To Our Friends Who Care About the Kansas City Public School District

 

We are once again changing the focus of our Board Watch project.  When we began our evaluations of the Kansas City Missouri School Board meetings nearly four years ago we hoped that our feedback would help bring about a more effective school board, a key element in creating high functioning schools to improve students' academic performance.  Since that time the district has lost its accreditation, yet another superintendent has left abruptly along with most of his key staff, enrollment has continued to dwindle along with funding, half the buildings have been closed, and the public has lost hope.  Students are already moving to surrounding districts, and it is likely when a court case is resolved even more students will transfer their enrollment to accredited districts. We have seen the board as mostly a benign body, not engaged in conflict, micromanagement and favoritism as much as some past boards but not providing the dynamic leadership necessary to overcome decades of a dysfunctional culture that has failed to serve students' needs.

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DESE Feedback Form

 

Do the Right Thing for Kids participated with other civic organizations in developing the following letter to Missouri Commissioner of Education Dr. Chris Nicastro. It follows the format of the feedback form she provided.

Download a .pdf version of letter.

Who is Do The Right Thing For Kids?


We are a grassroots group of parents and community volunteers committed to bringing quality education back to Kansas City’s public schools.

Our Vision is that  Do the Right Thing for Kids plays a significant role in seeing that the Kansas City, Missouri Board of Education provides effective, forward-looking leadership for the School District, leadership that supports the efforts of the Administration and is focused on educational outcomes for students, sensitivity to community needs, and freedom from vested interests and micromanagement.

Therefore, it is our Mission to observe and provide objective information and analysis of the Board's effectiveness and hold them accountable to the community and civic groups.

Our Strategy to accomplish this is our "Report Cards" on the Board's performance in meetings and other public appearances.  A Report Card is issued after each school board meeting and posted on the DTRT Website the following week, allowing time for KCMSD Board members to add their comments. It is also provided to Administration personnel, media and civic and educational organizations.  The data are gathered by the Board Watch Team comprised of DTRT board members and trained community volunteers and will use objective rating scales from 1-5 on the issues evaluated. Comparisons with other school boards, and studies of school board effectiveness will also be issued on a quarterly basis.

The Current State of Our School District and Its Ramifications

We are concerned that:

  • KMSD has a 64.2 percent graduation rate vs. the State average of 86 percent; the drop out rate is 5.9 percent vs. the State average of 4.3 percent.
  • The KCMSD spends $14,253 per student vs. the State average of $10,019
  • The KCMSD has not been fully accredited since 2001, and now meets only four of the State’s 14 Accreditation Standards.

Because of these problems, our community suffers consequences that include:

  • Being considered a city with a reputation for “bad schools” – which leads to a community of fewer families, declining tax base and falling real estate values
  • A high drop out rate – which leads to an unskilled work force and increased crime rates
  • A community with far too many adults who are functionally illiterate and thus, without the skills to function as productive citizens and responsible parents.

And most upsetting of all – we are letting our students down. They deserve a first rate education and we owe it to them to provide it.