photo by: Lawrence Journal-World

Lawrence school district offices, pictured in April 2021.

As the Nov. 7 general election approaches, the Journal-World asked 10 candidates running for five positions on the Lawrence school board for their thoughts on the district’s enrollment numbers, which have been predicted to decline by several hundred in the next few years, as well as the issue of shifting attendance boundaries for the district’s elementary and middle schools.

All but two of the candidates in the election are vying for a set of four four-year terms on the board — current board members Carole Cadue-Blackwood and Ronald “G.R.” Gordon-Ross, and newcomers Anne Costello, Yolanda Franklin, Edward “E.J.” Gonzales, Jody Meyer, Brandon Moore and Rachel Stumblingbear. The other two candidates, Ariel Miner and current board member Shannon Kimball, are competing for a single two-year term that was originally vacated when former school board member Andrew Nussbaum resigned in 2021. Another candidate, Kevin Coronado, was recently arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence and announced on social media last week that he would be dropping out of the race; his name will still appear on the general election ballots, which have already been printed.

As the Journal-World previously reported, the district hired consulting firm RSP & Associates to produce five-year projections for its enrollment, and the consultants last fall predicted a decline of about 300 students over the next five years. It’s not yet clear how the district’s enrollment might be affected in the coming years by the Panasonic battery plant that is under construction in nearby De Soto.

The enrollment projections were often cited in the district’s debate on school closures, which ended with two elementary schools, Pinckney and Broken Arrow, being closed down earlier this year. To accommodate the students displaced by the closures, the school district revised its attendance boundaries for elementary schools, and it plans to review and adopt a new boundary plan for middle schools as well by March 2024.

For this article, the Journal-World was able to contact all of the candidates except Coronado. The questions and the candidates’ written responses are below. Each candidate was given up to 100 words per question to respond.

The deadline to register to vote in the general election is Tuesday, Oct. 17, and advance voting by mail or in person at the Douglas County Elections Office, 711 W. 23rd St., begins the following day.

The district’s enrollment is declining, even though the city’s population has generally been on the uptick. How can this issue best be addressed?

Carole Cadue-Blackwood: “The decision to close Pinckney Elementary and Broken Arrow Elementary will have an impact on the city’s growth and development. As board members, we really need to come together and find some alignment in what is best for the community. We should examine why we have lost students and where they went. Did we lose students in the neighborhoods where we lost students? Should we have closed those schools if we lost them in the neighborhoods where we lost students? Those are the questions that need to be addressed. Why students left is what needs to be asked.”

Anne Costello: “The city, county, and school district have shared goals and should be working together regularly to develop strategic initiatives to draw more people and families into the area. They need to increase affordable housing and attract new businesses offering higher wages. These actions will help draw families to Lawrence. More families can mean more students. More students translates into more funding for the district to spend on improving our students’ outcomes. There is much to be proud of in the district, and it needs to highlight the accomplishments of its staff and students.”

Yolanda Franklin: “We need to find out why the enrollment is declining. Is it because the families are choosing home school, or is private school better for their kids? Is it something that we can implement in the Lawrence public school system to help transition them back into the public school?”

Edward “E.J.” Gonzales: “The first thing we need to do is reinvest in our teaching staff. We need to set up a SME (subject-matter expert) program where we can promote our staff to show how we excel compared to other districts — much like how hospitals do it today. That can be our targeted marketing strategy to show public education is not dead.”

Ronald “G.R.” Gordon-Ross: “While the overall city population may be increasing, what is most impactful for the district related to population is birth rate. We’ve been seeing a steady decline in birth rate for almost 10 years. Last year, Lawrence had a birth rate that was almost half of what Kansas is. In the short-term, the best way to increase enrollment will be through out of district transfers starting next fall. Long-term will be to work with our other government partners to plan affordable housing and growth in sustainable areas inside our district boundaries.”

Shannon Kimball: “Enrollment started dropping in 2018, pre-pandemic. Multiple factors contributed, including the declining birth rate in Douglas County since 2012, lack of quality affordable family housing, and a severe shortage of child care for ages birth to 5. Because the affordable housing crisis and local development policies are impacting USD 497 enrollment, the district is working with our local government partners to help them understand that Lawrence must appeal and be affordable to families with school-age children. Affordable housing is essential to the continued enrollment growth of the district and to the district’s ability to recruit and retain USD 497 teachers and staff.”

Jody Meyer: “We have lost families to other school districts due to our school district’s decision-making. The district (should) focus on improving academics, utilizing our budget appropriately, and overhauling our communication. We need to focus on retaining good teachers and building administrators. We need to re-examine how we are going to teach our students if we are increasing class sizes — as one solo teacher to 30-plus students is a problem. We must control the behavioral issues going on in our school that are disrupting the students’ learning environment. We need to revamp our communication system to increase parental and familial involvement.”

Ariel Miner: “School boards can’t control birth rates but can influence whether Lawrence is attractive to families. Affordable housing and neighborhood schools are very appealing. If we want to get back to our progressive roots, Lawrence should prioritize equity across our system, renewable energy initiatives, and neighborhood schools. The Panasonic plant may help draw families to Lawrence; however, if we do not address problems with district leadership we will not see an increase in enrollment. This has to be addressed by the school board.”

Brandon Moore: “Maintain quality teachers and staff (and) have transparency throughout the district on all levels so there is trust.”

Rachel Stumblingbear: “This question has posed data and I think we need to drill down into that to understand what we are working with. How many new residents have moved here in the past year? Out of those new residents, how many of them are children? Out of the children, how many attend our school district? For those families leaving the district, we need to find out why. Are they moving out of the city because of jobs? Are they Catholic and they want their children to attend a Catholic school? Have they decided to home school because their child experienced bullying and they are frustrated with our school district?”

How should the district go about dealing with the likely issue of changing school boundaries for elementary and middle schools as it attempts to rebalance the student population?

Carole Cadue-Blackwood: “The Boundary Advisory Committee (BAC) will need to reassess the boundaries. This process will also require community engagement during this process. The (committee) met in May 2021 to discuss the process of looking at building capacity and then exploring shifts in the boundaries of the schools that could take on more and where to alleviate some of those pressures. The district can continue efforts to build at the speed of trust and meet with community members to look at what services are available in the areas when discussing shifting boundaries.”

Anne Costello: “The district should complete a comprehensive boundary analysis to understand where students live. There is still room in east side elementary schools. When needed, we should look to shift students eastward to reduce overcrowding in some of the schools on the west side. When and if we have maximized capacity in all schools, we can look at adding to existing schools based on where growth is projected. The district needs to do better (at) long-range planning to get ahead of potential issues rather than waiting to react to them.”

Yolanda Franklin: “We need to sit down with the community and really get their input on how the recent change in boundaries have affected their lives. Would the boundaries be changing for every elementary and middle school in the district, or would they be focused on the east side of town as the most recent changes were? The most recent change was now requiring kindergarten students to walk to school because they are less than the 2.5 mile requirement for the school bus. That is incomprehensible.”

Ronald “G.R.” Gordon-Ross: “I’ve served on the boundary committee for nearly a decade, both as a board member and a public member. During this time, our meetings have been reactive, addressing issues as they arise. I would like to see the boundary committee convene at least annually to proactively assess population changes and existing boundaries. This approach, as opposed to major adjustments every five to six years, would mitigate disruptions and enable us to adapt to population shifts more effectively.”

Edward “E.J.” Gonzales: “We need to ask the parents of the district. We have some parents not only having to cross town but then commute to work in KC or Topeka. That is a large portion of their day. Asking parents how we can help them with the district lines will help promote a community to explore options of redefining the district and show that we are truly here for the parents and staff of USD 497.”

Shannon Kimball: “The elementary boundary work concluded last spring as part of the budget realignment work. I do not anticipate that the boundary committee or the board will revisit a comprehensive review of elementary boundaries this spring. Last February, the board directed staff to review middle school boundaries, with an emphasis on whether boundary changes could achieve a more equitable distribution of enrollment within the middle schools. That work will begin in the boundary committee after December. I anticipate that the boundary committee will make a recommendation to the board in late spring on middle school boundaries for the following school year.”

Jody Meyer: “This is going to be a difficult decision-making process no matter what method is utilized. We should probably take the total enrollment and ideally make it an equal or nearly equal enrollment at each school. This means that there may have to be a shift in enrollment from west to east. It’s going to be necessary to move kids from high enrollment schools to lower enrollment schools. I would also note that we are also going to need to discuss high school boundaries/enrollment also. Free State currently has 1,794 students and Lawrence High has 1,492. This creates imbalances and equity issues in academics, athletics, and activities.”

Ariel Miner: “Stability is really important for children. After a pandemic and school closures, I would hesitate to rush for more change until we have data on enrollment and class sizes. We need to know how the year goes for teachers and students and let that guide decisions moving forward. It will be interesting to see how Panasonic affects Lawrence, especially on the east side. One thing that is clear, we need more mental health support for our students after such upheaval. I’d like to see more energy spent on community partnerships to find creative solutions that don’t harm the community.”

Brandon Moore: “Create more diversity in all schools to help balance the socioeconomic diversity of the schools.”

Rachel Stumblingbear: “If lowering class sizes and rebalancing the student population is a priority this year, then the school district needs to let families know now that they will be looking at boundary changes. They need to publicize when the Boundary (Advisory) Committee meets, so that those interested in knowing the possible changes can attend and see the process. They need to especially take care (of) the students that just had a move this year due to school closures. By letting the community know now about upcoming boundary changes they can also solicit feedback from students, staff and parents.”