Judge upholds use of AIMS test as a graduation requirement

  PHOENIX - A judge has rejected efforts by two public interest law firms to block the state from using the AIMS test as a graduation requirement.

  Maricopa County Superior Court Judge John Buttrick heard evidence showing that school districts with a higher percentage of economically disadvantaged and minority students had a lower rate of students who were able to pass the reading, math and writing sections of the Arizona  Instrument to Measure Standards test.

  Plaintiffs in the case said that is because the state does not provide enough funds to ensure that all students get the education they need and to which they are constitutionally entitled.

  But Buttrick said no one proved an absolute link between the programs that schools do and do not provide and the AIMS scores. Without that, he said, there is no constitutional violation.

  No decision has been made on an appeal.

  The lawsuit was filed on behalf of three student groups: the economically disadvantaged, racial and ethnic minorities, and those classified as "English-language learners."

  According to the lawsuit, students in these groups - about one out of every six of high school seniors in Arizona - pass the math, reading and writing sections of AIMS at a lower rate than those who are not in the same categories.

  Attorney Ellen Katz of the William E. Morris Institute for Justice said that if the state intends to use AIMS as a graduation requirement, it should provide more funding for these students for everything from smaller classes to tutoring.

  State School Superintendent Tom Horne said there is a link between socio-economic status and academic achievement.

  "But it's not an excuse for anybody. The teachers need to teach well, the schools need to give good leadership, the students need to study.''

  And Horne said socio-economic status is not an excuse not to have to pass the AIMS test, which is supposed to show that students have learned what is expected of a high school graduate.

  "We hold out the same high standards for everybody,'' he said.

  Horne acknowledged that state aid to schools is pretty much equal, about $6,000 for each student, regardless of their economic background. But he said the federal government provides additional cash to districts with a high percentage of students living in poverty to help those youngsters with special programs.

  Buttrick said the state is constitutionally obligated to provide all schools with enough money to ensure that students have the opportunity to get an education. But he said the challengers to the state's current funding system never proved that the lack of cash to provide certain programs affected AIMS scores.

  For example, he noted that Toni Badone, superintendent of the Yuma Union High School District, testified that her district is not meeting the needs of its students due to lack of resources.

  But Buttrick said not a single student failed to graduate in 2006 or 2007 because of the failure to pass the AIMS test.

  And Reyna Olvera, a student at Thomas Jefferson High School in Phoenix, testified about the lack of services at her school. Buttrick noted, though, Olvera also admitted to a number of unexcused absences "and that she dropped out of her math AIMS class after only a few weeks.''

  Attorney Tim Hogan of the Center for Law in the Public Interest, who also represented challengers, said he believes Buttrick used the wrong legal standard to rule against the challengers.

  He said no one disputed the statistics showing the connection between the AIMS scores at individual schools and the economic status of the students there. What Buttrick apparently wanted, said Hogan, was proof that individual students were unable to get a diploma because of the lack of funds.

  Horne said he always has fought for more funding for education overall.

  "But just because we don't reach the ideal there doesn't mean we can't have standards,'' he said. And Horne said it would be wrong to excuse high schoolers from having to pass AIMS - and prove proficiency - just because of their economic status.