Kathy Hoffman
Superintendent of Public Instruction
Democratic
https://www.electkathyhoffman.com
Kathy Hoffman was elected in 2018 making her the first educator to lead the Arizona Department of Education in over 20 years. As a former teacher and speech therapist in special education, Superintendent Hoffman knew that she wanted to reimagine what this role meant for our students, teachers, and families. Leading schools through one of the most challenging periods in modern history, she continues to create an office that elevates student voices and advocates for public schools and educators. During her first term, Superintendent Hoffman has focused on increasing funding for student mental health services leading to a 20% reduction in Arizona's student-to-counselor ratio, investing in programs to recruit and retain qualified educators, expanding digital connectivity to our rural communities, supporting Arizona's multilingual learners, and elevating the voices of our state's phenomenal educators. Superintendent Hoffman is running for re-election to continue building strong, welcoming, and fully-funded schools where students thrive and all educators are respected and compensated fairly. As a new mom, she is dedicated to strengthening schools’ partnerships with families because we can all agree - Arizona’s future starts in our schools.
Tom Horne
Superintendent of Public Instruction
Republican
https://tomhorne.com/
The pillars of a quality education have been demolished in the state of Arizona. Instead of promoting academic achievement and hard work, educators are indoctrinating students in critical race theory and other radical liberal propaganda. This results in student laziness and failure to master skills necessary for a successful life. I want to bring strong conservative morals and values back to our schools. I will promote real learning and fight to keep English immersion, proven over and over again to be more successful than bilingual education for immigrant children. I intend to fight back against all types of brainwashing of our children. Moreover, under my leadership, our schools will stay open and not shut down to appease the teachers’ unions. I’m the only candidate with the experience, knowledge, and integrity to do this job effectively. When I served as school board president and later as Arizona Superintendent, my team and I made undeniable progress: higher SAT scores and students better prepared for higher learning instruction. I did it then and I will do it again.
Shiry Sapir
Superintendent of Public Instruction
Republican
https://shirysapir.com/
Shiry Sapir is a successful businesswoman and mother of three who decided to run for Superintendent because “the system” has abandoned children, parents, and teachers. She has become a warrior for her children, and yours, to oppose the new radical woke education agenda and reckless spending of our taxes. Sapir’s priority is for all Arizona children to have the quality educational opportunities needed to build a solid foundation for success. Arizona parents want their voices heard and to be told the truth. It became increasingly clear to Sapir that they had been left out of decisions related to their children. They are tired of education bureaucrats that prioritize unions and not their kids. They have had enough of political indoctrination, racial division, and illicit sexual content being sown in the minds of their children as young as kindergarten. She will fight for educational freedom and parental rights, and will demand and enforce accountability, transparency, patriotism, respect for others and excellence in education. Sapir offers Arizona the opportunity to break the cycle of perpetual politicians who have failed to recognize this truth and will take decisive executive action to solve what has become a statewide child rescue mission.
Michelle Udall
Superintendent of Public Instruction
Republican
The success of our state depends on the success of our students. Without high quality public schools focused on teaching students the knowledge and skills they need to thrive, the future of our state is in peril. We need experienced education leaders who understand the importance of education in pulling families out of poverty, opening the doors of opportunity, and creating a strong foundation upon which our economy will flourish. I am a mother; I am a teacher; and I’m running for Superintendent of Public Instruction because I know that our students, our teachers, and our state can do better. I have studied the top education systems in the world and there is no reason Arizona shouldn’t be a part of that list. We need to refocus our efforts on academics and avoid the distractions of inappropriate, divisive content that prevents schools from achieving their purpose – to prepare children for college, career, and civic engagement. As Superintendent, I will ensure that our Department of Education is organized with an emphasis on ensuring academic excellence, providing top-notch service to parents and teachers, and responsibly handling money and data in a way that allows schools to focus on teaching and learning.