Budget Questions and Answers

During our two Community Budget Forums in March, we received hundreds of questions. Instead of waiting to process all of them, we are posting and updating as we go. Please check back often for more information.

General Questions

• This is one plan with 4 phases. What is your back up or alternative plan?
  • What was presented at the Community Budget meetings was not a plan, but a series of options for the Board of Education to consider. The administration tried to present to the Board all of the different alternatives to closing the budget deficit. Over the next several months, the Board will develop a plan, using these options as a starting point.
• Is the board working with or including any community groups in cut decisions?
  • The administration and the Board are seeking input from across the community, from individuals and from organizations. These are difficult decisions to make, and the Board wants to make sure that the community has a chance to say what cuts they would be willing to support.
• Why all of the new buildings?
  • Over the last year, KCKPS has built additions to Sumner Academy of Arts and Science, and Douglass, Frances Willard, Silver City, Eugene Ware and Emerson Elementary Schools. Each of these projects was done in order to create adequate space and proper facilities to serve our students. At the elementary level, the district does not have extra space: the buildings are full.
• Would consolidation of schools be an option?
  • Unlike many other districts, consolidation of schools would not be an option currently in KCK, except in some very limited and specific situations. (For example, over the past year, with the construction of the addition to Douglass Elementary, students from Central and Douglass were consolidated into the Douglass building, and Central was changed to the Fairfax Campus alternative school, allowing us to close the old Fairfax Campus building.) As indicated in the question above, the district, which has grown the past three years, is currently fully utilizing its space, and does not have the option to close buildings.
• Why are you not going after grants?
  • The district works very hard to secure grants to support its work. Currently, the district is seeking funds to support schools identified as low-achieving. At the same time, the district has learned from experience that it is important to make sure that the grant funding is directly tied to district goals and objectives, and does not divert attention and resources from the work already going on to strengthen student achievement. In addition, the district has learned that it is often harmful in the long run to create programs with grant funding that will have to be funded by district funds when the grant funding ends.
• Is the role of instructional coach changing for next year?
  • Yes. Instructional Coaches are becoming Teacher Leaders, focused on strengthening classroom instruction.

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Charging Fees

• Why not charge book fees like Bonner Springs and Piper Schools?
  • This is certainly something that the Board of Education will need to consider. However, when districts charge fees, those fees are frequently waived or reduced for students who are eligible for Free or Reduced Lunch. In KCKPS, more than 90% of students are eligible, meaning that very few students would have to pay the fee.
• What about students paying athletic fees and music fees?
  • See above.

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Outsourcing

• What are the positions considered being outsourced?
  • The Board has asked for additional information about custodial services, nutritional services, and transportation. At this point, the Board is in the information-gathering stage, and no changes will be made for the 2010-2011 school year.
• What would happen to our community especially the African-American community in our district if you choose to outsource? Have you studied the impact?
  • As a part of its process of gathering information, the Board of Education has made clear that it will consider the impact of any potential decision to outsource particular services, on our schools, on our staff, and on the community, as well as on the quality and efficiency of services provided.
• So will custodians have a job for 2010-2011?
  • Yes. As indicated above, no changes will be made for the 2010-2011 school year.

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Benchmarking

• Why don't you get rid of benchmarks? And make the teachers teach?
  • Benchmarking is the process the district uses to make sure that students know the information that has been taught in class, and is part of the state standard for a particular course. The district strongly believes that, when a student receives a grade for a particular course, that should mean that the student has learned the material that the course was designed to teach. The benchmarks are designed to make clear to teachers, students and parents exactly what students are expected to know and be able to do as a result of each course. Benchmarking is not a substitute for quality classroom instruction. Teachers are still expected to teach the course material.
     
    It is important to recognize that high school achievement has improved significantly in the past several years, as benchmarking has become fully implemented. Still, the district recognizes that there is still significant work to be done, in order to reach the goal of having all students achieving at high levels. The district is working hard to continue to strengthen instruction at all levels.
• Why are we giving the children computers for them to do benchmarks when clearly benchmarks aren't even working for our children?
  • As indicated above, high school test scores have improved significantly during the period when benchmarking has been fully implemented in high schools. At the same time, not all children are achieving at high levels, and there is more work to be done to strengthen teaching and learning.
• The kids are not retaining the information from the benchmarks and are not able to perform in college, and they are coming back from major universities because they are NOT prepared. So if you have children who are not retaining and moving forward after high school then what is this all for? Sure the numbers look good on paper but the reality is these children are not learning!
  • As the district has improved, the district's goals continue to be set higher. It is clear that, to be an excellent school district, students will need to leave high school prepared to be successful both in college and in their career. When the district began the First Things First reform effort, one of the goals was to raise the number of students who graduated from high school. Now, the goal must be to make sure that those students who graduate are well prepared, and the district is hard at work making the changes necessary to reach this goal.

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Cuts to Administration

• Where does the money come from to build the new administrative building?
  • According to our agreement with the Unified Government of Wyandotte County, the district must vacate its current administrative offices that are located at Indian Springs Mall by December 31, 2010. If we meet that deadline, we will receive a $4 million payment from the Unified Government, which we are planning to use to help finance the construction of the new administration building. If we do not meet that deadline, we will lose that payment.
     
    The district has a separate budget, called the Capital Outlay budget, that it uses for building construction and repair, and for major equipment purposes. This money cannot be used for salaries or other day-to-day expenses.
• Currently building a new administrative office out by Schlagle High School — What is the cost? Is there a cost savings in this project?
  • Please see the answer above. In addition, it is important to know that, in proceeding with these construction projects during difficult economic times, the district has been able to save a significant amount in construction costs, as bids have been coming in lower than expectations.

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