Education

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Thirteen schools encompass the Casa Grande Elementary School District, led by Superintendent Dr. JoEtta Gonzales. The district comprises three middle schools, nine elementary schools, and one preschool where students within the city of Casa Grande attend. Currently, there are about 6,000 students enrolled in the district. CGESD’s mission is “Success for Every One — The Responsibility is Yours and Mine,” which guides and focuses all that the district does. This has helped to bring about signifi cant gains in academic achievement for students at all performance levels. During the summer of 2020, Gonzales was named the Arizona School Administrators’ Distinguished Superintendent for 2020. The title is given to active members of the ASA who are recognized by their peers for outstanding service to their profession and to the students and communities they serve. According to the district, it has increased investments in staff training, curriculum development and student assessment that have helped to produce substantial improvements in student learning. The district has been recognized in recent years with various awards and other honors, including the Raymond Sterling Kellis Leadership Award, Greater Casa Grande Chamber of Commerce Business Leadership Award, the Latino Esperanza Award, the Council of Administrators of Special Education’s Laura Ganoung Award, the Council of Exceptional Children’s Teacher and Administrator of the Year Award, four Rodel Exemplary Principal Awards, the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science and six Arizona A+ School and Program Awards. In fact, the Casa Grande Elementary School District has more A+ schools and more A+ programs than any other school district in Pinal County. The district has also been recognized by the Rodel Foundation for its success in improving academic achievement. The district’s performance-based employee compensation plan is recognized across the U.S. as a model. In addition to the core curriculum, the district also off ers subjects like vocal and instrumental music, visual arts, drama, health, physical education, dance, Spanish, chess, mock trial, computer science and social emotional learning. CGESD off ers after-school opportunities such as individual stringed instrument instruction, competitive sports, cheerleading, robotics, National Junior Honor Society and Student Council.

Mission Heights Preparatory High School is a tuition-free public college prep school with a family atmosphere featuring: public college prep school with a family atmosphere featuring:

• Highly Qualified Teachers • Top AzMerit Scores in County • Concurring Enrollment College Classes on Campus • Digital Arts, Drama and Music Programs • Only competitive ESports Program in Casa Grande • Competitive Sports: Football, Volleyball, Cheerleading, Men and Women’s Basketball, Wrestling, Men & Women’s Soccer, Baseball, Softball, Cross Country and Track. • Youth Entrepreneurs Program and Senior Internships • Relationship with CAVIT Program • A wide variety of clubs and extracurricular activities • AVID Site of Distinction

In 2020, 92% of MHP’s graduates attended a university, community college or the military. Over 50% of MHP’s students attend college before high school graduation.

Mission Heights Preparatory High School 1376 E. Cottonwood Ln. Casa Grande, AZ. 85122 www.mhprep.com 520.836.9383

Amanda Mace, School Leader

THE LEONA GROUP, L.L.C. • Accredited by AdvanceED

Enroll today online at mhprep.com/enroll or stop by for a tour!

The Casa Grande Union High School District is comprised of two comprehensive high schools and during the 2020-21 school year, added CGUHSD Online Academy, a virtual high school. The district has about 3,650 students between the two high schools and receives students from the Casa Grande Elementary School District, Stanfi eld Elementary School District, Toltec Elementary School District and Sacaton Public Schools each year. Between the two major high schools, about 800 students graduate annually and about half of them go on to college. The district off ers Advanced Placement classes in Language and Composition, Literature and Composition, Human Geography, Psychology, United States Government and Politics, United States History, World History: Modern, Calculus AB, Calculus BC, Computer Science Principles, Statistics, Biology, Chemistry, Physics 1: Algebra-Based (Physics A), Physics 2: Algebra-Based (Physics B), Spanish Language and Culture, Spanish Literature and Culture, as well as dual enrollment courses. Across the district, there are various Career and Technical Education programs for students to participate in. The director of career and technical education of CGUHSD, Steven Sipes, shared that diff erent CTE programs are available at both high schools. Students who take the CTE courses in high school see higher earning, including a 3.2% wage increase for CTE concentrators.

HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATE OR GRADUATE OR HIGHER (OVER AGE 25): (OVER AGE 25): 83.4% 83.4%

PINAL COUNTY

POST SECONDARY EDUCATION CERTIFICATE OR DEGREE (OVER AGE 25): 27%

· ASSOCIATES: 11% · BACHELOR'S: 10.4% · GRADUATE OR PROFESSIONAL: 6%

US CENSUS

Some of the more traditional CTE programs off ered at Casa Grande Union High School are Agriculture, Culinary, Early Childhood Education, Construction, Engineering and Bioscience. Vista Grande High School off ers some of the same traditional programs as well as others such as Stagecraft, Marketing, Automation & Robotics, as well as Graphic Design. Both campuses will introduce the newest CTE program for the upcoming academic year: Education Professions. The district also allows students to go to the Central Arizona Valley Institute of Technology in Coolidge, which off ers numerous programs such as Vet Tech, Law Enforcement, Fire Science and Cosmetology. Students have the opportunity to graduate high school with certain certifi cations such as an Adobe Certifi ed Associate, OSHA 10 and First Aid Certifi cation. Besides the CTE classes the district off ers, CGUHSD off ers elective classes in fi ne arts, Junior ROTC, physical education and world languages. The schools have been recognized for their community performances and competitions in choir, drama and dance. Both schools are members of the Arizona Interscholastic Association. “It is the mission of CGUHSD to inspire excellence by providing globally competitive educational and career opportunities for all students,” Superintendent Dr. Steve Bebee said.

CASA GRANDE UNION HIGH SCHOOL DISTRICT

Increased Student Engagement

Through highly effective instructional strategies

Integrated Technology

In the classroom to enhance teaching and learning

Workforce Development

Developing the workforce of tomorrow

PERSONALIZED LEARNING Every student is unique and deserves the power to shape their paths toward success. Inspiring Excellence

520.316.3360 | WWW.CGUHSD.ORG

Central Arizona College President Dr. Jackie Elliott describes a typical scenario at many schools: a student might see a banner hanging somewhere, such as the student foyer, highlighting a relationship with a company. “You might say to admin: ‘how is that partnership going?’” Elliott said. “‘Oh, you know, 10 years ago we got a check from them. Haven’t done anything in a while.’” In part to avoid that kind of scenario, Elliott said, CAC’s approach to workforce development is special. Over the past decade, CAC has taken a proactive role in making sure students are strong fi ts for work within the region. Recently that has culminated in direct partnerships with companies like Sundt Construction and Wilson Electric. “We’ve been very intentional in sitting down with our partners and developing specifi c curriculum for their needs,” Elliott said. “Our students get a feel for what is actually happening in the workforce rather than being with a faculty member who worked in the industry ten years ago.” According to Elliott, when the college had discussions with Sundt in 2016, the company was directly involved in creating courses, and the school even hired Sundt employees as adjunct instructors. When Wilson Electric approached CAC, it wanted a program designed in a similar manner. Since then, hundreds of CAC students have gone on to jobs at those companies. “We co-design what a program is going to look like and then we co-develop,” Elliott said. “We consistently engage with our partners, we don’t just meet with them once a year. We sit down with them and ask, what do we need to change?” Elliott says that philosophy of more targeted coursework has caused a major shift in CAC’s programs and allowed students to fi nd work locally. “We know our students don’t want to leave their state,” Elliott said. “We work hard to make sure a program makes sense for students who are essentially place-bound by their own choice, which is great for Arizona.” With newer companies like Lucid and Nikola moving to the region, Elliott hopes to continue to expand programs and potentially grow the robotics footprint. The college is going to partner in coming semesters with Massage Envy, a Phoenix-based company, adding an aesthetics component and giving students hands-on experience so that they will be more employable. The Arizona Commerce Authority is also working to complete a Workforce Training Center on CAC’s Signal Peak Campus, which will house training equipment for hires of local manufacturing plants. In a recent column she co-penned for the Casa Grande Dispatch, Elliott and other state community college leaders highlighted the need to reskill learners of all ages for in-demand jobs with training programs. The report also mentioned that almost half of low-income households canceled education plans in light of the pandemic this year. “Post-pandemic, we need to speed up training,” Elliott said. “There is a huge sense of urgency. The typical reaction from higher education is ‘it’s not our fault’ or ‘you don’t know what you want.’ Let’s check egos at the door and do the right thing for our students.”