There are two ways to create change: direct aid and systemic change. Direct aid attends to immediate needs — volunteering in the classroom or raising money so your school has an art program. Systemic change involves a dedicated group working for policy change with persistence and patience so that every school has an art program. We want the problems fixed for all kids and at all schools.

Here are some of our current initiatives:

Class Size Reduction
There are many strategies for Education reform. We believe that lowering class size is one of the most effective, and we have the proof.  Smaller classes, brighter futures!  Small class sizes in the primary grades are a proven strategy to improve reading, reduce discipline problems and give students the building blocks for a successful academic career.  Students who have been in a small class (less than 18 students) in kindergarten through third grade outperform their peers in larger class sizes, and continue to outperform their peers even when they are returned to larger classes.  They are also more likely to graduate from high school and more likely to take the SAT than their peers who had larger class sizes.  Princeton Economist, Alan Krueger says research has proven that we can reduce the gap between anglo graduation rates and minority graduation rates by reducing class sizes.  Every child deserves to have a great education and having smaller class sizes is the first step.

Tucson Unified School District Class Size Reduction
In partnership with Tucson Unified School District and through the advocacy efforts of hundreds of Tucson parents, Voices for Education has proven, once more, that creating smaller classes  can be one of the most effective education reform strategies for increasing academic skills and for closing the achievement gap.

Parent Leadership Institute
Develops parent leaders in our schools through an intensive eight session professional development program.

Tucson Parent Forum
With its history in a Tucson Parent Leadership Institute, this on-going program continues to bring together a community of parent leaders in order to explore and act on Tucson’s pressing education needs.

Sunnyside Parent Leadership Institute
As part of the Sunnyside School District Class Size Reduction initiative, we will be offering two parent Leadership Institutes in Sunnyside School District. These will be focused on helping parents develop the skills and tools needed to advocate for their children and their schools.

2020 Vision
Brings communities together to ensure that by 2020 we have an integrated approach to a child’s whole education to ensure that young adults in our community will be ready for work, ready for school, ready for life.

Middle School Reform
Promotes the academic performance and healthy development of our middle school-age youth.

Life Skills Parent Workshops
Based on the Life Skills Training curriculum, these workshops give parents tools to use with their adolescent children.

Jim Tallmadge Innovative Math Teacher Award
This is an award to honor excellent and creative math teachers.

No Child Left Behind
It sounds like an affirmation or prayer—No Child Left Behind. And who wouldn’t agree to this as the primary goal of any public education system? But George W. Bush’s “No Child Left Behind Act” (NCLB) has been anything but uncontroversial. With NCLB up for reauthorization, Voices for Education has partnered with Congressman Raul Grijalva’s office to help ensure that Arizona’s parents, educators and public education supporters have their voices heard in this critical national debate. Learn more about Voices for Education’s NCLB Community Forums, our community’s priorities for reauthorization and the Voices for Education NCLB Study Group.

Critical Friends Groups
A CFG is a professional learning community consisting of approximately 8-12 educators who come together voluntarily at least once a month for about 2 hours. Group members are committed to improving their practice through collaborative learning.  If you are a teacher in kindergarten through third grade, please join us this summer for a critical friends training.