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So who really is responsible for Core Knowledge?

March 26, 20079:28 a.m.

An item that didn’t fit in yesterday’s school board race story, puts district 4 candidate Cindy Duckett and Chip Gramke at odds. It starts out with a phrase in Duckett’s literature that quotes Gramke. The quote said:

“Cindy was tremendously helpful in getting me the information [on Core Knowledge],” She did a tremendous job. If you look at the test scores of these two schools, it works.”

Hold on says Gramke. That might not be entirely accurate.

“Did we discuss core knowledge? Yes,” Gramke said in a conversation with the Hall Monitor last week. “Was she instrumental in starting the school? The people that were instrumental were Chip Gramke and Marty Marshall. They talked to the parents and pushed it through the board agenda.”

Core Knowledge is a magnet concept for two schools in the district.

After calling Duckett for comment, a series of emails were sent out to school board members, including Gramke, and the media. In one of them, she outline her exact contribution to the magnet concept:

“If asked, Chip may recall that I — alone — secured the donation of phonics and math textbook from Saxon Publishers in Norman, OK for every Bryant Core Knowledge student. He might also recall that I — alone — secured a large donation for the Bryant Core Knowledge library from Don and Faith Bell at Security Savings Bank in Olathe. He might also recall the numerous meetings at the UTW office with me, Greg Jones, Barb Fuller, David Payne and former school board member Marshall Jones to get this project going. Chip can be a sweetheart but I think his memory might be getting a bit cloudy.”

Gramke, fellow board member Lynn Rogers, and businessman Fred Berry, will hold a press conference at 2:30 today in the 3rd floor boardroom in the central library. The gentlemen will endorse Duckett’s opponent, Jeff Davis.

And in another twist Berry is listed as one of the contributors for CEO First, Duckett’s non-profit that gives scholarships to low-income students to attend private schools.

Also on that list is at-large candidate Karl Peterjohn, the Kansas Taxpayers Network which Peterjohn heads, and state board of education member Steve Abrams.

By Icess Fernandez | Filed under School board election | Comments (0)

I’m so excited! No, really. I am.

Feb. 28, 20078:34 a.m.

In the at-large Wichita school board race, Kevass Harding after a day of campaigning was ready to do cartwheels.

Karl Peterjohn? Well, let’s just say he was awake.

When The Hall Monitor called to interview him about winning a slot in the April 3 election, he saved his excitement and was more reserved than usual. Peterjohn, the taxpayers advocate, isn’t animated by nature but a drop in excitement was still noticeable.

So why no excitement? It’s really about being cautious saying that his “campaign continues” and they will “continue to get the word out.”

And we’ll continue to keep tabs on you Mr. Peterjohn. YEAH! Or should we say… yeah.

By Icess Fernandez | Filed under School board election | Comments (0)

Bingo!

Feb. 14, 200712:40 p.m.

Let’s play a game. Ever been to a school board meeting and wondered how they can be more lively? No worries. A reader sent along this gem to The Hall Monitor to help out. There may be a council or county version of this game but we haven’t seen it yet.

Read More »

By Icess Fernandez | Filed under Wichita school board | Comments (0)

What about those tasers, board members say.

Feb. 13, 20072:35 p.m.

After getting tons of phone calls from constituents, school board members, in particular Kevass Harding, who is also a candidate for the at-large race, and Shirely Jefferson, asked for an update on the city and district’s talks about the memorandum of understanding. The document not only outlines which entity pays for when it comes to school resource officers but it also outlines a continuum of force that tells officers when to use Tasers.

The discussion on Taser use in schools became a fire storm last year when a 15 year-old special education student at North became the first to be stunned.

That prompted groups like Hope Street Youth Development, an organization that promotes leadership among children, to ask for more studies to be done on Tasers and a board policy to regulate them. Board member Lynn Rogers voiced his opinion Monday night against a policy on Tasers saying that it wasn’t the school boards place to tell the officers what to do.

The information asked by Harding and Jefferson could be available as early as the Feb. 26 meeting. Included in those requests are the number of times that Tasers have been used in schools.

Oh and those constituents who called the board members? Students from Hope Street as part of a campaign to bring attention to the issue.

By Icess Fernandez | Filed under Uncategorized | Comments (0)

More money does not equal better grades, some say.

Feb. 8, 20076:00 p.m.

The American Legislative Exchange Council, a national organization for state legislators, ranked Kansas 22nd in their survey for spending less money per student than the national average.

According to the organization, which used information from the 2003-2004 school year, the average amount spent on each student is $9,000. Kansas spent $1,000 less than that but still performs well on the National Assessment of Educational Progress test, considered the nations report card and college entrance exams, ACT and SAT.

So far the argument holds water. On the national test, Kansas fourth graders ranked second in the nation for math and 13th in reading. Eighth graders second for math and eighth in reading. The scores for ACT and SAT have also increased.

But The Hall Monitor couldn’t help but point out that there is more to the argument than academic progress and money.

Education gurus say that students who are economically disadvantaged need more academic attention than other students and that it’s tougher to teach those students. As are students whose first language isn’t English and those with disabilities. Therefore you need more money to teach them.

But compared to other states, Kansas’ number of students who are economically disadvantaged, 38.5 percent students, is tiny. Other states like California and Texas, where a majority of the non-Kansas students are coming from have a higher percentage. It’s 47.9 percent in California and 46.7 percent in Texas.

The states that are in the organization’s top ten, most of them Midwest states, also have a small percentage of students who are economically disadvantaged. Massachusetts, ranked number one, has 28.3 percent economically disadvantage.Minnesota ranked number two has 27.2 percent and New Hampshire, number three, has 16.3 percent.

California is ranked 42 and Texas 36.

By Icess Fernandez | Filed under Uncategorized | Comments (0)

You’ve got campaign mail.

Feb. 5, 200710:12 a.m.

Wichita school board at-large candidate Mary Dean has been campaigning through the cyber space. She’s emailing her stance on such things as the minority achievement gap and the district’s suspension/expulsion policy.

Dean, a retired Boeing employee, is one of five candidates for the at-large seat. It’s the only seat where an incumbent, Kevass Harding, is running for re-election.

That said, she’s also running in a race where two candidates, Harding and tax-payer advocate Karl Peterjohn, have much more name recognition than she does.

As for why she is running, here’s a taste from her email:

I believe it is time for the School Board to remember that the Superintendent works for them not the other way around. And, finally the School Board should be reminded that they represent and answer to the citizens, taxpayers, and students of USD 259.

Read More »

By Icess Fernandez | Filed under Mary Dean, School board election | Comments (0)

Brooks won’t do it. So stop asking.

Feb. 2, 200711:30 a.m.

Wichita school district superintendent Winston Brooks doesn’t want to be the next education commissioner.

So don’t ask him.

Brooks told me, after other media inquiries, that he has no desire to be the state’s highest ranking educational guru.

As the leader of the largest urban school district in the state (and in the region for that matter) Brooks sits in a high profile position. He is the president of the Kansas Association of School Administrators. His term ends in June. Brooks was also a finalist for the Richard R. Green Award, a national award given to leaders of urban school districts. (He lost out to Atlanta school superintendent Beverly Hill.) And he’s also gotten national exposure for the money he receives from area business owners that supplements his salary as well as expelling the Edison concept out of the district.

State education board members are meeting today with Brenda Welburn, executive director of the National Association of State Boards of Education, the group in charge of finding the next commissioner.

By Icess Fernandez | Filed under Winston Brooks, state education board | Comments (1)

Who really won the school finance battle?

Feb. 2, 200710:53 a.m.

The Associated Press reported today that a judge ruled against 19 schools districts, who sued the state for more funding, from having their court fees paid for. This group, also known as Schools for Fair Funding, has the Wichita district as a member.

The district shelled out about $150,000 to help the cause. But this is the return on their investment:

  • An additional $28 million for the first year of the finance plan. $18 million for 2007-08 and $16 million for 2008-09
  • Teachers received an 11 percent raise
  • More teachers were hired
  • Expansion a couple of programs or initivatives like Multilingual Education Services on North Broadway.

So who really won?

By Icess Fernandez | Filed under Schools for fair funding | Comments (0)

Board members get educated

Jan. 30, 20077:14 p.m.

One of the main criticisms of former state education commissioner Bob Corkins was that he had no educational experience and, by extension, didn’t know what the state’s education issues were.

But according to a media advisory sent to The Hall Monitor from the Kansas State Department of Education, neither do the board members.

The media advisory announces a meeting with Brenda Welburn, executive director of the National Association of State Boards of Education. The organization has been contracted to help find the state education commissioner.

The topic of the meeting:

“Mrs. Welborn and State Board members will discuss the results of the environmental survey conducted by NASBE to define the top education issues in Kansas.”

The national organization will base their discussions based on conversations with board members, the governor, legislative leaders, businesses and education organizations.

By Icess Fernandez | Filed under Bob Corkins, Education, state education board | Comments (0)

Peterjohn for Duckett?

Jan. 29, 20075:08 p.m.

In an email received by The Hall Monitor, Wichita school board at-large candidate and long time anti-tax advocate Karl Peterjohn shows his support to district 4 candidate Cindy Duckett. Her company provides scholarships for students to attend private schools.

From the email:

“Cindy is running in district four in the primary but only one other candidate filed so she will be running district wide in the April 3 general election. I believe that she has an excellent chance of winning.”

The email, written to James Hodges and recieved by countless others, shows that Duckett has given Peterjohn equal support.

“She was strongly urging me to file too and she was the last candidate to file before the noon deadline. I filed for the at large seat just seconds before her and am now one of five candidates to be narrowed down at the Feb. primary.”

By Icess Fernandez | Filed under School board election | Comments (0)