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Parents urge Congress to protect Title I funding; parents praise Marana high-school staff
Summary
At public comment the meeting heard a warning about proposed federal Title I cuts and parents offered positive accounts of recent school-year changes and staff support at Marana high schools.
Two members of the public addressed the Marana Unified School District governing board during the Sept. 11 public-comment period, urging federal intervention on Title I funding and offering firsthand accounts of positive changes at district high schools.
Rayna York, identified in the transcript as a community member, told the board the U.S. House Appropriations Committee proposal for fiscal year 2026 would cut Title I funding by about 27 percent under the House plan, which she described as roughly $5 billion nationally. York said Arizona faces potential impacts of more than $124 million and that the state already saw about a $28 million loss this year tied to an earlier 20 percent decrease. She said such cuts would force reductions to tutoring, summer school, smaller class sizes, EL programs and other supports that Title I currently funds and asked community members to contact members of Congress to share personal stories.
"These funds allow us to support enrichment, tutoring, reading and math interventions, summer school, and after-school programs," York said. "Cutting these funds by over a quarter would force our schools to reduce or eliminate many of these supports. That means more students falling behind, especially in reading and math." (Public comment, transcript.)
Megan Manafell, who identified herself as a parent, spoke about experiences this school year and thanked specific high-school staff for student support. Manafell praised Marana teachers and administrators by name, including a principal at Marana High School she identified as Mrs. Kaufman and a staff member at Mountain View High School she identified as Ms. Katai, saying those staff helped students move from additional support to college- and advanced-placement-track recommendations. She said one student moved from needing extra reading support to being recommended for AP English, and another student is on track to graduate early after summer and online coursework.
"It has just been absolutely amazing," Manafell said, describing improvements in the district and thanking school staff for their work. (Public comment, transcript.)
Neither public commenter asked for a specific board action to be taken that night; York asked attendees to contact members of Congress. The board did not take action on federal funding at the meeting.
