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Scottsdale Unified School District, Arizona, elections

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Scottsdale Unified School District
School Board badge.png
District details
School board members: 5
Students: 20,940 (2023-2024)
Schools: 33 (2023-2024)
Website: Link

Scottsdale Unified School District is a school district in Arizona (Maricopa County). During the 2024 school year, 20,940 students attended one of the district's 33 schools.

This page provides information regarding school board members, election rules, finances, academics, policies, and more details about the district.

Jump to a section:
Elections School board Location Budget Academic performance Students Staff Schools School board meetings

Elections

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Scottsdale Unified Governing Board At-large

General election

General election for Scottsdale Unified Governing Board At-large (3 seats)

The following candidates ran in the general election for Scottsdale Unified Governing Board At-large on November 5, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
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Donna Lewis (Nonpartisan)
 
18.9
 
56,097
✔
Image of Matthew Pittinsky
Matthew Pittinsky (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
17.8
 
52,961
✔
Image of Michael Sharkey
Michael Sharkey (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
17.6
 
52,355
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Jeanne Beasley (Nonpartisan)
 
15.8
 
46,850
Image of Gretchen Jacobs
Gretchen Jacobs (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
15.5
 
46,000
Image of Drew Hassler
Drew Hassler (Nonpartisan)
 
14.3
 
42,422
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.2
 
563

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 297,248
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Scottsdale Unified Governing Board At-large

General election

General election for Scottsdale Unified Governing Board At-large (2 seats)

Amy Carney and Carine Werner defeated Robb Vaules, Mary Gaudio, and Andrea Keck in the general election for Scottsdale Unified Governing Board At-large on November 8, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
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Amy Carney (Nonpartisan)
 
24.7
 
38,859
✔
Image of Carine Werner
Carine Werner (Nonpartisan)
 
22.4
 
35,300
Image of Robb Vaules
Robb Vaules (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
22.2
 
34,882
Image of Mary Gaudio
Mary Gaudio (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
20.4
 
32,168
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Andrea Keck (Nonpartisan)
 
10.0
 
15,806
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.3
 
394

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 157,409
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Scottsdale Unified Governing Board At-large

General election

General election for Scottsdale Unified Governing Board At-large (3 seats)

The following candidates ran in the general election for Scottsdale Unified Governing Board At-large on November 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Julie Cieniawski
Julie Cieniawski (Nonpartisan)
 
22.0
 
55,304
✔
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Libby Hart‐Wells (Nonpartisan)
 
17.5
 
43,858
✔
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Zach Lindsay (Nonpartisan)
 
16.7
 
41,853
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Rose Smith (Nonpartisan)
 
16.5
 
41,470
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Kathleen Angelos (Nonpartisan)
 
14.1
 
35,410
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Lucy DiGrazia (Nonpartisan)
 
12.9
 
32,516
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.3
 
805

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 251,216
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Scottsdale Unified Governing Board At-large

General election

General election for Scottsdale Unified Governing Board At-large (2 seats)

Patty Beckman and Jann-Michael Greenburg won election in the general election for Scottsdale Unified Governing Board At-large on November 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Patty Beckman
Patty Beckman (Nonpartisan)
 
56.2
 
55,827
✔
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Jann-Michael Greenburg (Nonpartisan)
 
43.8
 
43,524

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 99,351
(100.00% precincts reporting)
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Scottsdale Unified Governing Board At-large

General election

General election for Scottsdale Unified Governing Board At-large

Incumbent Barbara Perleberg won election in the general election for Scottsdale Unified Governing Board At-large on November 8, 2016.

Candidate
✔
Image of Barbara Perleberg
Barbara Perleberg (Nonpartisan)

Incumbents are bolded and underlined.

Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Scottsdale Unified Governing Board At-large

General election

General election for Scottsdale Unified Governing Board At-large

Incumbent Kim Hartmann and incumbent Pam Kirby won election in the general election for Scottsdale Unified Governing Board At-large on November 4, 2014.

Candidate
✔
Image of Kim Hartmann
Kim Hartmann (Nonpartisan)
✔
Image of Pam Kirby
Pam Kirby (Nonpartisan)

Incumbents are bolded and underlined.

Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Election rules

 

Election dates and frequency

See also: Rules governing school board election dates and timing

School board general elections in Arizona are held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November every two years in even-numbered years.

DocumentIcon.jpg See law: Arizona Statute Section 15-424 & 16-211



Election system

School board members in Arizona are elected through nonpartisan general elections without primaries.

DocumentIcon.jpg See law: Arizona Statute Section 16-211

Party labels on the ballot

See also: Rules governing party labels in school board elections

School board elections in Arizona are nonpartisan, which means party labels do not appear on the ballot for school board candidates.

DocumentIcon.jpg See law: Arizona Statutes Section 15-422 and Section 16-502

Winning an election

School board candidates that receive the largest number of votes in the general election are elected to office.

DocumentIcon.jpg See law: Arizona Statute Section 15-424

Term length and staggering

School board members in Arizona have four-year terms. Certain school board members have initial two-year terms when a new district is formed or when a district is changing the number of board members in order to establish a staggered election schedule.

DocumentIcon.jpg See law: Arizona Statute Section 15-424

As close to half of school board members as possible are elected every two years. Upon the formation of a new district, all board members are elected at one election and the initial terms of the two winning candidates receiving lower numbers of votes are shortened to two years to achieve staggering.

DocumentIcon.jpg See law: Arizona Statue Section 15-424

Representation: at large vs. by sub-district

School board members are elected at large.

DocumentIcon.jpg See law: Arizona Statute Section 15-427 & 15-429

Filing deadlines and swearing-in dates

The school board candidate filing deadline in Arizona is 120 days before the election date.

DocumentIcon.jpg See law: Arizona Statue Section 16-311

School board candidates can circulate their nomination petitions starting when the filling window opens 150 days before the election, which is 30 days before the filing deadline.

DocumentIcon.jpg See law: Arizona Statue Section 16-311

Newly elected school board members officially take office at the first organizational meeting of the school board, which must be held between the first and 15th day of January following the general election.

DocumentIcon.jpg See law: Arizona Statute Section 15-321

 


About the district

School board

The Scottsdale Unified School District consists of five members serving four-year terms. To find information about school board meetings, click here.

List of school board members
NameYear assumed officeYear term ends
Donna Lewis20252029
Matthew Pittinsky20252029
Michael Sharkey20252029
Amy Carney20232027
Carine Werner20232027

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District map

School district map

Overlapping state house districts

Scottsdale Unified School District
Office NameCurrent OfficeholderParty% School District Covered% Other District Covered
Arizona House of Representatives District 3Joseph ChaplikRepublican Party 47% 4%
Arizona House of Representatives District 3Alexander KolodinRepublican Party 47% 4%
Arizona House of Representatives District 4Pamela CarterRepublican Party 40% 44%
Arizona House of Representatives District 4Matt GressRepublican Party 40% 44%
Arizona House of Representatives District 8Janeen ConnollyDemocratic Party 13% 11%
Arizona House of Representatives District 8Brian GarciaDemocratic Party 13% 11%

The table was limited to the lower chamber because it provides the most granularity. State house districts tend to be more numerous and therefore smaller than state senate or U.S. House districts. This provides an impression of the partisan affiliations in the area.

Budget

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.[1]

Revenue, 2021-2022
SOURCE AMOUNT AMOUNT PER STUDENT PERCENT
Federal: $36,660,000 $1,725 12%
Local: $201,559,000 $9,483 68%
State: $56,234,000 $2,646 19%
Total: $294,453,000 $13,853
Expenditures, 2021-2022
TYPE AMOUNT AMOUNT PER STUDENT PERCENT
Total Expenditures: $270,215,000 $12,610
Total Current Expenditures: $208,345,000 $9,723
Instructional Expenditures: $110,952,000 $5,177 41%
Student and Staff Support: $33,961,000 $1,584 13%
Administration: $20,457,000 $954 8%
Operations, Food Service, Other: $42,975,000 $2,005 16%
Total Capital Outlay: $41,009,000 $1,913
Construction: $31,156,000 $1,453
Total Non El-Sec Education & Other: $5,647,000 $263
Interest on Debt: $13,830,000 $645

Academic performance

Each year, state and local education agencies use tests and other standards to assess student proficiency. Although the data below was published by the U.S. Department of Education, proficiency measurements are established by the states. As a result, proficiency levels are not comparable between different states and year-over-year proficiency levels within a district may not be comparable because states may change their proficiency measurements. To protect student privacy, percentages are reported as ranges for groups of 300 students or fewer. If five or fewer students were included in a data set, the data will display as "PS."[2]

The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:

School year All (%) Asian/Pacific Islander (%) Black (%) Hispanic (%) Native American (%) Two or More Races (%) White (%)
2020-2021 53 72 30 31 25-29 50-54 62
2018-2019 63 78 42 43 35-39 60-64 72
2017-2018 63 80 40 41 35-39 60-64 72
2016-2017 59 77 37 37 33 67
2015-2016 52 65 35 31 25-29 59
2014-2015 50 62 30 29 25-29 58
2013-2014 76 84 59 56 52 83
2012-2013 75 85 53 55 61 82
2011-2012 77 84 58 57 55-59 83
2010-2011 77 86 54 55 55-59 84

The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:

School year All (%) Asian/Pacific Islander (%) Black (%) Hispanic (%) Native American (%) Two or More Races (%) White (%)
2020-2021 55 68 38 37 30-34 50-54 63
2018-2019 63 73 44 44 40-44 70-74 72
2017-2018 62 74 43 40 35-39 60-64 71
2016-2017 60 72 39 39 31 68
2015-2016 55 64 37 34 25-29 63
2014-2015 53 60 35 33 25-29 61
2013-2014 89 91 81 77 74 93
2012-2013 89 92 78 76 77 93
2011-2012 88 92 79 75 75-79 93
2010-2011 88 90 74 74 70-74 93

The following table shows the graduation rate of district students each school year:

School year All (%) Asian/Pacific Islander (%) Black (%) Hispanic (%) Native American (%) Two or More Races (%) White (%)
2019-2020 92 90-94 90-94 85 70-79 >=90 95
2018-2019 93 >=95 85-89 85 80-89 >=80 95
2017-2018 90 90-94 85-89 87 80-89 >=80 91
2016-2017 91 90-94 90-94 88 80-89 91
2015-2016 85 80-84 70-74 82 70-79 88
2014-2015 85 85-89 70-74 82 80-89 87
2013-2014 87 85-89 80-84 76 70-79 90
2012-2013 88 90-94 70-74 79 60-69 92
2011-2012 90 90-94 80-84 81 70-79 93
2010-2011 91 90-94 70-79 85 80-89 93

Students

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.[3]

Year Enrollment Year-to-year change (%)
2023-2024 20,940 -1.1
2022-2023 21,177 -1.2
2021-2022 21,428 -0.3
2020-2021 21,496 -4.3
2019-2020 22,410 0.7
2018-2019 22,256 -1.3
2017-2018 22,550 -3.8
2016-2017 23,405 -1.1
2015-2016 23,659 -0.9
2014-2015 23,883 -4.1
2013-2014 24,866 -1.5
2012-2013 25,246 -2.0
2011-2012 25,762 -1.8
2010-2011 26,235 -1.3
2009-2010 26,588 -1.9
2008-2009 27,082 1.7
2007-2008 26,611 7.4
2006-2007 24,653 -9.3
2005-2006 26,936 2.2
2004-2005 26,356 -0.8
2003-2004 26,559 -2.6
2002-2003 27,245 -0.9
2001-2002 27,479 1.9
2000-2001 26,958 0.7
1999-2000 26,767 0.0
Racial Demographics, 2023-2024
RACE Scottsdale Unified School District (%) Arizona K-12 STUDENTS (%)
American Indian/Alaska Native 2.2 4.2
Asian or Asian/Pacific Islander 5.2 3.2
Black 4.3 5.8
Hispanic 24.1 48.2
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander 0.3 0.4
Two or More Races 3.8 4.3
White 60.2 33.9

Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Staff

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.[4]

As of the 2023-2024 school year, Scottsdale Unified School District had 1,298.09 full-time classroom teachers. The student-teacher ratio was 16.13.

Teachers, 2023-2024 school year
TYPE NUMBER OF TEACHERS
Prekindergarten: 12.00
Kindergarten: 61.92
Elementary: 708.19
Secondary: 515.98
Total: 1,298.09

Scottsdale Unified School District employed 28.00 district administrators and 71.80 school administrators as of the 2023-2024 school year.

Administrators, 2023-2024 school year
TYPE NUMBER OF ADMINISTRATORS
District Administrators: 28.00
District Administrative Support: 94.24
School Administrators: 71.80
School Administrative Support: 67.26
Other staff, 2023-2024 school year
TYPE NUMBER OF OTHER STAFF
Instructional Aides: 323.60
Instruc. Coordinators & Supervisors: 9.40
Total Guidance Counselors: 40.30
Elementary Guidance Counselors: 7.71
Secondary Guidance Counselors: 32.59
Librarians/Media Specialists: 13.30
Library/Media Support: 0.00
Student Support Services: 309.70
Other Support Services: 277.44

Schools

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.[5]

The Scottsdale Unified School District operates 33 schools. They are listed below in alphabetical order.
List of schools
SCHOOL NAMENUMBER OF STUDENTSGRADES
Anasazi Elementary420PK-5
Arcadia High School1,6339-12
Aztec Elementary School0
Chaparral High School1,9099-12
Cherokee Elementary School673PK-5
Cheyenne Traditional School895PK-8
Cochise Elementary School642PK-5
Cocopah Middle School8516-8
Copper Ridge Math And Science Academy0
Copper Ridge Middle School0
Copper Ridge School588PK-8
Coronado High School7309-12
Desert Canyon Elementary470PK-5
Desert Canyon Middle School4286-8
Desert Mountain High School1,9409-12
Echo Canyon K-8344PK-8
Hohokam Elementary School459PK-6
Hopi Elementary School643KG-5
Ingleside Middle School7646-8
Kiva Elementary School562PK-6
Laguna Elementary School363PK-5
Mohave Middle School7986-8
Mountainside Middle School5456-8
Navajo Elementary School464PK-6
Pima Elementary School387PK-6
Pueblo Elementary School418PK-6
Redfield Elementary School438PK-6
Saguaro High School1,4239-12
Scottsdale Online Learning170KG-12
Sequoya Elementary School565PK-5
Tavan Elementary School603PK-5
Tonalea Middle School407PK-8
Yavapai Elementary School408PK-6

School board meetings

The following articles were produced by Citizen Portal using artificial intelligence to analyze public meetings. Citizen Portal publishes articles based on the availability of meeting broadcasts, so the number of articles provided may vary by district. Although these articles are not produced or edited by Ballotpedia, they are included here as a supplemental resource for readers.

School board meeting articles (click to collapse)

About school boards

Education legislation in Arizona

Bills are monitored by BillTrack50 and sorted by action history.

See also

School Boards Education Policy Local Politics Arizona
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External links

  • Office website
  • Search Google News for this topic

    • Footnotes

    1. ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "Elementary/Secondary Information System," accessed October 6, 2025
    2. ↑ U.S. Department of Education, Washington, DC: EDFacts, "State Assessments in Reading/Language Arts and Mathematics- School Year 2018-19 EDFacts Data Documentation," accessed February 25, 2021
    3. ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "Elementary/Secondary Information System," accessed October 6, 2025
    4. ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "Elementary/Secondary Information System," accessed October 6, 2025
    5. ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "Elementary/Secondary Information System," accessed October 6, 2025
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