Oregon Voters Say NO to Big Athletics Spending

This week we also saw the Oregon School District Referendum--heavily laden with athletics spending-- voted down 57% to 43%.

This doesn't bode well for any big public cash infusion for our own Ashley Field project.  Kinda sounds like most folks' pockets contain only a little lint these days.

While some may view that a narrow margin, bear in mind that this was one of those slickery referendums posed during the primary elections.  The only thing on the ballot was for a judge that few cared about!  We wonder why such an important referendum for that community was not posed later in the year...at the spring elections, perhaps?  Or the presidential primary at least.  It wouldn't be that many community members sleep through primary elections, allowing a very small group of voters to push forward some major proposal?

Nahhh....couldn't be.  That's something only wacky conspiracy theorists might believe.
Right???

http://www.wkow.com/story/16987914/oregon-school-district-referendum-voted-down

Breaking News: Naud Withdraws

In the wake of a flurry of activity this week, Gary Alan Naud has withdrawn from the school board election.  Earlier this evening, his website, www.justsaynaud.com, showed only the following:

---

Gary Alan Naud

After careful consideration and after my recent unfavorable primary results, I am withdrawing my candidacy for the Sun Prairie School Board. I appreciate all the support I have received from so many Sun Prairie citizens, and look forward to continuing to be connected to our community. At this juncture, however, I think I can best serve Sun Prairie as a private citizen, and I am eager to continue working in our community to make Sun Prairie better.

---

Crack journalist Chris Mertes, of the Sun Prairie Star, posted an article online earlier today that may explain things.

http://sunprairiestar.com/main.asp?SectionID=2&SubSectionID=21&ArticleID=9690

Congratulations to Mike Krachey...who will now earn the seat vacated by Terry Shimek; and to John  Whalen for...well...being John Whalen.

Did anyone else notice that two years in a row now we've had candidates withdraw from the race for school board seats?  These seats are hotter than the presidency.

Got Eggtooth?

http://www.turtlejournal.com/
wp-content/uploads/2010/08/wcg-2010-003-840.jpg 

'Tis the season for school board elections, and that makes the timing right to discuss board member characteristics.

The problem with many local elected officials  is how they operate once they are in the high chairs facing the cameras.  This phenomenon is even more prominent with school board members.  Often referred to as "drinking the Kool-Aid", what it really amounts to is an inability to truly speak one's mind.

Once they leave their board chair and the board table, most board members will display a very different attitude--and commentary--regarding agenda items.

What is an eggtooth?

"In some egg-laying animals, the egg tooth is a small, sharp, cranial protuberance used by offspring to break or tear through the egg's surface during hatching. It is present in most birds and reptiles. "
---Wikipedia

 Many local elected officials would seem to be lacking an eggtooth.  Instead of yearning to break free and emerge from their shell, they seem to prefer the peaceful, risk-free existence inside their shell.  Instead of vocalizing their concerns regarding the agenda du jour [gratuitous use of French language] publicly, they opt to either speak up only behind closed doors, or not at all, reserving their true feelings/concerns for those people in their "inner circle"--or once they get to the local pub post-meeting.

Sadly, what the community really needs is to hear what these folks truly have on their minds.  School district administration will only change when forced to do so.  Unfortunately, that, at least in Sun Prairie, means throwing decorum to the wind and speaking candidly.  One can speak their mind openly yet still be respectful; so why don't our elected leaders do so?

Getting to "No" You
What makes a board member who is deeply troubled by, or has significant questions regarding,  a particular issue suddenly vote in the affirmative at the board table?  Is it the fear of going against the district administration's wishes?  The fear of public reprisal for their position?  Fear of reprisal from employers?
It's almost as if board members suddenly lose their innate ability to say, "No".

We'd be rich for every time we've heard elected leaders support something at the table and then trash it privately afterward.  OK....perhaps "trash" is a little too powerful a term.  But you get the point.  Here's a great example....remember when Creekside was going to be built and the land was "donated" to the district. The board stood up there and talked about what a great location it was.   What a crock of you know what! There isn't a single board member that believes that Creekside was built in the best location.  It was built where it was because the land was free, dammit. But do you think a board member would ever say such a thing publicly?  Hell no!  Three years have gone by and Creekside has less kids than the two SAGE schools,  has several classrooms yet to be christened with kidlets, while Horizon and Eastside are splitting at their respective seams.

School board members alike smile and say "Yes", despite inner gnawing conflict, for the sake of decorum.

The Devilish Diva Decorum and Dr. Seuss
Desiring decorum is often akin to desiring world peace.  It's a lofty goal, but it's just not realistic.  People always seem to get in the way.  Disagreement is that which makes us human and keeps us from being a planet of clones.  We don't have to agree with every position or idea that comes before us, but we need to be able to speak our mind.  We'd argue that half of the world's problems would be solved if people would simply be more direct in their communication.  We have become a nation of world class beat-around-the bush-ers.  No wonder why the nation is becoming obese with all the sugar coating going on.

de·co·rum  (d-kôrm, -kr-)

n.

1. Appropriateness of behavior or conduct; propriety

So?  Why does everyone shrink away from issues out of fear of breaking decorum?  One can behave appropriately and still call out things that need to be called out...right?  So what don't people (red: board members) do so?  Decorum has become the boogeyman of local politics.  Gee...if I question the school district administration on this issue, one of the City bigwigs may not want to rub elbows with me at the upcoming shindig.  Boo frickin' hoo!  If said "bigwigs" are such small people that they do not want decisions made based on facts, then let 'em drink alone.

Dr . Seuss was so right when he wrote, "Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind."   Actually, there is disagreement regarding whether or not Seuss ever wrote that.  But you know what?  Who cares!  We love it.  And it fits.

STOP THE MADNESS!
Have YOU used your eggtooth today?

Whalen E-Mail - Crossing or Just Blurring the Lines?

Seems that there's an e-mail chain going around initiated by current school board president John Whalen in his bid for re-election to a 3rd term.  While we aren't suggesting that what Whalen's doing is a violation of statute or rule, we will say that it begs the question.  Actually, it begs a LOT of questions

---

From: John Whalen [mailto:john4schools@yahoo.com] 
Sent: Sunday, February 19, 2012 8:14 PM 
To: Adam Kristina Boardman; brian.campbell@kraftfoods.com ; Caroline McCourt; Cheryl Batterman; Dan McIlroy; Dan Deprey; Dave Joan Unmacht; David Glusick, P.E.; Dawn Moret; Dr. Reeder; Heather Reeder; Jan Kiecker; Jan Nelson; Jeanne Behrend; Jeff Zacher; Jeff Tubbs; John Bloemer; Karin Delaitsch; Kellen Dorner; Kim Erb; Kimberly Trent; kjkobussen@charter.net; Lorie Candelmo; Mary Swita; Matt Silbernagel; Matt Harms; Mike Gomoll; Mike Healy; Mike Nelson; Mike Larson; Monique Glusick; Pam Albi; Pam Klute; Sharlot Bogart; Todd Birkrem; Todd Sears; Tom Bernard; Toni Rossmiller; twoblondetornadoes@hotmail.com


 Subject:  Re-Elect John Whalen for Sun Prairie Area School District School Board 


 Friends,


 Attached, please find a brief flyer outlining my qualification for the Sun Prairie Area School District . I would like to ask two things of you. First, I would like your vote on April 3rd, and second, I need your help.  

Whalen didn't propose "looking into options" to address
elementary space needs.  That was John Welke.  Without Welke's
intervention (not Whalen's) the district simply proposed
building an 8th elementary school.

In order to get my message out efficiently, I would like you to forward this email to everyone you know in the Sun Prairie Area School District . In addition, if you ask these people to do the same, we can cover the District in a very green way.


 Please note April 3rd is during spring break and if you are going to be out of town, please vote absentee. You can vote by absentee right at city hall. It is quick and easy. Your vote is very important to me. Please contact me with your questions or concerns.

 Thank your for your support,

 John Whalen

 608-834-3340

  John4schools@yahoo.com

---

Election Rules & Campaign Flyers
One thing that is immediately noticed regarding his "flyer" is that it lacks the de rigeur "Authorized and Paid for by ______________" attribution, which must appear on any campaign material.  These requirements are spelled out in section 11.30, Wis. Stats., " Attribution of political contributions, disbursements and communications."


Sure, Whalen could argue that e-mail costs him nothing--and therefore he is exempt.  But it DOES cost him something to maintain an Internet connection with which to send it.  We also don't know whether or not any of these were printed for handing out.  The bottom line, is that --after 6 years/2 terms--Whalen simply knows better.  And we expect better from someone in his shoes.   He's not a "newbie" at this who has made an innocent mistake.  He needs to be doing it BETTER than the other guys.


Conflict of Interest?
The list of recipients on this e-mail (and perhaps there were other "lists") is a veritable list of "Who's Who In Sun Prairie".  More to the point, many of these folks do business with the school district, and therefore Whalen puts himself in a very sticky wicket.  Kip Kobussen--of Kobussen Busing-- has a contract with the district worth about $10M.  Should Whalen now recuse himself from voting on any future contracts or checks written to Kobussen?   What about the others:


Correction: we've since learned that Kip Kobussen is not a part of Kobussen Buses, as we've been told.
Our apologies to Mr. Kobussen and Kobussen Buses for the error.

• Jeff Tubbs (Findorff, who built the last $100M+ of district projects)
• Sharlot Bogart (owner of Teddy's Place, one of the district 4K sites)
• Caroline McCourt (co-owner of Beans & Cream, from whom the district frequently purchases things)
• Matt Silbernagel (with whom the district has done some multi-media business)
• Pam Albi and Matt Harms (Board of Trustees for the Sun Prairie Education Foundation, which has received over $500,000 in money from school district naming rights.

That's a lot of big names and local business owners/big wigs. Doesn't this put Whalen in a very awkward position on the board?  We've never heard Whalen abstaining from ANY check in the past.  Should he now if re-elected?  Furthermore, if the intent is for these folks to pass the e-mail on to their employees, there are statutory cautions involved with doing that as well.


Look...we understand. Whalen mingles with the "beautiful people"-- the "haves".  And in doing so, he cultivates new relationships.  But when these relationships could potentially result in business opportunities with the school district, the lines get blurred and the community starts whispering things like "influence peddling".  It just looks bad, and smells a little funny.  When one hears a community member suggest that the school board is in bed with So-and-So business--right or wrongfully so--, now you see how such statements or beliefs are born.


Over-Stating His Position?
Whalen's flyer states, "It is projected that we will run out of space in our elementary schools in the next few years. Instead of rushing ahead to build a new elementary school, I support looking for options for addressing the space needs. "  


Funny...but we don't recall Mr. Whalen coming up with that idea.  In fact, had it not been for board member John Welke motioning to create an Ad Hoc committee to explore space options, it sure looked like the board was moving directly to building an 8th elementary school.   Whalen never expressed such an idea before, when the board agenda item was the timeline for an 8th elementary school.   Sensing the community is not so hot about building yet ANOTHER school right now, is Whalen now simply stealing Welke's thunder?  


In fact , 3 years ago, when Whalen was re-elected, Welke was running as a Write-In candidate.  Many in the community believed then that a significant number of votes that Whalen received were due to confusion over the two names.  If that was the case, it looks like Whalen is once again hitching a ride on Welke's star.


But "Green" Sounds So Chic
"...we can cover the district in a green way" is like spraying Febreze on a soiled carpet. It may mask the odor temporarily, but the soil still remains.  Other candidates are printing buttons and flyers.  Is Whalen really so "green" thinking?  Or is the "green" tagline tossed in there to avoid people from thinking he's just lazy or cheap?


What We Really Are Dying To Know
Who exactly are the "two blond tornadoes"?  John?  Ferris Bueller?  Anyone!  Do Tell.

What the Hell is "Third Space"

Ok...you got our curiosity piqued. We can admit it.
This whole concept of "3rd space" associated with the Oregon school district referendum is a new one on us.
Our gut feel is that it's an ingenious marketing tool to allow architects to build something which costs a lot of money, but doesn't contain very much.  How does one put a price tag on a concept?

It sounds really great.  But what we're wondering is: "Is it really needed"?  and "Can't we get the sane effect without spending millions of dollars?"

The Oregon FAQ tells us:

What is Third Space? Third space is a new phrase which describes space other than home or work where students and community members  congregate for individual and group learning/studying, socialization and creative purposes.  A good example of current "third space" is coffee houses such as the Fire Fly.  In the  education setting, libraries and student unions are examples of current popular third spaces.
Why is [Third Space] needed?                              
Delivery of curriculum is changing at the high school and  will require that students have space for collaboration and on-line work outside of the classroom setting.  We do not have that space currently. In addition, we do not have adequate space during lunch periods for students.

The new field house addition and front entrance creates the opportunity to develop a third space for students and community members between these additions and the existing high school.  This space will also serve as a security transition between the new community facilities and the classrooms portions of the high school.

So....it's an open area lobby type setting with small tables ...right?  How much can THAT cost?  Well...you know architects....add in a water fountain, trees growing through the ceiling, and you start getting the picture.
We wondered though...is this some big west coast fad we've been missing out on?
So we did a little research.

We did find a 2005 Arts Education Partnership (AEP) publication entitled, "Third Space: When Learning Matters":

Third Space tells the riveting story of the profound changes in the lives of kids, teachers, and parents in ten economically disadvantaged communities across the country that place their bets on the arts as a way to create great schools. 

We also found a presentation by Ken Zeichner of UW-Madison,"CREATING THIRD SPACES IN THE EDUCATION OF TEACHERS AND EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH" ,which provided the following references:

Gutierrez, K. et al. (1997). Putting language back into language arts: When the radical meets the third space. Language Arts, 74(5), 368-378.
Moje, E.B. et al. (2004). Working toward third space in content area literacy: An examination of everyday funds of knowledge and Discourse. Reading Research Quarterly, 39(1), 38-70.
Soja, E. (1996). Thirdspace: Journeys to Los Angeles and other real and imagined places. Malden, MA: Blackwell.
Bhabba, H. (1990). The 3rd space. In J. Rutherford (ed). Identity, community, culture and difference (pp. 207-221). London:

Our take...
It kinda looks like this one is "out there", and by enclosing a large space between two parts of the school in brick, glass, and mortar, it just drives up the cost of the project.

Lost In the Shuffle...What IS Right In SPASD

Too often we all get caught up in our own worlds and things get lost in the shuffle.
SP-EYE is not too big as to be able to acknowledge that we're not immune.

In between the Ashley Fields fiasco, budgetary bumbling, and other posts involving adults not faring too well in sandbox play, the kids, teachers, coaches, and advisors just keep on keepin' on.  Notable recent achievements include:

• a national title for the co-ed cheer team,
• recognition of  Patrick Marsh Middle School as the AWSA 2011-2012 Wisconsin Middle School of Excellence for Medium-Sized Schools,
• district recognition as a 2011-2012 AP® Achievement District,
• SPHS senior Ellen Keal has advanced to Finalist standing in the National Merit Scholarship program,
• and a special shout out to Westside Elementary principal  Rick Mueller, who hasn't been adequately recognized formally, yet should be because of all the wonderful changes and advancements he's brought to the  Westside community.  We continually hear things from reliable sources via the coconut telegraph. If there were an award for district administrator of the year, our vote would be cast for Rick Mueller.

The phrase "It's all about the kids" has turned trite, and needs to be retired...to say the least.  But ultimately what we all want is for a district which allows all students to grow and expand their horizons individually and collectively.  These are but a few examples of what can and does happen.

Oregon Referendum Prompts More Ashley Field Questions

Discrepancies are one thing, but HUGE discrepancies are a horse of an entirely different color.
Let's talk about discrepancies first.

Not that many people other than the truly astute noticed, but a year ago, SPASD administration brought forth a comparison plan showing the costs to turf Ashley Field vs. moving football to the new high school athletic complex, which also called for turfing the field.

But did you really LOOK at the numbers?
The Ashley Field proposal called for 90,000 square feet (SF) at a cost of $823,000
Yet the high school proposal called for MORE turf ($92,000 SF) at LESS cost! ($780,000)
How can that be?
No explanation was ever provided.
Is this yet another of a nauseatingly long list of bad data coming out of the Sun Prairie Administration office?

And to make matters worse...and again...one has to be on board and paying attention... now we see that Oregon's proposal is to turf 81,000 SF at a cost that is HALF that of Sun Prairie.  Why do we even NEED more than 81,000 SF?

The average turfed area for a football field is about 80,000 SF.
The cost of field turf is generally about $4.50/SF.  Even factoring excavation and prep costs of $2/SF, something doesn't add up.

This information further underscores the need to stop screwing around with the Ashley Field proposal.  The numbers stink.  And the further one digs into them, the bigger the stink.  This smells funny and we advise against eating it.

Seeing is Believing
Don't take our word for it...peruse the documents themselves:
March 14, 2011 FTT Agenda including Ashley Field proposal

Detailed Ashley Field Costing

Q. How much will a field cost to install?

A. There are many factors that go into the final cost of a particular project. Generally, the final cost of a project is around $5.00 per square foot for a full size football or soccer field.

---http://www.academysportsturf.com/faqs.php

Keeping Up with the Sun Prairies - Oregon's Referendum

Did you see what we started?


In this week's news -- if we were awake (one hopes Oregonians are)-- we learned that the Oregon school district is going after a $33M referendum this week.

[long, low whistling] Wow. $33M!  For that price they must be building a new middle school or several elementary schools...right?

Nope.  In fact for the $33M price tag, they get exactly ZERO new schools.  The price is only broken down into the following:

High School Expansion $ 25,300,000
New: "3rd" space, Indoor Fieldhouse style gymnasium reportedly spec'd to slightly "outdo" SPASD's
+ 5 new classrooms and a shop area,
Renovations:  Administrative area, cafeteria (inc. expansion), media tech. lab, PAC lobby, science lab

Middle School Renovation $ 2,650,000
New:  Secure entry, large Fitness Center
Renovations: Administrative offices, Librart, Computer lab, 6 "3rd Space" areas

Environmental Center (@ Middle school)$ 550,000

Jaycee Park East (School District Property) $ 4,500,000
MORE sports!

Really?
$33M and it buys a total of FIVE new classrooms at the high school?  What we see is a $4.5M sports field plan plus a HUGE Fieldhouse.
The EcoCenter at the middle school is a nice touch, but it represents less than 2% of the referendum.
...and what's this "Third Space" happy crappy?  Is Third space where one goes to eat Fourth Meal to alleviate the pain of taking Second place in some competition?

It sure looks to us like there's very little educational improvement, and a whole lot of "let's do what Sun Prairie did".
Sorry Oregon taxpayers...we hope you're not asleep at the switch.

Kids:$222,450; Ashley Field: 0

Fundraising.
From our friends at Merriam-Webster:
the organized activity of raising funds (as for an institution or political cause)

We've been talking about Ashley Field upgrades now since March 2010.  From day 1, we've been told that the district portion would only be about $475,000--due mainly to "cost savings from field maintenance".

In June 2010, the school board official authorized fundraising for the Ashley Field project.  But to-date, not even one Canadian dime has been collected.  Hmmm.

We thought we'd compare that to the fundraising activities of some of the major high school clubs and activities.  Since the 2009-10 school year, FOUR---count 'em, 4 ---- activity/clubs have raised revenues of $222,449.

What do these clubs have?  10? 15? 20 students each?  And they can generate this much revenue?
My, my.

DECA

www.deca.org/

International Association of marketing students, provides members and advisors with development activities.

National FFA

https://www.ffa.org/

The National FFA Organization (also known as Future Farmers of America) is an organization that helps young people develop career, leadership and life skills 

HOSA

www.hosa.org/

HOSA is a national student organization endorsed by the U.S. Department of Education and the Health Science Education Division of ACTE. HOSA's two-fold mission is to promote career opportunities in the health care industry and to enhance the delivery of quality health care to all people. HOSA's goal is to encourage all health occupations instructors and students to join and be actively involved in the HSE-HOSA Partnership.

SkillsUSA: Champions at Work

www.skillsusa.org/

SkillsUSA is a partnership of students, teachers and industry working together to ensure America has a skilled workforce.

Wisconsin Leads Midwest in AP College Credits

"Wisconsin's high school class of 2011 led the Midwest in the percent of students earning college credits in the Advanced Placement program, according to a news release Wednesday from the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction. Of the state's graduates 19.4% achieved a score of three or higher on the exam. Illinois came in second among the 13 Midwest states with 18.5% of students earning a three or higher, the threshold for receiving college credits. Nationally, 18.1% of graduates scored a three or higher."
-- Wisconsin Journal-Sentinel online

The cost of taking an AP exam--for some subjects--is well worth it when it comes time to enter college.  If a student wisely chooses the AP courses s/he takes in high school, passing the AP exam with a score of 3 or better can be parlayed into college credits, shaving some costly time off their college tenure.

Alternatively, having these college credits can allow the student to expand his/her horizons and take many other college course offerings while staying on track for graduation in 4 years.

Finally, one often overlooked benefit of taking AP courses and exams for college credit is that the student starts off ahead of the average freshman.  In most college systems, course selection each semester is on a first come-first serve basis in descending order of college credits accumulated.  An incoming freshman can often be classified as a sophomore based on credits accumulated (via AP credits earned).  This distinction gives these students a better chance at getting into desirable courses or classes with favored instructors.

The one caveat to students is to be wary of AP exams for foreign languages.  It is very difficult, if not nearly impossible, to obtain a score of at least "3" (the minimum necessary to obtain college credit).  We don't want to discourage students from taking foreign language AP exams, but please be aware that you are competing against native speakers of the language.  That simple reality makes it a significant challenge. Ask your teachers for historical student performance on these exams first.

The bottom line is that taking  AP exams and scoring well on them can be very beneficial to you in college.

Gaming the System?

We hate politics.
You know why? Because politics is a dirty game.
And many try to game the system.

We'd like to believe little old Sun Prairie was above that, but perhaps not.
At election time, we like check out the STAR's "The Star Picks..." editorial for grins.  We usually can figure out which candidates the STAR will endorse (as if that requires some magic crystal ball), but we like to see how the editorial slants things.  But this year we came across something interesting.

One commenter, expressed concern about the lack of journalistic love for City Council candidate (and School Board candidate) Gary Alan Naud :

---

Posted: Friday, February 10, 2012
Article comment by: Joshua Breister
I have to agree with Mr. Larson. I live in district 4 and had an opportunity to meet with Gary Alan Naud. He actually introduced himself, inquired about my life in Sun Prairie and thoughts about how our governments doing and where it can improve.

Naud actually took the time to listen and explain what he would do and stand up for. He had more to say than a sleepy (misspelled) rattling of the "same old" with the "same promises" and catch phrases. I think not even mentioning his name is an injustice to our community and letting them know who their options are.

I personally plan on voting for Gary Alan Naud in District 4!

---

"Had an opportunity to meet"....? 
 Naud... "introduced himself"....?
Really?
One would hope so, seeing as a quick check on "411.com" shows that Sun Prairie School Board and City Council candidate Gary Alan Naud actually shares an apartment with Mr. Breister.

A little further Internet sleuthing will reveal that-- unless there is another Joshua Breister that has traveled from Fond du Lac to Sun Prairie like Mr. Naud-- Mr. Naud and Mr., Breister have known each other quite well for a number of years. C'mon!  What is this, like high school all over again?  Having a close friend write a letter to the editor (of sorts) posing as just the average Josh?

Mr. Naud may be new to politics, but he needs to counsel his friends against gaming the system.
It really paints a very unflattering picture for Mr. Naud's political future.  And that's too bad, because many of us are looking for fresh perspectives in local government.  But we want straight shooters.

This is indeed the electronic age, and Mr. Naud, who professes to be adept at social networking, has to realize that the Internet is a powerful tool, and people use it.  We all know from reading the papers that all candidates are simply selling their best wares.  But they need to be wary of being caught gaming the system.

Purposefully Opaque?

Sun Prairie STAR Editor Chris Mertes appears to have his undies in a bunch about what he perceives as a lack of transparency in the development of options for dealing with pending elementary space needs (Read: Elementary Task Force).

Perhaps Mr. Mertes needs to remove his head from his assertions and consider the real lack of transparency:  the 2012-13 budget.  

The district already moved the budget process way back.  Normally we see a draft of the budget, or at the bare minimum some assumptions at the first Finance Committee meeting in January.  Here we are halfway through February and not a peep.  In fact, the first glimpse of the General Fund budget is not projected to be revealed until March.

Mr. Mertes, who seems so concerned about spending, might also consider that the district has already deviated from the budget calendar it presented on December 19th, 2011.  According to that calendar, the FTT Committee, which meets monthly, was supposed to review the Transportation Budget in January.

Didn't happen.  In fact, tomorrow (2/13/12) is the February meeting of the FTT Committee, and there is no mention of the Transportation Budget on the agenda.  So the earliest we'll see that is...March.

The 2012-13 school year has already been discussed as being a very difficult budget.  Without batting an eye, we need to absorb more than $1 MILLION that was covered by the dried up Ed. Jobs Act Funding in this year's budget.  And that's just the beginning of the not-so-good news.  The district would appear to be pinning their hopes on the additional Equalized Value stemming from the new Woodman's and other construction.  Is that really enough to cover the school district's structural deficit?  Instead of chasing ghosts, we suggest that Mertes focus on real issues.

2012-13 BUDGET PLANNING CALENDAR

January
 Facilities, Technology & Transportation reviews transportation budget.

Former SPASD School Board President Charged

2/6/2012 11:54:00 AM Sun Prairie STAR
Former school board president charged with stealing from booster club
 Chris Mertes Managing Editor
  http://sunprairiestar.com/main.asp?SectionID=2&SubSectionID=52&ArticleID=9517

Lots of rumors regarding former school board president David Stackhouse have surfaced over the past few years.  It would seem that now they have become materials facts in a formal criminal complaint. It's gotta be a difficult swallow for Editor Mertes, who has so unabashedly supported Stackhouse in even last spring's school board race.

According to the criminal complaint, David A. Stackhouse, who currently resides in Pennsylvania, allegedly wrote $10,254.90 in checks from the booster club's checking account from July 21, 2003 to Nov. 7, 2008.

Will Blog for Mandarin

District Administrator, Tim Culver, in his "InspirED" blog, plugs (we won't even bother describing it as blatant) for kids to jump onto his Mandarin Chinese bandwagon.

In his recent post, he calls out to parents and students as next year's course selection process nears.  There might be a teensy bit of ulterior motive here.

"Mandarin Chinese To best prepare for the future, every student should learn one or two languages in addition to English. Next year, for the first time, students in grades 7 through 12 have an opportunity to choose to learn Mandarin Chinese. We intend to build this program year by year until we are able to offer Advanced Placement Chinese, graduating students with a high level of language proficiency--the same as we have been doing for the three European languages currently offered in our schools. Even if students have taken a second language for several years, this can be a good option for beginning a third language - - and the more languages one speaks, the greater opportunities one has in our rapidly globalizing world. Why learn Mandarin Chinese? Check out this recent article: " Chinese-most-useful-business-language..." or this little 4 minute video: Mandarin video. For more information please check out your student course catalog or contact Alice Murphy at 834-6516 or aamurph @spasd.k12.wi.us.

Our take:
If you have all your college courses lined up, and have some free time to fill...sure ...why not?  But if you think this one course is going to allow you to Skype with some from Beijing.... fuhgeddaboudit.
More to the point, we'd direct you to other classes that can help facilitate your college entrance, or better position yourself for your post-high plan.


What if they offered a course and nobody came?

Uh Oh! WKCE Grading Changes Looming

A report last week in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel discusses big changes ahead for WKCE statewide test scoring.

What if you suddenly found out that half of the eighth-graders in Wisconsin, all kids you thought were highly rated readers, really didn't merit being called proficient? That instead of four out of five being pretty decent in math, it was really two out of five?

"...kids statewide won't be rated using the current measuring stick, beginning next year. They'll be rated by the standards used by the National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP). And NAEP is a much tougher grader." 

 Eighth-grade reading: Using the WKCE measuring stick, 86% of students were rated as "advanced" or "proficient." Using the NAEP measuring stick, it was 35% - a 51-point difference. At least as vivid: Using the WKCE measure, 47% of eighth-graders were "advanced," the top bracket. Using the NAEP measure, it was 3%. Three percent! In other words, only a handful of kids statewide would be labeled advanced under the new system, not the nearly half we're used to. 

 This could further expose the issue of grade inflation, which has reached alarming levels in the Sun Prairie Area School District.
  The article is worth a read.

It's Elementary...

...for the UW Athletics Program anyway.

Anyone else notice the article this week, entitled,

UW-Madison begins work on $76.8 million 'Athletic Village' at Camp Randall

"All construction is expected to be complete by January 2014. The funding will come from gifts to the athletic department and revenue generated from UW athletics" 

--as reported by the Wisconsin State Journal

So...UW is going to build $77 MILLION dollars of improvements and not use one dime of taxpayer money?  But in Sun Prairie, they want to construct $2.4 of improvements and not one dime of fundraising has occurred?
We don't think so!

Oh sure...folks can hide behind the fact that UW has a monster fundraising machine in Bucky Badger.  But isn't Curt the Cardinal a pretty big machine as well?  And what about a coalition of other sports --or other--programs?

Maybe it's time for the school board to just mothball the whole concept.

RIP: Annual Electors Meeting

The integrity and purpose of the Annual Electors Meeting was torn asunder last October.  And nobody seems to care.  The Annual Meeting isn't even on Life Support somewhere, it's dead--another victim of the Sun Prairie School District Administration..  Deceased. It's passed on. It is no more. It has expired and gone to meet its maker. It is bereft of life. It has run down the curtain and joined the choir invisible. It has CEASED TO BE.  
You know...like the famous Monty Python skit (see video below right).  Except this isn't funny.

Two Wrongs Don't Make It Right
The Annual Meeting over the past three years has been like Goldilocks all over again.
In 2009, as the recession took hold, angry taxpayers flooded the Annual Meeting.  A meeting which historically drew a "crowd" of under 30 people--and all "district people at that--suddenly swelled to over 200.  They felt that the district budget was overly inflated and voted to reduce the proposed tax levy by $2M.  Several board members puffed their chests and declared that they would ignore the electors. In the end, they wisely chose to follow the electors' advice.  Because when the year ended, the district had a $1.3M SURPLUS!.  And that was AFTER scooping $2M of cream off this budget pie.  This represented the "this bed is too soft" scenario.

In 2010, the school district seemed to have learned their lesson and ultimately a reasonable budget was proposed.  Despite another large turnout, the budget and proposed tax levy were passed with minimal public comment.  This, of course, represents the "this bed is just right" scenario.

Then in 2011, a group of pro-district folks got together determined to make the pendulum swing the other way.  Despite the school board telling them, all through the entire budget process, "Not with new tax dollars", this group worked behind the scenes to override the school board and set a tax levy higher than that proposed by the district/board.  And it sure looked like shenanigans had been visiting.  The motions appeared too well "coached".  And for reasons still not adequately explained, the district slideshow eschewed subtlety and promoted the poor six budget initiatives for which the school board refused to increase the tax levy.

Both cutting the levy and increasing the proposed levy were wrong.  More to the point, had the board "reigned in" administration, those roads would never have even presented themselves as options.

Making it Right
So the annual meeting is broke.  And if it's broke, it needs to be fixed.
Here's what we think needs to be done to make reparations and resurrect the integrity and value of the Annual Electors Meeting.

1. The School Board Has to TALK ABOUT IT
That's right.  Someone needs to write up a situation report and make the annual meeting an agenda item at a formal school board meeting.

2. Discuss Budget Options; But Affix a "Sell By" Date
The budget process should include multiple times at which options are discussed with the public and public input collected.  Instead of just reviewing the final budget, the school board needs to establish a mid-course position on items such as the now infamous "Seditional Six" budget initiatives.  Put the budget status on an agenda and take some initial action to refine the process for the home stretch.  Clearly, with a roll call vote, establish whether or not specific initiatives will be built into the budget.  Then move on.  This shall be the last call for spending it all.

Just like your grocer uses "sell by" dates, so should there be "sell by" dates established for budget "initiatives".  If you haven't sold the board majority once the budget is adopted in September, that's it.  The gavel has fallen.  Move on...nothing to see here.

3. Focus on Building a Budget "Necessary to Operate and Maintain Schools"
The statutes clearly outline that the School Board needs to establish a budget which is sufficient to operate and maintain schools.  Nowhere in there does it say to establish a budget which either ENHANCES or DETRACTS from schools.  Operate.  Maintain.  Period.

This is where the power of the community lies.  But it should be a rare occurrence.  If the board decides to [for a wild example] cut all building maintenance to lower property taxes, then clearly this would not be a budget that "operates and maintains schools".  Similarly, people cannot think that just because a politically motivated group can fill the school's amphitheater and vote to raise the tax levy to the authorized revenue limit, that is what the board will do.

4. "Rein In" the School District's Reign
The biggest problem at this year's meeting was the slideshow.  People do not need the history, and this is not the time or the place to review what options were excluded.  The clock has expired for those.  This is not a meeting for the district to run a 20 or 30-minute slideshow.  This is the time to present a bare bones, just-the-facts-ma'am, expenditure and revenue summary.  Absolutely, this is not the time to incite or rally a certain crowd by showing a series of "Here's what we wanted to do but the school board wouldn't let us" slides.   If someone really is all jazzed to show 24 slides, maybe at the first public hearing of the budget that would be appropriate.  The annual meeting should be all business.  The shouting be over and wish lists put away.

5. Make it clear that the school board has ultimate authority over the tax levy
People still don't get it, so the School Board has to tell them. Repeatedly.  Loudly.  Clearly.
If you build this in, they will not come.  The rabble rousers, that is.

6. Make the Annual Meeting be "Just Right"
If the school board has sufficiently and appropriately directed district administration, we should have a budget that operates and maintains schools while also considering the impact on taxpayers.  The Annual Meeting should not be a place where Belichickian battles are waged. Nor should it be a place where "he who brings the biggest crowd wins".

 The Annual Meeting should be made over to be a place for celebration of achievement.  A time to celebrate a budget which satisfies all factions within the community and an opportunity to officially "launch" the school year.  [Great googly moogly...it sounds like WE'VE been drinkin' the Koolaid!]