By admin 
MESA, AZ (AZFamily) — East Valley Institute of Technology (EVIT) is offering an olive branch in its money fight involving nine East Valley school districts.
Read more Man accused of following, filming preteen girl in Sierra Vista gets plea deal
EVIT is now offering to pay half of next year’s costs, roughly $2 million, to bus high school students to its central campuses.
To come up with the cash, the technical district will delay planned renovations and expansion projects at its main campus.
“EVIT is growing and we had planned much-needed additions and renovations to our Main Campus,” EVIT Superintendent Chad Wilson said in an emailed statement. “Unlike many districts, EVIT has not asked taxpayers to approve a bond or override. We live within our means, so we will pause those projects and redirect those dollars to support students. This is not an easy decision, but it is the right one. What is even more disappointing is that, unlike our member districts, EVIT does not receive any state funding for transportation services.”
The legal fight between EVIT and the nine school districts, including Gilbert, Chandler, Higley, Queen Creek and Tempe Union, is over how much state funding EVIT receives.
EVIT receives 100% of Career and Technical Education (CTE) state funding for students learning at its main campuses. The districts also work with EVIT to operate satellite career programs off EVIT’s campuses.
For those satellite programs, districts currently receive 87% of state CTE funding while EVIT takes 13%. EVIT now wants to increase its share to 30%.
Read more Tucson man sentenced to federal prison for child sex crimes
Wilson previously said EVIT has historically funded satellite programs at a greater percentage than any other CTE district in the state. He said the outcomes have not matched the investment.
Districts argue the proposal would reduce classroom resources and limit programs.
Districts also say EVIT previously withheld about $8 million in payments tied to these programs during the current school year. The districts said they had to use their own money to fund the programs.
The nine districts sued EVIT and a Valley judge issued a partial ruling, saying EVIT cannot keep funding unless it is used for CTE courses.
See a spelling or grammatical error in our story? Please click here to report it.
Do you have a photo or video of a breaking news story? Send it to us here with a brief description.
Read more Deer Valley school board member draws backlash after Nazi salute during meeting