“Rural voters shouldn’t be taken in by Brownback’s efforts to mislead or make us afraid. He is simply trying to divert attention from the fact he has failed to support public education and that will hasten consolidation. “Without adequate funding, small rural districts have no choice but to move faster to merge. “Next year at this time, the state budget will face a shortfall because Brownback slashed income taxes. Instead, he wants us to believe that rural schools will face funding troubles because of something a former senator said a few years ago. “Sorry, governor, we’re not that...
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“Education Governor” halts early childhood education grant application
The self-proclaimed education governor has refused to support a federal grant application for early childhood education by the Children’s Cabinet. The grant would not require any cost-sharing or matching funds from the state. “’Kansas, with the help of the Children’s Cabinet and their multiple partners – KU Center for Public Partnerships and Research, the state Department of Education, the Department for Children and Families, Child Care Aware of Kansas, and the Kansas Head Start Association – would have made a dynamite team for putting together a quality and competitive application for bringing additional resources into Kansas,’ Erick Vaughn,...
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Leave a Comment Kansas funding truth shown by districts’ cuts
“The report offers a good combination of data and anecdotal information from districts throughout the state. While the numbers paint a bleak picture, the information gleaned from school administrators is more concerning, showing that throughout Kansas school districts have spent the past several years squeezing their budgets to get by on less money, while other states have restored spending lost during the recession that began in 2008… “In the coming months, we will hear much campaign rhetoric about education spending in Kansas. Regardless of those manufactured messages designed to impress voters, the truth is on the ground, in...
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Leave a Comment Some JOCO legislators bully aging agency
Johnson County legislators are bullying a volunteer agency. Is this happening to school boards, too? “Kansas lawmakers spent a good deal of their last session demanding ‘freedom’ from the federal government’s health care rules. Too bad their concerns don’t extend to freedom of speech and a free press. “Mary Pilcher-Cook, a Republican senator from Shawnee, is known for her disrespect of facts and opinions that clash with her views. On Monday, she led a delegation of 10 lawmakers to a meeting with the Johnson County Commission on Aging. “The legislators’ intent was to bully commission members into abandoning...
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