- Armed employees could invalidate school districts’ insurance policies June 20, 2013 · 13 comments
- County takes no action on controversial rock quarry June 19, 2013 · 4 comments
- Consultants raise concerns about proposed LMH wellness center at city's new recreation center June 19, 2013 · 15 comments
- Tuition, fees going up; regents blame Legislature June 19, 2013 · 7 comments
- Letter: Yoder votes June 20, 2013 · 7 comments
- City approves Menards store next to Home Depot at 31st and Iowa streets June 18, 2013 · 90 comments
- Letter: Energy folly June 15, 2013 · 46 comments
- Professional dancer to flutter through Kansas milkweed to help save butterflies June 19, 2013 · 4 comments
- Kobach considering filing charges against protesters who came to his home June 17, 2013 · 134 comments
- On the street: What is your favorite Shakespearean play? June 19, 2013 · 13 comments
- Professional dancer to flutter through Kansas milkweed to help save butterflies June 19, 2013
- Daytripper: We're in the money May 20, 2013
- Opinion: Freshman given rock-star treatment June 19, 2013
- Andrew Wiggins scores seven points in Bill Self campers game June 19, 2013
- Consultants raise concerns about proposed LMH wellness center at city's new recreation center June 19, 2013
- Historic Lecompton Territorial Days scheduled for this weekend June 18, 2013
- Shooting reported Tuesday night during road-rage incident; police looking for driver June 19, 2013
- KU football lands two oral commitments June 19, 2013
- Lawrence resident pleads guilty to organizing $16M drug trafficking ring March 1, 2013
- County takes no action on controversial rock quarry June 19, 2013
Statehouse Live: Republican leaders considering constitutional change to thwart school finance ruling
The checks and balances come into rulings based upon the constitution as written. This is what has currently happened. No matter what semantics you use, the court cannot appropriate money. They have said that a certain amount of money needs to be appropriated to make the law in question constitutional. They have not appropriated money.
Now you could argue that by giving a dollar amount they have overstepped their reach. However, what would happen if they didn't give a dollar amount. How many times should be go through this cycle of lawsuit, ruling, change law, lawsuit, ruling, change law . . . Is it not better for the court to simply say, this is what you will have to do before we see this law as constitutional.
January 14, 2013 at 3:11 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Statehouse Live: Republican leaders considering constitutional change to thwart school finance ruling
The court can order the closure of the schools. They threatened this the last time around.
January 14, 2013 at 3:04 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Court: Kansas Legislature's level of funding for schools unconstitutional
What the court would do . . . close the schools. That is exactly what they have the constitutional authority to do.
Not every school district has plenty of money, or new buildings or upper level jobs. In fact most districts are small, rural districts. Most districts are not Lawrence or Blue Valley or Maize. Most districts look more like Chetopa or Washington or Scott City.
The problem we have with our funding system is that, after the Montoy decision, our land rich school districts (Prairie View, Holcomb, Burlington) were given money they really didn't need. Instead of rewriting the funding laws to give more money to the schools that needed it the most (land poor, high density poverty, etc) the legislature gave everyone more money.
January 11, 2013 at 4:58 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Brownback, senators refused to help Topeka school district in grant application for federal funds
But . . . the reasoning given by Jon Hummel is invalid. These standards have already been adopted. Either Hummel is misquoted or completely misinformed.
Possibly he is refering to a study on which assessment platform to use (Smarter Balanced or ACT), but there is no way around the fact that CCSS have already been adopted in Kansas (Oct 2010).
The Federal govenment is going to require a NCLB test (whichever the state chooses). The cost of said test should have no weight upon whether the Governor will support a RTT grant application by USD 501. WE HAVE ALREADY ADOPTED THE STANDARDS AND HAVE TO GIVE A TEST.
Our Senators' reasoning that RTT grants come with too many strings attached (which they do) is suspect also because these same strings were the ones attached to the NCLB waiver that Kansas (as a state) voluntarily applied for and recieved. WE ARE ALREADY SUSPECT TO THESE SAME STRINGS AS A STATE AS A WHOLE.
Why do you think the superintendent wanted this article published? The reasoning she received from these 3 elected officials makes absolutely no sense. They would have been better off to just stick with the state's right arguement.
December 6, 2012 at 9:49 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Brownback, senators refused to help Topeka school district in grant application for federal funds
That quote comes from commoncore.org, the link I mistakenly placed in my reply above (now since corrected). I will not blame centerville for using it, it just does not really have any relevance to the topic at hand.
I still would like centerville to explain why he belives common core standards are worthless.
December 6, 2012 at 9:25 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Brownback, senators refused to help Topeka school district in grant application for federal funds
Please explain.
December 6, 2012 at 8:55 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Brownback, senators refused to help Topeka school district in grant application for federal funds
Some facts to add to this discussion that seemed to have been left out.
1) The CCSS were adopted by KSDE in Oct of 2010. Either Jon Hummell is misinformed or he was misquoted by Scott Rothschild.
2) The RTT grants does not coerce states to use something that they have already voluntarily adopted.
3) The CCSS were initiated by the National Governor's Association (of which Sam Brownback is now a member). They do not keep local districts from using more rigorous standards, they simply say you will be held to at least this level. I see this as a good thing, not a bad thing.
4) The cost associated with CCSS will come from implementing an assessment to test these standards. Currently that test is being developed by the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (smarterbalanced.org). There is an alternative movement in the state to use the ACT battery of tests instead. However, no decision has been made at this point.
In my personal opinion you are very misinformed on this topic. Please go to corestandards.org and smarterbalanced.org if you would like to become more informed.
December 6, 2012 at 8:46 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
GOP suggests it might lose seats in Kansas House
Unless, the goal is not only control the chamber, but to also have a 2/3 majority so that you may pass amendments to the constitution of the state. For example, defining the definition of "suitable" as it applies to education, defining a "person" as a fertilized egg, etc.
November 1, 2012 at 8:46 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Statehouse Live: Democrats launch school funding website to counter Brownback's
This district will be just fine as they happen to have a coal fired power plant in their district. If Brownback returns to more local funding with little state equalization, this district will simply raise property taxes and reap the benefits.
October 23, 2012 at 10:17 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Brownback tax cut law produces winners and losers, KU tax law professor says
You really should give the credit to Parkinson. He is the one that signed large spending cuts and raised the sales tax.
June 16, 2012 at 6:48 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )