Paint a Bulls-Eye on This Tucson School

by David Safier I hope I’m wrong. But I fear I’m not. Of the four schools slated for closure, the most likely to be shut is Ochoa Elementary. When I read the Thursday op ed in The Star, Closing Ochoa would hurt families, I thought, I’ve been through this movie before. Here’s the basic plot. … Read more

RenziGate Roundup 3/13

I wonder why a guy who has 35 counts against him has no travel restrictions in the terms of his release and doesn’t need to report to pretrial services, while aguy who has only a less-serious subset of those same charges pending against him cannot travel outside of Texas or Arizona without permission from the … Read more

Cut School Sports Programs, Part 2

by David Safier Yesterday I suggested we could save 4 Tucson elementary schools as well as a handful of librarians and counselors by cutting the after school sports programs. I admit, I have no figures telling me how much the sports programs cost Tucson Schools, but I imagine if you tallied the obvious as well … Read more

Librarians Getting the Ax in Arizona

by David Safier From today’s Citizen: Many Arizona school districts are shedding librarians and cutting their hours. Sigh. The No Child Left Behind Act also has not been kind to librarians. It has emphasized scientific-based, scripted reading programs based on drills, said Ann Dutton Ewbank, an Arizona State University librarian. It has devalued and left … Read more