For the Record

On November 25, 2025, a student and her parents contacted Saguaro High School officials to share concerns regarding direct messages over a social media app between the student and a school administrator.   The District is grateful that the student had the courage to come forward and inform the administration of the inappropriate behavior.  The staff member was immediately put on paid leave pending the outcome of an investigation.  The District reported the matter to the Scottsdale Police Department and to the State Board of Education’s Investigative Unit.  December 9, 2025, the Governing Board accepted the employee’s resignation. 

Scottsdale Unified School District is committed to maintaining a safe and supportive environment for all students.  When concerns like this are raised, we take immediate action to investigate, confirm the facts, and respond accordingly.  The District also ensures that it complies with its reporting responsibilities.   

Scottsdale Unified School District (SUSD) is aware of concerns being raised once again regarding a district teacher at Anasazi Elementary School. Allegations have been raised that the teacher videotaped a third-grade student without authorization.  These allegations were previously investigated in 2023 in accordance with district policy and state law and were found to be unsubstantiated.   

Superintendent Tom Horne has again used his platform to target Scottsdale Unified School District (SUSD)  based upon incorrect facts and spurious allegations.  This time it is based upon SUSD’s distribution of flyers to promote community events.

Scottsdale Unified School District (SUSD) follows a consistent and legally compliant process for the distribution of community flyers. Our flyer distribution system, Peachjar, is available to nonprofit organizations that meet the requirements outlined in our 

PebbleGo and BrainPOP are online educational supplemental resources that have been reviewed and approved for use in Scottsdale Unified School District (SUSD). They are designed specifically for elementary and middle school students and provide engaging lessons, videos, and activities that reinforce the Arizona Academic Standards.

Students in SUSD have access to content that is age-appropriate and aligned to the subjects and topics outlined in Arizona state standards. In fact, SUSD has taken the additional step of blocking sections that do not directly support what is being taught in our classrooms or are not permitted for instruction in Arizona, while maintaining access to valuable learning activities.

Despite claims circulating on social media, these resources do not expose SUSD elementary students to sexual education lessons involving reproduction, gender identity, or sexual orientation.

The change in guidance has created concerns across our community and in our schools.  However, it is important for you to know that SUSD will continue to support and teach each student enrolled in our district consistent with the legal parameters noted below: 

At SUSD, we are in constant pursuit of improved learning outcomes for our students. We have Wildly Important Goals (WIGS) and Key Priorities Indicators that keep us laser focused on ensuring excellence in teaching and learning in our classrooms. We believe that a key factor in the success of student learning is the strength of their teachers. Thus, we are committed to empowering our educators with the resources they need to achieve better outcomes for students and are continuously exploring innovative approaches to support teacher growth and development.

Due to unforeseen technical difficulties, there were audio issues during the live broadcast of the governing board meeting held on August 20, 2024. As a result, some portions of the audio are missing from the recording. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and appreciate your understanding. Efforts are being made to prevent such issues in future broadcasts. Additionally governing board meeting minutes will be available for public inspection as required by law.

School district budgets are classified in two “types” of funds, budget-controlled and cash-controlled funds.  Budget-controlled funds are set by a state set formula or legislative appropriations and the amount that a school district may spend is dependent on that formula.  The school district is legally permitted to budget or spend up to the budget limit. Budget-controlled funds include, Maintenance and Operations (M&O), District Additional Assistance (DAA or Unrestricted Capital), Bond, Overrides for both M&O and DAA, Classroom Site Fund and Adjacent Ways. The legislature establishes a formula for the budget which is the amount the district may spend for expenditures in those funds. To receive the cash to fund these accounts, the district must levy the local taxpayers.  The County Treasurer (district bank) requires the district to have available cash in the bank to process warrants (checks).

Rebuttals to Recent Claims 

Claim: SUSD blames declining enrollment on birth rates, instead of dissatisfaction. 

Enrollment Data: Enrollment information was obtained for entry and exit dates. Withdrawal codes were examined. Students who graduated, obtained a GED, were incarcerated, moved out the state or country, or passed away were not included. Students who left to be homeschooled, dropped out, were dropped for excessive unexcused absences, left the district, or left without a record of what new school they were going to were retained for analysis. Note that students moving within the state of Arizona but out of SUSD boundaries are included in this total and could not be filtered out. Therefore, this chart is the upper range of students who have left as a result of parental dissatisfaction. The percentage of enrolled students who left for a reason that could possibly be connected to parental dissatisfaction was calculated for school years 2021-2022, 2022-2023, and 2023-2024.

Fact: The percentage of students leaving SUSD due to parental dissatisfaction has decreased over the past 3 school years.

We would like to address misinformation that has been circulating within our community regarding the alleged turnover of principals within the Scottsdale Unified School District (SUSD).

First and foremost, it is important to clarify that SUSD takes immense pride in cultivating and nurturing education leaders within our district. We celebrate the achievements of those who choose to spread their wings to take on new roles within our own district, as well as pursue leadership opportunities elsewhere. Some who have dedicated decades of service to our schools choose to retire or resign due to personal or family obligations. This turnover is a natural part of any organization's evolution.

We would like to address misinformation that has been circulating within our community regarding the alleged turnover of principals within the Scottsdale Unified School District (SUSD).

First and foremost, it is important to clarify that SUSD takes immense pride in cultivating and nurturing education leaders within our district. We celebrate the achievements of those who choose to spread their wings to take on new roles within our own district, as well as pursue leadership opportunities elsewhere. Some who have dedicated decades of service to our schools choose to retire or resign due to personal or family obligations. This turnover is a natural part of any organization's evolution...

The Scottsdale Unified School District Governing Board voted 3-0 on December 12th to accept the terms of the settlement reached by both parties. Two members abstained.

Plaintiffs brought a lawsuit against the District in May 2022.  Plaintiffs initiated settlement discussions with the District shortly before Plaintiffs’ depositions were scheduled to commence.  The settlement agreement...

We’d like to address the concern in the community that arose following a joint meeting of two student clubs, UNICEF and Amnesty International.

We want to make it unequivocally clear that Scottsdale Unified School District stands firmly against Antisemitism and Islamophobia both of which are on the rise, especially in the backdrop of the current Israel Hamas...

Our schools host a variety of student-initiated clubs that meet outside of class time, during lunch or after school. These clubs often invite guest speakers as part of their activities.

We value the diversity of our student population and support their right to various opinions, beliefs, and interests as protected in the U.S. Constitution. Consistent with those rights, we do not regulate the viewpoints...

Parent choice is not new.  SUSD strongly believes in school choice, and parents have long chosen the school that best meets their students’ needs.  As such, we offer various teaching and learning styles, including Traditional, Dual Language Immersion, International Baccalaureate and STEAM programs. 

The Arizona Department of Education (ADE) is responsible for tracking the state’s Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA), or school voucher, program.  The information provided...

During the fall of 2021, IT and Communications partnered to learn more about messaging options on the market because of growing dissatisfaction with SUSD’s current solution for mass communication. A larger strategy unfolded to determine how various non-centralized tools could be eliminated to improve communication with families, support a broader range of home languages, provide support for staff, and provide messaging data to help staff enhance communication with families.

After reviewing what was available and receiving feedback from users of other communication platforms in use in SUSD, ParentSquare emerged as a tool that could replace several...

The District's public records department publishes all requests for public records with the exception of items that concern requests for student records or that would reveal personally identifiable information regarding students.  The District has withheld publication of two (2) public records requests this past school year. 

The GovQA software allows for the posting of "trending topics" on...