The next time you hear we need vouchers (or corporate tax credit “scholarships”) to give choice to poor children, think of this warning from Indiana. “Students using vouchers to attend private schools represent less than 2 percent of Indiana’s K-12 students, yet the legislature concentrates on this small group at the expense of the vast majority of public school students. It is as if our policy makers have given up on public education in favor of private education, but such a strategy will never be able to address the needs of the public school students. What the report...
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ALEC is bad for Kansas on broadband and bad for Kansas on education
The Kansas Senate Commerce Committee, chaired by Olathe’s Julia Lynn, has introduced an ALEC bill to ban cities from offering broadband services or partnering with companies to do so. Please watch this video-Chanute, KS vs. Goliath, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HiVG9-Kb-U0&feature=youtu.be. USD 413 is one of the beneficiaries of Chanute’s broadband system. Then ask yourselves why Kansas legislators are working to pass legislation that would hurt Kansas communities, taking away local control and benefitting large corporations who have opted not to provide services to rural Kansas under the guise of free markets and limited government. And remember this is the same ALEC behind...
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Leave a Comment Derby PAGE gets into the game
We recommend a new group, Derby PAGE (Parent Advocacy Group for Education). They’re also on Twitter @derbypage. They are based in Derby but also looking to link up with Mulvane. More parents are getting into the game!...
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Leave a Comment Editorial explains differences in school funding figures
We know the reality of budget cuts in our districts, and no claims regarding KPERS funding and other increasing costs can change that. Our legislature doesn’t get to postpone fully funding schools while we wait for the promised economic gain from tax cuts. Lost educational opportunities cannot be reclaimed later. “Brownback told the superintendents that this was the best long-term decision, because if the Kansas economy can grow more, ‘we can fund things.’ But he acknowledged that for school districts, ‘your transition is hard.’ That hard transition and the base aid cuts are why the three-judge panel ruled...
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