by Matthew Holloway | Jun 23, 2025 | Education, News
By Matthew Holloway |
A new report from the Common Sense Institute (CSI) Arizona has shed light on the growing trend of homeschooling and the associated costs nationwide, using Utah as an example and revealing both the financial burden and opportunities for families opting out of in-person public education. The in-depth study, released Wednesday, explores the economic and educational landscape of home-based learning, particularly in light of Utah’s innovative Utah Fits All (UFA) scholarship program, a similar but far more limited program than Arizona’s Empowerment Scholarship Accounts (ESA).
According to the CSI report, nearly 30,000 Utah students applied for 10,000 UFA scholarships in 2024, with an estimated 80% of recipients using the funds for homeschooling. These $8,000-per-student scholarships have expanded access to educational resources, enabling families to afford formal programs, online classes, tutoring, and specialized instruction. Although a fraction of the Arizona ESA program’s more than 86,000 students, Utah’s UFA presents a reasonable sample size.
One Utah parent, homeschooling seven children, told CSI Arizona that the UFA scholarship allowed their youngest child to access structured online courses, a resource unavailable to their older siblings.
“Nearly all respondents who shared feedback cited UFA as enabling greater ‘access to opportunities,’” the report states, highlighting the program’s role in addressing parental demand for a greater diversity of educational options.
The report estimates homeschooling costs in Utah range widely, from $700 to $70,000 annually, depending on the services and resources families choose. Unlike traditional schools, homeschooling families are frequently left to absorb significant expenses, such as curriculum materials and facility costs, which are not covered by public funding outside of programs like UFA.
Homeschooling’s rise in Utah and Arizona both mirror national trends, with the report citing an increase to as much as 11% of U.S. students being homeschooled since 2020. In Utah, public school enrollment has declined by 0.3% since its 2021 peak, with district schools losing over 6,000 students between 2021 and 2024, largely driven by smaller kindergarten classes. A similar phenomenon was observed in Arizona by CSI. Meanwhile, charter school enrollment also grew by 1,500 students over the same period. The report seems to reinforce CSI’s earlier observations that dissatisfaction with traditional school environments or curricula is a key driver of homeschooling demand, predating the introduction of UFA and the Arizona ESA.
Despite Utah’s $10.2 billion investment in public education, only about $1 billion supports charter schools, and homeschooling families have historically relied heavily on personal funds to get by, putting added stress on families already suffering under inflation. The UFA program, launched in 2024, created a significant shift, offering financial relief and flexibility to homeschooling parents.
Programs such as UFA in Utah and ESA in Arizona are responding to growing parental demand for tailored learning experiences, and as homeschooling continues to expand, the study calls for greater transparency in tracking participation and costs to better tailor it and programs like it to the evolving needs of homeschooling students.
CSI Arizona concluded, “Over the past five years, the K-12 landscape in the United States has changed dramatically. Today, there are fewer kids in America’s traditional public schools than before the pandemic, and far more children are being homeschooled.
“At the same time, the nature and cost of homeschooling has changed as it has grown. Today’s homeschoolers often started out either enrolled in or considering the traditional school system, and are looking for a rigorous educational experience that includes diverse and formalized coursework, curriculum, and standards. Providing that is costly – comparable in costs to other traditional schools, or even more expensive per-pupil once all costs (direct and hidden) are accounted for.”
CSI added that state policymakers “should carefully consider the consequences of policies that continue treating students differently based on where they go to school – especially if those differences are based on assumptions that underestimate the cost of non-traditional options.”
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 Jonathan Eberle | Jun 16, 2025 | News
By Jonathan Eberle |
The Arizona House of Representatives passed a structurally balanced, conservative budget on Thursday, advancing a financial plan that focuses on strengthening public safety, reducing costs for families, and increasing government accountability.
Speaker Steve Montenegro (R-LD29) called the budget a reflection of voter priorities. “This budget delivers safe communities, strong families, and a government that works for the people — not the other way around,” he said. “It cuts tuition, raises pay for law enforcement, fixes critical roads, and reins in waste — all without raising taxes.”
Key components of the budget include a 5% pay raise for Department of Public Safety and corrections officers, $94 million for repairs to major highway infrastructure, and a 2.5% in-state university tuition reduction alongside a freeze for the subsequent two years. The budget also fully funds school choice programs and clears a backlog of Empowerment Scholarship Account applications.
Additional funding is designated to keep voter rolls accurate and up to date, fully fund payments for parents acting as caregivers, and provide developmental disability services. An expanded adoption tax deduction is also included.
“The House-passed budget puts the House Majority Plan into action,” Majority Leader Michael Carbone said. “We’re protecting opportunity by lowering costs for students and parents. We’re backing public safety with strong support for our law enforcement officers. And we’re holding government accountable by cutting waste and demanding better results — this is the kind of leadership Arizona voters asked for.”
Speaker Pro Tempore Neal Carter stressed the budget’s potential for boosting small business. “The House-passed budget gives long-overdue relief to Arizona’s small businesses by eliminating the administratively burdensome business personal property tax under the $500,000 threshold,” Carter said. “This helps local job creators grow, hire, and invest in their communities — and makes Arizona a more competitive place to do business.”
The budget package — HB2945 through HB2961 — now moves to the Senate for consideration.
Jonathan Eberle is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Tamra Farah | Jun 10, 2025 | Opinion
By Tamra Farah |
Arizona State Treasurer Kimberly Yee (51) has announced her candidacy for Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction, challenging incumbent Tom Horne (80) in the 2026 primary election. Both candidates are Republicans. Both are statewide elected officials. Yee is term-limited as Arizona Treasurer. Voters will decide which candidate is best equipped to lead the Arizona Department of Education (ADE) and address the state’s K-12 educational challenges. Here are some notes on the job itself and the candidate’s positions.
The Role of the Superintendent
It is a big job. The superintendent oversees the ADE, manages education policy, administers state and federal funds, and ensures compliance with standards for approximately 1.1 million students across more than 200 districts, 400 charter school holders, and over 550 charter school campuses. The primary responsibilities fall into three categories: choice, policies, and academics.
The Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) is the banner issue on choice. Current policy issues include merit-based programs such as school report cards and cultural hot buttons such as Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI). Academics consist of all scholastic initiatives. The role demands collaboration with the State Board of Education, engagement with parents and administrators, and a focus on student well-being, school safety, and parental choice.
CHOICE: Empowerment Scholarship Accounts
Educational choice has long been an Arizona value. In fact, the Arizona legislature expanded the ESA program in 2022 to include all Arizona K-12 students. It has grown during Horne’s term, from 12,000 to approximately 85,000 students between January 2023 and mid-2024, or from 1.1% to 7.7% of Arizona’s 1.1 million K-12 students. However, the program faces scrutiny. A 2024 Heritage Foundation survey reported that 65% of parents struggle to contact ADE staff, and 63% have difficulty getting answers about ESA issues.
The survey revealed that nearly half (49%) of the respondents in the Heritage Foundation’s December 2024 survey experienced curriculum request denials due to insufficient curriculum documentation, attributed to Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes’ (Democrat) July 2024 directive requiring ESA purchases to be tied to a specific curriculum. Superintendent Tom Horne criticized these requirements, stating, “We are supporting the Goldwater Institute in challenging it in court, and we’re hoping to get that overturned so that we won’t have that silly rule anymore,” referring to the September 2024 lawsuit (Aguirre v. State of Arizona), which argues that Mayes’ restrictions violate state law and the ESA handbook, which does not mandate such documentation for supplementary materials. Horne is not a plaintiff in the case.
In general, the poll found that 66% of ESA parents indicated dissatisfaction with the department’s “program administration” and found it cumbersome or difficult to tap into the benefits of the ESA. For example, reimbursement delays were frustrating parents and, in some cases, caused economic hardship. The 2023 transition from debit cards to ClassWallet and staffing shortages led to manual review backlogs. The Heritage survey found that 88% of respondents said they would prefer access to a debit card to make purchases using their child’s ESA funds rather than ClassWallet’s online payment system, or to pay out of pocket and submit a claim for reimbursement. In addition, 77% of parents experienced long wait times for approvals, and 86% for reimbursements.
In my interview with Horne, he addressed these issues, stating, “The complaint related to delays in reimbursements is valid, and I took it very seriously. Most of the requests are under $2,000. Requests over $2,000 get checked out before they’re paid. Requests under $2,000 are paid without checking them out, subject to later risk auditing. In addition, our parent user group sets amounts for specific requests that would be approved without question. Those two things solved the problem. The amounts have become controversial. The parent user group are fearful that if we lose, those delays will occur again.” I asked Horne how many or what percentage of the parent user group might allegedly fear delays under a new superintendent. His assertion, without data to back it up, is questionable.
In my interview with Yee, she positions herself as a longtime supporter of school choice, including as an Arizona State Senator. She states that she understands the intent of the ESA to provide parents with an easy-to-use mechanism for choosing the best education for their kids, explaining, “As a former member of the Arizona legislature, I sponsored and supported the Empowerment Scholarship Accounts to expand the school choice options for families in Arizona. Arizona has long been a national leader in parental rights and giving families various options for school choice that best fits their child’s unique educational needs.”
Yee added, “As the future superintendent and a longtime school choice advocate with a proven conservative track record, I will protect and preserve school choice in Arizona and ensure the ESA program is run efficiently and effectively and will work with the legislature to provide fiscal accountability at all levels of our education system that the taxpayers deserve.”
Yee believes that Horne has created unnecessary burdens for ESA families, stating, “Empowerment Scholarship Accounts were created by the legislature, and it is important that the functions of administering ESAs are strictly and only determined by the law—not by a rogue superintendent who continues to overreach his authority by creating arbitrary policies out of the Department of Education by unelected bureaucrats.”
POLICIES: Addressing DEI
Though policies include teacher certification, school safety programs, and a host of compliance issues, the hot button issue is DEI. Both candidates have addressed DEI policies in schools, particularly considering the federal mandate under President Trump requiring districts to eliminate DEI practices or risk losing funding. Horne said, “I’m working very hard to implement President Trump’s education action. I’ve told the schools if they don’t sign a statement that they’re not doing DEI, their funds will be cut off.”
Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes publicly opposed Horne’s enforcement of the Trump administration’s April 3, 2025, U.S. Department of Education mandate requiring schools to eliminate DEI programs or risk losing approximately 11% of federal funding. Mayes argues that Trump lacks legal authority to withhold funds, as stated in her April 17, 2025, response to the Kyrene School District case. The mandate, rooted in a directive, cites Title VI, and the 2023 Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard ruling was blocked by federal judges, supporting Horne’s reference here to a district court ruling: “I’m very satisfied as a former attorney general that [it] will be [confirmed] overall on appeal and while other superintendents in other states have objected to it, I have enthusiastically supported President Trump’s program.”
Horne relies on a parent hotline for DEI compliance monitoring, explaining, “I have a hotline that parents can contact me and let me know when schools that said they weren’t doing DEI are doing DEI. It’s not a formal follow-up or proof they’ve done it. It’s just random parents who may or may not call the hotline…and we do report when we get a message on the hotline; we report to the federal government so that they can take it into account and cut funds.” When later asked, Horne said the hotline call data indicated “572 [districts and charter schools] have signed and 23 have refused. Some of those who have signed are probably not honest about it, so we’ll be watching for that.”
Asking Yee what she would do as it relates to DEI, she highlighted her efforts against DEI as State Treasurer, stating, “I have a solid record on fighting back against radical DEI policies as the State Treasurer of Arizona. This legislative session, my office moved forward an anti-DEI bill in the legislature to ensure that DEI is not used in the hiring, promotion, or training of state employees in Arizona agencies. As the head of the Arizona Treasury, I hire based on a person’s individual skills, experience, and merit.” She pledged effective action as superintendent, adding, “I support President Trump’s requirement to remove federal funding from schools that continue to promote DEI in school administration and inside the classroom. As superintendent, my administration will not only clean up woke DEI policies from day one, but we will ensure funding is removed immediately from any schools that ignore this federal mandate because we must get back to the basics of focusing on reading, math, and student success in our classrooms.”
ACADEMICS: Scholastic Proficiency
Arizona has not performed with distinction academically since its public school systems were included in the National Rankings. Under Horne, academic proficiency has not improved; rather, it declined. According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), Arizona’s 4th-grade reading scores dropped from 215 (Basic) in 2022 to 208 in 2024, below the national average of 214 (a proficient score is 238). Data for 2023-2024 is not yet available on the ADE website, but further details can be found at nationsreportcard.gov.
Horne outlined his efforts, stating, “I have 15 initiatives [to help] the schools improve academic results. I’m personally involved in every one of those 15, so I’m quite busy, and I’ll give you a couple of examples. We have solutions teams to go out to the schools; these are highly qualified teachers and principals who go out to schools to help them.” He highlighted a program targeting the bottom 5% of schools, noting, “One of the projects they made was the bottom 5% of schools—90 some schools—and after they worked with them, 70% of those schools are no longer in the bottom 90% and that demonstrated in part that poor kids can learn as well as rich kids as long as they are properly taught. We adopted a school in a very poor area, and we sent people out every week from my department to work on fifth grade…showing the teachers how to teach them and doing some teaching themselves, and we increased their math courses by 27%.” Horne was unsure if the information he provided related to his “15 initiatives” is available for stakeholders to review on the ADE website, and at this writing, it cannot be confirmed through a search of other available sources.
Yee focused on foundational skills, drawing on her experience, saying, “My policy background in education began in the 1990s, where I helped develop academic content standards in reading and mathematics. It was important, even back then, to fight the woke educators who wanted to teach whole language reading with pictures only, because they thought that phonics would be too emotionally challenging for these young children. The result was illiterate children who were inappropriately being moved onto the next grade level, struggling with severe achievement issues because they never received basic, traditional skills in the classroom. We need to get back to the basics of reading and math in order for children to succeed.”
Candidates for Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction
Yee’s and Horne’s campaign websites and other public sources provide background information about past experiences related to offices held and department leadership.
As Treasurer of Arizona since 2018, Kimberly Yee has increased total investment earnings to over $4.5 billion. She led the Treasury’s historic, record-high performance for earnings under the state land endowment, distributing over $2.43 billion to Arizona schools. In 2022, she was elected to her second term as State Treasurer of Arizona, garnering more votes than any other statewide elected official.
Bringing years of experience to public budgeting and executive agency management, Yee is a longtime financial education advocate and sponsored legislation to add financial literacy to the K-12 academic standards in schools. She has been the administrator of the statewide AZ529 Education Savings Plan for higher education since October 2020. In just 54 months, Arizona 529 accounts have increased by 54,178 new accounts, with $2.46 billion in assets under management, helping families save for higher education and workforce development.
In her early career, Yee focused on public policy in K-12 and higher education, emphasizing school choice as a senior research analyst for the Arizona Senate Education Committee. Also in the 1990s, she helped draft laws expanding open enrollment, charter schools, and homeschool protections. During two gubernatorial appointments under Republican governors, she worked on childcare, K-12 academic standards, and vocational education for career and college readiness. Elected to the Arizona Legislature in 2010, she was unanimously chosen as Senate Majority Leader, the second woman in that role after Sandra Day O’Connor. Congressional Quarterly’s Roll Call recognized her as one of the “25 Most Influential Women in State Politics.”
As the former Chairwoman of the Arizona Senate Education Committee, Yee sponsored legislation recognizing traditional district and charter schools and expanded eligibility for Arizona Empowerment Scholarship Accounts, particularly for low-income students. She has also earned numerous awards and recognitions, including as the recipient of the Friend of the Taxpayer Award, the Friend of the Family Award, the Golden Apple Award, and multiple School Choice Champion Awards. She was honored as one of the 48 Most Intriguing Women in Arizona in a book sponsored by the Arizona Centennial Legacy Project.
Tom Horne first served as Arizona’s Superintendent of Public Instruction from 2003 to 2011 and was re-elected in 2022. As Superintendent, he implemented Structured English Immersion, increasing English proficiency rates for English Language Learners from 4% to 31% in one year, stating, “At 31% in one year, within three or four years everyone becomes proficient.” Historical reports from Horne’s earlier tenure support similar improvements. No specific 2023–2025 ADE data confirms this exact figure. Horne states he was a key advocate for banning ethnic studies through Senate Bill 1069 (2010), arguing that public schools should “develop the student’s identity as Americans and as strong individuals” rather than “promote ethnic chauvinism.”
Horne implemented social studies standards annually, ensuring students “learn lessons in five areas, including American history, world history, geography, civics and government, and economics” from kindergarten through high school. Horne replaced bilingual education with Structured English Immersion, increasing English proficiency rates for English Language Learners from 4% to 31% in one year. He also worked with the State Board to require reading proficiency before third graders advance to fourth grade.
Horne’s campaign website currently refers to “appointing Christine Accurso to manage ‘educational choice to help shape and mold the futures of their precious children.’” However, Mrs. Accurso resigned from her position directing ESAs after seven months in 2023. Strangely, Horne’s campaign website has not been updated. Horne’s site also emphasizes accountability, which appears to be lacking in his performance, stating, “There are two kinds of accountability. There’s academic accountability; you want to see results for putting in more resources. And then there’s financial accountability; the money goes toward teachers’ salaries rather than administration because a school can be no better than the teachers in the classroom.”
Horne served on a school district board for 24 years and served as Arizona Attorney General from 2011 to 2015. During a campaign finance investigation in March 2012, the FBI observed a hit-and-run in a Phoenix parking garage. The FBI concluded Horne left the scene to hide an affair with Carmen Chenal, a subordinate earning $108,000 as an assistant attorney general. Horne was not criminally charged.
In his reeletion bid in 2014, Horne lost to Mark Brnovich in the Repbulican primary for Arizona Attorney General. Brnovich’s campaign highlighted ethical issues and scandals surrounding Horne, including the FBI investigation into alleged campaign finance violations from Horne’s 2010 campaign and the extramarital affair. Brnovich also brought attention to a whistleblower claim by former staffer Sarah Beattie that Horne used his Attorney General’s office staff for campaign work, violating state law.
Horne’s legal background includes graduating magna cum laude from Harvard College and with honors from Harvard Law School and serving as a Special Assistant Attorney General and Judge Pro-Tem.
Looking Ahead for the Arizona Department of Education
The 2026 primary election for Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction, set for Tuesday, August 4, followed by the general election on November 3, will shape the future of the state’s education system.
As our state looks forward to the 2026 election, Arizonans should carefully research each candidate. If the ESA program can be administered effectively and efficiently, more families will likely benefit from it. It would be wise to ensure that the next superintendent can operate in a fiscally responsible manner while prioritizing improvements in student academic achievement. Arizona’s 1.1 million students and the state’s future deserve strong leadership at the Department of Education.
Tamra Farah leads AmericanStrategies.org, bringing twenty years of experience in public policy and politics as a journalist while focusing on protecting individual liberty and promoting limited government. She has engaged with ten local, state, and federal candidates and organizations, such as Americans for Prosperity, FreedomWorks, Moms for America, and Arizona Women of Action. Farah frequently appears on conservative radio, television, and in print media.
by Staff Reporter | May 30, 2025 | Education, News
By Staff Reporter |
Continued Republican infighting over the state of school choice in Arizona has resulted in another candidate entering the 2026 race for superintendent of public instruction. The friction concerns to what extent the superintendent should restrict the reimbursement of school choice funds.
Arizona Treasurer Kimberly Yee formally announced her campaign on Wednesday with the Arizona Freedom Caucus. The caucus founder, Sen. Jake Hoffman, endorsed Yee at a press conference outside the state capitol. Hoffman believes the current superintendent, Tom Horne, limits school choice disbursements too much.
Hoffman justified Yee’s selection by alluding to “challenges” with the Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) Program, and reported “frustrations” experienced by parents navigating the program.
“We have identified an absolute all-star candidate; we have identified someone who has a proven track record uniting the Republican Party and winning elections at every level of government,” said Hoffman. “[Horne] is a better politician than he is a public servant.”
Yee said she would better partner with parents through a “student-first” system and pledged to create “a vocational pathway” for future leaders in the workforce. Yee also promised to strengthen school choice options for parents.
Yee accused Horne of committing “big government overreach” and “petty political games” in his administration of the office.
“We need a chief education officer in Arizona committed to delivering real, tangible results for Arizona children and families. Sadly, and for far too long, the leadership at the Arizona Department of Education has missed the mark, and our children and teachers are paying the price,” said Yee.
Yee avoided answering whether she would put limits on permitted ESA Program spending. She insisted current legislative “guardrails” sufficiently prevent inappropriate expenditures.
Hoffman announced his intent last month to replace Horne next year, claiming the superintendent hadn’t sufficiently protected the ESA Program from efforts to undermine it by Governor Katie Hobbs and Attorney General Kris Mayes. A significant source of contention is the extent to which the superintendent’s office has denied reimbursement requests.
Horne has put the kibosh on significant reimbursement requests fought to be secured by parents in the program. Of late, his office says he has prevented the approval of a $16,000 cello; a $5,000 Rolex watch; a $24,000 golf simulator; $64,000 for nail art and crystals; a $2,300 freeze dryer; $1,500 for 250 cubic feet of potting soil; and $65,000 for 100 laptops, computers, and tablets for a family with six children.
In the case of the cello, 12 News reported the family — identified as living in “an upscale Gilbert neighborhood — received $11,000 in ESA funds for a piano, commercial KitchenAid mixer, private fitness lessons, a kayak, and Chinese calligraphy and painting lessons. After receiving their reimbursements, the family put their child in a public school.
Horne has consistently doubled down on his position as “the main defender” of the ESA Program, citing his work as a lawmaker on the earliest forms of school choice conceived in the 1990s. The superintendent publicly challenged Hoffman to debate him on the matter.
“I brought school choice to Arizona in the 90s with my legislation. I’ve fought to protect school choice from a liberal Governor and Attorney General for the past two years,” said Horne. “I’m the only statewide candidate to beat an incumbent in the General Election in over 50 years. Let me know when and where you’d like to debate education policy.”
Yee’s platform focuses only on fiscal responsibility within the superintendent’s office. Contrary to Hoffman’s indication that the Arizona Freedom Caucus’s chosen candidate would lead their campaign with the ESA Program, there is no mention of school choice on her campaign website as of this report.
By comparison, Horne’s platform appears to be significantly more fleshed out with plans addressing the different areas of state education.
Yee previously considered running for governor in the crowded 2022 race that ultimately ended with the seat flipping from Republican to Democratic control.
Aside from Horne and Yee, the only other registered Republican to file a statement of interest in the race is Stephen Neal Jr., a school psychologist formerly with Legacy Traditional Schools.
Five Democratic candidates have also filed statements of interest: Michael Butts, a member of the Roosevelt Elementary School District governing board; Sam Huang, former member of the Chandler City Council and 2022 state legislative candidate; Joshua Levinski, an English teacher; Bret Newby, an associate professor with National University; and Teresa Ruiz, the former president of Glendale Community College.
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