Contents
New Items
Update on Budget Planning – for All Administrators
Bond Work – for All Principals
Previous Items
Truancy and McKinney-Vento Services for Students and Families – for All Administrators
New Items
Update on Budget Planning
From Dr. Cynthia Lane
We are entering the final days of a very productive school year. I want to thank you and your teams for the hard work and determination to ensure progress toward our Essential Goal – ???Each student will exit high school prepared for college and careers in a global society, and at every level each student???s performance is on-track and on-time for success.??? We know this goal as Diploma+.
Critical to our ability to advance our work, are the decisions yet to be finalized by our legislators in Topeka. Yesterday, the House K-12 Education Budget Committee approved, by a narrow margin, a school finance formula. We anticipate that this bill will be changed significantly on the House floor prior to advancing to the Senate. We are encouraged by this progress, and see it as a good beginning to address difficult decisions facing our state. As of today, changes to the tax plan have not advanced in either chamber.
We have journeyed through nearly a decade of fiscal challenges to equitably and adequately fund our schools. Today, we face a challenge that is yet again very significant. I would like to be able to communicate that we can proceed with business as usual. However, I am sure you have already noticed that your budgets have not been approved. You may also be wondering how to plan for the upcoming school year?
I can share with you in confidence that we will open schools. The question remains whether we will open on time, or if we will be delayed. I can assure you Central Office administrators are preparing to open on time, and at the same time are crafting plans to respond to a delayed opening that would be brought on by the lack of a school finance formula approved by the Supreme Court prior to June 30th.
Two actions on the part of all administrators are critically important at this juncture.
1. Ensure you have finalized hiring decisions for approved positions by mid-June, or prior to the beginning of your summer break, whichever dates come first.
2. Ensure you communicate to your staff and families we are confident school will open in the fall, and to be prepared in case our opening is delayed.
I am confident that our legislators will provide for an adequate and equitable school finance formula to ensure all Kansas students have access to quality education. I am also confident that the road to resolution is steep, and requires we continue our strong advocacy for our schools.
Expect frequent communications over the next several weeks. Please do not hesitate to reach out if you have specific questions, need clarity, or have recommendations.
Thank you again for your leadership. Congratulations on another positive and productive school year.
Bond Work
From Dr. Kelli Mather
Principals, since the passage of the bond referendum, there has been a great deal of planning and design around 80+ individual projects. To improve communication with you all as building leaders, I wanted to let you know that Mark Stubbolo, Assistant Director of the Shop will be the point of contact for the bond projects. Mark will be putting out to all principals a brief weekly communication through the Administrators Notice about upcoming work in your schools. Mark will also communicate with individual principals as the work progresses. Mark???s cell phone number is 913-305-6368 if you have any questions or need clarification regarding work that is scheduled.
We will continue to work on our communication throughout the bond work, we hope you find this helpful. Feedback is always appreciated. Thank you in advance for your patience, support and flexibility as we complete all of the projects.
Previous Items
Truancy and McKinney-Vento Services for Students and Families
From Rosie Rodriguez and Kerry Wrenick
In preparation for the 2017-2018 academic year, it is our goal to ensure all district personnel are familiar with McKinney-Vento (homeless) and Truancy services provided to students and families. Many of our students struggle with circumstances outside of their control that impact their academic performance. Kerry Wrenick, McKinney-Vento Liaison and Rosie Rodriguez, Program and Prevention Specialist request time during your building professional development to inform staff of the resources and services available to students and families. As our district strives to become Diploma+, attendance is a key component to academic success. Please utilize the link below to indicate the best date and time for a 20-minute presentation during Wednesday Professional Development. This engaging presentation will equip your staff with tools necessary to meet the needs of our students and families.