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

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“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 for 25% of the cost of the bonds.

It’s ironic that Rogers objects to “changing the rules in the middle of the game.” I wonder if he remembers that the Wichita school district originally scheduled the bond issue election for May 6, 2008.

Then, perhaps sensing that the mood of the electorate was not in his favor, he voted — along with all other school board members — to delay the election to some future date. This was after one of the opposition groups had already spent a considerable sum on a mailing, and after both opposition groups had spent much time and effort. Evidently the time and money of opposition groups means nothing to Mr. Rogers. Unless, of course, it’s the time and effort spent earning income so that they can pay taxes to the Wichita school district.

So now we’ve learned something about Mr. Rogers and other school district officials. When they control the rules, changing them for their own advantage is good. But when others control the rules, Rogers wants them to adhere to a standard that he himself is not willing to follow.

Comments

One response to “Changing Rules Now Bad, Says Wichita School Board President Lynn Rogers”

  1. ken

    How is it that bond opponents were so much more informed regarding “things to come with the economy” than the school board and Wichita Eagle? If I remember correctly the opposition early on warned “now was not the right time” to pass a bond of this magnitude. The eonomic downturn is here and will get worse before it will get better . Bond opponents were right on target and yet the Eagle continued to malign and discredit their arguements.

    The newspaper failed to connect the dots and yet, has better access to the economic forecasts than average citizens. What a disservice.
    It is sad that Lynn Rogers doesn’t get it. Bond victory was so close and certainly not a mandate.
    I would respect this BOE board more if they voluntarily cut back or priortized district needs. Show their good faith to the community and alleviate some of the financial burden. This would be a great lesson to our kids in that times are tough, money is tight, and you can’t always have everything you want.

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