Superintendent’s Office

As we start the new year, I hope each and every one of you had some time over the past couple of weeks to enjoy family, relax, and recharge. When I look back at the last year and look ahead to the next, I can’t help but be thankful. Prominent on my list is how thankful I am for our Liberty community and the support you’ve shown for our students and staff.

As you’ll read about in this Liberty Bulletin, the school district passed a key budget override in the November election. The override will allow the district to attract and retain quality teachers and staff by offering competitive salaries to keep the best and brightest teaching and working in Liberty schools.

It will also allow the district to keep up with immense growth while simultaneously working to keep class sizes small. Buckeye and Goodyear remain among the fastest growing cities in the nation. In this newsletter, you’ll read about the projected growth in future years all across our community and what that might mean for a future school to be built.

On the horizon for Liberty Elementary School District’s future is also an important change to our instruction model. Liberty’s Governing Board approved a change to a four-day school week beginning in the upcoming 2023-2024 school year. This decision came after months of research, community discussions and surveys. As you’ll read about, this move also positions the district to recruit even more highly qualified teachers.

When it comes down to it, giving our students the highest quality education possible is what we are about. While we have numerous academic celebrations of which to be proud, we also know that more work lies ahead. It takes grit, innovation, collaboration and so much more to achieve sustained excellence. I am so grateful to know we have the community support and staff to make this possible. 

As we begin 2023, please be safe and be well.

Lori Shough, Ed.D.                                                                                       Superintendent