For those of you seeing the Brownback ad citing KASB as the source for the statement that education funding is up, here’s the rest of the story the ads aren’t telling you. Please read this entire document. “These figures illustrate why school leaders continue to express deep concerns about the adequacy of school funding, despite increases that have been provided in certain areas. When measured against changes in the cost of living, funding for educational programs that can actually be spent on teachers, administrators and student support programs has declined by $500 million since 2009, and even the...
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Mailings and billboard attempt to deceive
More postcards are coming. Help your friends and neighbors understand the reality behind them. “What the billboard and mailers don’t explain is that the lawmakers favored the increased funding. However, they ended up voting against that particular bill because it also eliminated state-mandated due-process rights for teachers and granted tax credits for business donations to private schools. Those policy changes were tacked onto the bill late in the legislative process – at the urging of groups such as AFP. . .Still, the billboards and mailers are a tacit, albeit incredibly cynical, acknowledgment by the chamber PAC and AFP...
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Leave a Comment Florida charters close and show risks for taxpayer dollars
More news on charters in Florida. “The quick closures illustrate the danger of handing taxpayer dollars to charter schools operators without requiring that they undergo background checks, produce evidence of financial backing or secure buildings well in advance of their openings. A Sun Sentinel investigation in June found that virtually anyone who can adequately fill out a lengthy application can open or run a charter school. These schools are publicly funded but privately run. . . Newpoint Education Partners, which had a management contract with the Magnolia schools, is listed on applications for two new charter schools in...
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Leave a Comment The blueberry story reminds us that schools are not factories in key ways
The K12 Performance and Efficiency Commission is meeting through this fall. While we fully support finding ways to help our schools save operational dollars to secure more funding for our classrooms, we wish to remind Kansans that schools are not factories, and we must respect the ways schools are fundamentally different from businesses. Here’s an entertaining story that illustrates the point. The “blueberry story” starts at 2:05. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O9TUrHMZMno...
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