Local PAC Behind Opposition to Scottsdale School District Bond Override Signage

October 24, 2023 ADI Staff Reporter
campaign sign
Arizona Women of Action campaign sign.

A local political action committee is behind the signage urging Scottsdale residents to vote against an override of the Scottsdale Unified School District (SUSD) bond.

The signs were issued by the Arizona Women (AZW) Action PAC, the political action arm of Arizona Women of Action (AZWOA). According to the secretary of state’s campaign finance portal, the PAC registered in March 2021 and has over $106,700 in reported income and nearly $105,400 in expenditures.

Their latest finance report, covering July through September, doesn’t reflect expenditures on signage.

The PAC chair is listed as Kim Miller, president and founder of AZWOA, and the treasurer is listed as Ashley Ragan.

The signs are part of a larger statewide effort by AZW Action PAC to eliminate bonds and overrides.

AZW Action Pac stated on their website that their standards for opposing bonds and overrides include poor literacy and math competency rates, low district test scores, and existing property tax cuts allocated to school districts.

Arizona public schools are rated 45th out of the 50 states for test scores.

At SUSD, those minimally or partially proficient in math for the 2021-22 school year were as follows: 44 percent, average of all students; 32 percent, 3rd grade students; 34 percent, 4th grade students; 35 percent, 5th grade students; 52 percent, 6th grade students; 56 percent, 7th grade students; 50 percent, 8th grade students; 47 percent, 11th grade students.

Those minimally or partially proficient in English Language Arts (ELA) for the 2021-22 school year were as follows: 39 percent, average of all students; 34 percent, 3rd grade students; 31 percent, 4th grade students; 39 percent, 5th grade students; 47 percent, 6th grade students; 42 percent, 7th grade students; 45 percent, 8th grade students; and 36 percent, 11th grade students.

That marked an improvement from the 2020-21 school year, with the average of all students having a minimal or partial proficiency in math at 48 percent and ELA at 45 percent.

Student enrollment at SUSD has also declined in recent years, according to the Arizona Department of Education. This year, enrollment was at just over 21,100, compared to last year’s enrollment at nearly 21,400. In 2021, enrollment was near 21,500. Yet, spending has increased.

Last year, SUSD had a 92 percent graduation rate. That was a decrease from the 2021-2022 school year, at 94 percent.

AZW Action PAC noted that SUSD has $18 million in COVID-19 relief funding to be spent by next year, and said the district ought to pay educators with the funds rather than administrators.

In a statement, AZWOA said that their PAC arm put up signs advocating the community to vote against the SUSD bond override at the behest of concerned parents. According to AZWOA, parents attribute SUSD’s financial woes to SUSD’s decision-making on expenditures.

“Concerned parents notified us that the only election signs around in Scottsdale were the ones FOR the overrides. These parents knew, because they did their homework, that this was only a money-grab for the district. They’ve also watched the majority of the SUSD governing board vote in costly, expansive policies that harm students, while restraining parents’ protective involvement. We wanted Scottsdale residents to know the truth and not be manipulated by SUSD’s untrustworthy administration. Arizona Women of Action exists because women deserve effective solutions to the chaos harming their families and communities. We empower women at their local level to revive the American dream of strong families, safe cities, and thriving kids.”

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