name is Paul Carver. I am the 4th generation of my family to live and work in the Valley of the Sun. My family has taught both elementary and secondary education in the Valley since the 1940s. As a graduate of Deer Valley High School, I have personally seen the greatness this District has to offer. My involvement in VICA and sports such as Football and Wrestling at DVHS taught me building block elements of leadership and teamwork. Having been raised in the example of service before self, I served in the United States Marine Corps where I continued to develop Honor, Integrity, and Discipline. As a Father, I was active as a Youth leader in my Church and a Little League Coach. I also received an MBA from the University of Phoenix." 

Stephanie Simacek: "My name is Stephanie Simacek. I am a Deer Valley Unified School District parent of two, one who attends Union Park School and one who attends Barry Goldwater High School. I am also a former DVUSD teacher, volunteer, and current DVUSD substitute running for the Deer Valley Unified School District governing board. My family and I have lived in Maricopa County for almost 9 years. I am driven by a passion for public education. I believe public education is what holds our communities together, it is the great bridge that connects all of us to one common goal, our children, our future." 

Tony Bouie: "Tony is president/CEO of an aerospace manufacturing company. He has advanced degrees from the University of Arizona, (MA), WP Carey School of Business at Arizona State University (MBA), and the University of Akron (MS). He has been involved in service to others for decades by serving as an executive director in Arizona state government, charter school board president, leukemia and lymphoma society board member, elected National Football League Former Players Board member, UA Black Alumni Association Board County Black Alumni, and small group leader in his church. He played football and baseball at the University of Arizona. He was a consensus first-team all-American, first-team All PAC-10 football player, and was inducted into the hall of fame in 2000. He played in the National Football League with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He coaches little league baseball and flag football in north Phoenix." 

2020 election results 

Do you believe in the 2020 election results?

Tony Bouie declined to answer this question. 

Craig Beckman: "I do. I form opinions and beliefs based on verifiable evidence and facts. Elections are highly regulated and operate with a huge amount of oversight. I believe in a healthy amount of doubt and scrutiny, but all of the verifiable evidence has pointed to a fair and secure election." 

Paul Carver: "If you are asking if I believe in the accuracy of the 2020 election results, the answer is no. There are too many irregularities across the Country for the certification to have taken place. There are processes by which these concerns can be remedied and while facts have proven that many states have done less than their level best to maintain voter roll integrity and protect the purity of the right to vote nothing has been done by those in elected and appointed positions of authority to prove the results. In a day and age where the population grows less trusting of our own government would it not be in the Country and the election processes' best interest to be transparent and prove out the results no matter which way they may go?"

Stephanie Simacek: "I do believe in the 2020 election results." 

Main ideas  

Based on the limitations and powers of a school board member, what’s your platform?  

Craig Beckman: "When elected, I’ll use my position as a governing board member to help improve the relationships between all stakeholder groups through communication. Our students, parents, teachers, and community members deserve a high level of communication regarding policies that will impact them, how their tax dollars are being spent, what issues need to be addressed, and what accomplishments we’re celebrating. With my background and experience in marketing and communications, I’ll work to identify new communication channels, improve communications clarity, and standardize communications processes and expectations.

"I will continue to fight for the rights of our students, regardless of their religion, race, socioeconomic status, gender, and any other protected class. Our district is very diverse, making it of the utmost importance that we represent the needs and values of our students. We need to ensure that all students in the district have equal access to opportunities and the resources they need for success.

"I believe in preparing our students for life, and the state-mandated curriculum only puts a small dent in that mission. So, in addition to the constant refinement of our current curriculum, I will advocate for financial literacy training, comprehensive technology programs, teaching communication skills, global studies, critical thinking skills, life skills, and much more. I want to empower teachers with the curriculum they need to give our students a path to success right out of high school.

"Around the state and country, special education programs have been suffering from a lack of resources and staff. Although we have one of the best programs in the valley, DVUSD is not immune to these challenges. I believe we have a moral obligation as a district, community, and society to provide the resources and educators to help these students succeed. I will advocate for increased pay and support for our special education staff and work on revising our district's IEP/504 processes, making it easier for our students to get the support they need.

"Parental involvement is very important — studies have shown that it’s key to the success of students. I will work to communicate with parents and guardians, opportunities for them to be involved in all levels of their children's education. Whether it be helping with homework, joining a PTSA/PTSO group, reviewing curriculum adoptions, or having a voice in the district decision-making process, I want to provide opportunities for these stakeholders to be involved in a healthy way." 

Paul Carver: "While there are seemingly countless issues to address, I believe the greatest good can come from (1) protecting the Parental Bill of Rights: ensuring that the parent has the primary say in the care and education of their children. We are not a ‘nanny state’. The education system's responsibility is to educate the children, not raise the children. (2) Budget and Curriculum Transparency; the State of Arizona spends over half its annual budget on education and while the Legislature continues to increase K-12 funding these funds are not making it (dollar for dollar) to the classroom and the Teachers. (3) Curriculum continues to evolve at a breakneck speed with little to no regard for the opinions of the community and the parents. It is the School Board's responsibility to be the liaison from the Community to the Administration to address concerns by either correcting the Administration's course or through educating the community on the need for the enacted processes and curriculum." 

Stephanie Simacek: "Being a member of the school board should not be about politics, it should be about doing what is best for public education which includes meeting the needs of all students and supporting our families, teachers and staff. Success can only be accomplished by someone who has the desire to work closely and effectively with everyone. Someone who believes we must not take for granted the future of our communities.

"I am running because there are both immediate and long-term issues that need to be addressed and most of them go hand-in-hand. They include but are not limited to reducing class sizes, teacher retention, livable wages, strong support for special education and gifted programs, parent communication and campus improvement plans to make our schools safe for all students and staff. I am running so I can advocate for all of it." 

Tony Bouie: "I will work within the statutory boundaries of the position to help the Superintendent create scholastic results that meet and/or exceed the expectations of students, parents, teachers and other stakeholders." 

What do you believe to be the biggest issue impacting K-12 students in Arizona? 

Craig Beckman: "Hands down, the biggest issue impacting our K-12 schools is the shortage of qualified educators and staff. We need to ensure that DVUSD utilizes the funding we have to hire and retain qualified educators. I will advocate for DVUSD to find ways to increase wages, improve benefits, and foster an environment that helps us in our mission of retaining and attracting great staff." 

Paul Carver: "The most concerning issue for our children in our schools today is the overall underperformance. Math and Reading proficiency scores are hovering slightly under 60%. The concept of social promotion has us to a point where our children are poorly suited to compete in the World Market upon graduation from High School. We must identify the challenges some students have and help them to overcome those challenges so they can enjoy success. This is not accomplished by simply passing the child on when they are unable to perform at grade level in basic reading, writing and arithmetic. We must instill in our children the desire to succeed and provide them tools to do so." 

Stephanie Simacek: "There are many education-related issues that I am concerned about. On top of my list is advocating for smaller class sizes and teacher retention. Currently, our kindergarten classes need 27 plus one in order to qualify for another teacher. That's one teacher for 28 students. It ranges by grade, for example, fourth grade needs 33 to get a second classroom added. It has been said that high school and middle school numbers range between 28 and 29 students. I've seen firsthand that that's simply not true. There's definitely a high student-to-teacher ratio in the district with no teacher assistants. I believe that not only do our students do better academically in smaller learning environments, but our teachers thrive as well. Teachers actually get to teach and they get to focus on students. They get to learn their learning styles. They get to build a relationship with their students which in turn helps lead to higher teacher retention. Teachers that are more happy and doing what they want to do, which is to teach, are more likely to stay instead of getting burned out. I believe we need to also increase our teacher pay as well as provide lower cost benefits. Teachers can't be spending half of their paycheck to cover their health insurance. They just simply don't get paid enough to do so. We need to provide them with a livable wage. I believe by doing all of this, we are showing respect for our teachers and for their families. This helps retain teachers and it helps our students and our families in the district."

Tony Bouie: "The challenges resulting from teacher staffing have a negative impact on students in the system. Teacher staffing, pay, scholastic grading, and indoctrination-oriented curriculum are key areas of concern." 

Diversity, equity and inclusion issues

How will you navigate the challenges regarding national rhetoric spilling into local schools related to critical race theory, social-emotional learning, LGBTQ inclusion, and equity issues? 

Craig Beckman: "The rhetoric takes our focus away from the real issues our students, parents, and staff face. We have staffing issues, behavioral concerns, academic policy improvements, and a lack of parental involvement to address. We're wasting every minute we spend on issues that aren’t affecting our students. Critical Race Theory doesn’t exist in our district, and if it was presented as a curriculum, it would be voted down.

"That being said, I believe that we should be offering the best curriculum available to our students. That includes history from a wide variety of perspectives, social-emotional learning programs that benefit our students and staff's mental health and wellness, and learning about and celebrating the differences in what makes each of us unique. We cannot prepare our students for the real world by ignoring that each of us has unique qualities and beliefs that make us who we are.

"I believe that each student has the right to equal education and treatment no matter who they are, what they believe, or where they come from. I will fight for every student’s right to exist and be who they are without harassment or bullying." 

Paul Carver: "National Rhetoric is exactly correct, and the schools are not the battlefield for these ideological wars. There are protections and policies in place that have been in place for many years that protect all children and encourage the equal and fair treatment of them. Schools should not be pawns for social experimentation whether regarding race, gender or religion. Children should attend school to learn the ABC’s and 123’s, not receive their daily dose of right or left leaning moral principles. Morality and the like are a topic for parents to take up. Educators have enough on their plate trying to help children learn at a pace that will allow them to grow without having to deal with the political ‘flavor’ of the day." 

Stephanie Simacek: "I'll talk first about the legislative attempts to ban certain types of books. I believe that our children must have access to a variety of books for which they can learn from different perspectives. A great way for teachers to teach lessons and lead class discussion is through novel studies. I also support a parent's choice in regards to their child's reading, but I don't believe this should be dictated by our legislation. If a parent chooses to remove their child from a particular book study that they feel uncomfortable about, that is their choice, however, that should not be taken away from the other students' learning experiences.

"I want to touch on Critical Race Theory (CRT) because it is a big discussion right now. I think that there is a little bit of confusion. The acronym gets thrown around a lot, however not in the correct way. It is often used as a way of thinking that teachers or administration are trying to teach CRT in our schools, which is simply not true. CRT is a collegiate-level course. It is not something that belongs in K-12 and is not being taught in Deer Valley either. There is a difference between teaching history and teaching CRT and CRT is a collegiate-level course.

"With regards to teaching history, as the saying goes: those who do not learn from history and those who cannot remember the past are doomed to repeat it. I want to address two things. One, I do not support the rewriting of history. Saying that something did not happen or did not exist, doesn't remove it from history. Second, changing the name of something that happened in order to make it appealing to others is changing history. We can't change what happened in the past, but we can learn from the past and that's how we grow. We have to have that for our students.

"I want to also add that we can't be naive and think that kids won't bring up topics that might be viewed as inappropriate. That's just life. That's how kids are. Currently teachers don't have a responsibility to bring up those topics, but if they are approached by a student and they do arise, an educator needs to be able to foster a discussion that's appropriate for the age level. For example, what might be discussed in high school is not appropriate for a first grader or second grader. Without weighing in, on their personal beliefs and then Title IX protects most of these types of discussions. So, in an effort to argue against it, it could actually result in lawsuits for our district which would then end up costing us millions of dollars. We need to be respectful of that as well. Similar to books, I believe if a parent does not want their child to participate in a particular lesson or discussion or curriculum they might feel is controversial or against their family's values, then they have the right to remove their child from that.

"With regards to discrimination against our LGBTQ community of students, I truly believe that every child deserves the right to equal access to public education no matter their race, their ethnic background, their religion, their gender, their socioeconomic status or citizen status. I will not tolerate discrimination against our LGBTQ community. This topic also falls under Title IX and the 1964 Civil Rights Act and discrimination based on gender and sexuality has been ruled on by the Supreme Court of the United States." 

Tony Bouie: "National concerns should not affect local governance. All curricula should be transparent to parents, aligned with district policies and age appropriate. Equality of access should be the focus and not equity of outcome." 

Public education funding

How do you think the state should support public education? Do you believe in expanding school vouchers? 

Craig Beckman: "Our state needs to support our public education system by funding it. We’ve been at the bottom for per-student investment and teacher pay for as long as anyone can remember. We cannot continue to blame our teachers and schools for being understaffed and lacking resources when we don’t fund them.

"Our state needs to support our public education system by rejecting legislation that puts more work on our already-stressed educator workforce. We cannot continue to add duties and responsibilities to our educators and staff without compensating or supporting them for the additional efforts. Teachers become such because they have a passion for education and teaching our next generation. It’s not for the money, and it’s not for the fame. We need to be introducing legislation that helps our teachers succeed, not drive them away.

"Arizona voters have made it very clear that they didn’t want the ESA programs expanded universally, and HB2853 does exactly that. Private and charter schools will now have the ability to receive taxpayer dollars taken away from Public Schools with much less accountability. When a school can violate equal rights, ignore Title IX protections, and exclude students based on their special needs, they shouldn’t be taking away from public programs that are required to meet those standards and provide those services. For these reasons, I do not support the expansion of vouchers." 

Paul Carver: "It is incumbent upon the Legislature, according to the Arizona State Constitution, to provide education at as nearly zero a cost as possible. Likewise, the Board and Administration are required to be proper stewards of the public monies to meet the educational needs of the students. Vouchers are a form of payment directed to assist those children who receive services through institutions such as the Arizona State Schools for the Deaf and the Blind. As I am sure no one would argue the necessity for specialized care for children falling under this classification, I imagine you are asking more specifically about the Empowerment Scholarship Accounts (ESA). The need for the ESA Program or ‘School Choice’ arose through parental demand to address the increasing failure of some public schools to provide a safe environment for our children and to learn proven principles. Parents must do what is necessary to provide for their children, and to attempt to hold the child and parent hostage by not allowing them to go to the school of their choice is unacceptable. Children are only children for a fraction of their life and the parent is charged with the safety and education of that child. If we want to consider ESA a bad thing, then we should analyze why the parents and children leave and address those issues. For the most part the exodus from public schools boils down to the loss of parental rights and lack of safety for the child. It is not Anti-School to support ESA but rather it is Pro-Freedom." 

Stephanie Simacek: "I am an advocate for public education. I always have been. The ESA voucher expansion bill that recently passed could have been used for funding public education. In 2018 Arizona voters voted against the expansion of vouchers through a proposition and yet this bill was later pushed through the legislation. This was completely disrespectful to the voters and what people had voted against. The people spoke through their vote yet our state completely disregarded those voices. Vouchers already divert about $350 million from our public schools every year. So, to expand another billion dollars on vouchers is just taking money away from our public education system. Private schools that receive vouchers, don't allow us as taxpayers to see where those dollars are being used. Our public schools have to prove what and how they spend taxpayer dollars. Public schools allow every child to attend as they should. They have to show standardized testing performance, constant student and teacher improvement, school improvement plans, planning groups in order to keep our funding or to ask for more funding.

"There is no financial or academic accountability for private schools that receive vouchers. As a state, Arizona already spends the least amount per child in the entire nation. We had $5.3 billion sitting on the table for public education and instead legislators put it towards voucher expansion — this is just a slap in the face for public education. It is not the time to divert funding from desperately needed programs that we need in our public schools. Lawmakers need to focus on making investments in our public education, especially special education for the 96 percent of special education students who attend our public schools. We must continue to fight voucher expansion and focus on properly funding our public schools."     

Tony Bouie: "School voucher expansion is a legislative concern and not the school board. I will work with the administration, parents and teachers to provide the best public education possible, regardless of competition in the educational landscape." 

Professional shortages

How do you plan to address teacher, education professionals and school nurse shortages? 

Craig Beckman: "This really comes down to the budget at the state level. However, I believe that Deer Valley Unified School District needs to do everything we can to maximize our budget to address these issues. But it’s not just about pay. Teachers and staff deserve far more than we can currently pay them, but they need the support of our administrators and appreciation of our community just as much as they need a bigger paycheck. I believe that we can help improve the relationship between our staff and the community through communication, transparency, and parental involvement." 

Paul Carver: "As with the reason for parents withdrawing children from schools the same reasons can be applied to why we are so shorthanded regarding Educators and Staff. As previously mentioned, our Educators are busy enough trying to serve all children equally and get them the education they need to succeed in the World. And as if that isn’t enough on their plates Administrations are continually adding nuances to the classroom. With a continually changing job title and still being compensated toward the lower end of the ranking in the 50 states, (#42) it is no wonder why there is a mass exodus of Teachers from our schools. We are allowing for unacceptable workplace practices to exist that create too much stress, too much ambiguity and little compensation." 

Stephanie Simacek: "Our teachers and staff are what make this district one of the best in Arizona and we have a responsibility as a community to come together and support our professionals. As I previously mentioned we need to continue to increase pay as well as provide lower-cost benefits. We need to provide a livable wage so our professionals are not working multiple jobs. That being said, we need more state support — the school district can only do so much, therefore working with state legislators to support public education is extremely important."  

Tony Bouie: "A deep dive of school funding is appropriate, possibly through a study session(s). Accepting out-of-state certifications is a potential option as well as revisiting teacher-pay so it is in line with similar-sized districts." 

Capital projects

Several schools in the Valley need long-term repairs and updates. What is your plan to fund renovations? 

Craig Beckman: "We’re very lucky to have schools that are well taken care of in DVUSD. That’s not to say that everything is 100% perfect, but our facilities team does a great job of keeping our campuses in great condition. If an issue required additional funding for repair or renovations, I would advocate using every resource available to ensure that our students can thrive in a safe and conducive learning environment." 

Paul Carver: "School Districts as well as many levels of government could do better to manage the taxpayer dollars they are given to address such issues. In the case of infrastructure repairs there is a process that exists that allows schools to apply for funding from the State that does not need to be repaid. This process is already completely funded, and a District only needs to apply to be eligible for the funds. This is the best mechanism by which schools can maintain proper facilities." 

Stephanie Simacek: "DVUSD actually does a very good job taking care of our schools. Our community has been wonderful in supporting bonds that allow us to keep our campuses in great shape and even provide expansions when necessary. By no means am I saying our district is perfect in this area. There will always be changes that are necessary to keep our schools safe for students and staff and I support it 100%. I will always advocate for campus improvements and community support so that we can make sure our staff and students can flourish in their learning environments."

Tony Bouie: "Planning for long-term CAPEX is important and should be planned now. There may be federal funding available for building repairs and upgrades. These options should be considered prior to considering the taxpayers to fund CAPEX projects, especially in a time of significant inflation." 

Additional information

Anything you would like to add? 

Craig Beckman: "Whether you’re a parent or not, I encourage everyone to research their school board candidates. These elected positions will have an impact on our communities for years to come — they affect community growth, home values, and will make decisions that concern our community’s youth.

"Education is no place for politics, religion, or personal agenda. I am running to better serve our kids, parents, staff, and community. I will continue to advocate for students and families, work to provide support for our educators and staff, and lay the groundwork so that students of the future can benefit from what we’ve built together."

Paul Carver: "The contention and animosity that currently resides between so many School Boards and the Community cannot be allowed to continue. It is taking away from all the good work that Administrations, Educators and Students are accomplishing. We are all here for the children and if you do not have the children’s best interest at heart, if you are contributing to this bitterness and division then you do not belong in the process. Transparency and Accountability are sorely missing and there is no time to wait to hope it clears up. Every day that goes by with all this chaos is another day that we have failed our children." 

Stephanie Simacek: "Please click on the links below to find out more about Stephanie Simacek and her candidacy for a seat on the Deer Valley Unified School District Governing Board.

"Website: https://stephaniefordvusd.com/ 

"Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stephaniefordvusd

"Campaign Donations: https://stephaniefordvusd.com/donate/." 

Tony Bouie: "Let's get 'Back to Basics' in the classroom." 

Dysart Unified School District

Five people filed signatures to run for two four-year seats on the Dysart Unified School District governing board, but John Polk dropped out of the race. 

Candidates include Dawn Densmore, the only incumbent; Jennifer Drake, Tina Mollica and Thomas William Coniam.

Densmore and Drake declined to participate in the article. 

Introductions

Can you introduce yourself please? How long have you lived in Maricopa County, what do you do for a living, and any additional information about yourself you think voters would like to know about you. 

Tina Mollica: "I was born and raised in Illinois with strong family values. I have a degree in Elementary Education and was an educator in the IL public school system. I have been an Arizona resident for 25 years, 21 of those years have been in Surprise. As a parent of two boys in Dysart, I have volunteered my time and talents in the classroom, district committees and override campaigns. I was also a substitute teacher in Dysart. For the last 10 years, I have served the youth of Surprise as a scout leader. I am on the NW Maricopa County League of Women Voters Education team. We inform our members about education issues, advocate for public schools and host a literacy book drive each year. I have personally experienced the joys and struggles of teaching and am passionate about public schools and their role in our communities."

William Coniam: "I have lived in Maricopa County since I was 8 months old. I am a product of Arizona’s public school system and I earned my Bachelor’s degree from Arizona State University. I was raised to have a strong sense of civic duty and a desire to serve my community and nation. I initially went to Arizona State University to become a high school social studies teacher. As I studied American government and history, my patriotism swelled and I felt a strong desire to serve my country; so I joined the United States Marine Corps. I received an honorable discharge as a Sergeant in 2012, but I continue to serve our community in various ways today. My volunteer work includes serving on the City of Surprise Board of Trustees, where I am currently serving my third term after being re-appointed by a unanimous vote of the City Council in June. I enjoy serving my community, so I make an effort to volunteer while working full-time as a Loss Control Specialist."

2020 election results 

Do you believe in the 2020 election results?

Tina Mollica: "Yes, I do."

William Coniam: "Yes." 

Main ideas 

Based on the limitations and powers of a school board member, what’s your platform?  

Tina Mollica: "School boards are non-partisan, so I do not have a political platform. My goal is to build relationships within and between our schools and community. I believe that public schools are the core of every community and every child deserves a quality public school in their neighborhood. I will focus on hiring and retaining certified teachers in every classroom, improving math/reading proficiency, decreasing classroom sizes and social workers/counselor ratios and offering high-quality academic choices within the district. I want to create a positive environment where parents, educators, businesses and community members collaborate to meet the needs of ALL Dysart students and make each neighborhood school successful."

William Coniam: "I am moderate, non-partisan, and independent. I am not interested in pushing any sort of agenda for any political party or movement. I do not believe that sort of partisan politics belongs in our classrooms or board room. The only agenda I’m interested in is what will result in the best educational outcome for the children. The purpose of public schools is, first and foremost, to educate our youth. If elected, I will bring a fresh perspective to the board and examine the issues rationally and critically. I will do my best to make decisions that are in the best interest of our children and community while maintaining fiscal responsibility." 

What do you believe to be the biggest issue impacting K-12 students in Arizona? 

Tina Mollica: "There are two issues facing Arizona schools today, a decades-long lack of state funding and a 6-year teacher shortage. In 2022, we were still spending less on public education than we did in 2007. Arizona has the lowest per pupil spending and lowest teacher salaries in the nation and our legislature just passed the largest universal voucher expansion in the country with HB2853. At $7,000 each, it is estimated that it could remove $595M out of the General Fund if all students who attend private or homeschool request a voucher. When our system is already underfunded, how can we afford that? We are in the 6th year of a teacher crisis where 70% of our classrooms do not have a certified teacher in them. If we do not make funding public education a priority, we are going to continue to lose educators in this state."

William Coniam: "I believe the biggest issue impacting K-12 students in Arizona is recruiting and retaining high-quality teachers. For too many years Arizona has ranked at or near the bottom of the entire country for teacher pay. A recent Gallup poll showed that K-12 workers have the highest burnout rate of any industry, nationwide (44% said always/very often, compared to construction or community/social services that were half as much!). Teachers are leaving the state and the profession, and we are left with many vacant teaching positions. As all business owners and managers know: if you want to recruit and retain high-quality employees, you have to treat them right and pay them appropriately — otherwise they will leave you for another position that will appropriately compensate them for their skills. A recent poll of Arizona voters showed that 88% supported raising teacher pay. Another poll showed that 78.2% of voters believe K-12 teacher salaries are too low. Clearly, teacher pay is important to voters. It is important to me as well, that is why I have spent years advocating for increasing teacher salaries. If you want to represent Dysart, you have to advocate for Dysart. We need Governing Board Members that understand this."  

Diversity, equity and inclusion issues

How will you navigate the challenges regarding national rhetoric spilling into local schools related to critical race theory, social-emotional learning, LGBTQ inclusion, and equity issues? 

Tina Mollica: "CRT & SEL (social-emotional learning) are buzz words being used as fear tactics against public education. Critical Race Theory is a graduate-level legal curriculum. It is not developmentally appropriate for K-12, and it is not being taught in Dysart. Students are learning to critically think about history. Social Emotional Learning is simply a way to help children understand and manage their feelings so they can make good decisions and maintain positive relationships with others. I would encourage anyone who thinks differently to review the curriculum themselves. It’s available to the public. Finally, I believe that all students, including LGBTQ, should be valued, respected and given the resources they need to be successful during school and after graduation." 

William Coniam: "These buzzwords have come up a lot as I have been on the streets, talking to voters. Let me start with the one I am asked about the most: Critical Race Theory (CRT). 

"Critical Race Theory is not taught in Dysart schools and it is against Dysart policies. I want to be clear on that point. It is clearly stated on the website under Curriculum FAQ, but for further reading, I recommend reading the Dysart Governing Board Policies. (I provide specific references and links on my website: VoteConiam.com). If someone did want Critical Race Theory taught in Dysart schools — NO, I would NOT support that.

"If it's not currently taught, it would be against multiple current policies to teach it, and no one is even trying to have it taught, why are we even talking about it, then? Well, many politicians and political candidates know that fear gets votes, so they use that as the basis of their campaigns. They create some sort of 'boogeyman', tell you to be afraid of it, then portray themselves as the only ones that can save you from it. We've seen this in countless forms from all sorts of politicians. Don't fall for it. 

"For further information, please visit my website VoteConiam.com and click 'Issues.'”

Public education funding

How do you think the state should support public education? Do you believe in expanding school vouchers? 

Tina Mollica: "Our state legislature needs to make public school funding a priority. It was encouraging to see them add $650M to this year’s budget but we are still far below where we need to be. The Arizona legislature has not invested in public education since the great recession of 2007. We give away more in tax credits and tax cuts than we take in and the universal voucher expansion will remove hundreds of millions more dollars from the General Fund. As a result, districts have to seek funding via local property taxes through overrides and bonds. This is not an equitable way to fund public schools.  We need to use more of the $5B surplus for district public schools and hold charter schools accountable to the same financial standards as district schools." 

William Coniam: "We need our state legislature to properly fund our public schools. They need to stop playing political games — purposely arranging the budget so that school districts are forced to pass overrides year after year, having to go into special sessions to void the AEL, etc. As Benjamin Franklin said: 'An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.' We need to stop the political games and invest in the future of Arizona.

"I do not support the recent universal expansion of the ESA voucher program. The state legislature tried this just two years ago and Arizona voters put a stop to it. The legislature continues to ignore the will of the voters. I don’t understand how these representatives can claim to be fiscal conservatives, yet support using taxpayer money so negligently. To put it simply: anyone that supports fiscal accountability and transparency with tax dollars should oppose ESA expansion. I do, and that is why I oppose the universal expansion of ESA vouchers."

Professional shortages

How do you plan to address teacher, education professionals and school nurse shortages? 

Tina Mollica: "The first thing I want to do is create a positive environment of collaboration and respect that educators and support staff want to work in. That atmosphere of respect & collaboration is lacking in our current governing board. The state funding issue is out of our hands. We need to provide competitive salaries & benefits and work with teachers and staff to find creative ideas that are appealing and bring teachers and support staff to DUSD."

William Coniam: "I look at it from my perspective working in the private sector. If a company wants to recruit and retain high-quality employees, they have to treat them right and compensate them appropriately. I will continue to advocate for maximizing the amount of our district budget for teacher/staff pay, minimizing the amount spent on administration, and lobbying our legislators for appropriate public school funding. Teachers should be respected and treated as professionals. Constantly treating good employees poorly, micromanaging those that don’t need it, and refusing to pay employees appropriately, will drive away the best employees to competitors and other industries." 

Capital projects

Several schools in the Valley need long-term repairs and updates. What is your plan to fund renovations? 

Tina Mollica: "This is an issue that I am looking forward to researching more. In Dysart, we are experiencing constant growth and it has been difficult in the past to pass bonds for capital items and improvements like new schools, building renovations and school buses. The 22-23 budget has included funds for safety improvements within the district which I strongly support. However, a similar bond for new schools and safety improvements was previously voted down in 2019. Part of the solution is to educate our community on the lack of state funding, as well as the district budget, and the benefit of school bonds. There was a concerted effort by a political group to influence the Dysart community against the bond in 2019. I will work with district staff towards transparency with the community and effective budget analysis that supports the needs of DUSD." 

William Coniam: "The recently passed state budget allocates $200 million in building renewal grant funding (+$93 million in supplemental funding for FY2022 — which would apply for a grant that was submitted in FY2022 but wasn’t initially approved). Dysart has typically been good about pursuing these grants to help fund necessary projects. Luckily, our schools are not as old as some in other areas of Arizona, but we do need to continue to plan for future building updates.

"Previously in my career, I would perform Property Condition Assessments for businesses, part of that involves determining probable future costs and forecasting the costs for replacement of building systems (roofing, HVAC, pavement, etc.) based on age, condition, expected useful life, etc. Additionally, I serve on the City of Surprise Board of Trustees, we are responsible for the City’s self-insured medical program. We are responsible for ensuring we maintain proper reserve levels to assure the stability and security of the trust fund. So I am familiar with the process of planning for long-term repairs and budgeting."

Additional information

Anything you would like to add? 

Tina Mollica: "I am running for DUSD governing board because I believe passionately in the value of public education. I understand the joys and struggles of teaching, and I truly want every Dysart student to have a great school in their neighborhood. I will be in the schools weekly to build relationships between our educators, students, families, and community."  

William Coniam: "I have developed a reputation in the community for my willingness to objectively analyze situations and make educated decisions. I try not to rush to judgment without proper evaluation and I am not afraid to admit I was wrong should I be presented with a cogent case backed by evidence. I strive to look at things critically, focusing on facts and not opinions, in order to make evidence-based decisions. While I consider myself a fiscal conservative, my decisions are guided by the well-being of the community.

"This is not the first time I have promised to serve and you can count on me to meet the needs of our district, taxpayers, and most importantly, our children. I humbly ask for your vote for the Dysart Governing Board. Please visit my Facebook page: www.facebook.com/VoteConiam or VoteConiam.com for more information." 

Glendale Elementary School District

No candidates for the Glendale Elementary School District governing board will be on the ballot this year. The two candidates who filed signatures, Brenda Bartels and Hector Jaramillo, will be appointed to the two four-year open seats on the board. 

They still shared their ideas with The Republic. 

Introductions

Can you introduce yourself please? How long have you lived in Maricopa County, what do you do for a living, and any additional information about yourself you think voters would like to know about you? 

Brenda Bartels: "Brenda Bartels. Resident of Maricopa County for 45 years, resident of GESD for 20 years. Domestic Engineer. I am currently serving my 12th year on the GESD School Board." 

Hector Jaramillo: "My name is Hector Jaramillo. I am a proud born and raised Latino Phoenician. I’ve lived in Maricopa all 25 years of my life. I currently work as a therapist for children with Autism. I ran for the Arizona House of Representatives on a platform concentrated on the issues of working and middle-class people." 

2020 election results 

Do you believe in the 2020 election results?

Brenda Bartels: "I do."

Hector Jaramillo: "I believe in the results of our elections. We had one of the most secure elections in 2020. I applaud all of our election workers for their hard work despite being attacked by baseless claims of conspiracy." 

Main ideas

Based on the limitations and powers of a school board member, what’s your platform?  

Brenda Bartels: "We have to work together to help all our students find their successes." 

Hector Jaramillo: "I am running to increase educators' pay and to implement music and arts programs in all of our district’s schools." 

What do you believe to be the biggest issue impacting K-12 students in Arizona? 

Brenda Bartels: "Poverty and all that comes with it. A student can't be truly receptive to learning when they are daily living with the stress that comes with instability." 

Hector Jaramillo: "Funding. We have a legislature that is actively defunding public education and it’s affecting students of all ages. We have massive amounts of teachers leaving the field. Why work at a school when you can walk across the street and get a better-paying job at a gas station? We need more funding and increased teacher pay." 

Diversity, equity and inclusion issues

How will you navigate the challenges regarding national rhetoric spilling into local schools related to critical race theory, social-emotional learning, LGBTQ inclusion, and equity issues? 

Brenda Bartels: "We have been navigating these issues already. Being willing to have conversations and provide facts has to be commonplace."

Hector Jaramillo: "Critical race theory has never been taught in our district’s schools. Evidence suggests that social-emotional learning is a foundation of learning. You cannot efficiently teach math, reading, and science without this foundation. It is just as important to teach this as the other subjects. I will work with subject matter experts to illustrate this much better to a broader audience. LGBTQIA+ rights are human rights. Inclusion is necessary to avoid ignorance and violence. Equity is at the foundation of many issues. By educating others about how we can achieve equitable justice, we can solve many issues related to race, climate, civil rights, and more." 

Public education funding

How do you think the state should support public education? Do you believe in expanding school vouchers? 

Brenda Bartels: "It would be wonderful if the state would budget for the true costs associated with the many aspects of education. Two areas to look at are transportation and Special Ed, neither are funded to match the real-world expense.

"School Vouchers — It is extremely hard for me to support a program that does not have the same rules to follow." 

Hector Jaramillo: "The state is responsible for making sure our public education stays at a high standard. Unfortunately, Arizona has done a terrible job with this. Instead of investing more money to elevate our status in education, Arizona is doing the opposite. Despite voters demanding that public schools be funded, a small group of legislators went against the will of the voters and gutted school funding and are doing that through the school voucher system. The school voucher system needs to stop." 

Professional shortages

How do you plan to address teacher, education professionals and school nurse shortages? 

Brenda Bartels: "I will continue to advocate for education for all students and all that that entails. As a board member, I will continue to treat each and every employee with dignity and respect." 

Hector Jaramillo: "Pay. Them. More. Offer better benefits. There isn’t a shortage of teachers, there is a shortage of good-paying positions. Arizona needs to step up and fund our schools so that we can pay them more." 

Capital projects

Several schools in the Valley need long-term repairs and updates. What is your plan to fund renovations? 

Brenda Bartels: "GESD is one of the litigants in a current court case. While we hope that this case will have positive impacts moving forward, we will continue to submit requests to the SFB for projects and utilize Bond funds as well." 

Hector Jaramillo: "There have been several solutions to this problem. Some school districts rent out their shut-down schools in contracts so that they can be repaired by whoever accepts the contract. I hope to work with the community and hear what they want to be done and choose the best solutions." 

Additional information

Anything you would like to add? 

Brenda Bartels: "I have been volunteering for our community because I truly believe in what our students can do when given the chance. I am not here for me, I am here for them." 

Hector Jaramillo: "Pressure your legislators to fight for public education. This is not a blue or red issue. It is a working people’s issue." 

Glendale Union High School District

Three people are running for two four-year seats on the Glendale Union High School District governing board. 

Candidates include Natalie Veidmark, Patty Kennedy and Paul Ulan.

Kennedy declined to participate for this article. Veidmark and Ulan did not submit their answers by the time of publishing. 

Liberty Elementary School District 

Three people are running for two four-year seats on the Liberty Elementary School District governing board. 

Candidates include incumbents Bryan Parks, Mark Aguire and Paul Jensen.

Jensen did not submit his answers by the time of publishing. 

Kristopher Kenyon will be appointed to take the only available two-year seat on the board. 

Introductions

Can you introduce yourself please? How long have you lived in Maricopa County, what do you do for a living, and any additional information about yourself you think voters would like to know about you? 

Bryan Parks: "I have been married for 17 years and have five children, two of whom are currently in 6th grade in the Liberty Elementary School District.

"I was selected from six applicants to fill a vacated seat on the Liberty School Board in October of 2021. Since my appointment, I have focused on curriculum transparency, teacher pay, discipline, and requiring the Board and Administration to follow the letter of the law. 

"I have spent most of my life building successful businesses and will continue to bring this business expertise and leadership to the Liberty School Board."  

Mark Aguire: "Hello, my name is Mark Aguire, I am a Husband and a Father of two children ages 18 and 10. I have lived in Maricopa County for 45 years (I am an original born and raised Zoni). I am a Steamfitter and very proud 26-year member of U.A. Local 469. I am the current Governing Board President for Liberty Elementary School District, in addition to my role with the District I also serve as the Vice Chair ASBAIT which is the Health Care Benefits Provider for Hundreds of School Districts throughout the State of Az."

2020 election results 

Do you believe in the 2020 election results?

Bryan Parks: "I am of the opinion that elections have been tampered with since the Kennedy assassination! We have a lot of work to do to assure election integrity on both sides of the aisle!"

Mark Aguire: "Yes." 

Main ideas  

Based on the limitations and powers of a school board member, what’s your platform?  

Bryan Parks: "Require transparency — Parents have the right to know what their children are learning and what curriculum are used in the Liberty school district classroom. 

"Respect Parents Rights — Trust is eroded when school institutions do not respect parents, or worse, presume to know better than parents what their children need. We must have district leaders who abide by the Arizona Parents Bill of Rights — which ensures that parents understand what their children are learning, are confident that their children are being prepared for college and careers, and are respected when they voice their concerns.

"Refocus on Academics — Parents send their children to school to be educated in core subject matters. Our students must come first, and our Governing Board needs to refocus efforts on assuring academic achievement goals are met. Let’s get back to strengthening our students in the basics of STEM science, technology, reading, writing, and math and keep divisive ideologies and political propaganda out of the classrooms.

"Remove Waste and Corruption — Waste and Corruption has a disproportionate impact on the poor and most vulnerable, increasing costs and reducing access to educational services. School Boards do very little in administration oversight in regards to proper spending for legal services, and the common practice of superintendent's double dipping into State retirement. School board members need to get better educated on all statutes including budget and commercial.

"Supporting Teachers — We don't seem to have the backbone as a board to demand significantly higher pay for the professional staff. Where else in a profession do we require a Master's degree and pay virtually minimum wage to the employee? Teachers should be paid comparatively to other professions." 

Mark Aguire: "I don't know that you would/could call it a platform, but that EVERY child within our Community has the same equal opportunities to a quality education that ensures they are ready for their High School Education. And just as importantly that every child knows that school is a safe place for them to be that not only values them as an individual but also loves them and cares about their wellbeing." 

What do you believe to be the biggest issue impacting K-12 students in Arizona? 

Bryan Parks: "Professional staff shortages are the #1 issue impacting K-12 public education. There are virtually no new recruits from the universities as the cost of a Master's degree in teaching far outweighs the low entry-level wages for teachers. I will continue to work with our administration and the legislature to provide the necessary resources our district needs to attract and keep quality educators. The other top issue is we need to get back to the traditional education model and allow teachers to teach and not be burdened with being full-time Psychologists."  

Mark Aguire: "EDUCATIONAL FUNDING."

Diversity, equity and inclusion issues

How will you navigate the challenges regarding national rhetoric spilling into local schools related to critical race theory, social-emotional learning, LGBTQ inclusion, and equity issues? 

Bryan Parks: "It is my position that Sex Ed for example not be taught in K-8. Therefore we should at all costs protect the younger children from exposure to CRT, and sensitive sexual subject matter. If we change our focus back to traditional education, where we can build back self-esteem with skills, we no longer will need the SEL programs to make the kids with failing grades feel better." 

Mark Aguire: "Continue to invite and engage our community to be a part of our educational resource tools with transparency on what the children in Liberty are learning. Again, all children are welcome at Liberty, I do not like to put our children into buckets, ALL CHILDREN are welcome within our District. ALL CHILDREN receive the same opportunities regardless of their socioeconomic status." 

Public education funding

How do you think the state should support public education? Do you believe in expanding school vouchers? 

Bryan Parks: "I believe the State should put more financial resources into public education! Our district is now dealing with a 3 million dollar shortfall due to an Override failure. We can’t afford to continue to lay off more teachers, this is hurting our children’s education. The state had open enrollment in place that allowed for transfers between school districts and charter schools which was highly successful. I do like the idea of the ESA program allowing those with no other options to seek quality education in a private school setting … I do have some concerns, however, ESA should put the public education system under enough pressure to provide better results." 

Mark Aguire: "Bring Funding back to Pre-Recession levels, while I do agree with school choice, I do not agree with expanding the school voucher program and neither do the vast majority of Arizona Citizens as already been documented in previous ballot initiatives." 

Professional shortages

How do you plan to address teacher, education professionals and school nurse shortages? 

Bryan Parks: "We really do have some of the best teachers in the Arizona public schools. We need to provide better classroom support and remove the burden of all the requirements surrounding SEL and discipline issues. Low pay is one of the critical issues school boards are currently dealing with as is related to professional staff shortages. There are virtually no new recruits from the universities as the cost of a Master's degree in teaching far outweighs the low entry-level wages for teachers. I spent the last year working with our Superintendent to completely re-budget and was able to increase wages by 4.6%. I will continue to find the resources to increase teacher compensation in any way I can!"

Mark Aguire: "I will continue to show our staff that they are valued, that they have a voice in our District when it comes to communicating with the Board. That I as a Board Member will continue to have their back and stand with them at their side when unjustly attacked." 

Capital projects

Several schools in the Valley need long-term repairs and updates. What is your plan to fund renovations? 

Bryan Parks: "The Liberty school district is actually growing and we just added two new schools. In addition, we have successfully budgeted reserves for repairs and updates."

Mark Aguire: "When our Bond was approved by voters, we included in the Bond Deferred Maintenance, we will continue to use the money that the Community so graciously allotted to us to make the annual repairs that need to be made throughout the District. We will also continue to send the repairs to the SFB (School Facilities Board) that qualify under that program, as to stretch our deferred Maintenance dollars as far as we possibly can." 

Additional information

Anything you would like to add? 

Bryan Parks: "Since my appointment to the Liberty 25 school board last October, I have championed full transparency by requiring the administration to have public meetings on new curriculum, and displaying all curriculum, Primary and supplementary materials be posted on the district website." 

Mark Aguire: "The only thing I would like to add is even if you are unable to bring yourself to vote for me, Please Vote in Favor of the Liberty 25 Override which is also on the ballot there is so much that depends on the success of this Override." 

Litchfield Elementary School District 

Three people are running for two four-year seats on the Litchfield Elementary School District governing board. 

Candidates include Ryan Owens and incumbents Dennis Dowling and Kimberly Moran. 

Owens did not respond to The Republic's attempts to reach him. Dowling did not submit his answers by the time of publishing. 

Introductions

Can you introduce yourself, please? How long have you lived in Maricopa County, what do you do for a living, and any additional information about yourself you think voters would like to know about you. 

Kimberly Moran: "My name is Kimberly Moran and I have the honor of serving the students, teachers, staff and community of the Litchfield Elementary School District (LESD) as a governing board member. I have been on the board for over four years, and I currently serve as board President.

"I am a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) with over 25 years of experience in areas such as internal/external auditing, assurance and compliance. I am committed to protecting taxpayers and believe applicable financial management skills make me the most qualified candidate to analyze, interpret and monitor the district’s ongoing revenues and expenditures, which have a budget limit of almost $120 million in the current school year. Knowledgeable, capable governing board members are essential to achieve and maintain accountability and fiscal responsibility of taxpayer dollars.

"I am passionate about our community and believe in the positive impact of public service. I have lived in Goodyear/Litchfield Park for over 22 years and my three children exclusively attended LESD schools."

2020 election results 

Do you believe in the 2020 election results?

Kimberly Moran: "Yes, I believe the results of the election audit of over two million ballots in Maricopa County fully validated the November 2020 results with very small variation."

Main ideas  

Based on the limitations and powers of a school board member, what’s your platform?  

Kimberly Moran: "Student Success. My priority continues to be increased academic achievement and growth for all students by ensuring every board decision is in the best interest of student success. As a current governing board member, I have a proven track record of thoughtful, strategic and collaborative leadership with an ongoing emphasis on fiscal responsibility, transparency and accountability."

What do you believe to be the biggest issue impacting K-12 students in Arizona? 

Kimberly Moran: "Low Funding. Arizona is consistently at or near the bottom of per pupil funding when compared to other states. In LESD, additional funding would directly and positively impact student achievement and teacher retention."

Diversity, equity and inclusion issues

How will you navigate the challenges regarding national rhetoric spilling into local schools related to critical race theory, social-emotional learning, LGBTQ inclusion, and equity issues? 

Kimberly Moran: "I will continue to navigate these challenges by using data to make evidence-based decisions that support the best interest of all students."

Public education funding

How do you think the state should support public education? Do you believe in expanding school vouchers? 

Kimberly Moran: "The primary ways the state should support public education is by increasing per pupil funding to the national median or higher and revising the school finance formula to provide stability and predictability.

"I believe entities who receive state funding should be held accountable for how taxpayer dollars are spent. I do not support the current expansion of school vouchers since there is no requirement for educational institutions or individuals who receive voucher dollars to publish academic or financial data to provide transparency and accountability of taxpayer monies."

Professional shortages

How do you plan to address teacher, education professionals and school nurse shortages? 

Kimberly Moran: "In LESD, we have consistently outpaced the state increase in average teacher salary, which has been a winning strategy to attract and retain the best teachers. Our average teacher salary is over $6,600 higher than the average teacher in Arizona. I am grateful to local voters for supporting our budget override that dedicates 5% of the current 15% directly to teacher salaries and makes this differentiation in pay rate possible."

Capital projects

Several schools in the Valley need long-term repairs and updates. What is your plan to fund renovations? 

Kimberly Moran: "LESD is a growing district, and we are grateful for local voter support of bonds to fund new schools and renovations. These bond dollars are critical to maintain safe, fully operational schools, since funding from the state is lacking. In addition, our district has a skilled team of financial and facility experts who proactively plan for future needs to keep costs low and on budget."

Litchfield Park issues 

The controversies among LESD school board members related to equity issues and open meeting law complaints have garnered national attention. Meetings have become, in some cases, so contentious they have adjourned abruptly. School board members have sought injunctions against other school board members. What is your plan for moving the board to a cordial, effective state? And why should parents trust you with the business of the school district given this troubled history?

Kimberly Moran: "Under my leadership as President, the board has made terrific strides toward collaboration. In the past six months, our meetings have been productive, efficient and effective while allowing all board members the opportunity to participate in discussion and decision-making." 

Additional information

Anything you would like to add? 

Kimberly Moran: "I bring a military family perspective to the LESD governing board.  I’m the daughter of a U.S. Air Force Veteran and we relocated often during my elementary school years. School transitions present unique challenges for students in military families, as our Luke AFB families know very well. I will continue to work toward all students receiving the focused support and resources necessary to build resilience and favorable outcomes."

Littleton Elementary School District 

Three people are running for two four-year seats on the Littleton Elementary School District governing board, and two candidates are vying for a two-year term. 

Four-year candidates include Markus Ceniceros and incumbents Amy Soucinek and Curtis Nielson. Two-year candidates are Max White and Rachel Barnett. 

Barnett did not respond to The Republic's attempts to reach her. White, Ceniceros and Nielson did not submit their answers by the time of publishing. 

Introductions

Can you introduce yourself please? How long have you lived in Maricopa County, what do you do for a living, and any additional information about yourself you think voters would like to know about you? 

Amy Soucinek: "My name is Amy Soucinek. I was born and raised in the West Valley, in fact, I graduated from Tolleson Union High School. I have my Master's degree in Education and have taught elementary and middle school for the past 16 years.  I was first elected to the Littleton Elementary Governing Board in 2012 and now have two children who attend Littleton schools. My husband works for the local high school district as a paraprofessional in special education classrooms." 

2020 election results 

Do you believe in the 2020 election results?

Amy Soucinek: "The 2020 elections brought a lot of surprises for many people. I believe it changed the way elections are run now and in the future. I do trust the results that were certified by the state and national leaders. I encourage those that are upset by the results, to make sure their voices are heard by voting." 

Main ideas  

Based on the limitations and powers of a school board member, what’s your platform?  

Amy Soucinek: "I ran for the board in 2012 to make sure that educators' voices are heard. At that time the district was making a lot of changes to education in the district and I was surprised no one who currently worked in education was on the board. I don't like to complain about something unless I have already tried to change it, so I decided to run for the board. My goal at that time was to make sure our teachers, para-professionals, bus drivers, facilities, and office staff voices are heard. Since 2012 I have become a parent so my focus has grown to include making sure parents' voices are heard as well. I believe if you make decisions based on what is best for the parents and educators, then the students are in the best environment for success and growth, leading to the best learning and being prepared for the future." 

What do you believe to be the biggest issue impacting K-12 students in Arizona?

Amy Soucinek: "Currently in the fall of 2022 the biggest issue impacting K-12 students in Arizona is ensuring all Arizona students have quality teachers and educational professionals. This issue is multi-faceted, we have to address the respect and appreciation given to all education professionals, this includes the teachers, administration, aides, office staff, facilities, and food service staff. Appreciation and respect should be given in compensation but also in involving them in discussions about what needs to happen in schools and classrooms. If you respect the hard work they do to provide an education to the students of Arizona, then you allow them to speak about the issues they are facing and compensate them for their hard work to train for the career and the time and energy they use to do the job, after training. I believe if as a state we don't address this issue, we are preparing our youth for failure, they won't get the education they deserve, the education we all received." 

Diversity, equity and inclusion issues

How will you navigate the challenges regarding national rhetoric spilling into local schools related to critical race theory, social-emotional learning, LGBTQ inclusion, and equity issues? 

Amy Soucinek: "I would encourage anyone who is concerned about what is being taught in their local schools to volunteer or even become a substitute in the schools to see what is exactly happening. I am confident once they have been inside our classrooms and seen the amazing hard work our staff does to make sure our students are learning and being prepared for their future endeavors their concerns will be addressed. All curriculum and programs are discussed at length and open for public comment before adoption by a school board." 

Public education funding

How do you think the state should support public education? Do you believe in expanding school vouchers? 

Amy Soucinek: "I do not believe in expanding school vouchers. Vouchers started off as a way to get students with special needs access to highly specialized schools, but the expansion to include any student allows for funding to go to private schools, weakening the ability of public schools to meet the needs of all students. I believe Littleton lost out on about $400,000 in ESA scholarships this year. That is money that our board could have used to increase programs for all students. 

"There are two main ways we can support public education. One that is always discussed at length is funding it. As a citizen of Arizona, I do think we also need to address the funding for education, not just for salaries/compensation but in the maintenance of our buildings, supplies, and textbooks. We do not invest in our students and our schools enough. I believe if more state leaders were willing to listen to education professionals, to shadow education professionals, we would have a better plan to invest in our students and schools. I do not want to discredit the work of some of our state legislators who do actively work to get more funding in our schools, but have also repeatedly come to me as a teacher and board member, asking 'what do I need?' 'what can they do?'. We just need more of that to happen. 

"As a board member, we can only work with the amount we are allotted from the state, with the exception of bonds and overrides we have to seek from our community. If I want to invest more in one area, I have to be willing to take it from somewhere else. I would love to pay all education professionals what they are worth, but then we would have no money for anything else. I strive to give all LESD 65 school staff as much in salary and compensation as we can, while maintaining quality schools and programs for the students. Since I have been on the board we have passed every bond and override, we sent it to the ballot. The community of LESD #65 has been amazing in supporting our schools and programs, I cannot thank them enough." 

Professional shortages

How do you plan to address teacher, education professionals and school nurse shortages? 

Amy Soucinek: "The second way we can support public education is giving education support professionals a voice in the discussion and listening to them. We are not suffering from a shortage of qualified teachers, educational professionals, or school nurses. There are many who are qualified, it is that they no longer want or can do the job. In the schools my husband and I have worked in, we hear it all the time, if they felt the support and respect of the community and administration, they could better handle staying in the classrooms for lower pay. Education professionals need to be at the table helping to make decisions in education, they need to be a part of crafting the solutions we are seeking. I love hearing that education professionals are running for public office because they know what is going on in the schools. I try my best to listen to all the staff of Littleton about what they need, and what solutions they have, and be their voice if needed. I encourage all education professionals to talk to their administration about their ideas. If we can't give them a voice at the table, and felt listen then of course we have to increase their compensation." 

Capital projects

Several schools in the Valley need long-term repairs and updates. What is your plan to fund renovations? 

Amy Soucinek: "I am so thankful that the citizens of LESD #65 have supported our public schools by passing bonds so that we have been able to repair and update our school facilities. We would not be able to maintain our buildings without their support. Yet it is not sustainable in the long term. As a district we do everything we can in preventative maintenance to lengthen the life of our facilities and transportation vehicles. We work with nearby districts to save on the costs of some high-cost maintenance. As a district, we apply as much as we can to the state School Facilities Board for qualifying maintenance, but we do make quality school buildings a priority as a district." 

Peoria Unified School District 

Three people are running for two four-year seats on the Peoria Unified School District governing board. 

Candidates are Devon Updegraff-Day, Heather Rooks and Melissa Ewing.

Introductions

Can you introduce yourself please? How long have you lived in Maricopa County, what do you do for a living, and any additional information about yourself you think voters would like to know about you? 

Devon Updegraff-Day: "I am an Arizona native, mother of three, small business owner and a Physician Assistant of almost 14 years specializing in dermatology. I have a BA in sociology with a minor in anthropology. During my time studying sociology, I was given the opportunity to work at a domestic violence emergency shelter as well as Child Protective Services Adolescent Department in Baltimore MD.

"After college I decided to move away from the field of sociology to start my journey into medicine. I am currently in the process of obtaining a doctorate degree in health sciences, which I expect to complete this coming December.  

"I became extremely passionate about preserving parental rights 2 years ago when irrational and harmful COVID mandates were enforced on our children. Since then, Heather Rooks and I have worked together tirelessly to protect parental rights." 

Heather Rooks: "My name is Heather Rooks, and I’m a mom of four children that are enrolled in the Peoria Unified School District (PUSD). I’ve been married for 11 years, and both my husband and I graduated from Sunrise Mountain High School also in PUSD — our family has a strong connection with our local community and the district. I attended Glendale Community College, and I have spent the last two years advocating for parents and their children in Peoria schools. I have a strong desire and goal to make our district one of the top-performing academic districts in the state." 

Melissa Ewing: "Demographics: My name is Melissa Ewing, I have lived in Peoria for over 15 years in the Vistancia Community. I moved to Scottsdale, Arizona in 1997 from my hometown of Bloomington, Indiana where I attended Indiana University earning a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology with a minor in Sociology, and concentration in Family Studies. I was born in Flossmoor, Illinois on September 1, 1970, then shortly thereafter, we moved to Seattle Washington so that my dad could pursue his Doctorate program in Biology at the University of Washington. Once he graduated, we moved to Bloomington in 1978, where he began working for Indiana University and we settled in Bloomington. My father, John Spieth, worked for Indiana University as a Researcher in the Biology department, and my mother, Marilyn Spieth worked at Bloomington Hospital as a Lab Technologist. My older sister, Patti Spieth, works as a Nurse Practitioner specializing in mental health. and currently works in private practice in Bloomington, Indiana.

"Family/Education information: I moved to Arizona to obtain my post-graduate degree at the University of Phoenix where I earned my Master of Education in Guidance Counseling, and a Master of Science in Marriage, Family, and Child therapy. I met my husband Aaron Ewing during this time, and we married in 2002 and had two children in 2004 and 2005. After graduation, I worked as a case manager, later a counselor, at Jewish Family and Children Services in Glendale, Arizona before becoming a stay-at-home mom to raise my daughter, Alexia Ewing, a recent graduate of Liberty High School, and son Zachary Ewing now a Junior at Liberty High school.

"Experience: I became involved in the local public school, Vistancia Elementary when my daughter started kindergarten. My school support include: Room Parent, PTO volunteer, PTO Vice-President, Site Council member, and classroom math and reading parent support volunteer. My community volunteer experience include: a Girl Scout leader for 10 years, a Soccer coach, local Moms group member, HOA volunteer which total of 15 plus years in various community volunteer positions. Additionally, I have been a PUSD Substitute Teacher for the last 6 years. As a parent, educator, counselor, school and community volunteer, my commitment is and has always been to students and schools to ensure that they have the resources and support for academic excellence. I understand the importance of supporting schools for our kids and our community to triumph and excel."

2020 election results 

Do you believe in the 2020 election results?

Devon Updegraff-Day: "I believe the 2020 election brought to light security and integrity gaps that if not corrected threaten our right to a transparent and open election." 

Heather Rooks: "I believe our priority for PUSD is to focus on our children's academic educational needs — reading, writing, math and science. Mastering the fundamentals and possessing critical thinking skills are the pathway to future success for our children. Questions of election integrity and past election results, I believe, are best dealt with by ensuring our county election officials follow all state and federal laws. As a governing board member, I believe focus must be academics and opportunities in career and technical education." 

Melissa Ewing: "A school board member has no authority or role in the state or federal elections. I have confidence in our country’s democratic process and the professionals who execute it.

"School board's responsibilities and discretionary powers are specifically outlined in the Arizona Revised Statutes, under Title 15-342, and 15-341. School boards have specific guidelines and rules that must be followed according to these Statutes and are they are subject to Open Meeting Law. Additionally, school board members are required to abide by a Code of Ethics as adopted by the district. It is my responsibility to be educated on these laws, understand my role as a board member and to adhere to them." 

Main ideas  

Based on the limitations and powers of a school board member, what’s your platform?  

Devon Updegraff-Day: "My campaign platform focuses on parental rights, student behavior and student performance." 

Heather Rooks: "My platform is academic excellence, transparency to the community, fiscal responsibility, and parental rights. According to state statute, the elected governing board responsibilities include hiring and firing the superintendent, approving the district budget, and approving policy and contracts." 

Melissa Ewing: "The school board is tasked with working extensively and collaboratively with student, staff and community to establish strategic goals in working toward the community’s vision for its schools. The board is responsible for establishing board policies and goals to create an educational environment that serves all students. The board can approve a budget that ensures teachers and students have the resources needed for academic achievement thus advocating for their needs.

"Student-centered: My primary focus will be making decisions based on what is in the best academic interest of the student. Collaborating with all stakeholders, students, parents, teachers and support staff to clarify student needs, identify available resources and leveraging best educational practices to give the student the optimal opportunity for success. I will support policies, procedures, curriculum, and teaching models that leverage best practices for academic success of all students.

"Advocate/Supportive role: My second focus will be advocating for highly trained staff and adequate resources to optimize academic goals for students, teachers and school excellence. Students deserve to have high-quality instructors, curriculum and classroom supplies that foster curiosity in learning and interactive learning, in a variety of learning platforms. The PUSD board, district and schools can provide supportive resources and services to the student and family to help overcome any student barriers to academic success. Schools must have innovative resources to meet the academic needs of all PUSD students.

"Lead by Collaboration: I am committed to listening and seeking out the needs of all, students, parents, and staff in our District. Involving stakeholders in problem-solving and decision-making to promote trust and transparency with a shared goal of student academic success.

"Positive Community Relationships: Lastly, community support and involvement are vital for the success of our community schools especially at a time of staffing and volunteer shortages. The community partnerships with individuals and businesses leverages our community resources for school success. I commit to building and strengthening positive relationships with staff, parents and community." 

What do you believe to be the biggest issue impacting K-12 students in Arizona? 

Devon Updegraff-Day: "Each district faces its own challenges, but I believe the biggest issue impacting K-12 students is their complete lack of a solid foundation of core subjects. One’s freedom is an extraordinarily precious gift, but without a solid education that freedom will always be threatened by authority." 

Heather Rooks: "Academic performance is our biggest challenge. Overall, more than half of our students in PUSD are only partially or minimal proficient in language skills (ELA) (58%; pre-Covid 55%) and Math (64%; pre-Covid 52%). It seems like the longer a student stays in PUSD schools, the lower their performance — ELA 3rd grade 58%, 10th grade 66%; Math 3rd 57%, 10th 64% are only minimally or partially proficient. This is unacceptable to our parents, taxpayers and many legislators funding the system. We must support the students with their academic needs and work with the parents who are wanting support for their child." 

Melissa Ewing: "1. High Student Needs: Schools and teachers face a unique challenge in meeting the high academic needs of students due to the pandemic. School closures, health concerns, family stressors and altered learning platforms created gaps in student knowledge, disrupted scaffolding teaching, increase in student/staff depression and anxiety, increase in 504 and IEPs plans and accommodations, and an increase in negative classroom student behavior. Families are facing more financial stressors due to increased inflation, food and housing insecurities which has resulted in high student, faculty, family and community stress. This requires more individualized learning and support at a time when staffing shortages are at a critical level, and classrooms are overcrowded.

"This problem is not unique to PUSD and Arizona, the district can be exploring best practices of the industry when students have high needs, limited teaching staff and overcrowded classrooms. I am committed to advocating for programs that support our high student needs.

"2. Teacher and support staff shortage, high turnover of staff: PUSD is at a critical staffing shortage. The district is responsible for staffing to ensure learning can occur and students can be safely supervised. The lack of available workforce has made this an exceptional challenge. Thus, the District must use current teaching staff to cover more classes, increase students in already overcrowded classrooms, collapse sections, strategically relocate educators to schools in greatest need, fast-track emergency substitute certificates, and train existing staff to handle more responsibilities. The increased workload will create an immense amount of pressure/stress on an already overworked, underpaid workforce. This is not just a problem unique to PUSD, it is a problem across majority of districts.

"As a board member, I will advocate for exploring all innovative avenues of workforce recruitment, retainment, and professional development to our staff.

"3. School/Student Safety concerns: The increase in nationwide school shootings. violence and threatening behavior on school campuses has led to many parents and community. The district has a responsibility to review all community concerns and create a comprehensive safety and crisis plan to reassure the community of the safety of students or staff on campus.

"Providing stabilization resources for our students, staff, families and schools is an important part of this plan.

"As a board member, I am committed to approving best practices of the industry for school safety and working collaboratively with community and agency partnerships in providing a comprehensive safety plan."

Diversity, equity and inclusion issues

How will you navigate the challenges regarding national rhetoric spilling into local schools related to critical race theory, social-emotional learning, LGBTQ inclusion, and equity issues? 

Devon Updegraff-Day: "I don’t consider CRT, social-emotional learning (SEL) or the sudden implementation of gender identity policies to be rhetoric. I am reminded how this 'rhetoric' is in fact an ever-present reality. CRT, SEL and the most recent gender ideology craze are extremely complex issues, but I feel the best way to navigate each of these issues is to reduce district contracts with 3rd party vendors and reduce supplemental resources, as much of the controversial material are introduced and accessed through outside vendors. I believe the only way to improve academic achievement, eliminate CRT and reduce SEL is to simplify the entire curriculum and student support programs." 

Heather Rooks: "It is not 'rhetoric' that is spilling into local schools, it is unsuitable teaching of Critical Race Theory and anti-American values, certain types of Social Emotional learning aimed at indoctrinating our children and highly inappropriate Comprehensive Sexual Content which are diverting attention away from the primary goal of achieving academic subject competency they should be mastering — but are currently failing at miserably. I will not allow sexual content to be taught to young children or teaching a child they are oppressed/privileged because of the color of their skin. We should be teaching what Martin Luther King Jr believed in. To not judge someone by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." 

Melissa Ewing: "Public school education purpose is to provide a high-quality education to all community children, regardless of race, gender, religion, disability, sexual orientation, and socio-economic status.

"School staff and board members should be listening, problem-solving, working extensively and collaboratively with stakeholders to help students overcome educational obstacles to academic success, such as food and shelter insecurities, transportation, financial, and school supplies needs and social-emotional stabilization services for our students and families to thrive academically. I commit to working collaboratively with students, families, and staff to promote an environment of academic excellence while supporting our students' needs.

"A fundamental task of education in a democratic society is to teach the truth with all its complexities. It is important to be including the contradictions, tensions and competing ways to interpret history and historical events to better understand it. Teaching requires asking challenging age-appropriate questions, questioning conventional wisdom, examination of different perspectives and thinking critically.

"Every student and staff member should feel recognized, valued, supported and respected in PUSD. Policies and procedure of the district should reflect those values and vision. Every student should be provided opportunities for not only academic success, but also career pathways to be a successful community member beyond their primary education years." 

Public education funding

How do you think the state should support public education? Do you believe in expanding school vouchers? 

Devon Updegraff-Day: "Since parental rights is one of my top priorities, I am a big supporter of school choice. I support government funding, but my ideal scenario would involve the automatic deposit of educational funds into an ESA starting at the age of 5 thru 18. These funds would instantly be in the hands of parents to use toward private, charter, public, online or homeschooling without any federal or state tentacles attached to it. If a child graduates early leaving money in their ESA, the remaining balance could be applied to any type of post-secondary education in the state of AZ."  

Heather Rooks: "The legislature supports public education through funding which it has increased by approximately $600 million this last legislative session. Arizona does not have school vouchers; it has Empowerment Scholarship Accounts. I support parents making all educational, medical, and mental health decisions for their children; including where their children attend school. My hope is as a governing board member if elected, we can once again make PUSD a trusted and preferred choice for the educational needs of our children." 

Melissa Ewing: "The state can raise the Aggregate Expenditure Limit or get rid of it altogether so districts can have stability in their budgets when expenses exceed the outdated limits set. The state government can help mitigate the statewide teacher shortage by providing funding to assist districts in offering better compensation, recruiting and preparatory programs such as financial support for teacher residency, stipend/tuition assistance in high retention pathways, in exchange for work-time commitment in schools. The state can provide funding to adequately update and repair our schools and support the building of new schools to support population growth.

"I will advocate, on behalf of PUSD students and families, for the financial and resource needs in the PUSD district, and remind legislators that our community schools add value, keep property values high, build a strong workforce, and are an integral part of making Arizona and US a globally competitive economy, thus a worthwhile and needed investment.

"All students deserve access to high-quality educational institutions that have the resources to support academic achievement. Public School goals is to serve the educational needs of all in their community, and in providing services to make those schools accessible to all. Many other schools approved under the voucher program do not have to offer schooling to all community students rather they may have their own strict admission requirements which can lead to exclusionary practices. The schools don’t tend to offer services to help families overcome barriers such as transportation or tuition costs. Lastly, the bill does not require the other schools face the same democratic process for making decisions, transparency and accountability as the public schools. My concern is with students' needs not being met, and decisions for policy and funding are not transparent and made by all stakeholders.

"Despite the voucher expansion, PUSD remains a district of choice because of all the great programs they offer in promoting students into postsecondary schooling and career success. This is where my focus as a school board member will remain, continuing and expanding on these programs. Some of the programs include International Baccalaureate, STEAM. Spanish Immersion, Traditional School, Met Professional Academy, STEM, Fine Arts Academy, along with West-MEC and the many other CTE programs. School Board members can advocate for these programs that not only support educational pathways, along with aspirations of parents and community but propel students for future education and career success. As a school board member, I will remain focused on the advocate for the needs of the PUSD community of students, and staff and work collaboratively toward the community’s vision for academic excellence." 

Professional shortages

How do you plan to address teacher, education professionals and school nurse shortages? 

Devon Updegraff-Day: "The rise of aggressive behavior among students, the lack of authority in the classroom along with a lack of administrable support are important factors affecting teacher satisfaction. Thanks to the incorporation of various student behavior modification programs that include restorative practice, multi-tiered system of support (MTSS) and positive behavior interventions and support (PBIS), student discipline has become a time consuming, complicated process that results in no level of true accountability for one’s actions. These methods are complicated and require excessive amounts of expensive teacher training only to be replaced after a few years with a new behavior modification method. Administrative support and the incorporation of in-school suspension that require the student to clean their school campus cafeteria, bathrooms or repairing vandalism are easy ways to help teachers gain back control of their classrooms."

Heather Rooks: "Support competitive salaries for both certified and classified employees." 

Melissa Ewing: "Having a robust marketing strategy to bring teachers, education professionals and school nurses to our schools will be imperative. The traditional advertisements for applicants have not been successful in garnering enough applicants. Collaborating with all staff, community agencies, professional organizations to find solutions to staff shortages. Leveraging community partnerships to create a pipeline of highly skilled educators, nurses and professionals who are prepared to meet the academic needs of students will be necessary.

"Lastly, current and hired staff will be asked to take on more roles and responsibilities so providing support will be key. Promoting and marketing a robust volunteerism program to fill immediate supportive roles for these professionals in the schools with be necessary as they take on more workload. Finally, promoting a positive and respectful work environment, that awards professionalism and career growth is imperative in retaining skilled staff." 

Capital projects

Several schools in the Valley need long-term repairs and updates. What is your plan to fund renovations? 

Devon Updegraff-Day: "Peoria Unified School District has requested local taxpayers to approve a bond request for the past 3 elections. With each bond and/or override attempt, it cost the district between $102,000 to $133,000 just to get the bond or override on the ballot. The district’s repeated plan of action is to rely solely on the taxpayers. With each rejection of the bond, the district chooses to simply wait until the next election season to try again. The district has not been proactive nor attempted to create a contingency plan. Their lack of planning or inability to address a growing problem has left them in a difficult situation. Tough decisions will have to be made to keep campuses safe and productive. Student variances need to be examined, cutting wasteful spending, and researching various grants to help cover the cost of new school construction are all required tasks." 

Heather Rooks: "New schools, emergency repairs and renovations are typically funded either through the School Facility Board or bonds approved by the voters. However, given inflation and an Arizona economy that is arguably in recession, district taxpayer support for a future PUSD bond may be difficult to pass. As a governing board member, I will work on thinking outside the box and look at different ways to help with the overcrowding in Peoria Unified School District." 

Melissa Ewing: "PUSD has both a problem with overcrowded schools in the northern schools, with need for updates and repairs and declining enrollment in the southern schools. However, the district lacks the funds to build a new school, or complete all repairs and updates needed. This is due to lack of funding and no bond having past in the last couple of elections.

"The district committee options to manage this issue is to shift boundaries of schools and re-allocate use of several southern schools. The decisions are not optimal, as it will cause great community disruption but must be made due to budgetary constraints. As always, the district should explore all available federal monies, grants, community resources that could help fund greatest need projects that exceed the federal and state monies provided. As a board member, it is imperative to be listening to the needs of all stakeholders, communicating the challenges, and involving the community on collaborating on solutions and results. I am committed to making careful, thoughtful decisions with community input and advocating for more funding to our district." 

Additional information

Anything you would like to add? 

Devon Updegraff-Day: "I was once told by a mentor that one must only count to the number 3 for change to happen on a school board. For this reason, I have chosen to run alongside my fellow candidate and friend Heather Rooks. Together we give the PUSD board a new voice and a new direction. If both elected, the dismissal of parental rights, excusing poor student performance and refusing to accept accountability will no longer be tolerated." 

Heather Rooks: "This is a crucial time right now for Peoria Unified students who need academic support and parents who are wanting their rights to be protected. We have parents who ask for help because of what’s happening to their children in certain classrooms. We have employees who reach out to us for concerns of the way the Peoria Unified School District is headed. Many teachers have left because of the forced ideology by the district onto the teachers. There are two seats open this coming November and the only way we can save the children’s academic future, protect the parent’s rights and support the employees is if Devon Updegraff-Day and myself are both voted for on the ballot this election."

Melissa Ewing: "I am committed to making decisions that are in the best interests of the academic success of the student and schools. Forming positive relationships with staff and families is imperative to ensure we are meeting a shared vision of student achievement and creating a positive school environment where growth in learning can occur. Collaboration is the cornerstone of my leadership style. I emphasize the positive achievements, problem solve the concerns and collaborate on solutions that best meet the needs of the student. I know that different children have different needs, that all children have basic needs; and that by working together as parents, community and educators, we can address students’ needs to ensure that they are well equipped to face the challenges of the future and enjoy prosperous, rewarding lives." 

Saddle Mountain Unified School District

Four people are running for two four-year seats on the Saddle Mountain Unified School District governing board. 

Candidates include Amy Amaral, James Costello and incumbents Daniel Blackson and John Waid. 

Amaral did not respond to The Republic's attempts to reach her. Costello and Waid did not submit their answers by the time of publishing. 

Introductions

Can you introduce yourself please? How long have you lived in Maricopa County, what do you do for a living, and any additional information about yourself you think voters would like to know about you? 

Daniel Blackson: "I have lived in the Tonopah community for 44 years and I’m a longtime school board member of the Saddle Mountain Unified School District. I have served on various community councils, boards, and committees through the years. I’m a veteran, college graduate, and retired from the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station. I’ve been a resident of Maricopa County for 59 years." 

2020 election results 

Do you believe in the 2020 election results?

Daniel Blackson: "Yes."

Main ideas  

Based on the limitations and powers of a school board member, what’s your platform?  

Daniel Blackson: "I have a strong sense of duty and obligation to serve the children of the Saddle Mountain Unified School District and the residents. I want to make a positive difference in children’s lives and futures. Students of the District need to have a good start in life so they can become productive members of society and leaders of their generation.

"As a school board member and based on the federal and state-imposed limitations, I work with fellow board members to provide quality education to all students, continuously improve standardized testing scores, maintain a high school graduation rate above 90%, provide vocational education opportunities, provide extracurricular opportunities, properly maintain District facilities, encourage parent involvement, provide competitive salaries, and retain our excellent teachers."

What do you believe to be the biggest issue impacting K-12 students in Arizona? 

Daniel Blackson: "I believe that the biggest issue impacting K-12 students in Arizona is lack of local control. The community served by a school district should have more authority on how their school district should be operated and their students served. The federal government and state government have too many restrictions and mandates." 

Diversity, equity and inclusion issues

How will you navigate the challenges regarding national rhetoric spilling into local schools related to critical race theory, social-emotional learning, LGBTQ inclusion, and equity issues? 

Daniel Blackson: "The Saddle Mountain School District has policies to support fairness and equality for students and staff. I drafted a letter to the parents that made it clear that the governing board encourages parental involvement, the governing board approved it, and it was sent to district parents." 

Public education funding

How do you think the state should support public education? Do you believe in expanding school vouchers? 

Daniel Blackson: "The state should reduce regulations imposed on public education, especially unfunded mandates. This will allow better decision-making for students by local governing boards, parents, and school district citizens.

"I support competition among schools and believe that the Saddle Mountain School District is the school of choice. However, the competition should have a level playing field and that isn’t the case with expanding school vouchers to private schools, which are not regulated by the state. There is not fairness when an Arizona public school is heavily regulated, a charter school much less regulated, and a private school not regulated."

Professional shortages

How do you plan to address teacher, education professionals and school nurse shortages? 

Daniel Blackson: "As the state increases funding, staff pay is increased, especially teacher salaries. The Saddle Mountain School District has also sustained a family environment that has helped retain teachers and staff." 

Capital projects

Several schools in the Valley need long-term repairs and updates. What is your plan to fund renovations? 

Daniel Blackson: "The Saddle Mountain School District passed a bond to address new construction, repairs, and updates. I believe that the citizens of our district will continue to support bonds to meet the needs and growth of the district." 

Tolleson Elementary School District

Three people filed signatures to run for two four-year seats on the Tolleson Elementary School District governing board, but Amanda Rincon dropped out of the race. 

That means Samuel Quezada Jr. and incumbent Tida Garcia will be appointed to the available seats.

Tolleson Union High School District 

Three people are running for two four-year seats on the Tolleson Elementary School District governing board.

Candidates include Emilio Avila Solis and incumbents Devin Del Palacio and Elda Luna-Najera. 

Avila Solis and Luna-Najera did not respond to The Republic's attempts to reach them. 

Introductions

Can you introduce yourself please? How long have you lived in Maricopa County, what do you do for a living, and any additional information about yourself you think voters would like to know about you? 

Devin Del Palacio: "My name is Devin Del Palacio, I have lived in Maricopa County all my life. I currently work for the Arizona School Board Association where I am charged with training school board members on how to be great advocates at the state and local levels. I have served as a board member for 8 years. My mission is to help young people reach their fullest potential. As a Dad of two school-aged children, I understand the importance of having access to quality public education."  

2020 election results 

Do you believe in the 2020 election results?

Devin Del Palacio: "Yes, I believe in the 2020 election results."  

Main ideas  

Based on the limitations and powers of a school board member, what’s your platform?  

Devin Del Palacio: "My platform is student achievement, school safety, and teacher retention."  

What do you believe to be the biggest issue impacting K-12 students in Arizona? 

Devin Del Palacio: "The most pressing issue is the teacher shortage. Arizona is short 2200 teachers state-wide. Many teachers are leaving the profession for lack of pay, and working conditions."

Diversity, equity and inclusion issues

How will you navigate the challenges regarding national rhetoric spilling into local schools related to critical race theory, social-emotional learning, LGBTQ inclusion, and equity issues? 

Devin Del Palacio: "My focus is to ensure our students have access to an equitable education. I believe we must serve the whole child. I will do whatever I can to ensure our children are prepared for a 21st-century century global economy."  

Public education funding

How do you think the state should support public education? Do you believe in expanding school vouchers? 

Devin Del Palacio: "The state should fully fund education. I believe that public education is a civil right and the state must start treating it as such. The state spends more money per prisoner than it does per student. Do you believe in expanding school vouchers? The state already has a voucher program in place. I do not believe in expanding school vouchers."  

How do you plan to address teacher, education professionals and school nurse shortages? 

Devin Del Palacio: "As an experienced school board leader, I have worked hard to ensure our staff has a seat at the decision-making table. As a result, we have a 94% staff retention rate in the Tolleson Union High School District. I also make it a point to create a campus culture where teachers feel empowered, and valued as professionals." 

Capital projects

Several schools in the Valley need long-term repairs and updates. What is your plan to fund renovations? 

Devin Del Palacio: "Thanks to the voters supporting our bonds and overrides, the Tolleson Union High School District has been able to fund renovations and build new facilities to accommodate 21st-century learning. We are the only district in the west valley with a AAA credit rating." 

Additional information

Anything you would like to add? 

Devin Del Palacio: "I would like to add that during my tenure on the board graduation rates have increased. Along with the number of scholarship dollars our students are receiving for college and or the trades. Experience matters and I hope to earn your support this November for reelection."  

Washington Elementary School District 

Three people are running for two four-year seats on the Washington Elementary School District governing board. 

Candidates include Kyle Clayton, Tamillia Valenzuela and incumbent Bill Adams. 

Introductions

Can you introduce yourself please? How long have you lived in Maricopa County, what do you do for a living, and any additional information about yourself you think voters would like to know about you? 

Bill Adams: "My name is Bill Adams, and I have lived in Maricopa County for more than 36 years. I am a consultant specializing in Business Development, marketing to Education and Municipalities. I have been an education and community advocate/volunteer for over 26 years. I currently serve on Washington Elementary School District’s Governing Board and have been their President and Vice President numerous times. I am on the Board of Directors for Pappas Kids Schoolhouse Foundation, stood up First Things First original North Phoenix Region Committee, serving as their Chairman for the first two years. I serve on the North Mountain Village Planning Committee and am the Central Region Area Chairman for the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR), on the Board of Directors of the Sundancer’s, a member of Westmarc, and a member of Fighter Country Foundation and their Blue Blazer Squadron (Life Member). I served in the United States Air Force and am the spouse of a retired teacher with two adult sons who attended WESD. Most importantly, I am a proud grandparent of a beautiful little girl." 

Kyle Clayton: "My name is Kyle Clayton and I am a parent, not a politician. I am an Arizona native and a product of our public schools from kindergarten to college at Arizona State University. I have a Bachelor's degree in Spanish and an International Business Certification from the W.P. Carey School of Business. My child also goes to school in the Washington Elementary School District, so I also have experience of what school is like for our students today. For the last 5 years I have been a Realtor, working for my family business. Prior to that I was an entrepreneur, running various small businesses. I am passionate about our community and our state, I look forward to serving on the WESD Governing Board." 

Tamillia Valenzuela: "My name is Tamillia Valenzuela. I have lived in the valley for a little over 12 years. I am currently searching for my new role careerwise, but I love working in our community and uplifting others. I am a Queer Black, Latina, who is neurodivergent and has a disability. I want others who have been intentionally left out of these spaces to know they DESERVE to be in spaces of power and to speak truth to power. Our community should be reflected in elected offices and it is sad that in 2022 we are still fighting for visibility and to have space held for us."

2020 election results 

Do you believe in the 2020 election results?

Bill Adams: "Yes." 

Kyle Clayton: "Yes." 

Tamillia Valenzuela: "Absolutely. What happened during the 2020 election demonstrates that this nation has so much work that needs to be done. The fact that a certain group of people were allowed to undermine the election is frightening and the work that has come from these actions to suppress voting rights and keep certain communities from having access shows whose voices are valued and whose are not." 

Main ideas  

Based on the limitations and powers of a school board member, what’s your platform?  

Bill Adams: "I have led efforts to increase teacher pay and benefits, ensuring the recruitment and retention of highly qualified educators and support staff, and through that support the needs of every student in the largest elementary district in the state. In addition to continuing these efforts, I will also be continuing to represent the needs of Washington ESD students to the legislature." 

Kyle Clayton: "School Board members set the goals and plans for the district. My goals are to improve student achievement by 20% in 4 years, to improve the district culture in order to retain teachers, and to advocate for a social worker on each of our campuses." 

Tamillia Valenzuela: "Cultivate Leaders: Preparing our students with the academic and social skills needed to lead today and tomorrow. Representation: Promote fair representation on district decision-making committees that reflect the diversity of our community. Engagement: Work to connect and empower students and families to be active partners in the education process. Educator Voice: Making sure our educators feel valued and have a voice at the table."

What do you believe to be the biggest issue impacting K-12 students in Arizona? 

Bill Adams: "The recruitment and retention of high-quality Educators and Staff, Parents Rights, providing the proper tools for our students to success and most importantly, FUNDING education!!!" 

Kyle Clayton: "The biggest issues are fully funding schools and the teacher shortage. We need to fund education without universal vouchers and pay teachers a living wage, if not a wage that competes with surrounding states." 

Tamillia Valenzuela: "I think one of the biggest issues impacting our K-12 students is having education fully funded and the lack of leadership to actually be bold and stand up for what's right. There are voices that are being left out and dismissed when it comes to issues and that ain't right!"

Diversity, equity and inclusion issues

How will you navigate the challenges regarding national rhetoric spilling into local schools related to critical race theory, social-emotional learning, LGBTQ inclusion, and equity issues? 

Bill Adams: "Washington Elementary School District is an elementary school district and fortunately we do not have the same challenges as those of high school districts. CRT is NOT being taught in our schools. We have policies in place for social-emotional learning and LGBTQ inclusion that I, and the community support. Our district does well when it comes to Equity, and our Board is passionate about offering the needed resources to all our students. I have had the privilege to attend education conferences locally and nationally to learn and share best practices; Washington ESD is serving the community well, but we can also work to be better." 

Kyle Clayton: "First, we have to combat disinformation. CRT is not taught at the elementary level in any capacity. It's not even taught at the high school level. We have to have conversations based on facts. Social and emotional learning is critical for the success of students in school and out of school. Learning these skills will help them be productive citizens, which helps our schools and our economy. 45% of LGBTQ students thought about committing suicide. Schools can be a safe place for these kids and save their lives. Recognizing these students and supporting them is the pro-life thing to do. Equity is key to delivering an educational experience and opportunity for all students. When we have equal access to the tools and support of our schools, academic achievement increases." 

Tamillia Valenzuela: "We need to understand a few things, one critical race theory is NOT being taught in schools, (so there needs to be a clear understanding of what that is), we need to STOP politicizing the identities of actual human beings, and we need to understand that equity is not a pie, just because an issue is being addressed does not mean that we are taking away from others. Schools should be the most equitable space that we have in our society. The fact that families have to search where to send their kids so they can have a better chance is showing that it's not. By not providing the resources needed to our students and accepting their full humanity, we are causing detrimental harm that will impact generations. That ain't right!"

Public education funding

How do you think the state should support public education? Do you believe in expanding school vouchers? 

Bill Adams: "We have $1.4 Billon in our rainy-day fund, our legislature and the Governor need to have the courage to tap into these funds and invest in Education.

"I believe that dollars should follow the child. Unfortunately, the voucher program just put in place has no accountability for the use of taxpayer dollars when it comes to private and religious schools. Until these dollars are accounted for, I cannot support the expansion of school vouchers." 

Kyle Clayton: "The state should support public education by fully funding it and supporting the Educators Budget. The state should amend the Aggregate Expenditure Limit so schools can spend the money. We should not be expanding vouchers to for-profit schools that have no financial or academic accountability. It is fiscally irresponsible to give taxpayer money without accountability of any kind, financially or academic outcomes."  

Tamillia Valenzuela: "Once again, education should be the most equitable and accessible space that we have in our society. Knowledge is power that can lead to liberation, why wouldn't we want to support that as a state? School vouchers are a lazy way for the state to pass the buck and not do what they should be doing and that is making sure our educators, our students and schools have what they need to be successful. School vouchers should not be expanded and this wouldn't be up for discussion if elected officials actually did their jobs and FULLY fund education. Education should not be for profit and only available to those with money to obtain it."

Professional shortages

How do you plan to address teacher, education professionals and school nurse shortages? 

Bill Adams: "This issue is not unique to Washington ESD, however I continue to have conversations with district administrators on recruitment efforts across the country, as well as investing dollars into competitive pay and benefits for all our employees and positions." 

Kyle Clayton: "It starts with respecting teachers and reducing the burdens on them, we need to trust teachers. We need to pay them well, without adding on additional work. We need to work with universities to get more students interested in these careers. Our schools need to improve their culture and climate so that teachers want to stay for the long term." 

Tamillia Valenzuela: "This is tough because essentially it comes down to money that is not being poured into our schools. I would work to ensure that our educators felt that they are in a safe working environment and know that they are supported and valued. I will advocate for our schools to be fully funded so that our educators can get paid their worth and provide resources that can minimize the stress of being an educator in this climate."

Capital projects

Several schools in the Valley need long-term repairs and updates. What is your plan to fund renovations? 

Bill Adams: "I first want to thank the Washington ESD community again for their continued support in our bonds and overrides, and to assure them that in my time on the Board, we have invested these dollars wisely into the classrooms and to the upkeep of our facilities. We will continue to update our capital plan according to the needs of our students, and if we pursue additional funding from the community, I will work directly with them and the administration from planning to implementation of each dollar." 

Kyle Clayton: "The plan needs to start from the state legislature and fully fund public schools. This will not only allow for schools to plan renovations, it will allow them to offer things like full day kindergarten. The people of Arizona want strong public schools, they've passed propositions in the past that prove this. They also rejected expanded vouchers when it was on the ballot. It's time the state begins listening to the people they are supposed to govern for and make the investment in public schools." 

Tamillia Valenzuela: "I will be honest with you, this is not an area in which I am the most knowledgeable, however I will work with those that are and see what solutions we can come up with together to make sure our community has buildings that are safe and provide a conducive learning environment."   

Additional information

Anything you would like to add? 

Bill Adams: "I would like to thank the community, staff, and administration of WESD for their continued support. Being a School Board Member/Elected Official over the past couple of years has not been easy, especially during the pandemic. The letters and emails of encouragement during those challenging times truly meant a lot.

"I now ask for the community’s support again, please vote Bill Adams for Washington Elementary School District Governing Board. Thank you!" 

Kyle Clayton: "Vote for a public school proud candidate, who is a parent and not a politician. A person who wants to see all of our students thrive. Strong public schools benefit our students, our economy, home values, and our community. Let's work together to make it happen. Visit KyleForArizona.com to learn more or ask questions." 

Tamillia Valenzuela: "I want to see our youth thrive, not merely survive. I want to uplift their voices to ensure that the policies we make at the board level are creating a positive impact that is sustainable and long-lasting. I want our communities to see themselves in their education and curriculum and know that they have rights, and their students have rights in these spaces. I am tired of people using the data from our communities to propel their political careers. We don't need to be saved, we need these elected officials to sit back and listen and amplify our voices. We need you to actually give a damn about our communities and be BOLD and do what's right. Don't 'love' us in private and in public continue to uphold institutions and policies that continue to cause harm. Stop being nice and actually be brave. Also, cops don't belong on campus, our kids are not guinea pigs for them 'to build relationships.'"

Renata Cló is a reporter on The Arizona Republic's K-12 education team. You can reach her at rclo@arizonarepublic.com and follow her on Twitter @renataclo. 

Support local journalism. Subscribe to azcentral.com today.