Lynn Rogers Archives - Page 3 of 4 Voice For Liberty

Feb

Should Wichita Identify Superintendent Finalists?

When USD 259, the Wichita public school district, draws criticism from the Wichita Eagle's Rhonda Holman, you know they've really done something wrong. Her column of today (Identify finalists for superintendent) requests that the Wichita school district make public the names of the finalists in its search for superintendent. Her request is likely to remain unfulfilled: "And board president Lynn Rogers was less than reassuring Wednesday when asked whether the public would have an opportunity to learn the names of more candidates than just the winner." What we'd really like to know if Martin Libhart, the present superintendent -- interim,…

Jan

By Bob Weeks

Changing Rules Now Bad, Says Wichita School Board President Lynn Rogers

"It amounts to changing the rules in the middle of the game," said Wichita school board president Lynn Rogers. "And it's really bad policy." This is the Wichita Eagle reporting his remarks to the possibility that the State of Kansas might stop the aid to school districts that helps them pay for bond issues. Mr. Rogers may object because it means that USD 259, the Wichita public school district, may lose a great deal of money. It also means that the district may not be able to fulfill one of its campaign promises, that being that the state would pay…

Oct

By Bob Weeks

Raising Wichitans’ Taxes in a Recession is Not A Good Idea

"Democrat Barack Obama says he would delay rescinding President Bush's tax cuts on wealthy Americans if he becomes the next president and the economy is in a recession, suggesting such an increase would further hurt the economy." (Associated Press, September 7, 2008) Contrary to assertions by Wichita school interim superintendent Martin Libhart and school board president Lynn Rogers, Wichita can't tax and spend its way out of a recession that may or may not be forthcoming. Not even Barack Obama believes that, as shown in the news story quoted above. Still, bond issue supporters say that's what happened after the…

Oct

By Bob Weeks

Wichita School District’s Claims Must be Questioned

At a Wichita school bond issue debate on October 14, 2008, I challenged USD 259, the Wichita school district, to give evidence of their claim that smaller class sizes lead to better student achievement. That's because I've been waiting a week for both USD 259 and the "Yes for Kids" group to respond to my request for references to the research they presumably relied on when formulating these claims. The next day, while speaking to the Wichita Downtown Lions Club, Wichita school board president Lynn Rogers said "If you just put in the words 'class size reduction' to Google, you'll…

Sep

By Bob Weeks

Wichita School District: Accountability is on Our Terms

USD 259, the Wichita public school district, wants to be held accountable. They say so. It's a theme of the proposed bond issue, as recently stated by celebrity spokesman George Fahnestock: "...the district’s accountability is strong..." (See CARE launches Yes For Kids campaign) But what happens when citizens seek information from USD 259 that will let them verify claims made by the district? One of the things I and others have been looking at is the number of classrooms in the district's schools. We made a records request asking for this number, and we were told this information would cost…

Sep

By Bob Weeks

Wichita School Bond Presentation by Helen Cochran

On September 15, 2008, Helen Cochran of Citizens for Better Education gave a talk before a Wichita civic group. Her talk was fabulous. Here are some highlights: Helen (like myself) has tried to get test scores from USD 259 (Wichita public school district), but it's a difficult process. There's always a delay or reason why figures aren't available. But, as Helen noted in her talk, school board president Lynn Rogers and Wichita Eagle columnist Mark McCormick seem to have access to the data. Openness and transparency, as I noted in posts like Wichita Public Schools: Open Records Requests Are a…

Sep

By Bob Weeks

Mark McCormick’s Wichita School Bond Bias

Writing from Scottsdale, Arizona Today's Mark McCormick column in the Wichita Eagle (Opponents of school bond skip specifics) provides an example of this columnist's bias, and how this bias leads to his rapidly losing credibility among Wichitans. Bias is okay for a columnist. Everyone is entitled to a point of view. After reading a few of McCormick's columns you get used to his way of looking at the world. Then you can either read his column, filtering it as you do. Or, like many people tell me, they've simply stopped reading his column. Sometimes they stop the entire newspaper. Here's…

Sep

By Bob Weeks

NAACP Hosts Wichita School Bond Issue Mini-debate

I was invited by Kevin Myles, president of the Wichita Branch of the NAACP, to participate in a community mini-debate series about the proposed Wichita school bond issue. Lynn Rogers, president of the Wichita school board, also participated. You can read the questions and answers in the post What YOU need to know about the Proposed School Bond Issue. Thank you to Mr. Myles and the local NAACP branch for this public service.

Aug

By Bob Weeks

Wichita School District Dodges TIF District Issue

At the August 25, 2008 meeting of the board of USD 259, the Wichita public school district, John Todd and I addressed the board members, asking that they exercise their veto power over the formation of a tax increment financing (TIF) district recently created by the City of Wichita. My remarks may be read in the post Wichita School District: Don’t Give Up Your Tax and Revenue Base. At issue is the Wichita school district giving up its claim to tax revenue from possible future development surrounding the downtown Wichita arena. As is usually the case with TIF districts, confusion…

Aug

By Bob Weeks

Will George Fahnestock Vote For the Wichita School Bond Issue?

Wichita's mysterious "Boondoggler" posted today that George Fahnestock, the businessman selected to lead the campaign for the proposed bond issue for USD 259, the Wichita public schools, doesn't live in the Wichita school district. The post is Fahnestock's Motivation? A map of his house, along with school district boundaries, may be viewed here. Earlier this year, USD 259 board members Lynn Rogers and Kevass Harding made an issue of the fact that a mailing address used by Citizens For Better Education, an anti-bond group, was in the Maize school district. A "fact check" sheet on USD 259's website raised the…