by AZ Free Enterprise Club | Sep 3, 2025 | Opinion
By the Arizona Free Enterprise Club |
If Katie Hobbs is thinking about what to do after her time as Governor is up, one option would be to test her skills in the Hide and Seek World Championships. After all, she proved during the 2022 gubernatorial election campaign that it’s what she’s best at.
After dodging any request to debate her opponent Kari Lake during her campaign, Hobbs also ducked reporters who dared to question her about it. She even hid in a restaurant bathroom after another reporter asked her why she didn’t like discussing politics.
All this hiding should have resulted in a simple decision. According to long-standing Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission (AZCCEC) rules, an opponent (in this case Kari Lake) should have been provided with airtime when a candidate (in this case Katie Hobbs) refused to debate. And the AZCCEC planned to do just that. But hours before Kari Lake’s interview was scheduled to take place, the AZCCEC learned that Arizona PBS went behind their back to schedule an exclusive interview with Katie Hobbs—moving them to postpone Lake’s interview.
If you think all this reeks of collusion, you’re right. And now, a public records request has made it clear. Katie Hobbs wasn’t playing hide and seek alone. She was purposefully aided by leadership at Arizona State University (ASU) and at PBS…
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by Matthew Holloway | Aug 30, 2025 | Education, News
By Matthew Holloway |
Arizona State University’s online component, ASU Online, has partnered with several California community colleges to launch a new pilot program. The initiative allows California online undergraduates and alumni to save 22% on tuition—about $130 less per credit hour than Arizona residents pay.
According to a press release issued by ASU Online, the special rate for California students comes “with no income requirements or special applications needed to receive the special tuition.”
The release added that “the pilot program helps break financial barriers and creates an accessible, seamless transfer pathway for California residents to complete a degree.”
“Our university is committed to enhancing access to high-quality education for all students capable of college-level work,” ASU President Michael Crow said in a statement. “Providing top online learning opportunities and making ASU’s world-class faculty available to the enthusiastic learners in our neighboring state will prepare more skilled graduates, strengthen our shared region and support a better future.”
In a post to X, ASU Online posted enthusiastically, “Big news! Students & alumni of our California Community College partners can now transfer to @ASUOnline and save 22% on tuition through the California Community College Achievement Plan! Who’s ready to finish their degree?”
The emphasis on the educational outcome of California students and the substantial discount being offered under the pilot program is striking given that the Arizona Board of Regents 2021 Financial Aid Report (the most recent available) found that 55 percent of undergraduates from ASU, 55 percent from NAU, and 47 percent from UArizona graduated in debt. The report explained that “the average debt load at graduation was $24,447 at ASU; $21,461 at NAU; and $25,343 at UArizona.” According to the Board, approximately 4.5% of ASU students are defaulting on their loans.
ASU reported in the release that it currently has approximately 15,000 California students enrolled online. Anecdotally, citing one alum’s story, they claim that these students are “making meaningful contributions to the state’s economy,” specifically California’s economy, not Arizona’s.
AZ Free News has reached out to Speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives Steve Montenegro, who sits ex officio on the Joint Legislative Auditing Committee (JLAC), which has legislative oversight over ASU, the Arizona Board of Regents, and the Superintendent of Public Instruction, Tom Horne. No comments were received before filing this story.
Matthew Holloway is a senior reporter for AZ Free News. Follow him on X for his latest stories, or email tips to Matthew@azfreenews.com.
by Matthew Holloway | Aug 23, 2025 | Education, News
By Matthew Holloway |
Controversy has once again embroiled Arizona State University (ASU), threatening the credibility of the institution, Arizona PBS, and the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism. Emails uncovered by the Arizona Republic reveal that ASU President Michael Crow, former Arizona Republic publisher Mi-Ai Parrish, and other officials allegedly favored Democratic gubernatorial candidate Katie Hobbs over Republican Kari Lake during the 2022 Arizona gubernatorial election.
Lake has accused them of “collud[ing] to prevent me from having a debate forum.”
Reporting from the Arizona Republic’s Stacey Barchenger earlier this month exposed internal discussions among ASU leadership that appeared to prioritize Hobbs while sidelining Lake. The emails, obtained through public records requests, show that Parrish emailed Arizona PBS leaders, writing, “We may have issues,” after discussions with PBS Senior Director of Content, Ebonye Delaney. They expressed concerns about equal time laws and the risk to ASU’s relationship with the Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission.
Crow emailed Parrish, stating, “Whatever the format there remains the fact that it is our venue and brand. We need structure…and format…….and….people who believe in elections as participants.” He later instructed his chief of staff, James O’Brien, and Parrish to “make sure you are both on the same page here,” prompting Parrish to ask, “What outcome are you seeking?”
ASU offered Hobbs a solo interview on Arizona PBS, a move that severed the university’s long-standing partnership with the voter-approved Clean Elections Commission. This decision was influenced by Crow’s reported disagreement with Lake’s views on election integrity and his labeling her an “election denier.”
Barchenger’s report, citing expert opinions, stated “That ASU leaders would consider one candidate’s views, and then reach down and influence television programming, called into question Arizona PBS’ independence as a news organization and its autonomy from university influence, experts said.”
“And it could have risked legal repercussions for Arizona’s largest university, they added.”
The Arizona Republic’s Robert Anglen shared the findings on X, writing, “Newly released emails detail how ASU’s top leaders sought to muzzle Kari Lake in 2022 for her election-denial views and give preferential treatment to Katie Hobbs on Arizona PBS during the governor’s race.”
Lake rejected Arizona PBS’s offer of a 30-minute solo interview, insisting on a joint debate with Hobbs. She told reporters at the time, “If she doesn’t appear with me, they should kick her out. If Democrats don’t have to sit on the debate stage with the Republicans, if they can just stomp their feet and demand a safe space … then we’ll never have a debate system again.” Lake instead participated in a Clean Elections-sponsored interview on another station and vowed to avoid PBS-related events.
In a statement responding to the exposé, Lake said: “Taxpayer-funded Michael Crow and taxpayer-funded ASU, along with taxpayer-funded PBS, colluded to prevent me from having a debate forum for fear I would talk about election fraud, and because their chosen candidate Katie Hobbs would’ve been destroyed in a debate with me. They interfered in the 2022 Arizona Gubernatorial election and trampled on my First Amendment rights. Their actions were not just unethical; they were likely illegal, too.”
ASU spokesman Jay Thorne defended the university’s actions, however, stating, “The shared objective of ASU and Arizona PBS after the gubernatorial debate was cancelled was to provide a forum for the voters of Arizona to hear from the two candidates for Governor in an interview format. It was an opportunity provided under identical conditions to each candidate, and only one accepted the offer.”
The controversy has raised serious questions about Arizona PBS’s journalistic independence and ASU’s impartiality. Crow, who received a contract extension with a pay raise and bonuses in 2024 despite prior scandals, faces renewed scrutiny over allegations of partisan interference in the electoral process. The decision to prioritize one candidate’s platform over another has sparked outrage and could have lasting repercussions for the institutions involved. This rewritten version organizes the information into clear sections, eliminates redundancy, and enhances readability while preserving all original quotes.
The Arizona Free Enterprise Club (AZFEC) announced August 20th that it has filed a Hatch Act complaint against ASU “for using taxpayer-funded resources to meddle in the 2022 Governor’s race.”
Scot Mussi, President of AZFEC, stated, “This was a blatant misuse of taxpayer-funded university resources to tilt the scales of a gubernatorial election. Arizona law is clear: universities must remain impartial and neutral in election-related activities.”
Matthew Holloway is a senior reporter for AZ Free News. Follow him on X for his latest stories, or email tips to Matthew@azfreenews.com.
by Ethan Faverino | Jul 27, 2025 | Education, News
By Ethan Faverino |
Arizona State University (ASU) has lost 27 grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF) so far this year, worth approximately $28.5 million. Many of the grants were tied to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
These cuts, part of a broader shift in NSF priorities under the Trump administration, target projects with DEI-related terms like, “equitable,” “underrepresented,” and “racial.”
Among the affected grants were five ASU projects, previously assigned $7,659,588, which heavily emphasize DEI.
Grant Number 2315041 ($2,404,767) funded Collaborative Research: Black Girls as Creators: an intersectional learning ecosystem toward gendered racial equity in Artificial Intelligence education. Running from October 2023 to September 2028 (terminated April 18, 2025), it supported after-school and summer camps for black girls aged 9-14 to collaborate with AI creators, focusing on intersectionality and racial equity.
Grant Number 2411987 ($733,633) funded Positioning Engineering Faculty to Support Black Engineering Graduate Students through Awareness, Knowledge, Capacity Building, and Community. Starting September 2024 and ending August 2029 (terminated April 25, 2025), it trained faculty at ASU and George Mason University in antiracist orientations using virtual reality simulations to address systemic barriers for black graduate students, prioritizing competency over technical skills.
Grant Number 1824260 ($2,999,743) funded an ADVANCE Institutional Transformation project from September 2018 to August 2025 (terminated May 2, 2025), aimed to reshape faculty policies for gender equity and intersectionality, potentially undermining merit-based standards.
Grant Number 2101039 ($931,058) funded Collaborative Research: Accessible Computational Thinking in Elementary Science Classes within and across Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Contexts, ran from August 2021 to July 2025 (terminated April 25, 2025). It trained 60 elementary school teachers in “Culturally Relevant Teaching” for diverse students, which compromised core STEM content.
Grant Number 2236374 ($590,387) funded Increasing the Effectiveness of Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion-Focused Institutional Change Teams through a Community of Transformation, ran from April 2023 to April 2025 (terminated April 18, 2025). It supported a “Community of Transformation” for JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion) change agents, emphasizing change over academic standards.
These cancellations align with NSF’s new priorities to avoid projects that prioritize certain groups, as appromixately 94% of canceled grants nationwide included DEI-related terms.
These DEI-focused projects diverted resources from universal STEM advancement, prioritizing ideological goals over merit.
The full list of terminated NSF grants is avaiable here.
Ethan Faverino is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Jonathan Eberle | Jun 14, 2025 | Education, News
By Jonathan Eberle |
An event hosted this week by Arizona State University is drawing fire from critics who say the public institution is promoting radical ideologies under the guise of social justice. The event, titled “Social Justice in Action: Conversing with the Contributors” centered around a book that explores themes of dismantling oppressive systems to create more inclusive communities.
The book—whose cover features flames and a chapter titled “Burning It Down Means Building Community”—has stirred controversy online and among some faculty and taxpayers. Chapters in the book also include titles such as “The Cost of the System of White Supremacy,” “Starting with the Children,” and “Incorporating Antispeciesism in Social Justice Praxis.”
Critics argue the event’s messaging is especially ill-timed, coinciding with scenes of unrest in Los Angeles where demonstrators have torched police vehicles, vandalized property, and waved international flags amid protests. While the book’s authors frame their arguments in metaphorical terms—advocating for a “radical unmaking” of existing social systems—detractors say the rhetoric is irresponsible and could be interpreted as condoning violence.
Dr. Owen Anderson, a professor and public commentator who wrote a critical piece about the event, called it “academic nonsense” and accused the university of pushing divisive and destructive ideas under the umbrella of taxpayer-supported education.
“This is not fringe. This is not some flyer left in the faculty lounge by a confused grad student who read Foucault one too many times,” Anderson wrote. “No, this is an official ASU event advertised on their my.asu page. Celebrated. Promoted. Funded (spoiler alert) by you. Which raises a burning question (no pun intended): how long have professors been preparing students for just such a moment?”
Jonathan Eberle is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
