Less than a month after state auditors said the Arizona Department of Education was failing to properly oversee a safety program that pays to put police in schools, the state schools chief wants lawmakers to dramatically expand the program by more than $50 million. The School Safety Program, which provides grants to schools to pay for school safety officers, counselors and social workers has a budget of $128 million this year, including funds rolled over from previous years. The department partially blamed the lack of oversight highlighted in the report on the tiny staff of four that administers the School Safety Program. Horne has never ordered any kind of hiring freeze” for the School Safety Program, Nick told the Mirror in an email. Ajamie headed the Department of Education’s School Safety Program from 2000 to 2015, returning to the post in 2020.