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Consultants say the Wichita district needs to reduce its number of buildings. That could involve a massive bond issue or series of bonds to build and renovate schools, and it likely will mean closing many smaller schools.
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Kansas doesn't require schools to report or track teacher injuries. And although most schools prepare students and staff for intruders with active-shooter drills, they don't train teachers on how to deal with more common violence on campus.
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Woodman Elementary School in Wichita is experimenting with a program called Meaningful Work. Students who need extra attention are paired with an adult mentor and offered something constructive to do on a regular schedule, like feeding fish or making copies. So far, behavior problems are down and attendance is up.
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The Wichita school board voted 5-2 to shutter six schools at the end of this academic year. Members said they had no choice but to close the schools — Hadley and Jardine Middle Schools, and Clark, Cleveland, Park and Payne elementaries — because of declining enrollment, aging buildings and a $42 million budget deficit.
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The Wichita school board will vote Monday on whether to close two middle schools and four elementary schools. Leaders say enrollment is declining, and the district can't afford to operate all its buildings.
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Wichita school district officials say families of an estimated 2,200 students affected by the school closures would have “unprecedented choice” in terms of which schools they could attend next year.
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The two middle schools and four elementary schools proposed for closure are among the district's lowest-enrollment buildings. They are predominantly in the south and west portions of the district.
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Superintendent Kelly Bielefeld said a number of factors will go into deciding which schools to close and consolidate, including enrollment trends, the building’s age and condition, staffing levels and a school’s location within the district.
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Ngocc Vuong, 23, will be the youngest member to serve on Wichita's school board, and the first Vietnamese-American board member. Vuong graduated in 2018 from Wichita South High School.
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Missouri and Kansas public schools enroll thousands of fewer students compared to before the pandemic, in part, because of a homeschooling boom and declining birth rates.