A run-down “pocket park” near 24th Avenue and Hadley Street. Former Murphy Elementary School District Superintendent Bob Donofrio said its condition brought him to tears.
Bob Donofrio, former superintendent of Murphy Elementary School District, visits his old stomping grounds. Donofrio thinks the district is headed for financial ruin.
Kids living in the Coffelt housing project near 19th Avenue and Buckeye Road can go to Murphy Elementary School District. But district enrollment has fallen in recent years.
Corina Mejia (right) and her grandmother Lucy Romero (left) in front of their home in south Phoenix. Mejia’s family has lived in this area since the 1960s.

Southwest Phoenix Neighborhoods

Published Jan. 10, 2018. Reporting by Matthew Casey.

Photos

A run-down “pocket park” near 24th Avenue and Hadley Street. Former Murphy Elementary School District Superintendent Bob Donofrio said its condition brought him to tears.