The corporate tax credit “scholarship” bill (which was defeated last year) is going to be heard in the House Education Committee on Friday, though it was not on this week’s calendar until Tuesday afternoon. Why are we not surprised? Because recently, Brownback’s former budget director and current Kansas Policy Institute fiscal policy fellow Steve Anderson told us in the comments on the Game On for Kansas Schools Facebook page, “We could get 5000 kids out next year in Kansas using tax credit scholarships where people donate to a 501c3 and the scholarships go to those with lower than...
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Class size matters
A new policy brief shows what many parents and teachers inherently understand – class size matters. It criticizes the recent guest of the Kansas legislature and witness for the State in Gannon, Eric Hanushek, points to the danger in looking at class size averages and concludes that smaller class size “is an important determinant of student outcomes”. http://nepc.colorado.edu/publication/does-class-size-matter...
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Leave a Comment Oppose SB 196 (neo-charter bill)
We testified against SB 196, a “neo-charter” bill. As this piece explains, “The short list of speakers in favor of SB 196 last week included Wade Moore, Pastor of Christian Faith Centre in Wichita, and Darlene Cornfield of the Northfield School of the Liberal Arts. Pastor Moore’s church bought the former Mueller Elementary School building last summer, and plans to turn it into the Urban Preparatory Academy of Wichita – a charter school. Northfield School is a religious institution, and advertises that their students pray together. Northfield describes its science department as a place where students ‘…renew their...
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Leave a Comment Kansas invites Carpe Diem founder/CEO but we heed Indiana warnings
This week, the Senate and House Education Committees are set to hear from Alex Medler, VP Policy & Advocacy, National Assoc. of Charter Schools Authorizers and Rick Ogston, Founder/CEO of Carpe Diem. Are they hearing from you? Here’s what happened in Indiana after the legislature invited Carpe Diem in: “Ambassador Enterprises’ proposed contract puts it in the unique position of serving not only as landlord, but also in marketing the school. The more students it draws, the more it collects in rent, given the $1,000 per-head fee. But each student it draws from a northeast Indiana school means...
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