Report ranks Arizona worst in nation for public education

PHOENIX (AZFamily) — A new analysis claims that Arizona ranks the worst in the nation for public education, citing examples like average ACT scores, graduation rates, overall funding and higher education quality.

ConsumerAffairs, a consumer research firm and customer review platform, analyzed data from all 50 states and found that the Grand Canyon State falls short of delivering quality education.

“We are last in the country, I think, in our funding per pupil,” Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne said.

Among the data points was “K-12 performance,” where Arizona was ranked 40 out of 51 (50 states plus the District of Columbia.)

K-12 performance looked at ACT scores, and the state has among the lowest scores in the nation.

Arizona also has the fifth-lowest high school graduation rate.

Horne questioned the use of graduation rates as a key metric.

“You can increase your graduation rate just by lowering your standards. And you would be graduating kids who can’t read,” he said.

The analysis also shows Arizona ranked 50 for school funding and resources, citing a high student-to-teacher ratio and some of the lowest teacher salaries nationwide.

Higher education quality was ranked at 43 due to low funding for public colleges and universities, which also have significantly lower graduation rates.

Finally, Arizona ranked in the bottom 10 states for school safety because of a lack of a school safety board and school gun violence incidents at a rate of 2.2 per 100,000 students, according to the ConsumerAffairs analysis.

Despite the bleak rankings, Horne doubted some of the metrics used.

“I don’t think this is an accurate study. I think some of the aspects are,” he said.

Horne pointed to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, a federal exam that tests math and English, and Arizona’s scores are on par with the national average.

“So even though we are last in funding, we are at the national average in performance, which is a good thing,” he said.

But Horne acknowledged one area of concern.

“We are losing more teachers than are coming into the classroom. So we have a real emergency on our hands,” he said.

Arizona’s Family reached out to the Arizona Education Association, the state’s teacher union, for comment on the study, but has not yet received a response.

According to the U.S. Department of Education, more than 49 million students were enrolled in elementary, middle, and high schools across the country in 2022.

About one-third of those students were below proficiency in at least one subject.

Which states ranked best?

1. Massachusetts
2. New York
3. New Jersey
4. Washington
5. Pennsylvania
6. Vermont
7. Minnesota
8. Connecticut
9. Virginia
10. Wisconsin

See a spelling or grammatical error in our story? Please click here to report it.

Do you have a photo or video of a breaking news story? Send it to us here with a brief description.