Built Here.
Paid For By You.
Get Involved
Arizona’s story is written by the people our public schools helped build.
The engineer who designed the overpass you crossed this morning. The nurse who held your hand in the hospital. The electrician who keeps your lights on. The teacher who changed your life with a single sentence.
Our shared legacy
Public schools are an Arizona institution. They are as much a part of this state as the Grand Canyon, the Sonoran Desert, and the 5 C’s.
Made a Commitment.
We're Keeping It.
When Arizona's founders sat down to write our state constitution in 1910, they didn't leave public education to chance.
guarantee it.
Before Arizona was even a state, our founders established a simple but powerful promise: every child in this territory, no matter where they lived or what their family had, deserved access to a quality public education. They set aside state land and resources specifically to fund our schools. Not just for a generation, but permanently.
Arizona's Constitution, Article XI:
The Legislature shall enact such laws as shall provide for the establishment and maintenance of a general and uniform public school system.
One hundred and fifteen years later, that promise still stands in classrooms across every county, every small town, and every growing city in this state. Our founders understood something that holds just as true today as it did in 1910: a state is only as strong as the foundation it builds for its people. And that foundation starts with public schools.
By the numbers
Who decides what happens to your public schools?
Arizona's public schools are shaped by decisions made at three levels of government and most Arizonans have never been told how it works.
Your local school board
This is the first layer. Elected by your neighbors, they set school policy, approve local budgets, and hire district leadership, but only within the limits of what the state allows and funds.
The State Superintendent of Public Instruction
The next layer up. This statewide elected office administers Arizona's schools, distributes state funding, and sets academic standards. Right now, that office is actively shaping what happens in classrooms across Arizona.
The Legislature controls the money
Every year, lawmakers decide how much public education funding is in the state budget and how much gets redirected elsewhere. They hear from lobbyists every day. They need to hear from you.
Get involved
Attend your local school board meeting
Speak during public comment or just show up. Your local board makes decisions that affect every child in your district — including the ones who will grow up to be your neighbors.
Spread the word
Talk to your neighbors. Share your story on social media. The more Arizonans who understand what's at stake, the harder it is for the powerful to ignore us.
Share your Built by Public Schools story
Were you built by a public school? Share your story and help us keep our founder’s promise for the next generation of Arizonans.
