The Alhambra Elementary School District is considering closing a campus that serves refugee families from across the globe.
In 2023, Valencia Newcomer School in Phoenix served 140 K-8th graders who came from 22 different countries and spoke 18 different languages. Now, the school is down to 23 students.
Valencia works with resettlement agencies to take in families who are new to the United States.
Principal Lynette Wegner said right now, that’s not happening because of a Trump administration ban on refugee admissions.
“With our model, our students stay with us for one academic year and then they transition to their homeschools," Wegner said. "So because we have not received any new families this year, as we transition our students, we're not getting new students.”
Since there won’t be any students to serve next year, Wegner said it’s not financially responsible for the school to remain open.
The district has scheduled a public hearing on the closure for later this month. KJZZ asked if Valencia could return if policies change in the next few years. To that, Wegner said:
"I would love it, but I also feel like we've learned a lot," Wegner said. "We're able to now train our teachers and staff throughout our district to support the needs that we, that we identified these last eight years."
-
The Peoria Unified School District governing board is reevaluating its "No DEI" policy. Board President Jeff Tobey is proposing changes that he says will allow the district to protect equal treatment while continuing to teach “honest, age-appropriate history.” -
This message is only a minute and 43 seconds long — but it means a lot to Indigenous Parent Committee co-president Monique John, who is Navajo and Jemez. She was among a few dozen citizens backing the proposal amid the Wednesday night public comment window — just moments before the roll call. -
The Arizona Board of Education is in the process of making changes to the state’s A-F letter grade system for public schools. -
The Scottsdale Unified School District is considering school closures as it faces declining enrollment. At a governing board meeting on Tuesday, the district presented seven options for potential closures. -
Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes announced that a former Tucson charter school director and others were indicted for allegedly stealing education dollars to pay for jewelry, trips to casinos and other extravagances.
