By admin 
TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) – The Baboquivari Unified School District is using federal Impact Aid funding to build affordable teacher housing as Arizona faces more than 4,000 teaching vacancies, according to the Arizona Department of Education.
Read more Gilbert family plans legal fight after toddler found alive in morgue
The district has 41 housing units, with two-bedroom apartments renting for $300 a month.
Teachers who share a unit pay $150 a month each.
District expands housing with federal dollars
Superintendent Ruben Diaz said the housing is part of a broader effort to compete for teachers in a tight market.
“It’s not news that we are short of teachers in Arizona, also in the United States,” Diaz said. “We have to be able to offer more than what everyone else offers to be able to attract teachers and retain our teachers.”
Diaz said the district is using $750,000 of a $10 million federal grant to build an additional housing unit this year.
The district also buses teachers for free from Tucson to the reservation and offers salaries competitive with Tucson districts.
“It’s a great opportunity to show we care for our staff, and a great opportunity for our staff — whatever funding they’re making — they can maximize it for the things they love,” Diaz said.
Teachers say affordable rent makes a difference
The district hires international teachers to help fill vacancies.
Jose Suarnaba, the PE teacher at Indian Oasis Intermediate School, said the low rent allows him to send more money to his family back home.
Read more What you need to know about Arizona’s primary election
“One of the most important things is I can send enough money to my family home in the Philippines,” Suarnaba said.
Amy Spotted Wolf, the first-grade teacher at Indian Oasis Primary Elementary, said district housing allowed her to return to her community after earning a degree at the University of Arizona.
“I think it’s a really great opportunity because I’m a young person who gets to come back to my community, or went to get an education and then went back to serve my community,” Spotted Wolf said.
Isabela Lisco is a Report for America corpsmember covering education solutions for 13 News. Her position is made possible through funding from Report for America and the Arizona Local News Foundation’s Arizona Community Collaborative Fund.
Are you streaming 13 News?
Watch a free live stream of Tucson Now and 13 News at TucsonNow.Live.
Be sure to download the free Tucson Now app, which you can find on Apple and Google.
If you are using a desktop computer, you can use your mobile device to scan the QR code below.
Read more Bipartisan bill would launch federal study on AI and older Americans
You can submit your breaking news or weather images here.