Time for Change in Leadership

Dear Taxpayers & Voters, The Challenger Learning Center, housed at The Academy @ Shawnee, sits dark most days. Why? Because of the district's short-sighted decision last summer to outsource operations of the facility to Kentucky Science Center, instead of giving the center one more year to reach the goals it was on track to meet. Sadly, KSC has not received any of the district support it would have needed to be successful, and therefore, as we predicted, they have flown approximately 1/3 of the number of missions that the previous staff had flown during their last year, which is also 1/3 the number of missions their proposal said they would fly in 2015-2016. Yet, Dr. Hargens likes to pretend like this number is exceeding the goals of previous years, and even claims that the center has turned a profit, while ignoring the $90,000 we pay to KSC to operate the facility. This fancy and convenient recordkeeping is not dissimilar to what we've seen elsewhere under her leadership, with the underreporting of behavior incidents to the state, claims that recent increases in the number of incidents reported is "good news," and that our test score data says we are headed in the right direction, without authentically acknowledging that achievement gaps are widening. When does the spin end? Where is the accountability for those who repeatedly make decisions that are not in the best interest of our students? Who is asking the tough questions to make sure that this "spin" is unwound and that the true measures are being taken into account? Tomorrow, we have an opportunity to elect the three most qualified candidates to the school board who will do just that. When you head to the polls tomorrow, if you live in District 2, 4 or 7, please remember to vote for Chris Kolb, Ben Gies or Chris Brady. They will put our students' needs ahead of the rhetoric and perception-driven decisions. Just remember: We ALL win with Chris, Chris and Ben! Thank you!