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Tuesday, February 16, 2016
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Game on,
indeed.
WWW.EMPORIAGAZETTE.COM
K a n s a s E d u c a t i on
‘Game On’
for Kansas
schools
Finding a
funding formula
that fits
By Jessie Wagoner
[email protected]
Editor’s Note: This is the
second of a two-part series
regarding education funding
in Kansas. Current and local
lawmakers weigh in on the funding
dilemmas facing Kansas schools.
constitutional requirements. If
the Legislature fails to create a
solution by the end of June it could
lead to the court-ordered closure
of schools.
Local lawmakers Senator Jeff
Longbine and Representative
Peggy Mast weighed in on the
ruling and say they are focused on
keeping schools open for Kansas
students.
“The reality is there is no one
in the Legislature that wants the
schools to close,” Mast said. “I
don’t want to risk our schools
being closed.”
“I will do everything I can to
make sure we keep schools open,”
Longbine said. “That will be my
number-one priority over the
next couple of months, to get this
equalization done.”
However, creating a school
funding formula that meets
the needs of the state and the
requirements of the court is a
challenge and lawmakers are on a
short deadline.
One solution that Mast says is
under consideration is reverting
By Jessie Wagoner
[email protected]
back to the previous school
funding formula and doing away
with the block grants that were
instituted last year. Longbine
supports this option as well.
“It seems like, from what I’ve
been briefed on, that the 2014
funding formula would be adequate
for them,” Mast said. “That all we
would need to do would be go back
to the 2014 formula.”
“That is certainly an option and
would probably be one that I favor
Parents
For more
and teachers
information
are joining
together
about
to
fight
‘Game On’
for public
for Kansas
schools. To
show their
Schools
commitment,
please visit
they
will
be walking
WEbsite
from all over
gameon
Kansas to the
forkansas
capital as part
of an event
schools.com
organized
—OR—
by Game On
for Kans as
email
Schools.
erica.huggard
E r i c a
@gmail.com
Huggard,
b i o l o g y
teacher and the president
of the Emporia National
Education Association says
this is the third year for the
walk. However, this will be the
first year that a team will walk
from Emporia to Topeka.
“I would really like to get a
team together,” Huggard said.
“To show community support
for public education.”
Game On for Kansas Schools
Please see Game On, Page 3
CVAB
reviews
support
Country Stars Terri Clark and Mark Wills
grants
Coming to Emporia
The Kansas Supreme Court
ruled last week that the Legislature
has inequitably funded schools
and gave lawmakers until June
30 to work out a plan that meets
Please see Funding, Page 3
E m p o r i a G r a n a d a T h e at r e
By Cathryne Scharton
[email protected]
By Melissa Lowery
Special to The Gazette
Country music stars Terri Clark
and Mark Wills will perform at
the Emporia Granada Theatre on
Saturday.
Terri Clark is an 8-time CCMA
Entertainer of the Year and a
5-time CCMA Female Vocalist of
the Year. A native of Medicine Hat,
Alberta, Canada, Clark got her
start playing for tips at Tootsie’s
Orchid Lounge, a honky-tonk bar
across the alley from Nashville’s
historic Ryman Auditorium. She
signed with Mercury Records
in 1995, and released her debut
album that same year.
Clark enjoyed success right
from the start. Her first three
albums went platinum and she
has had six singles hit number
Please see Granada, Page 3
Mark Willis
Terri Clark and
Mark Wills
Where
Granada Theatre
When
7 p.m. Saturday
Tickets
$25-$65
available at the
Granada box office
(807 Commercial St),
Flint Hills Music
(715 Commercial St),
or online at
www.emporia
granada.com
Terri Clark
VOL. 124, NO. 195
At Monday’s Convention
and Visitors Advisory Board
meeting, members reviewed
applications for support grants.
Board members reviewed
support grant applications.
Applications were due Feb. 1.
“We received a lot of them
(applications),” said Director
Susan Rathke.
The board uses a formula
to determine how much
money they will award an
organization. They also use a
scoring mechanism to evaluate
the grant requests. Some of the
things the members look at are
the number of room nights,
number of rooms, when the
events will occur, what season
and how the event will impact
the community in different
ways.
Any grants below $500 were
processed in the office and
were not presented to the board
for decision making. Requests
over $500 were presented
to the advisory board and
requests over $5,000 will go to
the Emporia City Commission.
In all, 14 businesses sent in
grant applications requesting
less than $5,000.
A full list of recipients will
be published in Wednesday’s
Gazette.
The board talked about
possibly increasing the transient
guest tax. The tax increase
would go to market Emporia
which would, ideally, increase
the occupancy in the hotels.
The Feb. 15 meeting was
the board’s annual retreat.
The board welcomed two new
members. John Decke of Flint
Hills Technical College, John
Doan of Paper Moon Antiques,
Please see CVAB, Page 3