Athletic facilities not just for extra-curricular activities

Students participate in activities during a PE class at West High School.

The bond issue will address the need for improving overcrowded, outdated and unsafe physical education and athletics facilities. While less than one-third of the bond issue will go towards P.E., athletic and fine arts facilities, it will support and enhance many classes offered to students.

“Students are required to take P.E. to graduate. Our facilities are used for classes every hour of the day, every day of the week,” said Kara Brockmeier, P.E. teacher at West High School. “They are used more for P.E. than they are used for athletics.”

“I use the gym, soccer field, track, tennis courts, pool, weight room – all for teaching students about the importance of physical activity and healthy habits. With the rising obesity rates, it’s crucial that I get students active and engaged so they have a healthy lifestyle for the rest of their lives.”

Many of the district middle and high schools were built in the 1950’s and 1960’s—at a time when girls had few P.E. classes and girls’ athletics was not offered at all. The need and demand for the activities have grown but the facilities have not.

North High School students work out in an overcrowded weight room during P.E. class. Federal standards call for more space between students.

“With three classes in one gym, when everybody gets one court, it’s hard to do all of the activities that the teachers want to do. Especially with forty or fifty kids on one basketball court; it gets pretty cramped,” said Erik Harbutz, student at Northwest High School.

“It’s hard to motivate students when your facilities aren’t the best,” Brockmeier said.

Athletic needs
“Our athletic programs have nothing to do with winning championships. They are about giving kids opportunities and teaching them life lessons,” said Bill Faflick, Director of Athletics.

“Students who are involved in athletics have better grades, fewer discipline referrals, fewer attendance issues. It teaches lessons of teamwork and overcoming adversity; skills that they need as adults,” Faflick said.

“Extra-curricular activities keep kids wanting to come to school, knowing that they have to practice after school every day. They know that they have to do well in school in order to be able to play the sport,” Harbutz said.

The bond issue would provide improvements to indoor and outdoor facilities. The improvements wouldn’t be used for one class or sport.

Grass grows between the cracks in East High School's track. Photos by Susan Arensman

“All-weather turf on high school football fields is not just for varsity football,” Faflick said. “It’s used for practice and games for three football teams per school, three boys soccer teams per school, three girls soccer teams per school, boys track, girls track, PE classes and the marching band can practice on it. Plus community groups can use it.”

“Without it, we can’t allow anyone to use the football field except for the football teams on game day because we can’t afford for it to get torn up,” Faflick said.

The bond would provide all-weather tracks at several middle and high schools. Wichita is home to the last three cinder tracks in the state, which were cutting edge in the 1950’s, but are now crumbling. After the rain on March 31, water collected in huge puddles on the track at North High School, leaving students on the track team to run on sidewalks in the neighborhood.

Recently, Heights High School had a new all-weather track installed and participation in Track this season increased from 90 to 150 students.

“Did it all have to do with facilities? No. Did it make a difference? Absolutely,” Faflick said.

In addition, many new athletic spaces will also serve as FEMA safe room storm shelters. The facilities also benefit the community which uses them on weekends and evenings for activities.

The bond issue also addresses overcrowding, growth and population shifts, builds 60 new safe room storm shelters, supports the end of forced busing with renovations to schools in the AAA area, and renovates or rebuilds fine arts facilities.

More information about the bond issue can be found on the district’s website. Click here to watch a video illustrating the district’s needs.

It’s about Our Schools, Our Kids, and Our Future!

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CARE bond advocates request meeting with BOE
Citizens Alliance for Responsible Education (CARE), the citizen advocacy group dedicated to passage of the 2008 Bond Issue, has requested the opportunity to meet with the Board of Education on April 7. This decision was made at the CARE committee's regular meeting on Tuesday, April 1. The purpose of the meeting will be to discuss CARE's efforts to educate citizens on the bond.

"We believe deeply in the importance of the 2008 Bond Issue to the future of the Wichita school district, and the entire Wichita community," said Sarah Olson, CARE Committee Co-Coordinator. "Our mission is to share the merits of this effort, our message is received positively when we have the opportunity to share facts, and we are at a critical stage of the timeline identified for the spring bond election. We believe that a conversation next week is essential to determine if sufficient time is available to adequately inform Wichita voters on the merits of the bond issue."

“I realize that the mere prospect of this is unnerving to those who have been working diligently to educate your friends, neighbors, school families and others,” said Martin Libhart, Chief Operations Officer.

“The most significant priority for CARE is the successful conclusion of this bond issue. Our kids deserve the benefits of the bond issue, and the future of our community depends on it! We must not stop our work to educate citizens and voters on the needs of our district,” he said.

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WSU study shows 2000 bond issue generated millions
The 2000 bond issue had an impact on Wichita of $41.5 million a year and supported more than 1,000 jobs in Wichita. That’s according to a new study by Wichita State University’s Center for Economic Development and Business Research. Janet Harrah, Executive Director, presented the findings to the Board of Education on March 31.

The study looked at the impact of the Wichita Public Schools as a business. The study evaluated operations for the district like they would for any other business entity, focusing on jobs, payroll, and capital investment. The study focused on two areas: the impact of overall operations (payroll) and impact of construction as a result of the 2000 bond issue.

Some of the key outcomes include:

Bond Issue

• The report figured that for every job created by the district, another 1.2 jobs are reported throughout the economy. Taking that into account (called multiplier impacts), the 2000 $284.5 million bond issue had an annual average impact between 2000 and 2007 of 1,357 jobs with an average annual economic impact of $41.5 million.
• This includes an average of 667 direct construction positions each year
• At its peak in the 2005-06 year, the bond issue supported 2,259 construction positions.

Harrah said that when most of the bond construction was underway, it was when Wichita was experiencing an economic downturn and this helped stimulate Wichita’s economy. Harrah said that between 2000 and 2007, the bond issue made up 16 percent of the total value of nonresidential construction in Wichita and in 2006, 75 percent of commercial construction was due to the bond issue.

Harrah also said that the economic impact of the proposed $350 million bond issue would be similar.

Operations

• Taking into account multiplier impacts, the district’s on-going operations had an average annual impact between 2000 and 2007 of 13,210 jobs with an average annual economic impact of $397.9 million.

A copy of the report can be viewed on Wichita State University’s website.

The study didn’t set out to measure educational outcomes, but the Standard and Poor’s Efficiency Study conducted for the State of Kansas in April 2007 gave the Wichita Public Schools an efficiency rating of 95.06 percent. The study measured Education Efficiency by the academic performance that school districts achieve for the money they spend. The Wichita district received the second-highest efficiency rating in Sedgwick County.

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BOE begins discussion on superintendent search
The Board of Education had its first discussion on a search for a new superintendent during its March 31 meeting. Superintendent Winston Brooks accepted a position in Albuquerque and the Board is taking the first steps to find his replacement.

“As we have said from the beginning, this search will be very deliberate, open, and transparent,” said Board of Education President Connie Dietz.

The Board will have a workshop with Council of Great City Schools Executive Director, Michael Casserly. The workshop will help answer questions before starting a search, including the pros and cons of using a search firm; the pros and cons of local and national searches; the Board’s role in choosing a superintendent and search timeline. Casserly will conduct the workshop free of charge.

The BOE workshop with Mr. Casserly will be April 11 at 5 p.m. in the Heights High School cafeteria.

After the board’s workshop, they will schedule a retreat to discuss any additional questions before starting the search. The Board will also form the basic parameters of the search and establish a timeline for the search. A date for the retreat has not been set.

“As a community, we all have to come together on this,” said Board of Education Vice President Lynn Rogers. “We have to get the community involved as we begin this process of looking for a new superintendent.”

Employees and community members can sign up to receive email updates and additional information on the superintendent search. To subscribe to the email list, click here. 

East student artwork receives national recognition
Allyson Manny, student at East High School, has received a National Gold Key award from the National Scholastic Art Competition in New York City. She is the only student in Wichita to receive the Gold Key. The Gold Key is the highest honor given.

Her artwork will be on display in Washington, DC and New York City during the summer and fall

The Gold Key winners will be posted online on the Alliance for Young Artists and Writers website later this month.

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North student participates in Leadership Conference
Jami Jackson, student at North High school, was selected to participate in the National Youth Leadership Conference.  She was nominated by staff from her former middle school, Brooks. As part of the conference, students discuss current events and learn leadership skills.

In February, she participated in the regional conference at the Hyatt Regency Wichita.  Jackson said the best part of the seminar was when she had the opportunity to lead a debate during the seminar. She said the students helped with building each other’s confidence.

“This makes you more of a leader than a follower,” she said. “We can now show friends how to be leaders, too.”

Next year, Jackson will participate in the national conference in Washington, DC. She will be present during the Presidential Inauguration and take a tour the U.S. Congress.