Safford K-8 School in Tucson | Military Town Advisor

Category	Rating	Details
Student Growth	4/10	The Student Progress Rating measures whether students at this school are making academic progress over time based on student growth data provided by the Department of Education. Specifically, this rating looks at how much progress individual students have made on state assessments during the past year or more, how this performance aligns with expected progress based on a student growth model established by the state Department of Education, and how this school's growth data compares to other schools in the state. The Growth Rating was created using 2025 Student growth data from Arizona Department of Education.

Posted: June 21, 2025

I had three boys here. Two for 6th and one for kindergarten. I had heard that the school welcome children who are autistic. All three or mine are. They definitely did not. The only two that actually helped my boys was ms Alexis and ms Simpson whom my oldest loved. One of my 6th graders got into trouble for doodling in class weapons from fallout. He was suspended for it. Depicting violence I guess. No matter how much they explained it and justify it to make sense; neither my husband or I understand. We just agreed and moved on. My oldest got bulled a lot. Shoved into lockers (both older boys did really). Once both my boys defended themselves after telling teachers they got into trouble. I once witnessed my 5 year old get yelled at by the teacher as soon as I dropped him off. I was shocked at the way she yelled from across the room to ask him to put something down. The principal called this strict. Once my son had an incident where I had become upset and I had to calm him. I finally got him to calm down then the principal dr Kuhn came in and she upset him again, triggered him, and she then walked away. I had to then restrain him because he began to get violent. My sister and my mom were there to witness he do this. They do not know how to help children on the spectrum and I dont think they should be yelling at kids.

Posted: June 21, 2025

Posted: April 30, 2025

it has been a great experience so far

Posted: April 30, 2025

I strongly advise other families to consider different options. Special education is not a priority hereIEP minutes are frequently overlooked or not followed, and support is minimal. While there are a few teachers who truly care, most do not show the level of compassion or professionalism students deserve. Respect toward students is often lacking across the board.

The middle school environment is especially disappointing. Many teachers have negative attitudes and struggle to communicate even basic information clearly. The dean of students and principal are not responsive or supportive when concerns are brought up, which makes it feel like families have no voice.

Course offerings are very limited, giving students few opportunities to explore their interests. If youre able to send your child elsewhere, do it. This school does not foster a positive or respectful environment for learning.

Posted: April 29, 2025

Safford K-8 is a school grounded in continuous improvement and shared commitment to student success. Teacher clarity and student engagement are at the heart of every classroom. Through intentional clarity routines, students understand what they're learning, why it matters, and how to achieve success. Safford also provides strong academic and behavioral interventions to ensure all students receive the support they need. With a focus on making learning visible through actionable data, every teacher is empowered to thrive and grow. Every student is seen, supported, and challenged to reach their full potential.

Posted: April 29, 2025

I have a Kinder and 2nd grader. This is our third year at the school and we love the principal. She has turned the school around from an F to a B in two years. The teachers are invested in the students success. Our kids feel safe and they have many friends. The school is downtown and in the center of a lot of activities, like the Childrens Museum. We highly recommend the school!

Posted: April 29, 2025

The whole school (staff, teachers, and students) is a great place for learning. Their community engages all stakeholders. All students are seen as individuals and the support to incorporate family, staff and faculty.

Posted: April 29, 2025

Posted: March 18, 2022

The administration of Safford speaks of equity. There is none. Students who do the same infractions do not receive the same consequences and this is known by all the students. A student walked into a classroom and shouted that he was going to beat the hell out of students in the class. The students he threatened were terrified. He was still on campus the following school day. Other students get in arguments and are suspended for multiple days.

Teachers are not treated equitably. Some teachers are forced to follow strict policies and procedures and disciplined if they fail to do so while other teachers are allowed to not follow those policies and procedures with no consequences whatsoever.

The administration of Safford speaks of students being safe and cared for. They are not safe. Students are jumped regularly in the hallways and beaten up severely. Several have gone to the hospital this year.

Students with IEPs in middle school grades do not receive their services at this school and those who seek to correct this issue are threatened in order to silence them.

The district leadership is aware of these issues and fully supports the administration.

I do not recommend sending your children to this school.

Posted: March 18, 2022

Posted: February 11, 2022

Safford is located in the Historic Armory Park Neighborhood, just across from the Children's Museum in the beautiful downtown Tucson area. This year is a transformational and exciting year, with new administration, new teachers, new programs and exciting changes. We have a gorgeous community garden, in-door herb garden and great in-door/out-door connections. We are putting a strong emphasis on back to basics education, with a focus on project based learning.

Come take a look, and be a member of the Safford Community - and join us in developing an active and engaged school community, where each student is given support, encouragement and structure. Coming back from the past few Covid years have really thrown our community for a loop. We are working hard to make the transition back to learning in school, and also support our families and students in feeling healthy, safe, secure and loved.

Dr. Katherine Kuhn, Principal

Posted: May 29, 2021

the prinicpal that is working as of now is kinda bad and it doesnt seem like anyone likes her

Posted: May 29, 2021

I love Safford, the kids who go to Safford are amazing people, people who have lived through much trauma in their lives. And Safford has an assistant principal that gets that, the kids know who he is and that he cares

Sadly, Safford currently has a principal who does not care about the students and their families, nor the majority of the teachers

Most kids don't even know who she is and almost none of them would say that she cares about them

In this incredibly difficult year, the principal's plan was to offer zero support to students.

Her plan was to let them work independently, with no support, on most of their work

Knowing that our students are dealing with trauma or have been through trauma, and need more support to succeed, several teachers have done their utmost to try to help the students

And the current principal has responded by making it nearly impossible for teachers to provide students with the support they need

In fact, the current principal has pursued disciplinary action for those teachers who chose to try to help the students to the best of their ability beyond class time, calling the actions of those individuals very inappropriate

Additionally, certain teachers choose to humiliate their students in front of their peers and the current principal supports those teachers, doing nothing to safeguard the dignity of the students attending the school she has been entrusted with leading

One student who has endured through great loss was humiliated in a teacher's classroom, and the principal chose to do nothing about that incident

The principal chose to ignore the guardian's repeated reasonable request to have her child placed elsewhere during that class time and made it clear that as principal she did not care in the slightest bit about safeguarding the dignity of that student

This principal only cares about the dignity of one person at Safford, a teacher

This teacher has nearly all leadership roles, a walkie-talkie, and free reign to tell anyone what to do including the assistant principal, with the principal's full support.

It is believed by many teachers, students, and parents that this is a result of the teacher giving the principal favors behind closed doors, during what they call "private meetings"

The good news is that this principal is leaving at the end of June, and a new principal (one who has ethics and cares about kids) is coming to Safford

Summary: Great kids, great Assistant Principal, and a great principal coming soon

Posted: May 29, 2021

Posted: July 19, 2014

IB Curriculum, Excellent Teachers, PSPE, Spanish and Arabic Language Education, GATE, Beautiful Historic Buildings, Caring Administration, Central Location, Numerous After School Clubs, Athletics, and High Academic Expectations

#	Name	Type	City	State	Overall Rating	Distance
1	Crow Creek Townhomes	Neighborhood/Subdivision	Tucson	AZ		4.2 mi
2	Austin Point	Neighborhood/Subdivision	Tucson	AZ		11.4 mi

#	Name	City	State	Distance
1	Artistic District	Tucson	AZ	1.1 mi
2	Allegro	Tucson	AZ	1.5 mi
3	Reid Park and Zoo Area	Tucson	AZ	2.6 mi
4	Foothills	Tucson	AZ	9.1 mi
5	Old Spanish Trail/Harrison Area	Tucson	AZ	11.4 mi

Safford K-8 School

Tucson, AZ 85701

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Safford K-8 School

Tucson, AZ 85701

School Ratings

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