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Education
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Written by Brian McCauley
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Wednesday, 27 January 2010 08:00 |
A group of about 30 teachers, administrators and coaches packed into the USD 368 Board of Education meeting room Monday night for a work session discussion on planned budget cuts to sports and other activities, and a message was loud and clear to all of them: Things are bad, and they could get much worse.
After cutting $1 million from the district’s budget last year, USD 368 officials are facing another round of expected cuts totalling $700,000 this year. As in 2009, some of the cuts likely will come to activities.
Paola High School Athletic Director Mark Lentz and Paola Middle School Principal Matt Meek were the primary speakers Monday, explaining to school board members how they plan to cut another 10 percent from their activity budgets, just as they did last year.
Lentz said most of the previous cuts were to equipment, supplies and transportation costs, with students making sacrifices, such as only using one bus for much of the football season, meaning some players were unable to ride to games with their teammates. Programs also were affected, as junior-varsity cheerleading was eliminated.
This year, Lentz said, four other programs may have to be reduced, but he said he was not comfortable identifying them until he has an opportunity to discuss the issue with the affected program officials. There also may be savings with the retirement of a couple coaches.
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Education
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Written by Brian McCauley
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Wednesday, 18 November 2009 08:00 |
After taking a few weeks to consider their options, Paola USD 368 Board of Education members unanimously voted last week to not join other districts across the state planning to take legal action against the Kansas Legislature because of improper funding.
Superintendent Rod Allen previously brought up the issue during the district’s October meeting, stating that he had attended a meeting of almost 50 other Kansas school districts considering joining Schools for Fair Funding, Inc. The group previously sponsored litigation against the state to gain adequate and equitable funding for schools, and it is planning to do so again.
Allen said Sen. Pat Apple and Rep. Jene Vickrey both attended the board meeting on Nov. 9 and gave support for the board members either way they decided to vote. The vote passed 6-0.
In other business at the Nov. 9 meeting, board members:
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Education
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Written by Brian McCauley
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Wednesday, 12 August 2009 07:00 |
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 It’s back to school next week for Paola USD 368 students, but for a handful of new teachers, orientation took place last week.
New teacher in-service took place Thursday and Friday, and the five new faces got an introduction to Paola and its school district.
Three of the five new teachers will be working with elementary school students, one will join the staff of Paola High School and another will work at the Paola Adult Education Center.
The following is a list of the new teachers, where they will be teaching and a little bit about each new employee based on their submitted information:
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Education
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Written by Brian McCauley
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Wednesday, 12 August 2009 07:00 |
Paola USD 368 Board of Education members approved the district’s 2009-2010 budget Monday night, but officials still face financial decisions.
Monday’s approval comes after months of budget-crunching, thanks to the state Legislature’s decrease in the base state aid per pupil. Some of the district’s cost-saving measures included cutting $665,000 in salaries by eliminating 17 staff positions, with six people actually losing their jobs. A salary freeze also is being recommended, but Paola Superintendent Rod Allen said Monday that there may be budget adjustments in the future regarding salary and health benefits, depending on actions the state takes early next year.
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Education
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Written by Brian McCauley
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Wednesday, 22 July 2009 07:00 |
Thanks to cost cuts and help from stimulus funds, Paola USD 368 officials were able to map out their 2009-10 budget and still slightly reduce the mill levy for taxpayers, but they’ll likely be facing additional cuts next year.
Board of Education members reviewed the proposed budget during Monday night’s meeting in Paola. The total projected mill levy would decrease from 58.559 to 58.532. The mill levy, along with the city and county mill levies, helps to determine the rate in which tax payers pay property taxes.
Business Manager Jimmy Hay walked the board members through the budget Monday night. The state Legislature reduced the district’s base state aid per pupil by $215 from $4,433 to $4,218. The district has been able to weather the storm, though, thanks to $551,898 in stimulus funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The funds equal about $219 in base state aid per pupil and last through 2011.
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