Josh Kristianto, excited to be part of the Phoenix community, started as a reporter/MMJ at ABC15 Arizona in November 2023.
A coalition of public education advocates on Saturday launched a new campaign aimed at reforming Arizona’s Empowerment Scholarship Accounts program, escalating a long-running debate over the state’s universal school voucher system.
The ESA program, expanded statewide in 2022, allows families to use public funds for private education. Critics say the program lacks oversight, while supporters argue it gives parents essential flexibility and access to better learning options.“The abuse of taxpayer dollars has to stop, and we need accountability in this program,” said Nicky Indicavitch, outreach director for Save Our Schools Arizona, during a news conference announcing the effort.Advocacy groups, including Save Our Schools Arizona, are now pushing to place a reform measure on the November ballot. They’ll need 256,000 valid petition signatures by early July to qualify.“Sending a billion dollars to private schools with no accountability, transparency, basic safety standards for children or academic accountability is reckless,” Indicavitch said.Supporters of the campaign say the proposed ballot measure would add basic guardrails to the ESA system. Their plan calls for things like:Quarterly public reports from the Arizona Department of Education detailing how much money voucher-funded schools receiveRequiring unused ESA funds to be returned to public schoolsBanning the purchase of luxury or non-educational items with ESA dollars, which activists say has occurred in some cases“We believe the ESA program needs some basic reforms, for the sake of those children as well as the taxpayer,” said Delia Lyding, president of the Kyrene Education Association.ESA supporters, however, argue the program is working as intended. The Phoenix-based Goldwater Institute says the vouchers have helped “thousands of parents do right by their children and ensure they have access to best education possible, all at a lower cost to taxpayers.”Christine Accurso, former executive director of the ESA program, said the system already includes appropriate safeguards.“I can tell you that there are guardrails and appropriate guardrails on the program. The legislature made sure of that,” she said.The expansion of ESA has coincided with enrollment declines in some public school districts across the Valley, leading to staffing reductions and school closures. Supporters of the program counter that the shifts reflect parental choice, not state policy.“The state didn’t do it. The state had an option. It’s a parent who did it,” Accurso said. “You’ll never see them go to battle with parents because they will always lose.”Petition signatures for the proposed ballot measure must be submitted by early July.This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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