Dodging the crossfire

Stein pursues tough school funding choices

TAMI BICKLEY
Staff Writer

Randie Stein

Lately, it seems that the future of Arizona's public school system, and therefore its children, is a fragile wisp of cloth tied to the center of a rope in a game of political tug-of-war.

Now Randie Stein, the newly appointed director of the Arizona School Facilities Board - chosen by Gov. Jane Hull to oversee massive changes in the way education funds are distributed in Arizona - is in the middle of the fray.

"It's a huge responsibility," Stein says. "It's a lot of money, and it's obviously very important. We're talking about kids. We're talking about safety. And we're talking about academic standards."

We're also talking about money and politics.

On one end of the rope is the governor, who wants to make education reform part of her legacy. She has proposed $290 million in revenue bonds over the next two years for Students FIRST, a unique mechanism for funding capital improvements for school districts across the state.

The money was approved by the Legislature last year in response to Supreme Court rulings that had deemed the state's previous funding methods unfair to poorer districts, and therefore unconstitutional. And although the Legislature has agreed to distribute money for school facility improvements, it still must decided where the funds will come from.

On the other end of the rope are Republican legislative leaders opposed to using bonds to fix school buildings. They propose instead cutting funding now going to state universities, to state employees' salaries, to certain school districts they say are spending too much on administration, and for other government programs. These legislators also want a $60 million tax cut.

When Hull's representatives were denied a voice at a recent public hearing on the issue, it became clear that the fight is getting nasty. Yet Stein is confident the money will be there one way or another, and is setting about the difficult task of spending it wisely.

Stein's primary responsibility as board director is allocating funds under Students FIRST. The board is authorized to spend $375 million annually to maintain, equip and construct public schools in Arizona. The board is conducting state-wide assessments to determine which school districts meet the funding guidelines, Stein says.

"We don't see an abundance of horrible things in the school districts right now," she says. "A lot has already been done (to help schools) even before this board started."

This might come as a surprise, given Arizona's shaky reputation in education. As recently as two years ago, the pupil/teacher ration was 21-1, ranking Arizona a poor 49th out of 50 states and the District of Columbia, according to reports by the American Legislative Exchange Council, Center for Education Reform and the Hudson Institute. Per pupil spending was $3,750, placing the state at 48th out of 51 by that measure.

Just two weeks ago, a building inspector ruled that the main facility at Florence High School is a fire hazard and closed the building to faculty and students. Stein was quoted at the time in The Arizona Republic as saying that the board would "take a look" at the situation.

"I am a product of the public school system," Stein tells Jewish News. "I went to elementary school in Phoenix, went to high school here and went to college here. And I have every intention of having my kids go through the public school system. My personal experiences ... have been very good."

Stein earned her bachelor's degree at the University of Arizona, and her master's degree in economics at Arizona State University. She worked for eight years as research staff director and finance committee analysts for the state Senate, prior to her new appointment.

She became involved in the education arena when the Senate sought her advice on property tax issues. At the time, there was a chance that the Students FIRST program might use local property taxes to build schools.

"I'm really not a school construction expert," she says. "My background is numbers."

Stein and her husband, Lee, live in Central Phoenix with their 6-year-old son, Alex, and 5-year-old daughter, Elizabeth. Lee is special assistant to the Arizona Attorney General .

Stein says her grandfather was a Jewish immigrant who came to the United States from Russia in the 1920s. Stein was born in Yonkers, N.Y. and moved with her family when she was "7 or 8."

Now, 30 years later, she is being paid $105,000 per year to spearhead a massive task that will affect the future of the community's most precious commodity- its children.

"You grow up with a strong work ethic because (a situation like my grandfather's) comes down to you," she says.

"I think I'm an ethical person...and I think being ethical and also having a strong work ethic is what makes you successful."

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