2014 Candidate Survey - AZ Charter Schools Association

A Look at Candidate Support of K-12 Public Education

In June of 2014, the Arizona Charter Schools Association asked all candidates running for elected office in 2014 to participate in a survey that sought their perspectives on education in Arizona. The survey posed seven questions to candidates covering six topics including:

Parent Choice – Do you support a parent’s right to choose the best public school, in their judgment, for their children?
Charter Schools – Do you support public charter schools in Arizona?
Charter Autonomy – Do you support continued autonomy for proven, high quality charter schools?
Equitable Funding – Do you support public charter school students receiving the same amount of public funding as students in other public schools?
Facilities – Do you support allowing public charter schools the ability to lease or purchase unused school district facilities at fair market value?
Improve K-12 Education – Where do you rank improving K-12 education in Arizona among your overall priorities?
Greatest Challenges – What is the greatest challenge facing public education in Arizona today?

Nearly one in three candidates responded to the public survey, with responses received from every public office on the 2014 primary ballot.

The results show that over 90 percent of candidates strongly support parent choice, over 80 percent strong support charter schools, and nearly 70 percent of candidates said they strongly support equitable funding and access to facilities for charter schools. It should be noted that over 90 percent of all candidates support these four areas when you include agree and strongly agree.

There is strong support for charter schools among candidates. Over 90 percent of candidates that responded said they support continued autonomy for proven, high quality charter schools.

There is still work to be done. Only 61 percent of candidates listed K-12 education as their top priority. As Arizona’s largest charter support organization, we believe education should and must be the top priority for lawmakers this session. With the continued focus on accountability and a broken school finance system that has the potential to bankrupt the state, we need leaders that will invest in public education.

The Association is a non-profit organization, and as such, was fully inclusive in inviting all candidates to respond to this public education survey.

Full Survey Results

In the spring of 2014, the Association asked all candidates running for elected office in 2014 to participate in a survey that sought their perspectives on public education in Arizona. We received responses from every public office on the 2014 statewide primary ballot. If a candidate is not listed, they did not respond to the survey. Late submissions were included in the survey analysis. The Association is a non-profit organization, and as such, was fully inclusive in inviting all candidates to respond to this public education survey.

Governor

Ken Bennett – Republican
Doug Ducey – Republican
Christine Jones – Republican
Frank Riggs – Republican
Scott Smith – Republican

Fred Duval, Democrat (sent a letter in place of the survey)

Secretary of State

Wil Cardon – Republican
Justin Pierce – Republican

Michele Reagan – Republican (late submission)

Attorney General

Felecia Rotellini – Democrat

Treasurer

Hugh Hallman – Republican
Randy Pullen – Republican

Superintendent of Public Instruction

Diane Douglas, Republican
David Garcia, Democrat