Two polling locations: Fairfield Bay Senior Center, Shirley High School Auditorium

By Sonja Oliver

Fairfield Bay News Editor

Last Thursday, the Fairfield Bay Area League of Women Voters held a Candidate Forum to allow the five candidates running for the Shirley School Board to express their views. The forum, held at the Fairfield Bay Senior Center was well attended with at least 25 people attending.

Each candidate was given an opportunity to share their views with a five-minute speech and then answered questions submitted on paper. Attending the forum were: David Delk, Diana Goodwin, Dick Parker and Tracy Sutterfield. Katie Wood was not able to attend due to illness, however she sent her speech which was read to the audience.

Each candidate was also given a list of questions pertaining to the school’s standing, plus hot topic issues. Following are the five areas of questions:

1. Why are you running for the Shirley School Board? What are your qualifications?

2. How familiar are you with the operating budget of your school? Do you support a mill levy increase? Why/Why not?

3. How did Shirley School perform on the latest Benchmark Exam?

4. What is your understanding of the consolidation issue as has been discussed by the Governor and the State Legislature?

5. What is your vision for the future of Shirley School?

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1. Why Running?

I am genuinely interested in the future of our kids and of the Shirley School District. I want to do my part to ensure that our school has the resources (money, curriculum, and personnel) available to meet state educational requirements and to ensure that every child is allowed to excel in his/her area of interest.

Qualifications: I am a parent with three daughters who attend school at Shirley with the last to graduate in 2012. I have extensive experience in budget, personnel, and project management. I feel this experience could benefit the board and district. As a parent I have been involved for many years with youth activities in the community.

2. Familiar with Budget of Shirley School? I have obtained and reviewed a copy of the Shirley School Districts operating budget.

Do you support a mill increase? I have questioned current board members and Mr. Rana at length concerning the mileage. Based on the information I have received I feel it is in the best interest of the Shirley School District that the millage increase passes.

Why? I understand the increase is needed to generate the funds to meet recent non-funded legislative mandates. I understand that the district does have some money in reserve, but that further non-funded mandates may come during the special legislative sessions this December. My main interest is that our school remains in our community.

4. Bench Mark

I have reviewed this year and compared them to the past few years, and to those of larger school districts. Shirley’s scores are generally higher than the state average and have increased in some areas, but there is room for improvement. In some areas less than half of our students were proficient in literacy and math, this concerns me, and I believe we need to continue to find ways to increase the number of kids who are proficient in these areas.

5. Consolidation

My initial understanding of the Governor’s plan is that smaller schools will be consolidated with larger schools forming one large central or county school district, with one Superintendent selected by the Board of Ed. responsible for the whole district. I understand that there maybe one large high school with possibly several small elementary/intermediate schools, with kids bused. I understand that decisions will be made at the state level, with parents and community out of the loop, and that the schools will have a "token" school board with no decision making authority.

5. Future of Shirley School

Shirley will remain a small community school district. Shirley will continue to pursue a curriculum that will prepare our kids for college, if they wish to go. We will continue to offer vocational and extracurricular activities which will expose our kids to a variety of career choices.

These activities will offer the kids opportunities for community involvement and for character enrichment, to prepare them for life after high school. I envision a school board and an administration that is open with the parents/ community, and considers the views of the parents/community when making decisions, there by fostering a since of community "ownership" of the educational goals of the Shirley School District.

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1. Having served on the Shirley School Board for 5 years and seeing the progress that has been made in that time I want to continue to work to make Shirley the "ideal" of small school districts. We have come from being over $300,000 in debt (financial distress) to being on strong financial ground. The Benchmark and SAT scores have improved steadily over the 5 years that I have served on the Board. I want to make sure that Shirley remains academically strong and remains an innovator in learning.

I feel that my five years on the board gives me solid credentials for running for a second term. We have been faced with numerous challenges in the past five years regarding salaries, employment, growth, and state demands and I know that we have risen to the challenge and succeeded in creating a strong and viable school district. As a patron of the district who lives, works and supports the district in all areas, I want to continue to make a difference. This is a crucial time for all schools in Arkansas. It is imperative that the board be prepared to make decisions based on the changing governmental mandates. This board needs to have a working knowledge of the issues at hand and must be ready to make decisions quickly when called upon to do so. This is critical now, more than ever because boards do not have time to play catch up when it comes to the mandates being thrown at the boards every legislative session.

2. I am very familiar with the operating budget of the Shirley School District. The School Board reviews the budget monthly and is advised and must approve of any outstanding expenses that might be incurred. I am fully aware of our annual income and expenses, plus our reserve fund and the importance of maintaining that reserve. The Shirley District runs a very tight budget. Our approximate revenue for the 2003-2004 year is $3,116,342. Our projected expenditures are $3,114,136; of the expenditures, $2,415,553 is salaries.

As a taxpayer in this district it would not be honest for me to say that I relish the thought of higher property taxes; I do not want higher property taxes. Amendment 74 requires each school district in the state to have 25 mills dedicated to maintenance and operation. Under Amendment 74 the quorum court has no choice but to levy the uniform rate of tax, regardless of whether the voters express disapproval.

3. Shirley performed better than the state average in all areas of the Benchmark test except one where we were just 3 percentage points below the state. This was in 6th grade math.

73% of the 4th grade students at Shirley in overall literacy were proficient or advanced where the state average was 69%.

37% of the 6th graders were proficient or advanced compared to 31% for the state.

59% of eighth graders were proficient or advanced to 48% for the state.

The Benchmark test is a Criterion Reference test where students are tested on what they have been taught in an open-ended format. Their scores are compared only to other students in Arkansas.

The ACT test on the other hand is a Norm Reference test where the questions are multiple choice and their scores are compared to scores of other students nationwide.

It is interesting to note that on the Benchmark test that special education students are included in the scoring and that 18% of Shirley students are identified as special ed. The national average is just 9%.

Last year the students at Shirley are now being taught how to take the open-ended test. In the past tests were the Norm Reference type tests.

The Shirley seniors last year scored an average of 22.8 on the ACT test. The state average is 20.8 and the national average is 20.2.

It is evident that the Shirley faculty is doing a great job of teaching these our young people and the students are rising to the challenge of testing.

4. The issue before the state regarding equalized funding for education is actually not a consolidation issue. The governor simply included consolidation in his plan to meet the Supreme Court’s decision regarding the equalization of funding. The two education consultants (Larry Picus of the U of Southern California and Allan Odden of the University of Wisconsin at Madison) who were brought here to evaluate the educational "inequalities" of the schools in Arkansas stated that it would be prudent for the state to focus on beefing up the quality of core courses being taught in the schools and not the number of students in a district. There very well may be some consolidation of districts that cannot meet standards or are on poor financial ground. As long as the Shirley District meets and exceeds the state standards and is financially secure consolidation should not happen.

5. Shirley has made a name for itself in the area of technology and I want the Shirley School District to continue to be a leader in the technology field and would like to see even greater strides in this area. Over the past 5 years the students have made dramatic improvements in the national and state tests, I would like this to continue. I would like for more of our graduates go on to college or trade schools and become productive patrons of our district. The decisions that the board makes now will impact students for many years to come; it is up to the board to make wise decisions that will ensure the longevity of our district. I feel that I have and can continue to contribute to that decision making process.

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1. The state of Arkansas is requiring major changes to promote quality education for all students. The required reforms will have a significant impact on the Shirley School district for decades to come. I have had a long-term interest in and involvement with school reform and believe that I can make positive contributions to the change process.

I have a solid understanding of our school’s operating budget but am still learning.

I support the mill levy because it will pay for the unfunded mandates to improve the quality of education which the state is imposing on all school districts. The new millage also ensures a dependable source of annual income to pay for the required reforms.

With regard to the latest Benchmark exams, Shirley schools have exceeded state-wide scores in every category but one (6th grade math.) however, there is still much work to be done to better prepare our students for the Benchmark exams.

The issue of consolidation as advocated by our Governor is intended to promote more equal education for all Arkansas students. However consolidation based primarily on the number of students at a school should not be the basis for consolidation.

The quality of education provided should be the determining factor. I am working to meet state standards (once they are determined) to keep our school in our community,

My vision for Shirley Schools is focused on three areas:

•To improve the curriculum offered to high school students (including AP courses an on line computer courses) so that they will excel in their college or technical school studies.

•To exceed state mandated academic standards.

•To significantly increases parental and community involvement in our schools.

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1. Every committee, governing body or board of directors should be made up of a group of people with different talents, skills, abilities and experiences, and must have a deep seeded motivation to serve. My motivations are: I have two children in Shirley Schools, and by working with many youth programs I have developed relationships with students which drive me to put my experience in education to use for the Shirley Schools. What I will bring to the school board is a degree in Business Education, almost 13 years of teaching experience in the public schools, working in school budgeting, years of work on school improvement committees, experience in test score interpretation, experience in research of school law and legislation, and most importantly I understand the day to day operation of the public school system.

2. The 2002 operating budget was about $3,492,655 of which $1,057,999 came from local property taxes, about $1,726,748 came from state funds, and about $440,000 came from federal funds. The school budget, which comes from the above three sources, is spent in two ways: Maintenance & Operations or Debt Service. Shirley Schools currently has about $880,000 of cash reserves, about $600,000 in debt, and about $95,000 of uncollected tax revenue. As part of the now famous Lake View School case, the Arkansas Supreme Court ruled that the current school funding system is unconstitutional and they interpreted Amendment 74 as meaning that each district must have a minimum of 25 mills devoted to M & O. The Shirley district currently has 20.9 mills in M & O so the school had 3 choices to comply with this ruling: ask the voters for a 4.1 mill increase, restructure the current debt, or a combination of the two. The superintendent and school board chose the first option. This option will be voted on, but if it is not approved by the voters, the quorum court will impose it on the patrons of the school district.

3. As a veteran teacher, and after many years of test data interpretation, I feel there are too many underlying factors that affect test data to label a test result as acceptable or unacceptable without consideration of those factors. Some of those issues are: general population, combined population, second year students, students in Algebra A & B, students in Algebra I, highly mobile students, and the list goes on. To answer the question directly, I am aware of the test scores, some are very good and some are not at an acceptable point. For those scores to be truly helpful in structuring curriculum there must be foresight as to all the underlying factors that can affect the scores.

4. The proposed consolidation of a large number of Arkansas schools is a direct result of the Lake View Schools vs. The State of Arkansas, in which the state school funding formula was declared unconstitutional. I believe we have a good school, but I believe just meeting state mandates is not going to allow us to rise to the top of this situation. We must go above and beyond those mandates in areas such as curriculum, where we have digressed in the last few years. A few years ago, classes such as Trigonometry, Calculus, and Physics were available to Shirley students, but currently they are not. We have to address this situation now and others like it or our school will be lost, and as a result the school patrons will be faced with soaring tax rates as a result of consolidation.

5. We must implement high level courses such as Advanced Placement Course, Physics, Trigonometry and Calculus. We must also bring our skewed test scores into a more stable pattern. I believe there will be some consolidation of Arkansas schools in this area, and beyond that, when we prevail there will be inevitable growth, which means building and expansion and curriculum restructuring. As a member of the Arkansas School Improvement Plan Committee, I have been part of building and planning for school growth, and I want to put my experiences to work for the Shirley School District. I take great pride in being a graduate of Shirley Schools, but we can’t be content with the successes of years ago. We must forge a new path and I am excited and energized and prepared to expend the time and energy that it takes to succeed.
 

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1. As an active, concerned parent, I feel that I can best serve students in this district by sitting in a position that helps guide and form policy relevant to today's problems. My qualifications are simple: I believe in keeping my own kids in the system; I’m concerned about the state of education; I am more than willing to work to produce a quality school.

2. I am somewhat familiar with our operating budget, which only means I will have a fresh perspective on what is right and what is wrong. I support a mill levy increase in order to bring our district in compliance with state requirements.

3. Our scores were improved over the last two years, with an increase in students scoring "proficient" and/ or "advanced".

4.At present, the governor seeks to consolidate districts based on numbers only, even though consulting firms hired by him have shown this is a bad ideal. I agree that some districts should be consolidated, but not based simply on numbers. I feel the legislature may have our best interests at heart while the governor may have personal agendas.

5. Shirley School should continue to be a strongly founded educational opportunity for all children. To this end, we must offer strong core subjects, elective opportunities, and a qualified staff.

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By Sonja Oliver

Fairfield Bay News Editor Commentary

Thursday, September 11 is a time for us to reflect on the tragedy of the attack on our freedom when, two years ago the enemy came to our shores and struck at the heart and soul of our country.

Unfortunately, the conflict continues as our military fights in Afghanistan and in Iraq. Still, the spirit of freedom remains strong.

In remembering the September 11, 2003 tragedy, we must also remember the soldiers who have since died on foreign soil in the Middle East; and the ones who remain as they defend our freedom.

As a parent, I cannot help but worry about our sons and daughters living under conditions with restricted water supplies and daily attacks against their lives. When the war effort first began, we remained glued to media sources to find out how our troops were doing. Now, their deaths are a daily statistic almost reminiscent of Viet Nam. True, the numbers are smaller but they are dead.

Those lives have been cut short as we go about our daily existence while worrying about the economy. Have we thought about the conditions our troops have been facing? It is imperative that, no matter what the cost, we must give President Bush whatever resources are deemed necessary to finish the job.

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By Governor Mike Huckabee

I’ve used every means at my disposal in recent months to get out the message that we need significant education reform in Arkansas. I’ve spoken at public forums. I’ve spoken in elementary school cafeterias. I’ve spoken at Lions Club meetings. I’ve spoken at Rotary Club meetings. I’ve spoken on the Arkansas Educational Television Network. I’ve spoken on the Arkansas Radio Network. I’ve taken the time to visit with anyone who has a microphone or pen. I’ve visited with superintendents, principals, classroom teachers, school board members, students and their parents. And I’ll continue to visit with them until the special legislative session on education begins Dec. 8.

Still, there remain a lot of misconceptions about what we’re proposing. Recently, I used yet another avenue to visit with Arkansans on the subject of education reform. For one hour, I conducted an on-line chat on the Internet. One of the first questions came from someone who listed himself as "rural guy." His question was this: "My school pays above-average teacher salaries, has great test scores, spends below the state average per student and has two new buildings to handle our enrollment. However, our enrollment is only 983. Why is it that our school is on the chopping block?" I quickly explained to "rural guy" that his school isn’t on the chopping block. There have always been provisions in our plan for school districts of any size to survive. The plan also would leave all schools serving students from kindergarten through the eighth grade alone. The real levels of inefficiency are at the high school level. Frankly, many Arkansans have been misled by those who fear change of any type. Due to the ruling of the Arkansas Supreme Court in the Lake View case, though, change is inevitable. The question becomes whether we will institute changes that truly improve the education received by our children or simply throw more money into the current inefficient system. Some people have said we need to spend almost $1 billion a year in additional taxes. I don’t think we can afford a tax increase of that magnitude without destroying the business climate of our state. That’s why we must have a more efficient delivery system that contains clear financial accountability measures. If we fail to act at the legislative level, the courts will act on their own. The plan the courts impose might not be as generous as the plan we’ve proposed. Later in our on-line exchange, the person identifying himself as "rural guy" said, "Inefficient programs are usually a result of inefficient management. How do we address the overall education system from the state management level to improve education in Arkansas?" I answered that we must have strict standards in place regarding how many administrators are needed for each school. We keep up with student-teacher ratios. Why doesn’t it make sense to also pay attention to the student-administrator ratios?

In addition to speaking out for more efficient spending of your hard-earned tax dollars, I’m campaigning for higher academic standards, better ways of assessing student progress and a rigorous, diverse curriculum. I spent the entire summer making clear that just pouring more money into the existing unconstitutional system is insanity. We increased spending on public education in Arkansas by 87 percent between 1992 and 2002. The rate of inflation during that 10-year period was 29.3 percent. That still translates into an increase of 58 percent even when adjusted for inflation.

As you can see, money alone isn’t the answer. We’ve already tried that. We need to hear from Arkansans who will insist of their legislators that we make meaningful reforms before we ask for additional funding. The loudest voices to this point have been those who want more money while also wanting to preserve the status quo.

A ruling last month by federal Judge Bill Wilson of Little Rock regarding the desire of Jacksonville residents to have their own school district serves as a sobering reminder of why legislators and school superintendents across the state should work with us to find a court-compliant remedy to the Lake View decision. The essence of the judge’s ruling blocking a special election is that the taxpayers of Jacksonville and the state Board of Education can’t make decisions that aren’t first approved by the court.

Of course, schools in Pulaski County have been answering to the courts for years due to the desegregation lawsuit. Arkansans should think about what having a court in control of every school district in the state would mean. They should then decide if that’s what they desire. If we don’t institute actual reform, court control is certainly what we’ll get.

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Van Buren County Master Gardeners won First Place for their float in the County Fair Parade on Sunday afternoon, September 7. Master Gardener’s Fern Todd and Joy Hawk designed the float and many willing hands helped put it all together. The Van Buren County Fair continues this week through Saturday.