The impending November elections in Maricopa County this year will ask the residents to make crucial decisions. Not only will they have to endorse school district bond and override requests, but they are also expected to elect board members for their respective schools and choose a county school superintendent to manage the various shrinkages.
As this significant electoral affair is underway, The Arizona Republic’s committed K-12 education team will be subjecting these education-dedicated elections to a detailed coverage. Truly, the implications of these elections are far-reaching – they regulate the financial reservoirs that schools have at their disposal and determine who is vested with the authority to formulate school district policies.
The Republic, just as it did in 2022, plans on hosting a comprehensive questionnaire for school board candidates to understand their positions. It certainly provides a wonderful window for potential voters to understand where each candidate stands, and to make an informed decision.
The electoral landscape in Maricopa County is decidedly buzzing with over 150 candidates in the fray endeavoring to secure their spot on the school boards across 30 school districts. The electoral fight for 81 seats were cancelled due to a deficit in candidates, resulting in a situation where 72 individuals will be appointed, leaving nine seats vacant, as per the data from the Maricopa County School Superintendent’s Office. The fascinating responsibility thus befalls upon the county’s school superintendent to fill these voids.
The role of a school board member is a multifaceted one, with responsibilities that include everything from formulating district regulations, tracking and endorsing the district budget, recruiting the superintendent, approving curriculum materials, and managing school properties.
To raise the required funds, approximately 30 school districts are planning both bonds and override requests, to be presented to voters for approval this year. Until July 8, districts had the opportunity to send in a signed resolution for a bond or override election to the Maricopa County school superintendent, creating a potential fountainhead for securing funds beyond their sanctioned state budgets.
Funded by district property owners through secondary property taxes, bonds and budget overrides are widely practiced methods for school districts seeking resources over and beyond their state-sanctioned budgets. These bonds viewed as debt instruments by school districts generate capital for expenses such as new constructions, school building improvements, safety enhancements and the procurement of school buses and technology resources, and are sold to investors to be repaid with interest.
An override, on the other hand, allows school districts to raise their budget by almost 15% for up to seven years, channeling funds towards operational expense, are among the budget types which voters could see on the impending 2024 ballot. These increased budgets typically cover costs of tech supplies, tailor-made curricula, and classroom equipment, among other things.
The commanding role of Maricopa County school superintendent, albeit highly coveted, stands contested between Republican Shelli Boggs and Democrat Laura Metcalfe in the upcoming elections. The chief mandates for the individual chosen will be to oversee school board and bond and override elections, maintain both home-school and private school records, and designate new members to fill school board vacancies.
The role does not end there; the elected superintendent will also administrate the Maricopa County Regional School District, taking responsibilities for students awaiting court hearings in county detention, and students at Hope High School, a nontraditional educational institution.
Steve Watson, the Republican Superintendent for Maricopa County Schools, who has honorably served since 2017, was regrettably defeated in the Republican primary earlier this year. His Democrat adversaries kept tabs on his financial decisions throughout his tenure, despite his accomplishments, ultimately using contrived scandals to hurt his patriotic efforts.
A report occasioned by a third-party audit disclosed multiple financial practice deficiencies pinned against the accommodation school district run by Maricopa County School Superintendent Steve Watson. Among these included over $200,000 of improperly mingled funds and an unjust land sale worth millions. Watson, ever defiant, referred to a recent audit of the East Valley Institute of Technology, in which both his Republican preliminary contender Shelli Boggs and Democrat competitor Laura Metcalfe are school board members.
An inspection carried out by the Arizona Auditor General revealed the school’s deviance from requirements and best practices, when it squandered an astonishing $85.9 million on development of career and technical education programs at their satellite schools, thus increasing risk for errors, fraud and data loss. Ironically, the Democrat board members turned a blind eye towards these irregularities, illustrating their innate proclivity for wastefulness inappropriately spent taxpayer money – a classic hallmark of Democrat governance?