As spring assessments and graduation festivities signal the end of the school year in Kansas, state legislators are crafting bills that could put the future of public education in Kansas at risk. As Kansas teachers dedicated to all students, we have something to say.
We joined 11 Kansas Teachers of the Year, with more than 300 years of teaching experience, to unequivocally express our support for public schools at a news conference held Tuesday at the Capitol in Topeka.
Together, we spoke against the harmful policies introduced by state legislators, which aim to vilify public schools. Harmful policies meant to privatize education through voucher programs have been introduced in 26 states so far.
This is not local legislation.
Kansas public schools are, in fact, strong and meeting the needs of students in our communities with the resources they have been given. Our public schools are the most important investment in our state. History has proven that when Kansas invests in our local public schools, Kansas taxpayers reap the rewards for a lifetime.
Tuesday’s bipartisan coalition of Kansas Teachers of the Year urged legislators to:
1. Reject any legislation that diverts public dollars to private entities without the same accountability as public schools.
2. Pass a clean school funding bill, as required by the Gannon ruling.
3. Fully fund special education to support our learners with specialized education needs.
From Kansas City, Kansas, to Dodge City, Wichita and Blue Valley, teachers shared their firsthand knowledge of the ways in which teachers and school districts collaborate, hone their professional craft, help all students grow, partner with parents, and connect with nonprofits, businesses and entire communities.
These stories serve as a testament to the fact that our public schools are already locally positioned and primed to meet the needs of every student when they are fully funded and equitably staffed.
These stories exist all over the state, in each district and public school. Yet the rhetoric coming from our state representatives is that Kansas public schools and, as such, our Kansas public teachers are failing.
Our schools aren’t failing. They need to be funded.
Our teachers aren’t failing. They need to be supported.
On Wednesday, the Senate Education Conference Committee continued its push to implement harmful voucher funding into policy, this time with a catch: It exempted the majority of schools in Kansas and focused efforts on 10 counties: Johnson, Sedgwick, Shawnee, Wyandotte, Douglas, Leavenworth, Riley, Butler, Reno and Saline counties.
