Heather Carter
What is your education and relevant experience for this office?
Ed.D. in Educational Leadership M.Ed in Educational Technology Post-Bac Teaching Certification (secondary English/social studies and computers) BS in Communication - Rhetoric
If you have children, do you/did you send them to public school? If so, did they graduate from a public school?
I I have an 8 year old daughter at Lone Mountain Elementary School in the Cave Creek Unified School District.
Do you feel you are an advocate for public education in Arizona? Use specific examples of what you will do or have done to demonstrate your level of support for public education in Arizona.
ABSOLUTELY! My entire professional life is dedicated to education in Arizona. I am a former 7th grade teacher in the Paradise Valley Unified School District. I am currently a Clinical Associate Professor at ASU in the Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College. I prepare teachers and leaders for Arizona schools. I am also on the Leadership Team at the College. I am the Director of Community Engagement and Special Projects. I am also on the CCUSD Superintendent's Advisory Committee. I serve on the LMES Site Council. I also worked very closely with the PVUSD, in helping them set up their Professional Development School. The list goes on and on and on related to my work at ASU as well.
Will you work to protect public education from any further budget cuts?
Absolutely. That's why I am running for this office.
The system for funding public education in Arizona is a maze of laws, rules, regulations, funding sources, etc. Please share specifics on how you would simplify how we fund our public schools here in Arizona to make that funding source more efficient, effective and reliable?
If you look at Title 15 from 2000 and compare it with Title 15 from 2009, you will see that the book DOUBLED in SIZE! This book is FILLED with un-funded mandates. We need to comb through Title 15 and look for every opportunity to de-regulate public schools to help them 'level the playing field' to be competitive with all schools (ie: private and charter). We need to look for ways to decrease the dependence on variable funding sources (such as SALES TAX) and base school funding on more stable/reliable sources of income. We need to STOP - dead in the tracks - all future unfunded mandates (and TRUST ME when I say there are a litany of them coming down the pike this legislative session. We need to SAY NO and VOTE THEM DOWN if they are not passed with a dedicated funding source). I could talk about this single issue for days......
Should the education formula be based on seat time and average daily membership or on student academic progress and successful achievement of academic standards?
The formula is archaic and doesn't measure academic progress and achievement. In fact, if a school is under achieving, they actually have more opportunity for additional funding. This is counter-intuitive. We need to change this formula. I like this analogy from a recent national forum that ASU sponsored in Washington DC: We need from a system where learning is the variable and time is the constant in school - to a system where learning is the constant and time is the variable. We need to focus on creating a funding system that is built upon the following guiding principle: We need to fund schools in such a way that ensures there is a quality teacher in every classroom, working for an empowered principal, at a school prepares students for working and living in the 21st Century.
Knowing that money does not cure all, how do you feel that Arizona ranks dead last in per pupil funding? Are you happy with the status quo or how will you work to change that? Can you share your plan on how Arizona can improve it's school funding to at least a competitive level? Be specific.
I am completely embarrassed by the lowest national rating and will work to put systems in place to fund education at a fair and competitive rate. While I know we can't shoot to #1 in one legislative term, it would be nice to shoot for 'average' that quickly! Before we can demonstrate the dismal effects of underfunding public education, we need to put a comprehensive data system in place. Arizona DOES NOT HAVE ONE (pathetic, but true). The different data sets do not talk to each other at the ADE! I have personally priced out this system and have the mechanism in place (via my work at ASU) to have this up and running in as little as 6 months IF I could get the state to fund this....and I believe I can (yet, another reason I am running!) Then, when we can show the impact of additional funding (or impact of LACK of funding) we have the data to back up request for adequate funding. EVERYONE I have talked to during the election is interested in this - but I am the ONLY candidate who can make this happen. I have personally negotiated this system with ASU, ADE, various school districts and the Teachers' Union. We are all set to go. If I am elected this is my first order of business.
Do you think that class-size affects academic performance? How and at what size?
Absolutely. Small class sizes allow for more individualized instruction. I would ideally (but probably not realistically) like to see class sizes as small as 15-17. All the data supports that you need to be around this size for real impact. However, if we could work towards 25, I would feel confident our teachers could differentiate instruction for all students. This is important for both students who are struggling AND for gifted students! Our students who are gifted are often over-looked! Also, class size at the middle and high schools have shown to have an impact on drop out rates. The smaller the class sizes, the less likely students are to drop out. This is an important consideration as well. Class size is important. Period.
How do you feel about the unfunded mandate of the AIMS test (or a similar test) when teachers spend a large portion of their school year "teaching to the test"? Be specific.
I am glad you labelled AIMS 'an unfunded mandate.' That's exactly what it is and while we need a measurement tool to determine what students are learning, AIMS is sorely limited. We need multiple measures of student learning. This is what we prepare teachers to do during their teaching certification program. Where we could use help in education, is support from the state, to invest in a comprehensive assessment plan to be used THROUGHOUT the year, so that 222 individual school districts do not have to foot the bill for 222 different systems. I am also a strong voice against 'teaching to the test.' A one -ime, end-of-the-year, summative test invites nothing more than 'gaming' and 'cheating' the system. (Trust me, I have lots of data to support this - when people say 'look to Florida, beware of their grading system....same thing happened in Texas....and we had a case here in Arizona even in the rural areas). We need accountability systems in place, but I would LOVE to see Arizona take the lead in this area (with appropriate funding) to demonstrate what authentic accountability looks like for measuring student learning. The AIMS test was a baby-step in that direction, but we need a state-wide, authentic, multiple data point assessment system in place to do this right. A one-time, high stakes test is not the ideal situation.
Do you believe that the voters approving Prop 301 intended the 2% inflation factor to be applied to the entire M&O budget or just legislatively selected portions of the operating budget?
Entire M&O budget.
How do you plan to support districts with textbook adoptions with the decrease/limits on soft capital funding? Do you understand that many districts such as CCUSD operate with textbooks that are ten years old?
Having served on the textbook adoption committee in PVUSD, I truly understand the challenges related to this issue! I do believe that since only about 3 or 4 textbook companies are in the 'bid' for a new adoption, there is real benefit to looking to consortiums and grouping for textbook adoptions across multiple districts. Ironically, as I work with multiple districts, many districts end up using the SAME text. We need to combine purchasing power where we can. I am also a strong proponent of moving to a digitally SUPPORTED (not replacement) of traditional texts. This will help with the updating of the material. I actually have a lot of innovative ideas in this area. I would like to see a move towards hand-held, e-readers (in a perfect world with ample funding!!), supported by authentic texts and resource material. We will never do away with all printed material (there is something so authentic about holding a book) but we need to maximize our dollars by using technology where we can.
The budget cuts have eliminated the funding for the Gifted Students Educational Program. With the passing of Prop 100 what legislative measures will you take to restore this funding to meet the many critical needs for our brightest minds and high acheivers in AZ?
We can not afford to ignore our brightest minds and high achievers in Arizona. Imagine if we said that we were going to cut funding for our ELL students...we would be in a deeper lawsuit than we already are in Arizona! We can not afford to ignore or underfund ANY student learning. I would be a strong supporter of ensuring that the gifted funding be replaced immediately and would support legislation to do so.
Where and what grade level classrooms have you observed in the last 12 months? What specifics can you share about class size and per pupil expenditure in those classrooms?
I work in schools as the Director of Community Engagement and Special Projects at ASU. Class size is too large across all schools. You should see some of our poorest schools in Arizona; you should see some of our rural schools on the reservations in Arizona. We, in Cave Creek, often are not privy to what's happening else where in the state. I can tell you, in general, it's BAD. At ASU, we work with the lowest performing 5% of schools of the poorest 5% of schools - so the bottom 5% of the bottom 5%. We have $34 million dollars from the Federal Government via a Teacher Quality Partnership grant to address the challenges in these schools. At least these schools have access to these funds. Cave Creek doesn't fall into those categories (thank goodness). So we typically don't have access to additional funds. We also have difficulty passing additional bonds and over-rides. Our funding is decreased as well. I know the popular political response is, 'throwing money at schools won't help,' but we are at a point where we have CUT so deep, we are cut to the very core. We have cut $2.2 billion. That's enormous. And as I visit schools and classrooms, the cuts are obvious. There are limited resources. Some classrooms do not have books at ALL. Classrooms are crowed - upward of 40-45 kids in some secondary classrooms! I have seen kindergarten classrooms as large as 30! Teachers are spending more and more of their own dollars to buy materials. PTOs are doing more and more fundraising to supplement programing, and in some cases, I have seen PTOs pay for SALARIES for additional personnel. It's bad out there.
Due to our district's low poverty, or "free and reduced lunch" level, do you understand the disparity that places CCUSD at a disadvantage for federal and grant application-based funding, and would you be willing to support legislation that would allow districts such as CCUSD in low-poverty areas to secure supplemental funding to reach curriculum or achievement standards that may be desired by the governing board? If so, what might those funding sources be? (please cite examples such as local prop tax, program fees, etc.)
I fundamentally understand this, as I work at ASU with schools who DO qualify for additional money based upon 'free and reduced lunch' measures. I would absolutely support legislation that would allow districts to secure supplemental funding to reach curriculum or achievement standards. The state of Arizona has multiple grants we could access if they allow all schools to compete for funds. We need to support our local school districts going for bonds and over-rides. We could draft legislation that allows schools to be more assertive in asking for over-rides for additional funding. We could garner additional funding via some program fees like the university does - which is helpful, but we don't want to keep going to the parents to make up for lack of state funding. All signs point to the need for the state to adequately fund education. Period.
Do you support performance pay programs like Career Ladders and Prop 301 for teachers?
Absolutely. Teachers need to make more, and we can create fair and equitable performance-based systems like career ladder and those created by prop 301. We are doing this work at ASU. I wish the state would use our system to build a state-wide system for pay for performance. The system we are putting in place looks to multiple measures to evaluate teachers. The system is built BY teachers FOR teachers and uses student achievement as well. This is a great system if we could get the state to use it!
In constructing new schools, do you believe that bonding or direct general fund support is the most efficient and cost effective?
We need to do both - when the state is flush with cash we can use some direct funding. However, we need to retain the ability to bond for construction as well to allow schools to be built and maintained in times were money is not readily available. Businesses regularly take out loans for construction, schools should be able to as well, via bonds.
Would you support a requirement that all new education policy initiatives proposed by the legislature contain a fiscal note and be required to include all necessary funding prior to adoption?
Absolutely. That is the only way we can ask schools to meet the requirements of any new policy initiative.
Do you think the Constitutional requirement to fund a general and uniform public education system should take precedence over programs supporting private schools?
ABSOLUTELY!!!! I am so tired of hearing people say that 'school choice' is the solution to all our educational problems. Those people are sorely outdated and out of ideas. We have the most 'choice-based' system in the country and over 90% of the people still choose a publicly-funded school as their 'choice' for educating their child.
Please describe your level of support for school vouchers and private school tax credits, how should they be used (if at all), to whom should they be given/used for, and how would you change the current system in place? Be specific.
The ONLY way that public tax dollars should EVER go to a school is if that school is held to the same accountability and transparency standards as public schools. When a private school decides to administer the AIMS to all students and open their books for public scrutiny, we can then 'talk' about vouchers and credits. But it is noted, we already have a tax credit system in place. I say we put a moratorium on additional funding while we are in this economic crisis.
Do you feel that the use of Vouchers and private school tax credits is appropriate considering the struggle that our public education system has recently faced and continues to face? Be specific.
No. The state is broke. Furthermore, I pay for roads that I don't use and I believe that having an adequately funded education system is part of government's core responsibilities. Everyone has a role in paying taxes to support government functions like education. I believe that having a strong public education system will be part of the economic recovery of our state. It is that important! My message in my campaign is: STRONG SCHOOLS/STRONG ECONOMY. Thank you for the opportunity to share my ideas with this important group!