Tucson Unified School District
District Information
Celebrate the US!
Tucson Families Have a Choice
October 2009
In a 2007 ruling, the Supreme Court determined that race cannot be the sole factor in the assignment of children to public schools. TUSD, as a school district under a desegregation court order since 1978, was impacted by this decision. The decision opened the doors of our schools to all families, allowing TUSD to truly compete for students for the first time, and has challenged the district to strengthen its registration and enrollment practices to best meet the needs of students and staff in our new, site-based budget model. This was the real dawn of school choice. Therefore, TUSD is evaluating its needs, and despite devastating budget cuts, is responding in a new way.
Even with the publicity surrounding the 2007 ruling, it seems many of Tucson's parents do not know its impact here in Tucson. This past year, as I have spoken to groups in the community or visited with parents, I have found that very few understand they now have a choice. Time and time again I hear the same comments, "…so you mean we don't have to go to that TUSD school?" Usually that is followed by a conversation where I am told that the family was considering leaving the district for a charter school or such because they didn't feel their school was a good fit, and they were under the impression that open enrollment between schools was not available in TUSD. Hearing they have a choice, all have said they plan to stay.
Another interesting, and related, situation I have experienced this past year is my husband returning from preschool drop-off where he has been cornered more than once by other parents asking for his help in figuring out the best elementary school for their child. Feeling completely unprepared to help, he asked me for advice in pointing them in the right direction. While I usually referenced our website, I consistently wished we had something more. It has become clear to me that many parents do not know they have a choice within TUSD, while others, who are new to the system and believe they have a choice, don't know how best to navigate the system in making that choice. TUSD is responding in several ways.
This fall, TUSD will release the first ever TUSD Catalog of Schools. The two-year vision for the project is pretty exciting, and the first catalog will be great, but the vision will not be completely realized until the second year due to time and financial constraints. This year, parents will be able to pick up a copy of the "catalog" at their local grocery store or similar outlet. It will have directions for use and contain important information about all TUSD schools. It will also direct parents/guardians to our website www.tusd1.org where they can use an interactive tool to select their top schools.
Eventually, on the first couple of pages, parents will be able to take a simple inventory. This inventory will ask them questions about their child. The answers to these questions will then direct the parents to certain icons in the catalog. All icons and their explanations will be listed on a page nearby. Eventually, we hope that once a parent selects an icon, they will be able to pull the icon sticker from the catalog and place it on a card that they will use to filter schools. While the first edition of the catalog will not have all of the features, the interactive school selection web tool on our website will.
In addition to the catalog of schools, TUSD is planning its first TUSD Fall Festival of Schools at the Reid Park Zoo on November 7, 2009. This Festival will be from 9:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. During this time, admission to the zoo will be free for Tucson families. At 1:00 p.m. normal admission prices will apply. All of TUSD's 105 schools will be present at the festival and will offer families a wonderful opportunity to learn more about their favorite schools.
Tucson families now have a choice, and with over 105 learning environments, we are pretty sure that we have the perfect fit for each family. TUSD is making it our business to connect with our families, help them select the very best schools for their child or children, and then make the enrollment and registration processes as easy as possible. The Catalog and Festival of Schools, as well as the interactive web tools in development, are just the beginning of what TUSD hopes to offer our families in making one of the most important decisions they will make for their children.
-Dr. Elizabeth Celania-Fagen
TUSD Superintendent