Education

The J.O. Combs Unified School District Governing Board approved an agreement on Nov. 4 with Grand Canyon University. Under it, eligible district students could earn 16 college credits for free in a program that prepares them for work making computer chips. The district hopes to start the first class in spring 2027 at Apache Junction High School, ma...

The J.O. Combs Unified School District Governing Board did not vote on closing Combs Traditional Academy at its Nov. 4 meeting. Superintendent Toby Haugen presented the results of the district's parent surveys, and board members said they want a longer public study session before they decide anything. The board's public study session on elementary ...

The Florence Unified School District Governing Board voted 5-0 on Nov. 10 to close three San Tan Valley area schools: San Tan Mountain Middle School, Skyline Ranch Elementary School and Copper Basin Elementary School. The board also voted to move Florence Middle School to a site next to the Florence Elementary campus. If your child goes to one of t...

People in the San Tan Valley area who left high school without a diploma have two free ways to finish, and the right one depends on age. Combs Center for Success is for ages 16 to 21 and awards a high school diploma, and Central Arizona College's free classes are open to anyone 16 or older and prepare students for the GED tests, which lead to a hig...

The Florence Unified School District Governing Board approved a first amendment on Oct. 23 to the sale of about 23 acres of district land at Hunt Highway and North Village Lane to homebuilder Ashton Woods. The amendment cuts the price to $425,000 an acre and pushes every deadline in the deal later. The board approved the original agreement on Aug. ...

Proposition 320 on the Nov. 3 ballot would require school districts to spend at least 60% of their operating money on direct instruction, a narrower category than total classroom spending, and both school districts that serve the San Tan Valley area, Florence Unified and J.O. Combs Unified, say it would apply to them. The ballot summary applies the...

Combs High School will hold its 4th Annual Next Steps Expo, a college and career fair for high school juniors and seniors, on Thursday, Oct. 29, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at 2505 E. Germann Road in San Tan Valley. Representatives from colleges, universities, career training schools, employers, military branches and community organizations will be there, ...

The J.O. Combs Unified School District is weighing closing the Combs Traditional Academy campus and moving Combs Center for Success to its own building at Combs High School, starting in the 2027-28 school year. The Governing Board has not voted. Its Nov. 4 meeting is the earliest a vote could happen. Superintendent Toby Haugen presented the recomme...

A budget committee told the Florence Unified School District Governing Board on Oct. 13 that the district should merge San Tan Mountain Middle School with Walker Butte Middle School on the Walker Butte campus, and move students out of three elementary schools: Copper Basin, San Tan Heights, and either Circle Cross Ranch or Skyline Ranch. San Tan Mo...

K-12 teachers in the San Tan Valley area have until Nov. 30 to apply for a $1,500 classroom grant from Salt River Project, which is giving the money out with the Arizona Educational Foundation. SRP says the grants are open to K-12 teachers employed at public or charter schools in Arizona, which includes schools in the San Tan Valley area. Our San T...

Central Arizona College teaches free high school equivalency and English classes at its San Tan Valley Campus on East Bella Vista Road, and adults can start by signing up for an information session. The classes run year round. The college is pointing residents toward the program this week for National Adult Education and Family Literacy Week, which...

A free after-school reading program is coming to the San Tan Valley Library this fall, and families need to register by Sept. 15, the same day it begins. Read Better Be Better runs Tuesdays and Thursdays from Sept. 15 through Nov. 5, from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. at the San Tan Valley Library, 31505 N. Schnepf Road. There is no cost. How the Program Works...

Florence Unified School District is weighing two school closure recommendations, and four of the five schools named in either one serve San Tan Valley families. The district's school closure committee has met since March. It is now presenting two recommendations to the district's Budgetary Steering Committee, according to a community email FUSD sen...

A University of Arizona program pays 100% of tuition and fees, adds a monthly stipend and lines up a civilian job with the Department of Defense after graduation. A reader tipped us to it, saying it deserves more attention than it gets. The program is the Defense Civilian Training Corps, or DCTC. The Department of Defense, called the DoD for short,...

Central Arizona College students who do not qualify for federal Pell Grants will have a new way to pay for textbooks starting in fall 2026 — a $500 book scholarship funded by the college's own support staff. The Central Arizona College Foundation recently received a donation from the college's Support Staff Association to create the 500 for 500 Boo...