Latest news with #IsaacElementarySchoolDistrict
Yahoo
31-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Isaac Elementary staff to keep working Friday, hopeful for paychecks
Isaac Elementary School District educators opted Thursday night to continue working Friday, hopeful they would receive paychecks after not being paid so far this week amid the district's financial crisis that led to its takeover by the state. Their payday was scheduled for Tuesday. "We were extremely hopeful that we would be paid today," said Marisol Garcia, an Isaac Elementary teacher and the president of the Arizona Education Association, a statewide educators' union. On Wednesday night, the Tolleson Union High School District's Governing Board approved a deal with Isaac Elementary that would essentially allow the neighboring high school district to loan Isaac Elementary $25 million. By Thursday afternoon, the transaction had taken place, and all requested documents had been sent to the Maricopa County Treasurer's Office, according to Tolleson Union spokesperson Joseph Ortiz. But by 5 p.m. Thursday, Garcia said, Maricopa County Treasurer John Allen had not yet greenlit the payroll checks. "Nobody understands why we're still waiting for him," she said. "There's money in there to spend. I'm not sure what the treasurer's waiting for." The Maricopa County Treasurer's office did not respond to a request for comment Thursday. More than 300 staff members deliberated Thursday evening, Garcia said, over whether they should return to work Friday. Garcia said they were "significantly traumatized." "There was a lot of emotion, tears," she said. The Arizona Education Association passed out $15,000 in gift cards Thursday — raised by donations from other state and local unions, along with individuals — to make sure staff could buy food and gas, Garcia said. "The feeling is extremely tense on what may happen tomorrow if they are not paid," Garcia said. She added that several staff members were interviewing for other positions and "intend on leaving the district." "These folks are living off $50 gift cards right now," she said. "It's pretty humiliating." Still, they planned to return Friday and would be "monitoring the process of getting checks printed" and handed to employees, Garcia said. Meanwhile, legislation that would advance $2.5 million to the district has stalled after passing the House Education Committee earlier this week. House Bill 2610, introduced by Rep. Matt Gress, R-Phoenix, would direct Allen to issue funds to cover one payroll for the school district. The money would be drawn from Isaac's basic state aid. Garcia said Thursday that she was disappointed that the bill had stalled. Isaac Elementary, which serves approximately 4,800 students in Phoenix, was placed under receivership two weeks ago by the Arizona State Board of Education because it had overspent its budget by millions. Last week, the district's superintendent and chief financial officer resigned. According to Maricopa County Board of Supervisors Chair Thomas Galvin, the district owes the county $28.5 million. The county has said it would not provide any more funding for the district's expenses until the district could demonstrate the ability to pay back its debt, leaving the district without cash to fund operations. The U.S. Department of Education agreed to return $6 million in pandemic relief funds that the district had inadvertently forfeited, and the Treasurer's Office said that money would go toward Isaac Elementary's debt. Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes has launched an investigation into the financial mismanagement at Isaac Elementary. Getting help: Tolleson Union will transfer $25 million to ailing Isaac Elementary Reach the reporter at mparrish@ This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Isaac Elementary staff to keep working Friday, hopeful for paychecks
Yahoo
28-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Arizona Legislature takes first steps to keep Isaac school district open
Arizona Legislature has taken the first step to keep the Isaac Elementary School District open for two weeks amid the school district's financial crisis that has left it insolvent and unable to pay employees. On Tuesday, the House Education Committee unanimously approved a bill, introduced by Rep. Matt Gress, R-Phoenix, that would direct Maricopa County Treasurer John Allen to issue $2.5 million to cover one payroll for the school district. The money would be an advance on Isaac's basic state aid, according to the bill, House Bill 2610. The bill would also remove the district's school board members from office. According to Gress, Maricopa County School Superintendent Shelli Boggs was working on having appointees ready to replace the school board members quickly after the legislation was signed. The Isaac Elementary School District, which serves approximately 4,800 students in Phoenix, was placed under receivership two weeks ago by the Arizona State Board of Education because it had overspent its budget by millions. Keith Kenny, a director at the consulting firm J.S. Held, now oversees the district's operations. Last week, the district's superintendent and chief financial officer resigned. According to Maricopa County Board of Supervisors Chair Thomas Galvin, the district owes Maricopa County $28.5 million. The county has said it will not provide any more funding for the district's expenses until it can demonstrate the ability to pay back its debt, leaving the district without cash to fund operations. "The conduit by which Isaac receives its income and pays its expenses has been completely shut down by the Maricopa County treasurer," said Ryan Anderson, Kenny's general counsel, in a statement. Anderson said they were aware of and supported legislative efforts to unlock previously approved state aid to Isaac. If legislative efforts failed, Kenny would "likely need to temporarily close" the school district, Anderson said. Kenny said there was a pathway to solvency for Isaac Elementary. "I just need time to continue school operations and keep the children in the classroom," he wrote in a statement. On Monday, Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne announced the U.S. Department of Education agreed to release $6 million in federal pandemic relief funds the district had previously forfeited after failing to submit a required report on time. The Maricopa County Treasurer's Office, however, said that money would go toward paying off the district's debt. Gress said he anticipated his emergency legislation would be signed into law by Gov. Katie Hobbs by Friday. Payday, however, was Tuesday, and the district "doesn't have access to cash to run the payroll," he said. Andrea Valencia, a kindergarten teacher in the district, told the House Education Committee during its Tuesday meeting that she, her students and colleagues could not "live in this uncertainty." "I cannot do my duty and provide an education to my students living through this instability because today, I did not get paid," Valencia said. "My colleagues, cafeteria staff, janitorial staff ... we did not get paid." On Tuesday morning, a district spokesperson said she could not confirm whether employees would be paid on time this week. The Arizona Education Association, the union representing educators across the state, released a statement Tuesday morning saying, "Getting paid this week is an absolute necessity, but educators can't do their jobs — making lesson plans, going on field trips, coaching sports, hosting after school events — that are essential to students' learning if no one knows what will happen next week, let alone the rest of the year." Though the bill was approved unanimously by the House Education Committee, some Democratic representatives said they were concerned it did not do enough to help the district. Gress said that additional reforms are needed before the Legislature provides more support to the district. "If we're going to finance the rest of the school year at Isaac, there needs to be a larger conversation about the future of Isaac," he said. But he promised another bill that would keep the district open for the remainder of the school year. 'I recognize that this does not solve the full problem of operating Isaac' for the rest of the year, Gress said. 'I commit to all of you that we will get another bill that will provide financial certainty for the rest of the school year. We cannot, and we will not let the Isaac Elementary School District shut its doors this school year.' Tomasa Acosta, a parent of an eighth-grade student in the district, said Tuesday that she had already requested the paperwork, including grades, necessary to enroll her child elsewhere out of fear that if Isaac's schools shut down, no staff would be available to provide the information. She said she had already identified the district where she would transfer her child in a worst-case scenario, the Glendale Elementary School District, where she was formerly a teacher. Despite Gress' bill, Acosta said that if she were a staff member in the district, she would "start looking for a job somewhere else. If they need to pay rent, if they need to pay utilities ... that's a big shock," she said. Even if Gress' bill passes, just one guaranteed paycheck leaves uncertainty, she added. As of early Tuesday afternoon, Acosta was waiting to see what happened Wednesday, the first day after payday, before making decisions about her child. If some teachers didn't show up, she said, class sizes would be higher, and "it's going to be a mess." Republic reporter Laura Sepulveda contributed to this report. Reach the reporter at mparrish@ This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona Legislature takes step to keep Isaac school district open
Yahoo
28-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Troubled Isaac Elementary School District receives $6M
The Brief The troubled Isaac Elementary School District in Phoenix got a $6 million infusion from the feds as the county says it's at least $20 million in debt. It obviously won't cover the entire deficit, and by law, the county said none of the $6 million could go to paying teachers, but instead it had to be used to pay off its debts. PHOENIX - Educators at the Isaac Elementary School District received good news on Monday from the federal government. Money is on the way. For now, however, the county says it won't go toward paying the district's payroll. What we know The Arizona Department of Education said the school district is "somewhere between $12 million - $15 million underwater." Maricopa County says the debt is actually much higher. Those on every side of this issue said they want a solution, and teachers just want a paycheck for their work. Even if everything works perfectly from here on out, it won't happen in time. The backstory Per a Dec. 31, 2024 letter sent to Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne by Maricopa County School Superintendent Steve Watson, the district has a total overexpenditure of approximately $12.6 million. Additionally, the letter states that Isaac School District has a negative balance of approximately $6.6 million in relation to a federal program that aims to provide discounted phone and internet services to eligible schools. The letter states the expenses would need to be "corrected to an appropriate fund" if the district does not have adequate financial claims to support the expenditures, which will increase the overspend even further. Per the minutes from the state board of education meeting, the state board of education voted unanimously to place the district under receivership. Dig deeper On the morning of Jan. 27, teachers rallied outside the district's buildings, not knowing if their pay had run dry. News of financial relief gave way to more issues while parents of 5,000 kids sat in limbo. Maricopa County Treasurer John Allen says the district is actually $28.5 million in debt. He says the county is legally unable to foot any more bills. "I'm doing what the law tells me to do," he said. State Superintendent of Education Tom Horne fired back at that. "I think the county has been very irresponsible. They don't care about 5,000 kids missing out on the education they're entitled to," Horne said. Horne announced the feds released $6 million in old COVID-19 relief money for the district, but the state won't hand it over until the county agrees to use it on payroll. "They're refusing to use the money for payroll. They say if we send them money, they'll use it to pay back debt," Horne said. The county says they legally have to pay off debt first. At the state board of education meeting, Isaac District teacher and board member Jason Catanese called for unity. "Today we have the opportunity to not just save schools, but come together as leaders in the face of adversity," Catanese said. Horne hopes the legislature writes a law compelling the county to use the federal money for payroll, but $6 million would only cover three pay periods for the district's 650 educators. What's next What's the long-term plan? "The long-term is they have a lot of property they can sell so everything that was advanced can be paid back," Horne said. A receiver has taken over the district to find what happened. "It's hard to make this type of money just disappear and not really have the things to show for it, in which they said they were doing. And that concerns me," Allen said. So, now the focus shifts to the state capital and the legislators here. Even if something came through Monday night, the money would not arrive in time for payroll on Jan. 28.
