University of Arizona Refuses to Release Records on Student Bias Complaint System

University of Arizona Refuses to Release Records on Student Bias Complaint System

By Corinne Murdock |

The University of Arizona (UArizona) denied a reporter’s public records request concerning complaints received by its bias complaint system for students. 

The reporter, Christian Schneider with The College Fix, submitted the records request last August. UArizona had no issue fulfilling a similar 2019 request for its bias complaint system. Overseeing the reporting system is the Bias Education & Support Team (BEST), which falls under the Dean of Students’ jurisdiction. 

The Goldwater Institute, Phoenix-based public policy research and litigation organization, took up Schneider’s case. Last week, the organization requested that UArizona fulfill the records request. 

UArizona Public Records Coordinator Kim Fassl claimed to Schneider that they denied his latest request based on the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) as well as Arizona court precedents upholding record denials to ensure individual privacy and the state’s best interests.

“The production of these records could cause a chilling effect among future complainants and the University,” wrote Fassl. 

The previous public records coordinator that fulfilled Schneider’s 2019 request, Teri Bentson, raised none of the objections issued by Fassl. The change in perspective may have to do with the connection between Fassl and one of the six women in charge of BEST: the “Core Team.”

Prior to handling public records requests, Fassl was the associate director of residential education for student behavioral education. One of BEST’s Core Team, Nina Pereira, serves as the director of residential education, which oversees behavioral education. It appears that Fassl was Pereira’s subordinate. Neither Pereira and Fassl responded to a request for comment.

Fassl has also served as a member of the UArizona Behavioral Intervention Team (BIT). Similarly to BEST, BIT has a referral form to report concerning student behaviors.

In their letter petitioning for the fulfillment of Schneider’s request, the Goldwater Institute contended that both Arizona and federal court precedent determined redaction of identifying information was sufficient for FERPA adherence. The organization added that Schneider allowed for redactions in his initial request, too. 

UArizona launched BEST in October 2020 amid the racialized protests and riots initiated by George Floyd’s death less than five months before. 

BEST’s Core Team has remained the same since its launch. In addition to Pereira, there’s Veda Kowalski, assistant dean of students; Beverly Perez-Mercado, organizational development specialist within the Office of Learning & Organizational Development; Judy Marquez Kiyama, associate vice provost; Whitney Mohr, civil rights investigator within the Office of Institutional Equity; and Jane Pizzolato, director of the Office of Diversity & Inclusion. 

Kiyama also serves as an equity consultant for the Ada Center and Strong Start to Finish. She’s also involved with the Culturally Responsive Curriculum Development Institute (CRCDI), which represents eight colleges. Culturally Responsive Education (CRE), also known as Culturally Responsive Teaching (CRT), is synonymous with Critical Race Theory (CRT). 

Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.

Federal Judge Dismisses Governor Ducey’s Lawsuit to Keep COVID Funds for Maskless Schools

Federal Judge Dismisses Governor Ducey’s Lawsuit to Keep COVID Funds for Maskless Schools

By Corinne Murdock |

Last Tuesday, a federal judge dismissed Governor Doug Ducey’s lawsuit against the Biden administration’s attempt to recoup COVID-19 relief funds given to mask mandate-free K-12 schools. Arizona District Court Judge Steve Logan dismissed for failure to state a claim. 

Last August, Ducey applied the American Rescue Plan Act’s (ARPA) Arizona cut of the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund (SLFRF) to two programs: a $10 million one that would cover $7,000 of tuition or other educational costs at schools without mask mandates, and a $163 million one that made only mask mandate-free schools eligible for funds.

In the Ducey v. Yellen, et al. ruling handed down last week, Logan, an Obama appointee, rejected Ducey’s claim that his application of SLFRF funds were a valid use of addressing the COVID-19 pandemic’s negative economic impacts. Logan insisted that Ducey’s reading of the statute was “too narrow” and thereby neglected its greater context. The judge opined that Ducey’s encouragement of noncompliance with public health guidance worsened, not mitigated, COVID-19’s negative economic impacts.

“In line with the explicit purpose of the SLFRF […] the statute at least carries the possibility that SLFRF funding may not be used for programs with conditions that undermine public health guidance, as such programs would exacerbate rather than mitigate the pandemic’s fiscal effects,” wrote Logan. “This proposition is axiomatic: a program that addresses fiscal effects of the pandemic but contains a condition that would promulgate the spread of the virus prolongs the pandemic and its resulting fiscal effects — thereby failing to provide mitigation of either.”

Logan did agree with Ducey’s argument that the state has authority to decide how to use its SLFRF funds. However, Logan determined that Ducey’s application ran afoul of ARPA’s restrictions. Logan rejected Ducey’s argument that the USDF was too ambiguous when describing permissible uses of SLFRF funds. Rather, the federal judge agreed that the U.S. Department of Treasury’s (USDT) enumeration of permissible usage was sufficient.

In addition to USDT Secretary Janet Yellen, the named defendants in the case were USDT Acting Inspector General Richard Delmar and the USDT itself. 

Ducey first filed the lawsuit in January. 

In response to an October letter from the USDT informing the governor that Arizona’s usage of SLFRF funds weren’t permissible, Ducey accused the Biden administration of government overreach.

“Here in Arizona, we trust families to make decisions that are best for our children. It’s clear that President Bident doesn’t feel the same,” wrote Ducey. “He’s focused on taking power away from American families by issuing restrictive and dictatorial mandates for his own political gain.”

USDT began investigating Ducey’s two programs following a mid-August request from Congressman Greg Stanton (D-AZ-09), issued hours after Ducey first announced the two programs at the heart of this case. 

The governor filed an appeal to Logan’s ruling last Friday.

Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.

Everything Is Coming Up Roses In Eloy

Everything Is Coming Up Roses In Eloy

By Terri Jo Neff |

Agriculture has long been a key to Arizona’s economy, as shown by the inclusion of cotton and citrus in the 5 C’s of the state’s top economic drivers (copper, climate, and cattle being the others).  But one company in Eloy believes the motto should be amended to include an R, as in roses.

In 1986, the rose was decreed by President Ronald Reagan as America’s national floral emblem. The next year, Michael Francis started Francis Roses on a few acres in Maricopa County.

Today, nearly 75 percent of long-life garden rosebushes are grown in climate-friendly Arizona, with Francis Roses having the largest market share.  The company sells its early growth rosebushes to nurseries and other wholesalers through the U.S. and Europe.

Michael’s son Tyler now helms the company and was responsible for relocating the business to Eloy in Pinal County in a careful transition which began in December 2020.  Tyler Francis acknowledges that the move to Eloy after so many years in the West Valley was not without its challenges, given the variations in soil, water, and air.

There is also a difference in cultural farming practices and definitely a more rural setting..

“It made us better farmers due to needing to ensure best practices for growing a highly specialize horticulture crop in a new environment,” Francis told AZ Free News.

There are 37,000 types of registered roses worldwide, although many from before the 1970s are no longer commonly available. It is also extremely difficult for new varieties to come to market despite improved breeding efforts, according to Francis.

“Roses are quite hearty but like anything they are susceptible to weaknesses over time,” Francis said. “At Francis Roses, we’ve taken a very long approach to how we introduce a new variety.”

Francis pointed out there is a vast difference between the genetics of garden roses compared to roses grown to be sold as cut roses.  Specialty roses like those Francis Roses grows are a big economic engine with a small environmental footprint, with 400 acres of his roses generating the same revenue as 15,000 acres of cotton.

And Francis is cognizant of the challenges agri-businesses face, which is why he takes the position that the other commercial rosebush growers are not competitors. He looks at them instead as potential customers, an attitude he further developed during a recent stint as president of the Arizona Nursey Association.

Francis’ background in economics becomes obvious when he begins to talk about rosebushes, or “units” as he refers to them. He also recognizes the economic impact Francis Roses brings to the Eloy area and the future growth potential.

Which is one reason Francis is deeply committed to the company’s research and development efforts which have led to propriety methods of fertilizers and other products to help maintain moisture in soil. The company has also chosen to work with only the most respected rose breeders in the world.

It can take two years for a Francis Roses rosebush to grow just a few inches, and each will inspected several times before being shipped off to farms and nurseries across the globe. One such facility is co-owned by Francis Roses in Texas where the rosebushes grow bigger before being sold or distributed to retail clients such as Armstrong Garden Centers.

Francis Roses grows about 400 varieties of garden roses at any given time, and evaluates 400 to 600 more varieties for features such as color, disease resistance, and fragrance. It can harvest upward of eight million units annually, but giving life to some of the world’s most prized roses requires a lot of work, and workers.  

Some of those workers are fulltime employees with ag-related degrees, while the majority come to Arizona for several months at a time under H2A visas as temporary agricultural workers.

The state’s housing shortage, which is particularly acute in Pinal County, has  required Francis Roses to think outside the box to care for those workers. The company recently partnered with Clayton Homes to provide on-site housing, and Francis is looking at other options to make the jobs more appealing to the workers.  

“Without those workers we would not exist,” Francis said, adding that the company pays above average ag-business wages. “I am happy Francis Roses is able to provide high paying agriculture jobs in Arizona. The vitality and diversity of the state’s economy is important to me.”

In 2016, Francis Roses released its Miranda Lambert hybrid tea rose.  Royalties from sales of the specialty rose are donated to Lambert’s Mutt Nation for ending animal neglect.  The company has also recently developed a Julie Andrews tea rose.

FUN FACT: Most cut roses purchased from a florist for Valentine’s Day or Mother’s Day do not come from U.S. rose farms. Instead, they are imported from South America, particularly Ecuador and Columbia.

Scottsdale Teacher Pushes Radical Sex Theories Not Approved by District

Scottsdale Teacher Pushes Radical Sex Theories Not Approved by District

By Corinne Murdock |

A Scottsdale Unified School District (SUSD) psychology teacher instructed high schoolers on controversial, challenged, and, in some cases, debunked claims concerning sexual orientation. According to records obtained by AZ Free News, SUSD didn’t give the teacher permission for what she taught.

Much of what SUSD Advanced Placement (AP) psychology teacher Mackenzie Onofry taught on the subject to the Desert Mountain High School students came from Alfred Kinsey: the late Indiana University sexologist credited as the “Father of the Sexual Revolution” whose research included adults sexually violating infants and children to prove the inherent sexual nature of mankind, even in minors. Kinsey is revered in many LGBTQ+ circles, and IU established an institute in his honor.

The following includes what Onofry taught the students, according to slideshows obtained by AZ Free News: only 4 percent of men and 2 percent of women are exclusively heterosexual, sexuality is a continuum, homosexuality spans human history and is a natural part of the animal world, sexual orientation isn’t a choice and is immutable, conversion therapy doesn’t work, women have more erotic plasticity (sexual interests) than men, that homosexuality is a gene location on the X chromosome, fetal testosterone exposure causes attraction to women, and male homosexuality increases by one-third with each son born.

Dr. Miriam Grossman, the psychiatrist interviewed at length in The Daily Wire documentary “What Is a Woman,” interviewed with AZ Free News about this incident. Grossman affirmed the fact that Kinsey’s research was fraudulent and even criminal. She said Onofry’s teachings were “shameful,” especially considering that the SUSD teacher didn’t tell the full story of Kinsey.

“There’s no question here that this teacher is coming into the classroom with her own agenda of influencing the students and imposing her value system and ideas on these students. I think parents should be outraged that this is happening right under their noses,” said Grossman.

Grossman explained further that Kinsey attempted to normalize deviant sexual behaviors through his “Kinsey Scale,” which declared that human sexuality exists on a continuum but was based on research interviews that included sex crime felons and prostitutes. 

“Kinsey was a social reformer. He wanted to rid society of Judeo-Christian values. He wanted an any-age, anything-goes type of sexual behaviors between people. We know that he lived that kind of lifestyle and he wanted to promote that kind of lifestyle in society,” explained Grossman. “He came up with his scale through research that was done in prisons with felons that had people who had committed sexual crimes and research with prostitutes. He took their responses to his questions about sexual behavior and he applied that to middle America. He implied that the deviant behaviors of the group that he was studying, and in which he fit by the way, applied to everybody.”

Grossman suggested that parents read the works of Dr. Judith Reisman, a researcher who dedicated her life to challenging Kinsey’s work and legacy, systematically exposing fraud in Kinsey’s work. Reisman reiterated that Onofry had a duty to teach the whole truth about Kinsey, if she were to mention him at all.

“If Kinsey should be mentioned at all in a psychology class to high schoolers, and I highly question whether that should be mentioned at all, it should only be mentioned how fraudulent his research was,” said Grossman. “What parents and schools need to be asking here is, what is motivating this teacher? Psychology is a huge field with many different areas and important things that teenagers would benefit from knowing. Clearly she’s picking and choosing these areas. I’m wondering how this is more important than other areas.”

Onofry also taught AP psychology at the Flagstaff BASIS, a prestigious charter school chain. While a graduate student, Northern Arizona University (NAU) named Onofry their Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistant of the Year.

Onofry’s sister, Samantha Onofry, is legal counsel to Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT).

Onofry’s curriculum was only available to the public through an open records request. Access to curriculum online through SUSD requires a parental or student login. 

The issue of transparent school curriculums was nearly solved this year. 

The state legislature came close to requiring all K-12 schools to make their curriculum accessible to the public online — until one Republican voted with Democrats to kill the legislation. Following the initial report of the SUSD sexuality curriculum from the Arizona Daily Independent, State Senator Nancy Barto (R-Phoenix) lamented the one Republican’s vote against transparency.

Though Barto didn’t mention the representative by name, she was referring to her colleague Joel John (R-Buckeye). John has sided with Democrats on other critical bills advanced by his fellow Republicans, such as HB2656.

“The radical push continues. AZ parents won’t know if CRT and sexual grooming is even happening in their schools [without] transparency aka SB1211 which failed this year because one Republican voted with every single Dem,” tweeted Barto. 

Barto’s bill, SB1211, would’ve required schools to offer curriculum online in a searchable manner, organized by subject, grade, and teacher. Any education materials concerning nondiscrimination, diversity, equity, inclusion, race, ethnicity, sex, gender, bias, action-oriented civics, service learning, or social and emotional competencies were to be published online within 72 hours of their implementation. All other materials were required to be published within the week of their implementation. All materials would remain accessible on the school’s website for at least two years. 

In explanation of his “no” vote in April, John argued that the bill was too burdensome for teachers. He said that, as a former teacher, the curriculum posting would burden an already “low-paying, thankless job.” 

“I think this bill frankly goes too far and puts too many extra burdens [on teachers], as some of our colleagues have already pointed out,” stated John. 

In his argument, John echoed a talking point among Democrats: that SB1211 was an “unfunded mandate” by the state. 

Barto issued her condemnation in response to the testimony of Rhode Island parent Nicole Solas, who was sued by the nation’s largest teachers union for filing public records requests. 

In the committee hearings preceding SB1211’s failure in April, Democrats stated that parents dissatisfied with their school’s transparency should just transfer. They made the argument as part of an indirect insult to the state’s school choice system. 

Teachers on the popular podcast, “Teachers Off Duty,” argued that it was “against best practice” to require them to publish their curriculum in advance of the school year. One of the teachers, Bri Richardson, said that she couldn’t adhere to such a requirement because she didn’t know what she’d be teaching. The other three podcaster-teachers concurred with her. 

“Is that a joke? Bro, I don’t know what I’m teaching,” said Richardson. 

SB1211 earned the approval of Governor Doug Ducey’s office, who celebrated the bill’s progression out of the Senate in March.

Upon the bill’s demise, the House Democratic caucus portrayed SB1211 as “anti-teacher” and an indictment of educators as the enemy. 

Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.

Arizona Cardinals Player Pledges to Pay for Funeral So Fan May Keep Her Memorabilia

Arizona Cardinals Player Pledges to Pay for Funeral So Fan May Keep Her Memorabilia

By Corinne Murdock |

Arizona Cardinals defensive end J.J. Watt pledged to pay for the funeral of a fan’s grandfather after the woman advertised the sale of her Watt memorabilia. 

The woman, Houston native and longtime Watt fan Jennifer Simpson, tweeted that she was selling her Watt edition Reebok shoes and a Watt Houston Texans jersey in order to pay for her grandfather’s funeral. 

Hours later, Watt responded with a promise to help pay for the funeral.

“Don’t sell your shoes and jersey, we’ll help pay for the funeral,” wrote Watt. “I’m sorry for your loss.”

According to other social media posts, Simpson and her family have spent over a month trying to raise the funds for a funeral and burial. Prior to Watt’s boost, the family pulled together what they could through bake, plate, and garage sales, as well as a GoFundMe and Facebook fundraiser. 

Simpson expressed thanks for Watt’s kindness.

“I freaking love you man. It’s been a hard year for me, and this last month has been hard since the death,” wrote Simpson. “I wish I could tell you my story.”

Simpson later thanked the public for all their support.

Simpson has long been a fan of Watt’s — it appears that her longtime support has come full circle. 

According to the National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) annual report on funeral costs, inflation didn’t affect average pricing. The average cost nationwide sits over $7,800 — over six percent in growth since 2016. 

In the West South Central area, which includes Texas, the average funeral cost sits over $7,300. The Mountain area, which includes Arizona, has an average cost of over $6,800.

Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.

Copper Mining Reboot In Arizona Hits Snags As Workforce Is Cut

Copper Mining Reboot In Arizona Hits Snags As Workforce Is Cut

By Terri Jo Neff |

Arizona ‘s hope to reinvigorate domestic copper production has hit what workers and industry experts hope is only a temporary pause with the reduction of workforce and wellfield operations at Excelsior Mining’s Gunnison Copper Project in northern Cochise County.

Toronto-based Excelsior Mining recently announced it would be throttling back operations at its Gunnison Copper Project and would not reopening mining operations at the company’s nearby historic Johnson Camp Mine this summer as projected months ago.

The Johnson Camp Mine is one of Arizona’s oldest copper mines, with records showing miners bore underground into large reserves starting in the 1890s. The site located north of Interstate 10 near Dragoon saw a number of changes over the decades before operating as an open pit mine from the mid-1970s until the end of mining at the site in 2010.

Excelsior Mining purchased the shuttered Johnson Camp property in 2015 with plans to utilize the solvent extraction electrowinning (SXEW) facility at the property to process copper oxide from Gunnison, a state-of-the-art facility built on hundreds of acres the company owns south of I-10. The final product would be 99.999 percent copper cathode sheets to be shipped off to customers.

Construction of the Gunnison facility garnered national attention as an example of reinvigorating American’s domestic copper production. But the project has faced its share of unexpected delays, including COVID-19.

Then company officials had to address carbon dioxide gas bubbles which greatly reduced injection flows and prevented timely ramp-up to production at Gunnison. A workaround was identified by utilizing fresh water to help dissolve the calcite, but the company has acknowledged it “is not considered the optimal long-term solution” due to water conservation and evaporation concerns.

The long-term answer for Gunnison seems to be construction of an expensive to build raffinate neutralization plant. Company officials then took another look at its Johnson Camp property in hopes of generating cashflow.

In September, Excelsior Mining’s CEO Stephen Twyerould announced plans to utilize various copper deposits spread across the Camp Johnson Mine property which could be processed into copper cathode sheets through the SXEW.

“No new infrastructure will be required, with the exception of a new leach pad and minor piping and pumping facilities,” Twyerould said at the time. “Operations could provide up to 5 years of copper production at the 25 million pounds per annum capacity of the existing SXEW plant.”

Then in January, Twyerould announced that two diamond drills had been mobilized to Johnson Camp to assist with assay activities.

“We are moving quickly on key items related to the JCM restart, which, once operational, will provide cash flow while the raffinate neutralization plant is being designed and built for our flagship asset, the Gunnison Copper Mine,” Twyerould said at the time.

Excelsior suggested copper cathode production from Johnson Camp’s open pits could commence this summer after announcing in April that 31 of 34 planned holes have been drilled using diamond drill rigs, with six holes drilled waiting on assays.

Then on June 22, Twyerould announced that the process to obtain permits for the new leach pad was in progress. He also noted drilling activities were helping to map the Johnson Camp deposits in greater detail than ever before.

“The drilling program is now completed with a total of 43 diamond holes being drilled,” Twyerould said. “Six holes are still awaiting assays.”

However, Twyerould went on to announce that the additional drilling and metallurgical testing will push Excelsior’s goal of restarting mining operations at Johnson Camp to sometime in 2023.

“Therefore, in order to conserve cash and maintain a robust balance sheet, Excelsior is reducing its workforce and putting the wellfield on reduced operation by temporarily stopping acid injection whilst continuing recovery and compliance to ensure underground solutions are managed and controlled,” Twyerould said.

In the meantime, Excelsior intends to undertake a more comprehensive evaluation of the oxide and sulfide potential of its mineral resource and mining assets, according to the company.