[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6370252,"mediaKeyId","2151912-737b6d1db4e3a1499142a24cd52a97e8","parentId",2151912,"title","Lawmakers hear college reports on Arizona Teachers Academy; committee advances bill to let private universities receive ATA funds","audioSeconds",3154,"startMs",4264000,"endMs",7418000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2151912-737b6d1db4e3a1499142a24cd52a97e8&start=4264&end=7418","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2151912-737b6d1db4e3a1499142a24cd52a97e8/thumbnail_4264000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6370252/Arizona/Lawmakers-hear-college-reports-on-Arizona-Teachers-Academy-committee-advances-bill-to-let-private-universities-receive-ATA-funds","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6370252-fa1a7c15751600c763e5be3233901535/orig.mp4?Expires=1777174362&Signature=kPooUZfZqmfdR~vzGRebPvZYVCFVAPzPyGiB0tXKLhEIO1DqNeiWhVtImmlZ~dWSmJYt3UfbLp9BT7hKS5kTsoMarjE2uNljN03kJBdTzVxA7RXeEjdT-YYp0Voom9sN3nhajKP-xpx3u4EaiFI51~DKHqE0aS6UQ~x7PYVVfjuTO1y5911ki14ORz80f~Dby9-loVheuoyisixFsMjZmu4elaXssQUXsM0OGdDR5DEg4f8stXTCfDo~Fv1DX4NnMPcjUJghcv8ooqbUnsTAHhNUy~Dh1viZIXnCISjzP9dA5lMbGnrbKU4-dds-0oLMHNcApc-xzsxu0kfZ51Xl6w__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Arizona State Legislature","date","2025-01-21T00:00:00Z","article","Arizona’s teacher pipeline and the Arizona Teachers Academy dominated a long committee segment on Jan. 17, as the Arizona Board of Regents, public institutions and private providers described program enrollment and funding and the committee advanced a bill to let private postsecondary institutions participate.

Brad Kendricks, vice president for finance, strategy and governance at the Arizona Board of Regents, told the House Education Committee that the Arizona Teachers Academy (ATA) is a “last-dollar scholarship” program that supports students in teacher-preparation pathways. He said the program enrolled roughly 33,100 students in fiscal year 2024 and that funding fluctuates year to year; ATA funds rolled over if unexpended and were appropriated at $15 million in prior years and temporarily increased to $30 million in FY24 before settling back to about $16 million. “These are last dollar scholarships,” Kendricks said, explaining that universities work with students to layer ATA awards on top of other aid.

Representatives from Maricopa Community Colleges, Pima, NAU, ASU, the University of Arizona and Grand Canyon University described pathways, grow-your-own programs, dual-enrollment support and an emphasis on special-education training in high-need areas. NAU said ATA-supported graduates are disproportionately placed in Title I schools and that about 82% of ATA recipients intended to remain teachers after their service obligation.

Committee members then considered House Bill 2018, which would allow eligible private postsecondary institutions offering post-baccalaureate teacher-preparation programs to receive ATA funds. The bill would cap ATA scholarship reimbursements for private institutions “to the remainder of the average in-state tuition and fees charged by Arizona public universities, minus other gifts and aid awarded to the student,” and it would appropriate $10 million from the state general fund for FY2026 to the ATA fund.

Supporters, including Grand Canyon University’s Dean Meredith Critchfield, said private institutions already supply a large share of Arizona teachers; GCU’s presentation noted a high retention rate of alumni in Arizona public schools. “GCU graduates are more confident in their first year,” Critchfield told the committee during public comment, relaying favorable district feedback.

Opponents, including the Arizona Students Association’s Shana Stevens, urged lawmakers to prioritize existing public-university wait lists before extending ATA funds to private universities. Stevens said public funds should first be directed to public institutions, noting public universities reported wait lists for ATA funding and arguing the state should fill those lists first.

The committee adopted amendments and returned HB2018 with a due-pass recommendation. The bill’s sponsor told the committee the $10 million appropriation would be sufficient to address current public-university wait lists while opening the program to private colleges; the bill requires private institutions that participate to cover any difference above the capped ATA reimbursement so students are not charged the remainder.

Why it matters: The Arizona Teachers Academy is the state’s primary tool for subsidizing teacher preparation. Expanding eligibility to private institutions would broaden the pipeline but also raises questions about how to allocate limited public funds and whether priority should go to public institutions that report waiting lists.

What’s next: HB2018 was advanced by the committee with a due-pass recommendation and will proceed through the legislative process. Committee members requested additional data on program budgets and projected fiscal impacts to public and private participants.

","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","01/21/2025 - House Education","oneSentenceSummary","Brad Kendricks of the Arizona Board of Regents and representatives from public and private teacher-preparation programs told the House Education Committee about enrollment, pathways and funding for the Arizona Teachers Academy; the committee advanced House Bill 2018 to allow eligible private postsecondary institutions to participate.","taxTitle","2025 Legislature Arizona, Arizona","taxId",78572,"location","Arizona","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6370257,"Arizona superintendent presents 15-point plan, urges more school resource officers and higher teacher pay",1490,115000,1605000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2151912-737b6d1db4e3a1499142a24cd52a97e8&start=115&end=1605","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2151912-737b6d1db4e3a1499142a24cd52a97e8/thumbnail_115000.jpg","/articles/6370257/Arizona/Arizona-superintendent-presents-15-point-plan-urges-more-school-resource-officers-and-higher-teacher-pay","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6370257-64119f14602474f89f6991342cedeaaa/orig.mp4?Expires=1777174362&Signature=kaURP7uQCgaeqLqo51in~cF2pmaME9MZUvb7NhgcEvftNOrQLkHpm907YyliJY69RFFTYjXje~2iM9Da9YtuX~1jZVV0eHbiPBWv38WezOSLry6NKxlw~ixI13-2SsROIpzg7s3MLy5DXsKnfVGCVrPsApYI9F54uk1Hr65gOh4jgM7nmEasj9Krd2opxu3sUDfJ4EBuezR-HPaCmxU7~yaEmiJAKDG7Z0UXMQ~9whqtSrA6JucIC7YlpxFdPhBSWwphNYS-kWPiltn99XQuv~kK3aVNobrbw7zSWJkA4jmnAMf39KDldLPeHBoemTYSgNm4or5qcamJ5QMrf8p62A__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Tom Horne, Arizona superintendent of public instruction, told the House Education Committee on Jan. 17 that his Department of Education is pursuing 15 initiatives to raise academic achievement and urged the Legislature to fund more school resource officers and higher teacher pay.

Horne opened his “state of the state for education” presentation by describing a recent school incident in Tucson in which a newly hired school safety officer arrested an adult who had a firearm and a knife. “Think of the unimaginable tragedy that would have occurred if that school resource officer had not been there,” Horne said, adding that the officer had been on the job only two weeks and was paid with newly available funds. He said the event illustrated the “crucial importance of expanding the school safety program.”

The superintendent summarized the department’s 15 initiatives, emphasizing two he called especially urgent: recruitment and retention of teachers, and safety. On teacher pay he said lawmakers should renew Proposition 123 and increase distributions from the state land trust and deliver money “directly to the teachers and not through the districts.” He described a prior episode when raises were routed through districts and teachers did not receive the full increase.

Horne linked teacher staffing shortfalls to discipline and workplace conditions in classrooms. “If they see one kid get away with things, they all start getting away with things,” he said, arguing that administrators must back teachers on discipline to prevent classrooms from becoming “anarchic.”

On academic interventions, Horne said the department used approximately $40 million in federal funds to provide free tutoring; he told lawmakers the funding ran out sooner than expected because the federal rules forced some tutoring onto private vendors that charged more than schools. “The federal government set a deadline … after that deadline, we could no longer have the schools do it. It had to be through private companies,” Horne said, explaining why the program ended abruptly for some families.

Horne described an experimental tutoring result and an investment in a Khan Academy program the department calls Conmigo — an artificial-intelligence tutoring tool. He said the department paid $1.5 million to cover the first 100,000 students and estimated that subsequent access could cost about $25 per student per year. “It does not substitute for teachers. It helps them,” he said, describing the tool as a scalable supplement to one-on-one tutoring.

On standards and English-language instruction, Horne urged strict enforcement of the state’s structured English immersion requirement passed by voter initiative in 2000, and said data show immersion outperformed bilingual approaches in measures including proficiency and later income. He also urged restoration of a graduation testing requirement and said Senator Kavanaugh had introduced a bill to require students to pass a high-school test or be certified in career-technical education before graduating.

During question time, members pressed Horne on the tutoring cutoff and the department’s planning. Representative Symechak relayed a constituent who said her child lost access to a tutoring vendor and that families were not warned. Horne said the short notice was caused by federal deadlines and higher private vendor costs and repeated that the department had reallocated $40 million that had been reclaimed from ineffective prior programs.

Horne also reported progress on other initiatives: improving low-performing schools through targeted “improvement teams,” leadership training that the department says has trained about 2,900 principals and leaders, an expanded career-technical education effort aligned with employers through the Arizona Education Economic Commission, and reductions in paperwork—from a 168-question needs assessment down to 20 questions, he said.

Members asked for more detail on teacher preparation coursework the superintendent said he had reviewed with the Board of Regents and on the department’s plans to measure results. Horne agreed to provide a report he said he prepared for the Board of Regents listing teacher-prep courses the department feels should be replaced by more practical instruction.

Why it matters: Lawmakers will decide whether to provide the additional funding Horne requested for teacher pay, tutoring, screening tests and other priorities. Horne framed his agenda as focusing departmental resources on direct help to schools rather than judgmental oversight, and he tied several proposals to measurable outcomes such as proficiency gains and graduation standards.

What’s next: Horne left the committee with an offer to provide the members the report on teacher-preparation coursework and to supply lists of schools impacted by federal grants. Committee members said they would follow up with specific budget questions as appropriations deliberations begin.

","Tom Horne, Arizona superintendent of public instruction, told the House Education Committee on Jan. 17 that his Department of Education is pursuing 15 initiatives to raise academic achievement and urged the Legislature to fund more school resource officers and higher teacher pay.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6370247,"Committee advances four education bills on teacher data, water-safety notices and instructional models",0,7378000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2151912-737b6d1db4e3a1499142a24cd52a97e8&start=7378&end=7378","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2151912-737b6d1db4e3a1499142a24cd52a97e8/thumbnail_7378000.jpg","/articles/6370247/Arizona/Committee-advances-four-education-bills-on-teacher-data-water-safety-notices-and-instructional-models","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6370247-e1b9d089b064d460765d18407b43e80f/orig.mp4?Expires=1777174362&Signature=kBkwmtEAxFvT72p2rU7EevNnUzcJ9U4yxXhVjn2P-SRDmxEhnpuHYG~e6r8wa70T3KP3JF5EWVojuukSxX~LgR~hk3hoe5PTrNh-9h06je4WcibekdpYsymWRt9Ldsnym6KnsXxNyTCkX9yj1JA7anHFSWAMh1eIr~h~5OYurlXircN98eUN6vLnMQaMfeMh-Z7mjyeV6TUgmz7VQl1zAJlg0nKviSmBdr0QNucRP-F4IIMEX3tjht5h1GBlYEuB0UKcmSjIJwohYd7NDVZUI-8ZW3ygrPnY6H0rZ9nMj3nLSVhf3QdQ2IZu-k68Soye3~~W~yBoReaBdAxvBD4GFg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The House Education Committee on Jan. 17 advanced four bills by recorded votes. Committee members discussed background, fiscal implications and public testimony before returning each measure with a due-pass recommendation.

Votes at a glance

- House Bill 2018 (Arizona Teachers Academy: private institution participation; FY2026 appropriation $10,000,000): Returned with a due-pass recommendation. Committee tally: 7 yes, 3 no, 0 abstain, 2 absent. The bill would allow eligible private postsecondary institutions to participate in the Arizona Teachers Academy and caps the ATA scholarship reimbursement to the public in-state average; private institutions would cover any remainder so students are not charged. The committee also noted the sponsor’s assertion that the $10 million would address current public-university wait lists while broadening eligibility.

- House Bill 2019 (water-safety information for parents): Returned with a due-pass recommendation as amended (requires ADE to compile water-safety and local swim-provider information and school districts to provide the ADE web address at initial enrollment). Committee tally: 10 yes, 0 no, 0 abstain, 2 absent. Proponents included drowning-prevention advocates and YMCA representatives; testimony recounted personal loss and cited evidence that formal swim lessons reduce drowning risk.

- House Bill 2069 (instructional time model posting): Returned with a due-pass recommendation (requires school districts and charters to file instructional-time models with ADE and for ADE to post combinations and funding impacts). Committee tally: 10 yes, 0 no, 0 abstain, 2 absent. Supporters said central posting increases transparency and helps districts learn best practices.

- House Bill 2020 (annual teacher retention study and public dashboard; $100,000 appropriation from teacher certification fund FY2026): Returned with a due-pass recommendation. Committee tally: 10 yes, 0 no, 0 abstain, 2 absent. The bill requires ADE to publish an annual study of retention and turnover, vacancy counts and time‑to‑fill data and to maintain an interactive dashboard for public access. Witnesses said detailed, site-level data are essential to target retention efforts.

Why it matters: The measures collectively address teacher pipeline funding, parental safety information, transparency on instructional models and better data on teacher turnover. Several items include fiscal components; HB2018 and HB2020 include appropriations that will be considered during the budget process.

Next steps: Bills that received due-pass recommendations will proceed through subsequent legislative steps. Committee staff and sponsors will provide requested fiscal and programmatic follow-up information to members before floor consideration.

","The House Education Committee returned four bills with due-pass recommendations covering private participation in the Arizona Teachers Academy, a water-safety notification for families, posting of instructional-time models and an annual teacher retention study. The committee recorded roll-call results for each measure.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Lawmakers hear college reports on Arizona Teachers Academy; committee advances bill to let private universities receive ATA funds

Arizona superintendent presents 15-point plan, urges more school resource officers and higher teacher pay

Committee advances four education bills on teacher data, water-safety notices and instructional models