by Daniel Stefanski | Aug 7, 2023 | Education, News
By Daniel Stefanski |
One of Arizona’s most-influential organizations is bringing facts to the conversation surrounding the state’s historic school choice expansion program.
Last month, the Director of Education Policy for the Goldwater Institute, Matt Beienburg, responded to the latest political attacks against Arizona’s Empowerment Scholarship Accounts (ESA) program, releasing a comprehensive fact-check to promote the truth.
Beienburg’s fact-check came after the Governor’s Office issued a memo, which targeted the ESA program, showing that it “could cost the state over $943 million, with over 53% of all new K-12 education spending going towards only 8% of Arizona students.” In conjunction with the release of that memo, Democrat Governor Katie Hobbs said, “The universal school voucher program is unsustainable. Unaccountable school vouchers do not save taxpayer money, and they do not provide a better education for Arizona students. We must bring transparency and accountability to this program to ensure school vouchers don’t bankrupt our state. I’m committed to reforming universal vouchers to protect taxpayer money and give all Arizona students the education they deserve.”
The fact-check from the Goldwater Institute refuted three claims made against the ESA program. First, that “spending on ESA vouchers could account for 53.25% of all new K-12 education spending in the FY2024 budget going towards only 8% of Arizona students.” Beienburg put forward three facts in opposition to the claim: that “total spending on universal ESA students makes up just 2% of total Arizona K-12 spending,” that “Arizona public school districts are projected to receive over 60% (more than $570 million) of all new K-12 funding in FY 2024, despite making up 0% of the growth in students served this upcoming year,” and that “even under the Arizona Department of Education’s (ADE) highest projections, the ESA program would be funding the education of roughly 8% of Arizona’s students (including a disproportionately high percentage of students with severe disabilities) for less than 6% of the total taxpayer cost of educating Arizona’s students.”
The second claim refuted by Goldwater was that “there is an increased cost to the State when a student leaves a public district school and enrolls in the ESA voucher program. This occurs because the ESA award amount is based on the state funding provided to charter school students, which is higher than the state funding provided to district school students.” Goldwater issued one fact in opposition to this claim – that “the average savings per ESA student is even higher when including other (non-formula) spending on public school students. In total, JLBC reports over $3 billion (roughly $3,000 per student on average) of additional spending by state and local taxpayers per public school student outside the basic funding formula. ESA students receive none of this funding.”
The third – and final – claim refuted by Goldwater was that “new estimates indicate the ESA voucher program may cost taxpayers up to $943,795,600 annually, resulting in a potential $319,795,600 General Fund shortfall in FY 2024.” Goldwater issued four facts in opposition to this claim, including that “Gov. Hobbs’ office itself does not believe the report that it is using as the basis for these figures;” that “Gov. Hobbs’ office mistakes the cost ESA awards by thousands of dollars per student;” that “the nonpartisan JLBC continues to project ESA costs in line with the state budget; “ and that “even if the higher enrollments and total ESA award amounts estimated by ADE do materialize, they would not represent the net cost to taxpayers of the program.”
Beienburg closed his fact-check, writing, “Arizona’s ESA program now offers tens of thousands of families an opportunity to pursue the best education possible for their children at a lower cost than traditional public schooling. The governor and her budget office owe it to parents and the public to provide the facts about ESAs free of manipulation.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Daniel Stefanski | Aug 1, 2023 | Education, News
By Daniel Stefanski |
Arizona’s Democrat Governor and Republican Superintendent of Public Instruction continue to trade political volleys over the state’s Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) program.
Last week, Governor Katie Hobbs transmitted a communication to the state’s schools chief, Tom Horne, “requesting detailed plans for protecting the personal data of Arizona students and families (after) the company responsible for the financial administration of the ESA program, ClassWallet, experienced a data breach that prompted the activation of the state Incident Response Team at the Arizona Department of Homeland Security. The Governor’s Office then tied the recent departure of “two high ranking ESA officials” to the issue, writing that in the aftermath of their sudden and unexpected resignations, there were now “concerns and questions about the administration of the ESA voucher program and the protection of student data.”
Hobbs issued a statement, saying, “It is my responsibility to ensure the safety and security of our state, our agencies, and our people. Arizona students and families deserve to know that proper measures are in place to protect their personal information.”
Christine Accurso, one of the former ESA officials referenced by Hobbs, quickly responded on Twitter, stating, “Governor Hobbs the same type of breach has happened on this platform in the past, even as late as last December. This has nothing to do with the resignations. You should review all of the investigations and contact the contract holder, the State Treasurer’s office.”
Horne, too, wasted little time in getting back to Hobbs. Mere hours after the governor sent her letter, the Arizona Department of Education first publicized a comment from ClassWallet’s CEO Jamie Rosenburg, who said, “The problem has been solved. It was a permission setting error. Once discovered, we took immediate action and corrected the permission setting. Additionally, we performed a database search and concluded no other users were affected. Therefore, this is an isolated incident to a single user.”
Then, less than two hours after the ClassWallet response, Horne released a letter he had forwarded to the governor with his responses to her queries. In that letter, Horne first addressed Hobbs’ connection of the breach with the departure of two of his aides, writing, “The first point to make is that the decision of Christine Accurso and her assistant, who came on to straighten out the mess caused by the previous administration, and when that was accomplished, left to go on to other things, has absolutely nothing to do with any reported data breach.”
Answering Hobbs’ question of “what steps is your administration taking to address any potential violations of State statutes relating to student data privacy,” Horne said, “The Department of Homeland Security in your own office is conducting an investigation. They met with officials in our office. Since the department of homeland security is part of your office, we would have thought you would have checked with them before writing your letter that is full of wild exaggerations.”
Arizona Treasurer Kimberly Yee also weighed in on the governor’s letter, informing constituents of the steps her office had taken once she learned of the incident. Yee wrote, “We have received verbal confirmation from Homeland Security that the breach did not originate from the vendor. We have also been provided assurances from Homeland Security that the vendor and my office have responded appropriately to the incident. Based on information received, we are not aware of any existing data breach and have confidence that the ESA platform is secure.”
Christine Jones, the Founder of Bigfork Tech, shared her insights into the matter, tweeting, “1. This isn’t a data breach. More like a data leak/unintentional disclosure. 2. Why is Gov involved? Superintendent is elected position-doesn’t report to Gov. 3. Former AZ AG Horne knows how to address this. 4. Kimberly Yee handles admin and oversight of ClassWallet.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Corinne Murdock | Jul 27, 2023 | News
By Corinne Murdock |
Both the executive director and operations director of Arizona’s school choice program resigned on Monday.
In a statement, former executive director Christine Accurso said she accomplished her goal of getting the Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) Program “back on track and functioning well.” Accurso indicated that she would be taking on other opportunities in school choice activism.
“I hired, trained, and implemented a full staff of competent, professional people who love the program and will carry it forward,” said Accurso. “I achieved much of what I set out to accomplish, but it is time for me to move on and pursue opportunities to engage citizens, especially parents, to fight for school choice and the other issues they believe in, for the future of our state and of our nation.”
In a statement, the Arizona Department of Education (ADE) announced John Ward as Accurso’s replacement. Ward served as an ADE internal auditor and previously worked within the Auditor General’s Office.
Former operations director and vendor liaison, Linda Rizzo, also resigned. Rizzo also served as a regional director for the Arizona Federation of Republican Women.
ADE loosely echoed Accurso’s reasoning for her departure in their explanation of her resignation, crediting her for “unprecedented growth” within the ESA Program.
Superintendent Tom Horne appointed Accurso to the position last November. Horne selected Accurso for her knowledge and experience with the ESA Program, as well as her advocacy to universalize its opportunities. As a member of the ESA Program herself, she was a constant advocate for Horne’s election.
Last year, Accurso led the Decline to Sign movement: a counter-movement to the Save Our Schools Arizona (SOSAZ) ballot initiative to overturn legislation that universalized school choice. As part of her advocacy, Accurso discovered that SOSAZ overreported the number of signatures they collected for the ballot initiative. Accurso’s publicization of this discovery prompted an expedited review of the signature count.
Over the last few years, Accurso also raised awareness of the unresponsive ESA Program helpline.
In January, Accurso told AZ Free News about issues inherited from the prior superintendent’s administration indicating neglect of the ESA Program.
Over 60,500 students now participate in the ESA Program as of Monday. Ward has estimated that the ESA Program will reach 100,000 applicants by next July.
READ THE LATEST ADE QUARTERLY REPORT
With the double departure from the ESA Program, Democratic leaders highlighted weaknesses of the program.
On Monday, Attorney General Kris Mayes announced a renewed focus on investigating ESA Program fraud and loss of federal discrimination protections concerning disabilities and educational records. Mayes encouraged members of the public to report cases of fraud by ESA vendors or private schools.
On Tuesday, Gov. Katie Hobbs’ Office of Strategic Planning and Budgeting (OSPB) released a report projecting a budget deficit of $319.8 million next fiscal year with the ESA Program costing about $943.8 million annually by the next fiscal year. Hobbs alleged the ESA Program would “bankrupt” the state.
“[T]his program is unsustainable and does not save taxpayers money,” said Hobbs. “We must bring transparency and accountability to this program to ensure school vouchers don’t bankrupt our state.”
The OSPB disputed ADE’s claim that the ESA Program costs less to taxpayers since it pulls children from public schools, noting that about 40,400 non-public school students would receive funding where before they hadn’t. The OSPB also claimed that individual student payouts for the ESA Program are more costly than what public schools pay.
“The ESA program is unaccountable and overfunded,” stated the OSPB.
The governor’s team asked for ADE to implement academic testing requirements and audits for schools accepting ESA funding, requiring staff to be fingerprinted, and requiring students to attend a public school prior to enrollment.
The ESA Program admittance requires at least 45 days of attendance at a public school.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
by Daniel Stefanski | Jul 26, 2023 | Education, News
By Daniel Stefanski |
Arizona’s Republican Superintendent of Public Instruction and Democrat Attorney General are again at opposite ends of the state’s Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) program.
On Monday, Superintendent Tom Horne responded to Attorney General Mayes’ recent comments about the ESA program, setting his department’s record straight.
Earlier in the day, Mayes issued a press release to “provide information about rights forfeited leaving the public school system.” The Attorney General first addressed parents of children with disabilities, stating, “Families should not be denied admission or kicked out of private schools because of a child’s disabilities. To make matters worse, private schools often refuse to share the educational records behind those decisions Because Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) and the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) don’t apply to private schools, families have no recourse under federal law. It’s important for Arizona families to be aware of the rights they give up when they leave the public school system.”
Horne pushed back on the Attorney General’s notice, saying, “(Mayes) raised several issues, one of which centers on special education students. Under the ESA program, special education students receive the same funding as they would attending a public school.”
Mayes broached another issue on her consumer alert – this one about the ESA program and its vendors as a whole. The Attorney General’s Office wrote, “If using ESA funds for private school or schooling at home is the preferred educational choice, families should make sure they choose reputable schools and vendors. Even still, families should know that when they accept an ESA, they lose protections from discrimination related to a child’s learning abilities, religion and sexual orientation.”
The Attorney General said, “As a mom, I know how important a child’s education is and I know that, as parents, we all want what is best for our children. I want families to know that if vendors or private schools take advantage of this, the Attorney General’s Office will investigate to the fullest extent of our authority.”
Horne didn’t leave this part of Mayes’ release alone either, making sure onlookers understood his administration is dedicated to following the law. Horne stated, “In regards to the other concerns raised, under my Democrat predecessor as schools chief, the law was not strictly followed and ESA funds were used for non-educational purposes. One of my first acts when I took office was to hire from the Arizona Auditor General an internal auditor for the Department of Education. This person makes sure that every ESA transaction is conducted according to the law and all funding is used appropriately. There have been significant protests against me from people who were used to the old lax system, but I am insisting that every law is strictly followed and that every penny of these funds is used for valid educational purposes.”
The state’s top prosecutor received accolades for her statements from at least one Democrat legislator, Representative Nancy Gutierrez, who tweeted, “Thank you Attorney General Mayes for making it clear that private schools do not give students and families the same rights as public schools.”
The Arizona school chief’s response to Mayes follows two other significant battles between the two since they entered office this past January. Just last week, Horne called a recent formal opinion from Attorney General Mayes on a Structured English Immersion law “ideologically driven.” He also pushed back against Mayes when she went on television to say that “there are no controls” on the ESA program, “no accountability,” that “they” (presumably parents) are “spending hundreds of millions of dollars of taxpayer money,” that this “needs to be looked at,” and that it’s (her) “responsibility to do that” as Arizona’s “top law enforcement officer.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Daniel Stefanski | Jul 14, 2023 | Education, News
By Daniel Stefanski |
Americans’ support for school choice is on the rise.
A recent poll from Real Clear Opinion Research showed that school choice has the support of 71% of the 1,000 registered voters who participated in that survey. This number was a seven-point increase from an April 2020 poll.
In this June 27-30 poll, support for school choice came from 80% of Republican voters, 66% of Democrat voters, and 69% of Independent voters. Though the Republican and Democrat support was up from April 2020, the 9% increase in favor from Independents was the most among the political parties.
The question presented to voters on the survey was as follows: “School choices gives parents the right to use the tax dollars designated for their child’s education to send their child to the public or private school which best serves their needs. Generally speaking, would you say you support or oppose the concept of school choice?”
The CEO of American Federation for Children, Tommy Schultz, lauded the news about the growing support for school choice around the country, saying, “School choice support is here to stay, and politicians who ignore this reality do so at their own peril. Parents are the new interest group in town, and legislators would be wise to keep responding to their needs. The days of the old one-size-fits-all model are numbered, welcome news for the countless students who need something different to learn and thrive. AFC is thrilled to continue standing behind parents as they gain more options for their children’s education.”
Arizona has been at the front lines of the surge in school choice support. Last year, the Republican-led Legislature passed a historic expansion of the state’s Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) Program, allowing any child in K-12 to apply. According to a June 30 update from the Executive Director of the ESA Program, Christine Accurso, 62,005 Arizona students have now been enrolled.
That same update also showed that the program, under the direction of Republican Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne, had largely caught up with the backlog and influx of reimbursements to ESA account holders. As of June 30, the ESA Program only had 1,195 Reimbursement Orders in the queue – down from 24,409 on February 8.
When asked about the increasing support for school choice in Arizona and around the nation, Superintendent Horne told AZ Free News, “We have a lot of excellent public schools in Arizona. But no matter how good a public school is, it may not be able to meet the needs of all students. Rich parents have always had the ability to choose the best school to meet the needs of each of their children and people at all economic levels should have the same ability. In addition, competition improves public schools. The United States has been prosperous, and the Soviet Union was poor, because we had competition which drives people to do their best, while they were a government monopoly. As they used to say in Poland, ‘We pretend to work, and they pretend to pay us.’ The same applies in education. Competition causes everyone to do better.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
