Due to the large number of educators and staff members expected to take part in the scheduled teacher walk-out this week, Fountain Hills Unified School District Superintendent Dr. Patrick Sweeney has announced that all sites within the district will be closed Thursday and Friday of this week, April 26-27.

Late last week the Arizona Education Association and Arizona Educators United announced that Arizona teachers had voted to hold a walk-out this Thursday, April 26.

The walk-out, which was preceded by walk-ins earlier this week, is over Governor Doug Ducey’s proposal for a 20 percent pay increase for teachers; a proposal that education groups are saying is unsustainable and may come at the expense of others in the education system.

FHUSD Superintendent Patrick Sweeny stayed in communication with the districts RedforEd liaisons to get an idea of what teachers in the district were planning and, following an administrative meeting Tuesday morning, April 24, it was determined that the best course of action for FHUSD would be to close shop for a couple of days. In short, there won’t be enough teachers/substitutes to maintain a regular schedule.

The local branch of the Boys & Girls Club will be open from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. during walk-out days.

Background

Jill Cooper, a teacher at McDowell Mountain Elementary School, told The Times last week that she and others in the RedforEd movement planned on participating in the walk-ins at McDowell Mountain leading up to Thursday.

“As the potential walk-out was just announced, the schools and RedforEd movement [held] walk-ins Monday through Wednesday,” Cooper said. “I think at this point everyone is just waiting to see what the governor and Legislature will do in the coming days.”

Cooper said the walk-ins were intended to send a clear message.

“The message that we want to send is that Arizona has failed in its prioritization of public education,” Cooper said. “We are currently operating with $1.1 billion less than we were a decade ago, less per pupil funding, less capital funds, less maintenance and operation funds. We are hurting. In Arizona, we currently have 2,000 classrooms without a teacher. We must stand up for all of our current and future students and demand that school funding return to pre-recession levels.”

Cooper and other teachers also believe that Governor Ducey’s proposal does not address the whole issue.

“It is like an assignment a student turns in at the last minute,” Lynn Truby, Fountain Hills music teacher, said. “Not very well thought out, poorly planned, rushed to turn in and did not fulfill all the requirements. The governor only addressed the salary issue but not the whole problem. It’s always been about the kids.”

Both Truby and Cooper empathized appreciation for the community support that Fountain Hills has provided its schools.

“We definitely appreciate wholeheartedly the community support that we have been so fortunate to have earned,” Cooper said “It is critical that we let our community know that we love teaching in Fountain Hills, we love our families, we appreciate their support today and every day and, most importantly, we love our students. They are why we are fighting for change in the Arizona public education system. They deserve better!”

Sweeny said he believes that, at a local level, the district has done the best it can with the budget provided, adding that he understands the need to have a conversation about better state funding.

“It is probably long overdue that this discussion about significant changes in compensation happens,” Sweeny said. “We have years of minimal increases across the state; years here because of declining enrollment and declining budget capacities.”