In the wake of the removal of the Invest in Education initiative from the November ballot, community members shared conflicting opinions on controversial education topics at a forum held Wednesday at City Square Church.
The forum discussed topics related to Arizona education, including #RedForEd, the Invest in Education initiative and Proposition 305, an upcoming proposition that would increase vouchers for private schools. Most of the gathering was dedicated to a discussion and Q&A session where participants were able to share their opinions on the controversial topics.
Alyssa Edmondson, 23, a member of City Square Church who helped facilitate the group discussions, said event was planned to “create a safe space for all sides of an issue,” and to “educate about education.”
Arizona Education Association President Joe Thomas, the main speaker of the event, encouraged Arizona residents to vote “no” on the upcoming Prop. 305 that could increase private school vouchers. Thomas said the proposition would allow for more public tax money to be used for private schooling that interferes with public school funding.
“We don’t have the money to send to private schools,” Thomas said.
AEA is the largest public school employee union in the state with more than 20,000 members, according to its website. Thomas said the associations goal is to “advocate for better schools for students, better working conditions for members and better outcomes for everybody.”
#RedForEd is a national grassroots movement working toward securing more funding for public and charter schools. The movement led to statewide strikes that closed more than 1,000 Arizona schools.
Tami Garver, 46, argued against #RedForEd initiatives because it hindered students like her son from graduating on time.
“They could walk graduation,” she said, “but they couldn’t receive their diplomas until they made up the hours.”
She said it was particularly difficult for her son’s friends who were joining the military because they had to be ready to leave soon after graduation.
Garver attended the forum with other members of the Patriot Movement, a grassroots organization started in 2015 whose members believe that they “must defend American values against the progressive Leftist and Globalist Agenda (sic),” according to its website.
The Invest in Education initiative, which amassed over 270,000 signatures this summer, would have implemented an income tax on the wealthiest 1 percent of Arizona taxpayers in order to raise an estimated $690 million that would go towards public school funding.
Garver said she understands the difficulties of working hard for only a small payoff because she was a single mother who put herself through college, but she added, she does not get paid well enough to get taxed for public school funding.
But Thomas advocated for increased spending.
“If we want better outcomes, we have to invest more in education,” he said.
Contact the reporter at alfuente@asu.edu.
