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 Tucson high school is short one less physics teacher after he challenged Donald Trump’s denial of the existence of more than two genders.
Les Beard, a physics teacher at Marana High School, taught his students that a certain intersex disorder, androgen insensitivity syndrome (AIS), actually caused some males to be females.
Independent journalist James O’Keefe posted a recording of Beard’s lecture on AIS captured by a student, and later reported Beard’s suspension.
JUST IN : Mr. Les Beard has been suspended from Marana High School after @OKeefeMedia released a recording of the Physics teacher telling his students that men can be women if they have androgen immunodeficiency syndrome. https://t.co/VASNdoqpIE
Beard claimed in his lecture that those with AIS were women with both female and male sex organs. Beard included a brief remark challenging the premises of President Donald Trump’s public stance and recent executive orders on gender identity.
“But usually all of these women have female sex organs, they do have male sex organs as well. So if you take an x-ray of them, you’ll see what guys have. But if you look, if you were to look at them, they look quite ordinary. So what are they? Are these guys? Mr. Trump says so,” said Beard. “And [the doctors] tell you, ‘Well, you’re really a guy,’ but none of them really believe it because they’ve been women all their lives.”
One of Trump’s first executive orders upon taking office last week declared the existence of only two genders: male and female.
All individuals with AIS have XY chromosomes, which means the biological sex of all AIS individuals is male. Contrary to Beard’s assertion, those with AIS don’t have “female sex organs.” AIS individuals don’t possess a female reproductive system: no ovaries, fallopian tubes, or uterus. Menstruation, ovulation, and pregnancy are impossible.
AIS is one of 30-odd intersex genetic disorders. Intersex disorders are conditions characterized by atypical sexual or reproductive anatomy. AIS concerns a defective bodily response to androgens, the hormones responsible for male development.
AIS mens’ bodies are unable to properly respond to androgens, such as testosterone (the primary androgen). This inability to respond to testosterone causes the underdevelopment or lack of any development of a penis as well as fully or partially undescended testicles.
As a result of their androgen insensitivity, AIS men may have genitals that appear female, but they are not female genitals. Additionally, AIS individuals may develop breasts because their bodies aren’t able to respond to androgens: the male sex hormones. For these reasons, some AIS men are raised as females — this does not make them female, however. Biologically, they are men with a genetic disorder.
In a report corresponding to the leaked audio, O’Keefe Media Group (OMG) included the following statement from Marana High School District spokeswoman Allison Benjamin:
“We are proud to provide our students with challenging academics, full extracurricular offerings, and experiences that enhance their personal growth and development. To help provide optimal learning environments for all students, we have adopted policies that provide guidance and expectations for teachers and staff, including: 1. Teaching to the state standards that are focused on course content. 2. Providing a learning environment where teachers remain neutral and refrain from sharing their personal beliefs and opinions. Our district is committed to making sure these policies are clear and honored by all staff. The administration will follow appropriate guidelines detailed in district policy to ensure all staff fulfill these expectations.”
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Former boxing champion Mike Tyson recently launched a middle and high school in Phoenix, Arizona.
Tyson Transformational Technologies Academy is a Cognia Accredited Micro-School in Arizona for grades six to 12.
The world Champion boxer, entertainer, and entrepreneur partnered with the Foundations Academies School System and undefeated MMA fighter Daniel Puder to start the school.
“It’s important to me that I am able to share my life experiences to inspire the next generation,” Tyson said. “This new educational institution will build core values that I am honored and grateful to be part of the Arizona community. I was thrilled to be part of the ribbon cutting ceremony and meeting some of the students.”
The price of tuition is covered through the Empowerment Scholarship Accounts (ESAs) and internal school scholarships.
Since late 2022, all Arizona students have been eligible for an ESA as a K-12 student or as a preschool student with a disability. Families with qualifying students enrolled in the ESA program can use their ESA funds for expenses including educational services, education providers, curriculum, and other educational expenses.
Tyson’s school aims to “redefine learning by combining innovation, financial literacy, mentorship, and community engagement.” The academy will provide quality education and opportunities for personal growth to every youth regardless of their academic challenges, ethnicity, or socio-economic status, the Feb. 15 news release says.
“As a society, we get to build our youths for the next generation,” Puder said. “We are so blessed to have Mike Tyson part of our school system. He inspires our students.”
To enroll their child, parents can contact (480) 448-5181.
Elizabeth Troutman is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send her news tips using this link.
High schoolers will learn from firsthand experiences of the evils of communism in a documentary series featuring two Arizona lawmakers who survived it.
The series, produced by the University of Arizona (UArizona) Center for the Philosophy of Freedom, features House Speaker Ben Toma (R-LD27) and Rep. Quang Nguyen (R-LD01) sharing their personal accounts of communism and their emigration to America. Toma escaped from Romania, and Nguyen escaped from Vietnam.
Nguyen praised UArizona for granting war survivors like him a platform to enlighten future generations.
The University of Arizona Center for the Philosophy of Freedom has given war survivors like me a voice to share our stories with the many future generations. Thank you! https://t.co/Dlotf2M9At
The videos were created in response to the state legislature passage of a bill sponsored by Nguyen last year requiring high schools to incorporate a comparative discussion of political ideologies: the principles of communism and totalitarianism compared and contrasted with America’s founding principles.
Nguyen recounted how, a week before the Fall of Saigon, his father boarded him and his brother on an airplane with hundreds of other people. Nguyen was 12 years old at the time; his father advised the brothers that they wouldn’t see their family again. He and his brother were transported to Subic Bay, then Guam, then to Travis Airforce Base, Fort Pembleton, and finally Fort Chaffee.
However, Nguyen and his brother were able to reunite with his family in San Joaquin, California. Nguyen explained that he only ever experienced kindness among American military members, contrary to the narratives he heard that the U.S. forces had invaded his country. To this day, Nguyen says he visits with Vietnam veterans nationwide to thank them.
The representative shared that his quality of life in America was better than in Vietnam: he was able to get a strong college education and well-paying employment as a young man.
Nguyen explained that hallmarks of communism include government control of food source, specifically severely limiting the supply; control of education, specifically focusing on propagandizing children; and confiscation of weapons.
Toma’s video includes his mother and father, Ana and Cornel Toma. They recounted how the Romanian secret police labeled their family as an enemy to the government.
Ana recalled how government indoctrination in schools taught her and her peers false history, such as that the rest of the world loved and admired Romania as a great nation, when in fact she would later learn that few Americans knew of Romania’s existence. Ana also recalled waiting in lines for hours to obtain food, sometimes reaching the front without receiving the few rations available.
Cornel recalled how the government took away people’s cattle and land, only allowing them one cow and a half-acre of land. Those who dared speak out would “disappear overnight.” The government also didn’t allow people to have vocational freedom: similar to the military, the government assigned citizens their vocations and where they would live.
The Toma family was forced to flee Romania after the Secret Police began visiting them. They only managed to escape after a family friend convinced a member of the secret police to assist in smuggling them out of the country under the guise of a vacation: at that point, the Toma family wasn’t allowed to leave the country otherwise. Ana and Cornel were forced to escape first, then send for their children.
Ana and Cornel navigated the legal immigration process for admittance to the U.S., traveling across Turkey, Greece, Italy, and Rome over the course of about a year. Ana said that, upon first landing in America, she witnessed a novel display of patriotism and love for America that touched her deeply.
“I was so impressed that somebody love the country so much. I was impressed by the attitude they had on the flight. I thought, ‘This is the first taste of freedom,’” said Ana.
The Toma family settled in a two-bedroom apartment for their family of seven. Speaker Toma shared his delight in the abundance of America through the simple joy of eating oranges: something not possible in Romania. Ana and Cornel shared that they found work rather quickly.
In addition to Toma and Nguyen, the series will include Mesa Community College economics professor Sylwia Cavalcant, who fled Poland’s communism.
Freedom Center Director Mary Rigdon said that the series would serve to advise students of the realities of communism.
“The mini-documentaries powerfully demonstrate our commitment to inform current and future generations, consistent with the Center’s mission to be an intellectually diverse, inclusive, and nonpartisan resource for leaders and students seeking to address society’s significant challenges. We appreciate the opportunity to highlight the power of freedom in a democratic society,” said Rigdon.
On Wednesday, the Arizona Senate passed HB2008, which reforms the state’s high school learning standards to cast a positive light on America’s founding principles while exploring the dangers of other governing ideologies. The bill now heads to the House for review before submission to Governor Doug Ducey for final approval.
Under the bill, the State Board of Education (SBE) must update high school social studies standards to incorporate a comparative discussion of political ideologies. Communism and totalitarianism will be juxtaposed with American ideology, such as its founding principles of freedom and democracy.
“The academic standards prescribed by the state board in social studies shall include personal finance, American civics education, and a comparative discussion of political ideologies, such as communism and totalitarianism, that conflict with the principles of freedom and democracy that are essential to the founding principles of the United States,” states the bill. (emphasis added to reflect the new legislative language)
Specifically, HB2008 requires the learning standards to rely on source texts, oral histories from victims of ideologies like communism and totalitarianism. The SBE would develop resources from the Arizona State University (ASU) School of Civic and Economic Thought and Leadership, the University of Arizona (UArizona) Center for Philosophy of Freedom, and the Sandra Day O’Connor Institute for American Democracy.
The SBE would have until this New Year’s Eve to establish a list of “portraits in patriotism” oral history resources supplementing the civic education and social studies standards.
The bill almost didn’t make it out of the Senate. It failed just the day before, on Tuesday, when Majority Leader Rick Gray (R-Sun City) joined Senate Democrats in opposing it since State Senators Kelly Townsend (R-Mesa) and Michelle Ugenti-Rita (R-Scottsdale) weren’t able to vote. However, all Republican senators offered unified support for the bill the next day.
HB2008 passed in the House along party lines, with unanimous opposition from Democrats and unanimous support from Republicans.
Democrats have pushed back against efforts to portray communism in a negative light. Some, like State Representative and congressional candidate Daniel Hernandez (D-Tucson), have argued that ideologies like white nationalism pose a bigger threat than communism.
HB2008’s sponsor, State Representative Quang Nguyen (R-Prescott Valley), was a victim of communism himself. At 12 years old, Nguyen fled from the Communist Party of Vietnam a week before the Fall of Saigon in April 1975.
HB2008 was Nguyen making good on his promise late last year to ensure students learn about the evils of what he and others, such as House Majority Leader Ben Toma (R-Peoria), had suffered. Toma was nine years old when he emigrated from Romania in the 1980s, ruled at the time by communist dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
