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school year. Kyrene Board member Michelle Fahy was one of the few school officials to make note of the impending crisis as most East Valley governing boards met last week. Higley Unified officials raised the issue last week, saying they hope to cover a $16-million hit but that they will exhaust all their reserves. “We are going to experience devastating financial impact,” Fahy warned. “I think the number is around $17 million that we would
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have to cut from our existing current year budget. That means our fourth quarter budget would be reduced by $17 million. “Now, it’s important to understand that in Kyrene, and in every district, we’ve pretty much spent our money to buy supplies and buy materials and buy books and make repairs,” she continued. “And, so we are talking about $17 million in people for the most part.
Wildly popular Ahwatukee belles event returns to Ahwatukee
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BY PAUL MARYNIAK AFN Executive Editor and HOWARD FISCHER Capitol Media Services
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@AhwatukeeFN |
Doomsday clock ticks for Kyrene, TU budgets financial doomsday clock is ticking for most school districts in Arizona and unless the Legislature acts to stop it by March 1, Kyrene and Tempe Union school districts each say they face $17 million in immediate spending cuts before the end of the current
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Wednesday, February 2, 2022
see SPENDING page 6
BY COTY DOLORES MIRANDA AFN Contributor
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he wildly popular Transportation Day – which has drawn thousands of excited children for two decades to God’s Garden Preschool in Ahwatukee – is back. For the 21st year between 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 5, kids can sit in firetrucks, cranes and other vehicles on the campus of Horizon Presbyterian Church, 1401 E. Liberty Lane, during the free, school-sponsored event. Event coordinator and God’s Garden Preschool parent Taylor Joy Ake said organizers were unsure the 21st Annual Transportation Day could even be possible. “We debated whether we thought we could pull it off, but we knew preserving and carrying on the tradition of this really special community event was important, even if that
see TRANSPORTATION page 14
Mountain Pointe Theatre Company actresses, from left, Kylie Stinson as “Truvy,” Anissa Moreno as “Shelby,” Jadyn Carter as “M’lynn” and Teresa Gunther as “Anelle” rehearsed last week in preparation for this weekend’s presentation of the classic “Steel Magnolias,” which tells the story of a group of women who grow stronger through tragedy and good fortune. You can read all about it on page 21. (David Minton/AFN Staff Photographer
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