Press Releases

Following landmark election results across the state, the Arizona Education Association is celebrating victories for public education and working families, attributing historic wins to years of organizing by AEA members up and down the state.

Arizona Education Association President Marisol Garcia released the following statement after Republican lawmakers ended the 2026 legislative session without renewing Prop 123, passing any meaningful reforms to Arizona’s scandal-plagued, billion-dollar voucher system, or making any serious new investments in education.

The Arizona Education Association announced a new partnership with Augustana University to provide Arizona educators with access to high-quality graduate education at one of the lowest costs available in the state. Through the partnership, educators can deepen their professional skills, earn graduate credit, and potentially qualify for salary advancement in their districts through the completion of online micro-credentials.

The Arizona Education Association recognized two outstanding public school educators as its 2026 Arizona Educators of the Year: Kaitlin Moriarty, a third-grade teacher at Peralta Elementary School in the Cartwright School District, and Anthony James “A.J.” Benavidez, a Special Education Teaching Assistant and Behavioral Health Technician in Amphitheater Public Schools.

Today, Arizona Education Association President Marisol Garcia released the following statement on HCR 2040, a ballot referral that would restrict the freedom of Arizona educators to organize for better learning conditions for their students and limit how education unions can use public services that are widely available to corporations and advocacy groups: 

As state lawmakers prepare for the 2026 legislative session, new polling released today by the Arizona Education Association shows that voters back reforms to the state’s voucher program by more than a 2-1 margin, with overwhelming majorities supporting basic accountability, safety, and transparency reforms to protect students and taxpayer funds.

On November 3, Arizona Education Association President Marisol Garcia released the following statement in response to death threats against educators in the Vail School District.

AEA President Marisol Garcia released the following statement urging school districts and state leaders to protect educators from harassment and online threats.

National Education Association President Becky Pringle and Arizona Education Association President Marisol Garcia visited schools in the Creighton and Roosevelt districts to discuss the consequences of federal cuts to nutrition and education programs and highlight the value of investments in early childhood and bilingual education. During the visits, Pringle and Garcia announced a total of $25,000 in donations to help school-based food pantries in each district meet an increase in demand from President Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” which includes the largest cut to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in history.

Marisol Garcia, president of the Arizona Education Association, joined fellow union leaders from the Arizona AFL-CIO, UFCW 99, Unite HERE Local 11, AFSCME Local 2960, and the Arizona Building Trades Council to hold a press conference demanding an end to attacks on workers and denouncing the billionaire-first policy agenda pushed by the Trump administration and its allies. Together, the unions represent more than 200,000 members across the state of Arizona.