Slowly but surely, a 7-year-old Chandler girl with a grown-up Christmas wish to raise $100,000 to help pay for her friend’s bone marrow transplant is moving forward now with the help of others.

Whether it’s a dollar or a dime at a time, Kiana Banks’ fundraising efforts for her friend and classmate, Amber Fernandez, a Hull Elementary School second-grader battling acute myeloid leukemia, are picking up steam.

When Amber, the daughter of Ben and Kelly Fernandez of Chandler, was diagnosed with the disease in July, Kiana said all she wanted for her birthday last month and for Christmas is for Amber to get better and to come home.

Although Amber’s bone marrow transplant was initially scheduled for Thursday, she may not undergo the procedure until February as she now is undergoing her fourth round of chemotherapy at Phoenix Children’s Hospital.

So far, Kiana has raised more than $2,500 toward the $100,000 goal, a sum that is continuing to grow as the story has garnered national attention and more fundraisers are being planned.

On Saturday, a fundraiser will be held at Skateland Chandler with $1 from each admission going toward the Amber Fernandez Fund. A special program for Amber will be held from 1 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Kiana said that the fundraising – which has included an event at Marley Farms in Gilbert, Inta Juice in Chandler and a donation from Kiana’s church family at Brighter Day Deliverance Ministries in Tempe, has been a little more work than she expected, so she knows she has to keep moving toward her goal.

“I really appreciate it,” Kiana said of the help she’s received. “I wanted to say thank you.”

Kiana said she last spoke with Amber over the phone on her birthday when Kiana turned 7 last month, but their conversations about heartthrob Justin Bieber took a backseat that day.

“I wanted to make sure she was OK,” Kiana said.

Amber knows what Kiana is doing and is “excited.”

Kiana also recently hurdled the task of talking for about an hour on a radio program about her mission, reaching thousands of listeners as she was interviewed by talk-show host Louanna Faine during the program, “Real Talk with Louanna: Real People, Real Lives, Real Truth,” on www.suparadio.com. Supa Radio is a Tempe-based 24-hour online radio station that has listeners around the world.

“I was a little nervous at first, but it was fun,” Kiana said.

What did she talk about?

“We need to get more stuff done and raise more money,” Kiana said.

Kiana and her mother are hoping for a large turnout Saturday.

“The message we’re trying to get out is that one person and $1 can make a difference,” Keisha Banks said. “Kiana wants to do something for Amber that will give her strength and courage. This will have a lasting effect on Amber and her family.”

Read More >  7-year-old Chandler girl continues fundraising effort for friend’s transplant.

It’s no surprise Arizona is one of the leading states in the country when it comes to the number of students in charter schools.

Since the charter school movement began here more than 15 years ago, Arizona has consistently been a leader. According to a report out Wednesday by the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, Arizona is No. 4 this school year in opening new charter schools (35 total), behind California (100), Florida (76) and Wisconsin (40).

Arizona also saw 10,500 additional students enter charter schools, a jump to more than 135,000 charter school students. There are 524 charter schools now in operation in the state.

But there’s another area Arizona is taking a lead in: closing charter schools that are under performing or not meeting financial obligations.

According to the same study, Arizona was No. 2 in the country last year for closing charters (22), behind California (34).

A big reason Arizona had so many last year was because it was the first year schools were up for their 15-year contract renewal with the state, said Eileen Sigmund, president and CEO of the Arizona Charter Schools Association.

Charter schools are privately operated, but publicly funded. They contract with the state to provide free public education to students. In Arizona, their contracts come up for renewal after 15 years, and part of that process is demonstrating that they have improved students’ academic achievement.

In 2007, the state Board for Charter Schools began working on a way to better measure charter schools’ academic performance. That was put into place in 2010 when the first charter schools came up for renewals (schools also undergo a five-year and 10-year review, as well as a first-year examination).

The measurement looks at how schools are doing in improving student achievement, as well as test scores on the Arizona’s Instrument to Measure Standards.

“That is the statutory purpose of charter schools, to improvement achievement,” Sigmund said. “It’s not just to have a market of choice. It’s to have good choice.”

Not all of the 22 schools that closed last year were non-renewed based on achievement, she said. Some may had financial issues. Some may have surrendered their charter as they faced inevitable revocation.

It’s not a “one and done” situation when a charter school gets into trouble, she said. Schools may get a chance to make improvements, and sometimes that’s where the association steps in.

“We’re providing coaching and technical assistance,” she said. “We tell them the hammer is coming down.”

The national report points out that more than 2 million students are attending charter schools across the country – 200,000 more than last year. And some 400,000 students are on waiting lists to get into a charter school.

More than 500 new public charter schools opened their doors in the 2011-12 school year across the country, according to the study. This year marks the largest single-year increase ever recorded in terms of the number of additional students attending charters.

Read Article > National study: Arizona a leader in holding charter schools accountable.

Anti-bullying campaign challenges eastern Arizona students

100 high school students introduced to Rachel’s Challenge

The story of Steven Seagal accompanying Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s raid on an Arizona man suspected of cock-fighting seems almost humorous. Almost, that is, until you think about police driving into your own home with a tank and killing your dog, which is what happened when Seagal drove a tank into Jesus Llovera’s house.

by Emily Gersema – Aug. 17, 2011 12:00 AM
The Arizona Republic

The first car for the Phoenix Sky Harbor train is in town, and 17 more train cars like it will be coming soon from a factory over 2,000 miles away in Pittsburgh.

On Tuesday, Phoenix officials and Bombardier executives celebrated the car’s arrival with praises for its construction and nibbles of a cake that was a minireplica of the 40-foot, gray-and-white, snub-nosed PHX Sky Train car.

The car now is at Bombardier’s new control center near Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.

by Michelle Ye Hee Lee – Jul. 14, 2011 11:49 AM
The Arizona Republic

Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/news/election/azelections/articles/2011/07/14/20110714arizona-medical-pot-judment-montgomery.html?source=nletter-breakingnews#ixzz1S7RcMyxw

Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/community/phoenix/articles/2011/07/05/20110705phoenix-dust-storm-abrk.html?source=nletter-breakingnews#ixzz1RKa3kZjy

Arizona winter storm: Freezing temperatures to rock Phoenix-area residents.

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