The Maricopa Community Colleges Governing Board unanimously approved the appointment of Steven R. Gonzales, Ed.D., as president of GateWay Community College, effective July 1.

Local school districts, including Kyrene, will now be able to pay for capital needs as bond legislation was passed in conjunction with the state’s budget early on Friday.

Governing board members for the Kyrene School District approved a recommendation this week that will ask voters to continue its current 15 percent maintenance and operations override this election.

Culminating the ongoing discussion between local youth sports organizations and the Kyrene School District over use of facilities rates, the district presented a lowered rate structure Monday that now heads to the governing board.

In completing the process of finalizing a new district policy manual, Tempe Union High School District administration will be reviewing policies like emergency plans and student discipline as well as others before the start of the 2013-14 school year.

In a unanimous decision this week, the Tempe Union High School District will be asking voters to continue its current level of funding from a maintenance and operations override previously approved by voters.

Editor’s note: This is part three of a continuing summer series on the proposed South Mountain Loop 202 Freeway.

Americans are more confident in the U.S. economy than at any point in the past five years, thanks to surging home values, a brighter job market and record-setting stock prices.
Stock averages last month extended the year’s explosive rally.
Further gains in consumer confidence could help the economy withstand the effects of higher taxes and federal spending cuts that kicked in this year. Spending by consumers drives about 70 percent of economic growth.


Kyrene School District officials on Tuesday presented a capital plan for the upcoming 2013-14 school year to its governing board, hoping to modify its current “run to failure” effort to fund capital needs.
With its biggest challenge of funding capital items like leaky roofs, air conditioning towers and rusted water pipes, the district is modifying its “run to failure” plan to only pay for high-priority projects and maintenance projects with excessive or recurring costs.
Kyrene Superintendent Dr. David Schauer said on Tuesday that the plan is “not something we are happy about, but something we believe we can do.”
Still waiting on whether bond legislation from the state will come out in favor of school districts this summer, district chief financial officer Jeremy Calles said select schools with the high-priority capital needs will be addressed first.
“The pile is only growing bigger and bigger each year,” Calles said.


New York -- U.S. airlines collected more than $6 billion in baggage and reservation change fees from passengers last year — the highest amount since the fees became common five years ago.

Having once again received the trifecta of AAA ratings from the three major bond rating agencies, the Maricopa Community Colleges are readying to sell $151 million in General Obligation Bonds to finance a variety of construction projects throughout Maricopa County.

Kyrene School District officials Monday said new, lower rates for use of facilities, namely for youth sports organizations will be presented in early next month.

Desert Vista High School students this week presented a near-complete application for teacher evaluations to be rolled out in the fall, a project more than a year in the making.

At a May 21 public hearing, the Maricopa Community Colleges Governing Board will consider raising property taxes within the limit permitted in the state constitution and statute (A.R.S §15-1461.01).

Higley Unified School District athletic director Art Wagner, 42, was found dead near Higley High School Wednesday morning, according to the Gilbert Police Department. Police say the matter is still under investigation, but believe Wagner died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Seeking to keep fields accessible and available to some 4,000 kids in and around Ahwatukee, various youth sports leagues met with the Kyrene School District on Monday after add-on costs to the Ahwatukee Foothills Pony Baseball Association caused heated community concern.

The Gilbert Unified School District governing board failed to approve Tuesday night future discussion about placing a budget override renewal on the November 2013 ballot.

Stretched along Kyrene Centennial Middle School’s track on Saturday for the district’s first Acts of Kindness event, Kyrene Monte Vista Elementary students raked in a paper chain with more than 3,000 links representing random acts of kindness.

Gov. Jan Brewer refused Thursday to make Arizona the second state in the nation to declare privately minted gold and silver coins, bars and ingots to be legal tender in the state.

The Five-Year Transportation Facilities Construction Program is updated each year and serves as a blueprint that details where, when and how funding will be spent over the next five years to improve our state’s transportation infrastructure. The Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) continues to gather public comments on the tentative 2014-2018 program. There are three scenarios that are being considered for implementation, and all three scenarios are available for public comment.

The Kyrene School District may consider getting an appraisal on the parcel of land near Club West before sending out a Request for Proposals to sell it.

Former State Sen. David Schapira has been appointed assistant superintendent at the East Valley Institute of Technology in Mesa (EVIT).