The three incumbents running for the Tucson Unified School District board, Natalie Luna Rose, Sadie Shaw and Ravi Shah, won second terms.
With 99% of precincts reporting results as of Wednesday afternoon, the two challengers in the race for the three seats, Pilar Acosta Ruiz and Esteban Flores, were running behind.
Rose, the current board president, stood in first place with 26.6% of the votes counted so far while Shaw and Shah held 22.5% and 20.2% respectively. Ruiz and Flores were at 16.5% and 14.2%.
Rose
“I’m grateful to the TUSD community and Tucson voters for having trusted me to serve again on the TUSD governing board. This is the second election that I have been the top vote-getter,” Rose said Wednesday. “... What I am doing is trying to make the district a place that they can be proud of and a place they want to send their children to be educated.”
Rose said her priorities include declining enrollment in public schools as the state provides taxpayer money for parents to send their children to private and religious schools; monitoring the use of the $480 million school bonds program approved by voters a year ago, and continuing to support TUSD superintendent Gabriel Trujillo.
Shaw said her goals include securing permanent funding for arts and music education; making career and technical education mandatory for high school freshmen; helping students who need specialized support; investing in school libraries and changing the dress code to better suit the classroom environment.
Shaw
“I think it resonated with a lot of people how I stood up for change, pushed back against the status quo, and brought critical issues to light,” Shaw said in an email Wednesday to the Arizona Daily Star. “In my second term, I will continue to listen to families, staff and the community at large and fight to create better conditions throughout TUSD.”
Shah said his priorities include budget, finances and fiscal responsibility since TUSD’s $270 million in federal COVID relief funding ran out in September, and due to the drop in enrollment. He said he’s also focused on student achievement and academic outcomes, supporting teachers and staff, and working to end inequities.
Shah
“I’m thrilled that voters in Tucson chose continuity from what’s been working the last couple of years. We’ve really focused on working together, on developing a strong district, on making sure that our students are successful, and supporting our students and staff,” Shah said.
