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Arizona’s public schools have about 65,000 fewer students enrolled than the state’s Department of Education would expect and schools cannot account for their whereabouts, according to State Superintendent Kathy Hoffman.
“We do not know where they are,” Hoffman said. “They could have moved out of state. They may be engaged in homeschooling. So there’s a lot of questions around that.”
Hoffman said her office is working with the Arizona Department of Child Safety and the Governor’s Office to help districts identify and reach out to students no longer enrolled in their schools.
“But I think the challenge is at the state level, trying to identify and locate 65,000 students is a really large task,” Hoffman said. “We’re in the process of reaching out to school counselors to ask what they’re finding, ‘What trends are you seeing, where are these children going, how are they being served at home?’”
Since the first shipments of the COVID-19 vaccine arrived in Arizona last month, more than 300,000 shots have gone into the arms of residents. Counties are gradually making the vaccine available to more people as they expand access to additional groups. Tony Paniagua reported on those efforts, including delays some people have experienced when trying to sign up because of high demand.
This week the Arizona Department of Health Services opened its second COVID-19 vaccine distribution site at Phoenix Municipal Stadium. The first site at Glendale’s State Farm Stadium is also located in Maricopa County. ADHS Director Dr. Cara Christ discussed the state’s role in getting people vaccinated, beginning with an update on current trends.
Fountain Hills Unified School District schools returned to their hybrid schedules after two weeks of remote learning at home following the conclusion of winter break.
Even though it is a new year, the COVID-19 pandemic is still raging in Arizona and across the county, meaning that many places are still in some form of lockdown. That is why the District decided to start the new year off with remote learning.
âIt was our intent for these two weeks to be a chance for people who might have travelled or attending large gatherings over the holiday to stay home for two weeks,â Superintendent Kelly Glass explained. âThat way, enough time has passed for any symptoms or cases to pop up.â