Remembering our Fallen Heroes

As the day comes to end, let's remember to honor our veterans, especially those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedoms, not just on this holiday, but every day after.

Today, I was honored to spend the morning at the Flagstaff Memorial Day Ceremony at Citizen's Cemetery and the afternoon meeting voters at the American Legion and in the town square.

On Saturday, I marched in the Memorial Day Weekend Parade in Surprise, AZ with fellow Democrats.

Tomorrow, I will continue the fight to ensure the right of every child to an excellent public education is fulfilled, and I will fight remembering those who have fought to guarantee that right. Who are you remembering this Memorial Day?

To view more photos from the weekend, you can visit my facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/JasonWilliamsAZ.

We're on the ballot!

I am pleased to announce that I have now officially qualified to be on the ballot as a Democratic candidate for Superintendent of Public Instruction after submitting my nomination petition signatures with the Secretary of State on Friday.

With the support of our statewide grassroots network, we collected more than enough signatures to qualify without having to pay a single dime to any outside consultants or firms. It was the work of teachers, students, retirees, activists and advocates for education that made it possible for us to reach our signature goal, and it is that same grassroots movement that will carry us to victory.

Over the months ahead, we will work to change the direction our state's leaders have been taking us. We need to elect leaders who are true advocates for our children and their right to an excellent public education. I believe education must be our state's top priority. As Superintendent of Public Instruction, I will work to make education our number one focus once again.

Thank you for helping me qualify for the ballot! Now I need your help to get our message out to the voters. If you haven't already given a $5 Clean Elections Qualifying Contribution, please do so today and ask your friends to send a contribution too! Visit my website at www.WilliamsForArizona.com/donate to download the form.

Our Next Victory

At last night's Yes on 100 Watch Party, I was excited as the results came in.  An overwhelming majority of Arizonans voted in support of Proposition 100.  As an educator, I am grateful to the voters of Arizona for supporting our children, our teachers and our schools.

The passage of Prop 100 was especially important considering the Legislature has continuously abdicated its responsibility to provide our public schools with the necessary resources to move all our children forward. While only a band-aid, this important victory has saved our schools from facing even more challenges in the short term.

Now, the real work begins. We need to elect leaders who are true advocates for our kids and their right to an excellent public education. We now turn our attention to the upcoming primary and general elections where you will have an opportunity to do just that.

Over the months ahead, I need your help to change the direction our leaders at the state capitol have been taking us.

The voters have made it very clear that education must be a priority. I believe education must be our state's top priority. As Superintendent of Public Instruction, with your help, I will work to make education our number one focus once again.

Please visit my website to learn more and to get involved: www.WilliamsForArizona.com

Vote Today: Yes on 100

Today is an important day for Arizona. The May 18th Special Election has arrived, and you will help decide whether or not our schools and our kids receive the critical support they need.

Please Vote Today and Vote Yes on 100.  

Click Here to find your polling place.

While the Legislature and the Governor have abdicated their responsibilities to provide our schools with the resources they need to succeed, you have an opportunity today to prevent massive cuts to education from going into effect.

Prop 100 temporarily raises the sales tax by 1 cent over the next three years. The Legislature has already factored that revenue into the state budget. They do have a contingency plan built into the budget if voters decide not to pass Prop 100. Their plan: automatic and massive cuts to education.

With all the cuts they've been dealing with, our schools and our kids cannot afford to lose another 10% of funding on average.

Please join me in putting our kids first and
Vote Yes on 100 today!

Polls across the state close at 7 p.m. Find out where to vote by visiting the Secretary of State's website: https://voter.azsos.gov/VoterView/PollingPlaceSearch.do

After you vote...

It is clear that the majority in control at the state capitol have failed to make education a priority. Fortunately, you have an opportunity to replace this failed leadership with someone who will put kids first and do what is necessary to ensure our schools and our kids are moving forward.

With your support, we will change the dynamic in the Department of Education and change the direction our state is headed. Thank you for supporting my campaign for Superintendent of Public Instruction.

As I am preparing to file my nomination petitions to get my name on the ballot, I still need your help to qualify for Clean Elections.

Please consider giving a $5 contribution today. If you've already given a $5 contribution, will you ask your friends, family, colleagues and neighbors to give?

All you have to do is download the form by clicking here, and return the form with your $5 cash or check to:

Committee to Elect Jason Williams 2010
P.O. Box 33395
Phoenix, AZ 85067

You can also visit my website to get the form. Simply visit www.WilliamsForArizona.com/donate

Thank you for your continued support. Together, let's move Arizona forward by moving all our children forward.

Press Release: Planned Parenthood exclusively backs Jason Williams

Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona exclusively endorses 
pro-choice Jason Williams for state schools chief

Phoenix, Ariz. – Jason Williams, one of the leading candidates for Superintendent of Public Instruction, announced today that Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona (PPAA) has exclusively endorsed his candidacy in the August Democratic primary election. The endorsement was officially made yesterday, when the board of directors for the reproductive health advocacy group chose to give Williams their only endorsement in the race for state schools chief.

“Planned Parenthood’s endorsement is significant to me personally and to my campaign,” said Williams. “As one of the strongest advocacy organizations for women’s reproductive health, I am grateful that Planned Parenthood has recognized my commitment to protect the rights of young women. When I am Superintendent of Public Instruction, I will work to ensure every child has access to a quality public education, including access to medically-accurate, age-appropriate sexual and reproductive health education and services.”

According to literature from Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona, their fundamental goal is “to elect candidates at all levels of government who are pro-choice and pro-family planning and who support medically accurate sexuality education for Arizona’s youth.”

Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona (PPAA) is the non-partisan, political arm of Planned Parenthood in Arizona. Planned Parenthood Advocates promotes sexual and reproductive health and rights by educating voters, public officials and candidates for office. For more than 75 years, Planned Parenthood has provided family planning services and responsible sexuality education to people across Arizona. Today, their advocacy and grassroots organizing efforts remain focused on safeguarding reproductive choice and supporting pro-family, pro-choice public policy throughout our state.

Williams secured the Democratic Party nomination in 2006 for Superintendent of Public Instruction with a majority of votes in 14 of 15 counties. In the general election against the Republican incumbent, Williams received more votes than any other non-incumbent Democrat in the closest of all the statewide races.

Since then, Williams has continued his work to ensure every child in Arizona has access to a quality public education. He currently serves as a Managing Partner for BlueDynamic and was the founder of AZ School Works. In addition to working with the Roosevelt School District, Williams is a faculty member for Arizona State University’s Beat the Odds Institute Parent Liaison Academy, meets weekly to mentor an eighth grade student through Arizona Quest for Kids, and serves on several education-related Boards of Directors and Advisory Committees, including College Depot, Communities in Schools, Genesis City, and Phoenix Collegiate Academy.

For more information about Jason Williams, visit www.WilliamsForArizona.com. To learn about Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona, visit www.advocatesaz.org.

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Appreciating Our Teachers

Last Friday (May 7th) marked the end of National Teacher Appreciation Week, an important time to recognize the hard work and dedication of the many people who are providing mentorship and guidance to our students in the classroom to ensure they succeed in life.

I thought it was fitting that on that day I had the opportunity to present the recipient of the 2010 Jason Williams Alumni Leadership Award to an outstanding alumna of the Teach For America program in Arizona.

Having served as the Executive Director of Teach For America from 2000-2005, I had the privilege of working with hundreds of teachers to have an impact on thousands of students. While serving in that role, our region went from last to first in student achievement and teacher satisfaction in just three years. The credit for that success really belongs to the amazing teachers who created a nurturing and supportive learning environment for their kids in the highest needs schools in the state.

Amongst all of that great talent, one teacher in particular stood out this year. The 2010 recipient of the Jason Williams Alumni Leadership Award was Lessita Lorin. Allow me to share with you some of her accomplishments since joining Teach For America in 2005.

Lessita has been teaching in the Laveen School District for five years at the same school in which she was originally placed through Teach For America. As a 6th grade teacher at M.C. Cash Elementary School, Lessita helped to develop a teacher support program for new and developing teachers. Through this program, Lessita and others observe classrooms, provide feedback to the new teachers on their practice, assist in creating development plans with those teachers and provide ongoing support as they improve their teaching practice. She has been doing all of these things throughout the course of her regular academic workday while still maintaining a full teaching load with her sixth graders.

Lessita is the recipient of one of five ASU Education Leadership Fellowships and is working to become principal-certified in Arizona. She recently accepted a position as the Dean of Curriculum and Instruction at Phoenix Collegiate Academy. During the 2010-2011 school year, Lessita will be responsible for supporting the development of the school’s curricula, as well as coaching and providing teacher development.

There is so much more to share about Lessita. I encourage you to watch this video to find out what other great things Lessita has been doing.



I am proud of Lessita’s great accomplishments and the opportunities she has created for her students. There is no doubt that she will continue to impact the lives of so many children. We are lucky to have a great teacher like Lessita in Arizona. Congratulations to Lessita, and thank you to all of the outstanding teachers in Arizona.