Month: November 2017

A new report by the Morrison Institute for Public Policy at ASU states that more than 1,3000 Arizona classrooms are without a permanent teacher, and low salaries are the main problem. Arizona's median pay of a secondary school teacher is only $48,020 compared to the national median pay of $55,800. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, this puts Arizona worst in the nation for primary school teacher salaries, along with being 48th for high school teacher salaries. A recent survey found that about 526 teachers quit this school year, with 42% of Arizona teachers hired in 2013 leaving the profession within three years. Nearly three out of four administrators said their schools face immense teacher shortages -- 1,328 vacant positions to be exact. A teacher shortage is an im...

Any Arizonian knows that Interstate 15 offers a breathtaking view of the state's rugged landscape. Now a portion of the highway has been recognized for its infrastructural attributes as well. The Daily Miner reports that The American Public Works Association selected the Virgin River Bridge No. 6 rehabilitation as the Project of the Year. It was selected among other projects with worth between $25 million and $75 million. "This award acknowledges the creativity and cooperation that went into making a critically needed improvement to a vital regional economic corridor," Dallas Hammit, Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) state engineer and deputy director for transportation, said in a statement to the Daily Miner. In the country's 102 largest metro regions, driver take two hund...