State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne is sounding the alarm over what he describes as “catastrophic” levels of chronic absenteeism among Arizona high school students, citing a new report from the Helios Foundation. The Helios report defines chronic absenteeism as missing nine days in a semester or 18 days in a school year. According to the findings, 28.1 percent of Arizona students in grades 1–8 are chronically absent. That number climbs to 37 percent among high school students.
“This is catastrophic. We cannot teach students who are not in school,” Horne said. “The high school student who misses more than one third of his classes is facing a bleak future.”
Horne highlighted the Dysart Unified School District in the Phoenix area as a standout example of combating the problem. Dysart has significantly lower absenteeism rates—9 percent in grades 1–8 and 8.69 percent in grades 9–12—compared to state averages.
According to Horne, Dysart enforces strict accountability measures: students in grades 1–8 who miss 18 days in a year must repeat the grade, while high school students who miss more than nine days in a semester cannot receive credit for their courses.
“They got there because they held students and parents accountable,” Horne said. “The Dysart method is successful and makes sense. It is what schools mostly did in the past before our culture got so much more permissive. Academic loss is the price we have paid for that permissiveness.”
Horne also pointed to the role of parents in ensuring daily attendance. He said the pandemic shifted some attitudes, with parents viewing absences as less serious than before. He argued that once parents understand the direct link between absenteeism and on-time graduation, they become more engaged.
“As a former member of a school board for 24 years, I can testify that it is very important to parents that their children graduate on time,” Horne said. “The data show the Dysart method is the most effective way to reduce chronic absenteeism.”
Jonathan Eberle is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
A record number of Arizona high school students have earned the prestigious Seal of Arts Proficiency for the 2024-25 school year. 2,366 students have received this honor, some earning more than one, indicating proficiency in more than one arts discipline.
There was a total of 2,400 awards, marking the highest number of recipients since the program launched in 2019. These students were recognized across multiple disciplines of Visual Arts, Theatre, Music, Media Arts, and Dance.
“I am a passionate supporter of the arts. Not only do disciplines such as music, theatre, art, and dance have intrinsic value, but studies have proven that students who pursue the arts often do better academically,” said State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne. “There is tremendous value in arts education, and I am extremely pleased to see the highest number of students in the history of this program receiving the Seal of Arts Proficiency. I also offer my congratulations to the Dysart district and its leadership for having the most students receiving this recognition.”
Out of the 2,400 seals and 2,366 participating students, the Dysart Unified School District was awarded 261 seals with 249 participating students.
The program was launched in the 2019-20 school year with hopes of recognizing students who demonstrate exceptional skills in the arts disciplines. Within the past 5 years, it has quickly grown from 585 participating students to 2,366. The total awards have also increased from 591 to 2,400, showing the state’s proficiency in high school arts. School involvement and support have also grown, with 58 schools participating in 2019 compared to 146 schools this year.
The Arizona Seal of Arts Proficiency honors students who demonstrate exceptional achievement in the arts, while also equipping them with essential life skills and preparing them for college. With nearly 80,000 jobs in Arizona’s arts and culture sector, the seal offers students a meaningful pathway into creative industries, allowing them to succeed both personally and professionally.
Ethan Faverino is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
The Dysart Unified School District Governing Board voted unanimously to reject a recent Executive Order from President Joe Biden imposing new Title IX rules on schools via the US Department of Education. The new rules would, among other impacts, redefine “sex” to include “gender identity,” therefore requiring schools to reject biological sex in favor of how a student chooses to present themselves. The new rules released on April 19, 2024, are currently enjoined by federal court orders in 15 states, preventing enforcement, but as of this report are still applicable in Arizona.
Dysart Unified School District Governing Board President Dawn Densmore told reporters from the Arizona Daily Independent on Sunday, “The resolution I created in response to President Biden’s Executive Order and the United States Department of Education was adopted by unanimous vote at our meeting on July 11th.”
She added, “It’s an honor to lead the way in efforts to protect children and our faith communities from this government overreach.”
Dysart School District in Arizona passed a resolution NOT to comply with the unlawful Title IX rewrite that endangers girls at school.
— Nicole Solas, Sued by the Teachers Union (@Nicoletta0602) July 12, 2024
A Louisiana Federal District court in June found that the new Title IX rules constitute a significant federal overreach with Ogletree Deakins noting from the ruling:
“The Department exceeded its statutory authority under Title IX by redefining ‘sex’ to include ‘gender identity.’ The court found that based on the plain text and legislative history of Title IX, ‘sex’ was intended to refer to biological sex, not gender identity.
The new rules raise First Amendment concerns by potentially compelling speech, such as requiring teachers to use students’ preferred pronouns, even if doing so conflicts with their religious beliefs, and engaging in viewpoint discrimination.
The Department’s rulemaking was arbitrary and capricious. The Department failed to provide a reasoned explanation for departing from long-standing interpretations of ‘sex,’ left regulations in place that conflict with the new ‘gender identity’ mandate, and failed to adequately address safety concerns raised in public comments.”
In response Densmore told the Independent that the Dysart Unified School District Governing Board:
“Will not demand that parents or guardians compel the speech of their minor children, or the First Amendment rights of our staff in a way that contradicts their family values or religious freedoms
Already has current discrimination policies in place which protect every student, staff member and job applicants
Is committed — while not adopting the Title IX expansion — to honoring the original intent of Title IX, our U.S. Constitution, and the Constitution of the State of Arizona
Is committed to empowering parental involvement in education and minimizing public monies to be used to promulgate obtuse overreach into our schools.”
Arizona Women of Action shared the resolution via X on July 11 commenting, “This model conservative school board needs support.”
🗣 TODAY AT 3PM! Your peaceful & prayerful support is needed at the Dysart Unified school board meeting.
Dysart board will be presenting & voting on a resolution 👇 that is in response to the Biden Title IX overreach. This model conservative school board needs support.
— Arizona Women of Action (@azwomenofaction) July 11, 2024
The board resolved in part: “WHEREAS, the Dysart Governing Board is committed to empowering parental involvement in education and minimizing public monies to be used to promulgate obtuse overreach into our local school district and criminalizing innocent children, or the people of the varying faiths that commonly and firmly believe in truth, such as a Creator of two distinct and wonderfully made sexes, and;
BE IT RESOLVED that the Dysart Unified School Governing Board has determined:
1. The United States Department of Education has created a Final Regulation which is contrary to the plain language of Title IX
2. The Governing Board, deriving authority from the Arizona Constitution, Arizona statutes and the regulations of the Arizona Administrative Code, strongly urge the Arizona State Legislature to further codify our state statutes to ensure our children are protected from the political weaponization of government, which would infringe on both federal and state constitutional rights.”
According to the Arizona Republic, the board of the Dysart Unified School District was also to receive legal guidance on the “legal process for challenging” the regulatory change.
AZ Free News has contacted Densmore and asked for the next steps the board is preparing to take and will provide an update when received.
In September 2023, four DUSD high schools were named 2023-2024 Best High Schools by U.S. News & World Report. Three of the four were also named A+ Schools of Excellence by the Arizona Educational Foundation. Although DUSD has a lot of work to do, school board members across the Valley now have a model for governing with sense and sensibility.
Of course, every free-thinking, constitutional, conservative board member will have progressive dogs nipping at their heels. Such is the case with the uprising of emotional activists after DUSD opted to not renew Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds.
Save Our Schools Arizona—a leftist group that identifies as a “nonpartisan community based organization”—led the campaign of oppression by posting a hack opinion editorial on social media. Anxiety-ridden constituents (including the director of an anti-God organization) manifested in the comment section with cries of outrage. Wow. I didn’t know saving Arizona schools meant converting every campus into psychiatric medical facilities!
With sensational clarity, Arizona’s Family reported that DUSD’s decision came amid “a fiery exchange after [board] members voted to eliminate the role of social workers within their school district.” Did anybody in the bullpen even watch the November 16 board meeting? I did. Of course, I don’t have a predisposition to rage, so I viewed it as a thoughtful discussion with differing opinions. Board Member Jo Grant blessed me with her deliberate and persistent, social-emotional vantage point. She got outvoted. Where’s the fire?
Board Members Dawn Densmore and Jennifer Drake personally assured me that because ESSER funds were drying up, it was in the district’s best interest not to renew without a financial plan to supplement looming deficiencies. They also confirmed the district would retain numerous student support positions, including psychologists, counselors, and behavior interventionists.
Densmore said, “For me…it’s not a slam on the profession of social workers. I genuinely don’t think all of them [have a leftist agenda]. But at the same time…places of education should not be healthcare institutions. If parents have children who go through issues where they need additional support—and I [personally] had one child who needed it—take them out of school and get them into counseling. I would have never expected the school to take care of that and replace me as a parent in that situation.”
Drake agreed, “It is the parent’s responsibility [to take care] of the health and wellbeing of their child—not the school. When a child is at school, their priority is safety and education. If your child needs mental health or medical services, then as a parent, it is your responsibility to provide that. The school can get outside resources, but having these services inside the school is unacceptable. Taxpayers should not be paying for this.”
Densmore and Drake also emphasized that educators should not bear the consequences of attendance deficits and low test scores when emotional needs become disruptive to learning environments.
In response to the small faction of obnoxious critics who branded DUSD “cruel” and “irresponsible,” Densmore and Drake said, “Parents need to start parenting. Stop using schools as a crutch—for vaccinations, for dental work, etc.…If your kid is sick, whether it’s physical or mental, take them to the doctor. If your kid is suffering mentally, why would you rely on a school [district] for something like that?”
I’ll wrap this up by pointing out that 2020 was America’s Enlightenment period where we discovered a supposed new and improved job function for social workers. According to the National Association of Social Workers, these mental health warriors are now equipped to practice a more inclusive, equitable, anti-racist approach. And they want us to rest assured that no matter what issues students face inside or outside the classroom, affirming their gender-identity and empathizing with their skin color is sure to be the cure.
Seriously, parents, why haven’t you pulled your kids out of Arizona public schools?
For nearly two decades, Tiffany Benson’s creative writing pursuits have surpassed all other interests. When she’s not investigating Kennedy Assassination conspiracy theories, she enjoys journaling and contributing to her blogBigviewsmallwindow.com. She encourages average citizens to take on an active role in the grassroots fight for future generations.
From the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) to local school board positions, several conservatives are currently leading or have already won key races on the education front in the 2022 General Election.
As of press time, Republican candidate for Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI), Tom Horne, had increased his lead in his challenge of incumbent Kathy Hoffman. Horne previously served as SPI from 2003 to 2011, prior to successfully running for the Arizona Attorney General’s Office. If the results hold up, Horne says his focus as SPI will be on improving student performance and eradicating Critical Race Theory-based curriculum from Arizona’s public schools.
Tom Horne is winning the Superintendent's race because Moms and Dads are taking the education of their children back! He will empower parents! 🎉 @electtomhorne pic.twitter.com/zOxUkajDyv
In the Peoria Unified School District race, Heather Rooks won a hard-fought and challenging race. Her efforts to expose the Social Emotional Learning-based policies and practices in the district eventually led her to request an injunction against an activist parent. As reported by the Arizona Daily Independent, Rooks, a mother of four school-aged children, obtained the injunction based on threats from Democrat activist, Josh Gray.
Two other conservative candidates, Amy Carney and Carine Werner, secured seats on the Scottsdale Unified School District (SUSD) Governing Board. Their victories serve as a powerful repudiation of out-going Governing Board Member Jann-Michael Greenburg. Greenburg was sued by parents who accused him of trying to silence them after they exposed his secret Google Drive dossier on them. As AZ Free Newsreported in April, that dossier included a trove of political opposition research on parents, who opposed the district’s adoption of Social Emotional Learning and Critical Race Theory.
In the race for Flowing Wells School District Governing Board—an area known for being blue—conservative Brianna Hernandez Hamilton is currently holding on to one of two open spots. A mother of three very young children, Hernandez Hamilton ran with the slogan: “Parents + Teachers = Quality Education.”
Kurt Rohrs, a long-time education activist and frequent contributor to AZ Free News, won a spot on the Chandler Unified School District Governing Board. Rohrs, like Horne, focused on improving student performance and eliminating the divisive Critical Race Theory from the district’s curriculum. Many see Rohrs’ presence on the board as an opportunity to restore calm to the district which had become the center of controversy thanks to out-going board member Lindsay Love.
In the race for Dysart Unified School District Governing Board, conservative Dawn Densmore was retained by voters. As current president of the board, Densmore successfully led the fight to end the district’s relationship with the Arizona School Board Association (ASBA). Jennifer Drake also won a seat on the board.
Sandra Christensen is set to win a seat on the Paradise Valley Unified School District Governing Board. Libby Settle and Madicyn Reid are in the lead for spots in Fountain Hills. Paul Carver should take a win in Deer Valley. Jackie Ulmer appears to have been successful in Cave Creek as well as Rachel Walden in Mesa and Chad Thompson in Gilbert. In the Higley Unified School District, conservative Anna Van Hoek also won a seat on the board.
In a tweet from earlier this week, former Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos summed up what many parents have been feeling over the past few years – left out. In response to the National Education Association’s claim that teachers “know better than anyone” what students need in the classroom, DeVos responded, “You misspelled parents.”
Teachers union infuriates parents with 'astonishing' tweet: 'Trying to gaslight Americans' https://t.co/nNHJwfP6VQ
