Pro-public education legislator Nancy Lusk has been targeted by deceptive postcards saying she “failed our teachers” and “chose politics over our children”. This is not true. Here is her response, which is also applicable to many Kansas Representatives of both parities who are friends of education. Dear friends and neighbors, In response to fraudulent attack ads that have been frequenting your mailboxes, I wish to set the record straight. I VOTED FOR INCREASED K-12 PUBLIC EDUCATION FUNDING. The weekend of April 4-6, there were two votes on school finance bills. I voted for “House Sub for SB 218,”...
Read more
Leave a Comment Blog
Politicizing Kansas courts
We are very concerned with the current politicizing of the Kansas Supreme Court. Justices and judges need to be able to make decisions based on the law rather than on public opinion or threats. School funding decisions have been unpopular with the governor and the legislature. Do justices who decide in favor of schools need to fear being targeted? The judicial retention law is designed to address judges/justices who are not doing their jobs rather than ones who make decisions we don’t like. Here’s information about a volunteer group and their report which may help voters with judicial...
Read more
Leave a Comment Districts cut back in SE Kansas
The view from southeast Kansas: “‘We’re dealing with about $700,000 less from the state in terms of real dollars that we can spend, compared to 2008 and 2009 school year,’ said Dr. Glenn Fortmayer, Superintendent USD 247. “Local school administrators say they have had to cut back on hiring, busses, and other crucial items. “‘We’ve had to freeze salaries for a couple of years. It makes it hard to recruit and retain. We have a high turnover of personnel, because they can get paid better in other districts,’ said Dr. Fortmayer. “Despite the cuts to the budget, administrators...
Read more
Leave a Comment Huffington Post reports on education funding struggles in Hiawatha
Budget cuts in Kansas schools are real. “Hiawatha’s schools have been forced to reduce extracurricular programs and non-core classes like art and music. Class sizes have increased, and school officials said that the only thing that has prevented cuts to core classes like math and English are teachers who have consented to pay freezes. “Such conditions have made the school system, historically Hiawatha’s biggest employer, a less attractive place to work. It’s not just students who’ve been hurt, officials argued to HuffPost, but the town as a whole. They feared that people who might otherwise consider moving to...
Read more
Leave a Comment