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Inside This Week
Student population decline spells challenges for Kyrene BY PAUL MARYNIAK AFN Executive Editor
W COMMUNITY ..... 19 Ahwatukee woman finally realizes marathon dream.
BUSINESS ......... 29 Local pet surgeon's nail trimming sideline a big hit.
www.ahwatukee.com
Wednesday, April 12, 2023
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here are all the children going? That question looms over Kyrene School District as it prepares its budget for the coming school year. More importantly, it will be an even larger question for the district in the years after 202324. Enrollment is dropping in Kyrene – a trend
Local man co-authors an inside look at healthcare
also occurring in Tempe Union and many other school districts with a high socioeconomic makeup. And because enrollment is the most significant part of the complicated formula that determines the size of the district’s largest revenue stream, the implications of that decline stand to influence the district’s structure, payroll and possibly the number of campuses in years to come. The enrollment decline is driven by two
major factors, Kyrene Chief Financial Officer Chris Herrmann told the governing board in a March 28 study session. One is the fact “that we have more options for parents” – especially for those specialneeds children who require more services than a public school district can provide, he said. Those options also have increased – and have become more attractive to more parents –
see KYRENE page 2
All ears
BY PAUL MARYNIAK AFN Executive Editor
A SPORTS ............. 35 Thunder's Hayden Gorovitz shatters state javelin throw record. COMMUNITY ............................ 19 BUSINESS ................................ 29 OPINION .................................. 32 SPORTS ................................... 35
bookstore browser’s eyes might roll when they come across the title of the book co-authored by 25-year Ahwatukee resident Mark West. But “Implantable Medical Devices and Healthcare Affordability” by West and coauthor Michael Georgulis Jr. of Buckeye may also leave readers wide-eyed – or teary-eyed – by what it has to say about healthcare in the United States. Published only a month ago, it certainly caught the attention of a faculty member at the University of Oklahoma's business school.
GETOUT ................................... 38 CLASSIFIEDS ........................... 43
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Students from Classic Image Dance and their float were among dozens of young and old alike who rode, walked, marched or played an instrument during the 47th Ahwatukee Kiwanis Easter Parade April 8. Perfect weather accompanied Parade Boss Mike Schmitt’s perfect choreographing of the festive parade, which drew hundreds of spectators along 48th Street. For more photos of the parade, see pages 24-25. (David Minton/AFN Staff Photographer)
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