Arizona gives 84 Pima County schools A's, no F's

More than 80 Pima County schools earned A’s and no schools here are failing in new letter grades announced by the Arizona Department of Education.

The only failing traditional school in the county as of last year, Safford K-8 in Tucson Unified School District, improved to a C in the 2022-23 grades announced Friday.

According to the data, 83 Pima County public schools (including traditional and charter schools) earned A’s, 77 received B’s, 47 got C’s and 18 received D’s.

The state education department uses letter grades as an accountability model for school performance. Parameters are year-to-year student academic growth and proficiency in English language arts, mathematics and science; the proficiency and academic growth of English language learners; indicators that elementary students are ready for success in high school and that high school students are ready for success in a career or in higher education; and high school graduation rates.

Notably, all of Tanque Verde Unified School District’s schools received A grades. Vail Unified School District earned an overall A, with only one of its schools not getting the top grade (Vail Blended Learning, which received a B).

Catalina Foothills Unified School District also earned an A overall. When grades were released, all but one of its schools received the top grade (Catalina Foothills High School got a B). Catalina Foothills High School's grade was later changed to an A because of a technical error on the state's end. 

Overall B grades were received by Amphitheater Public Schools and Flowing Wells, Marana and Tucson unified school districts.

Sunnyside Unified School District’s overall grade was a C.

Improving schools in TUSD

Nine Tucson Unified School District schools were on the district’s list for improvement plans due to lackluster letter grades in 2021-2022. Several of them did receive higher grades this year.

TUSD’s Blenman Elementary, Booth Fickett K-8, Doolen Middle, Manzo Elementary, Pistor Middle, Safford K-8, Steele Elementary, Tully Elementary and Valencia Middle were up for improvement plans.

Blenman Elementary received a D last year. In 2022-2023 the school earned a B.

Booth Fickett’s D grade from 2021-2022 held steady in 2022-2023, as did Pistor’s.

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Doolen went from a D last year to a C this year, along with Steele, Tully and Valencia.

Manzo Elementary School earned a C in 2022-2023, up from a D in 2021-2022.

Worsening schools in TUSD

Several TUSD schools received D marks in 2022-2023, dropping from last year.

Cavett Elementary School dropped its B grade from 2021-2022 to a D in 2022-2023. So did Hollinger K-8 School, Irene Erickson Elementary School and Palo Verde High Magnet School.

Pueblo Gardens Elementary received a D this year after earning a C in 2021-2022.

Raul Grijalva Elementary School dropped to a D grade in 2022-2023 after getting a C in 2021-2022. Secrist Middle School and Catalina High School also dropped from C to D.

Palo Verde High Magnet School went from a B in 2021-2022 to a D.

For more info

Information on a school’s overall characteristics can be found on the school’s report card at azreportcards.azed.gov.

These statistics do not include alternative or hybrid schools.

Schools can appeal their letter grades, but must do so by Nov. 15, 2023.

The state-given letter grades aren’t the only thing to consider when choosing a school, a news release from the Arizona Department of Education advised. Beyond quantitative measures — like the grading system — qualitative elements to consider include extracurricular activities, school size and the types of activities a student is interested in.