Kitsap Education

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On Tuesday morning, the Mercer Island Schools Foundation hosted a fund-raising breakfast to help its district cover a $2 million budget gap. And $423,000 – no, that’s not a typo – was raised. $423,000. Read about it in this story from the Seattle Times. The foundation plans to host more of these coffee and roll events in the next few weeks.

I can almost hear finance directors and other leaders from our local districts saying this type of effort, while nice, is not sustainable and will just delay inevitable cuts. But maybe we’ve reached that point in education financing in this state?

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I’ve been noticing personally how the poor economy has seeped into my own psyche lately as I forgo a special latte from my favorite coffee stand (here’s to you, Don, at Java Joint on Ridgetop) or I think ‘Nah, I don’t need new socks” as a I pass by the hosiery aisle in Target.

So I had to laugh a little Wednesday night while atttending the CK School District’s budget forum. David McVicker, the district’s finance director, admitted to the 50 or 60 people there that he caught himself thinking frugally that very afternoon.

While discussing cutting back hours at the district’s copy center, McVicker waved a packet paper he passed out to everyone at the meeting.

“Speaking of copying, I was saying to myself this afternoon, ‘Do I really want to print this?’ Next time we do this you might not necessarily get a copy of this. I know it’s all on the website,” he said.

Good for you David. Save some money, and some trees in the process.

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I have so many stories “in the hopper” as the Bremerton superintendent search kept me busy for the last two weeks. So now I’m trying to just get all this stuff out there. Upcoming school board elections in November need to be publicized as the filing period (I’m told) is much earlier this year than it has been in the past. Candidates must declare their intentions to run between June 1 and 5. So I’ve been calling around to various districts in the area.

In North Kitsap, seats currently held by Tom Anderson and Melanie Mohler will be up for grabs. Anderson has not returned phone calls about the matter. Mohler said she’s unsure if she will run again.

In North Mason, current board president Jeff Werdall will not be running while member Mike Gaudio will be running.

In Central Kitsap, Bruce Richards and Eric Greene will seek their seats again. Long-time board member Carl Johnson will not. Johnson served three full terms on the board. He did not run for a fourth term two years ago, but no one ran for his seat. So he was automatically retained as a board member. This time if no candidate emerges, Johnson said he will not accept another two years on the board.

In Bremerton current board president Cynthia Galloway will be running while member DeWayne Boyd is unsure.

In South Kitsap, both Kathryn Simpson and Naomi Polen will be on the ballot.

I am still tracking down Bainbridge Island’s information. Look for a story early next week.

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The Bethel School District sent out 220 layoff notices to teachers and librarians yesterday. That’s 20 percent of its teaching workforce. It’s the first in what will probably be a wave of layoff notices in schools across the state. Districts have to send out notices by May 15. Read more about the layoffs here.

Here in Kitsap we’re still waiting on specifics of layoffs, budget cuts etc. from the districts. Sifting through the state budget and the changes and cuts takes time. CK folks will probably get some more solid information tomorrow night at a budget meeting. It begins at 6:30 pm at the Jenne-Wright Administration center, 9210 Silverdale Way.

I did have a short conversation with Bremerton School District finance director Wayne Lindberg yesterday. We talked about I-728. Bremerton receives about $2.3 million a year from I-728. About 20 teachers are hired from that money. The Legislature will suspend between 70 and 75 percent of I-728 money for the next two years, Lindberg said. Federal stimulus money could be used to plug some of the holes left by cuts in I-728 and other funds, but stimulus money is short-term and can’t fund a continuing contract for a teacher, Lindberg said.

Hopefully by the end of the week, we’ll have some more solid budget information.

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Central Kitsap School District leaders will host another budget forum this week to talk about potential cuts. It will be held Wednesday from 6:30 pm to 7:30 pm at the Jenne-Wright Administration Building, 9210 Silverdale Way.

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Five students from King’s West school in Chico are winners in a handwriting contest.
They include: Kelly Tammen, Libby Engelland, Grace Smith, Morgan Bevin and Natalie Stephenson.
The contest, in its 18th year, is sponsored by Zaner-Bloser Educational Publishers. Zaner-Bloser publishes handwriting programs for students in grades kindergarten through eighth.
About 200,000 students in first through eighth grades from across the country compete the contest. Their entries were judged on the printing skills of first and second graders, and the cursive abilities of students in grades two through eight. Ultimately, one of the national grade-level winners will be named as the Grand National Champion.The teacher of the Grand National Champion also gets rewarded with a trip for two to Washington, DC.

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Lester “Flip” Herndon will be the next superintendent of the Bremerton School District.

The Bremerton School Board voted unanimously late Thursday night to hire Herndon, a 39-year-old Tacoma native. A former teacher and principal, Herndon currently serves as an assistant superintendent in Tacoma public schools.

“He will bring a fresh perspective,” said board member Louis Mitchell. Bremerton has been moving in an innovative direction and Herndon is prepared to continue that work, he added. Board member DeWayne Boyd said he was attracted by Herndon’s energy.

Herndon will begin his new job July 1. After hearing the news, Herndon said he was very excited.

“I’m almost at a loss for words,” he said. “I’m thrilled and really looking forward to working with the people of Bremerton.”

After a day-long visit to Bremerton on Wednesday, Herndon said he felt positive about his interactions and his interviews with various interest groups in the district.

“I’m going to work as hard as I can for the people of Bremerton, but we’ve got to do this together as a team,” he added.

After voting unanimously to hire Herndon, members of the Bremerton School Board took a moment to reflect on the search process and several expressed their desire to move forward with the district in a positive way.

“I know that everyone’s heart is toward students here. We’ve had some very honest discussions, probably more honest than you will ever know, regarding our philosophies, the way we think the district should go and our goals as a whole. On to success!” said board member Vicki Collins.

Board President Cynthia Galloway and Mitchell thanked the community for supporting the search process.

“I can’t think of any process that been more involved, more protracted and engaging,” said Mitchell.

Board member Pat Jones said it was important to the board to vote unanimously to hire Herndon.

“We’ve come out here as a team in support of the new superintendent,” he said.

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Sun reporter Brynn Grimley covered a Central Kitsap School Board meeting last night to get more information about plans for the pool at Olympic High School. Read the story here.

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Flip Herndon, a candidate for the Bremerton supe job, has a formidable name: Lester Thomas Herndon Jr. So I guess it’s easy to see why he has a nickname. But why Flip?
Herndon said older folks sometimes ask if he’s named after the comic Flip Wilson. Nope, but a good guess.
He was named after his dad, an Army drill sergeant who served two tours in Vietnam. At that time in the Army, junior recruits were known as “junior flips.” So when Herndon was born and named after his dad, he became “Flip.”
To read more about Herndon, click here.

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Budget cuts for North Mason schools could mean job cuts. We’ll know more once Gov. Gregoire signs the budget.

Beyond proposed cuts based on a shrinking budget, North Mason will cut two high school teachers, a middle school teacher and one and one-half elementary positions because of declining enrollment. More teachers could be lost based on the outcome of the possible suspension of I-728. The district has already cut one half-time principal position at a savings of about $60,000.

The district hosts a budget forum tonight beginning at 6 pm. The forum will be held at the district offices, 71 E Campus Dr.

Here are some proposed cuts and their possible savings:

Cut extracurriculuars: $11,000

Cut building budgets: $11,000

Cut extra working days for librarians: $3,200

Cut pay for teaching coaches: $10,000

Cut classified staff work by 24 hours a day district wide: $34,000