Mergering Newport Elementary Schools

[Warning]

Better not play possum Newport, or you will open your eyes and your school district will be in the hands of Campbell County. Wake up.

[eyes wide shut]

Who cares.

[Warning]

I care for one.

[news]

Newport school closing on hold

By William Croyle • [e-mail] • October 27, 2009
Comments Post a Comment • Recommend • Print Print • ShareThis • Type: A A • Click To Listen Click-2-Listen

NEWPORT - A first reading of a proposal to close Mildred Dean Elementary School at the end of the school year has been delayed.
Advertisement

The board of Newport Independent Schools meets tonight, but Board Chairman Rob Usleaman said he wants to wait for Kentucky's Department of Education to fill two vacant seats before deciding the school's fate.

"I think it's important that we have a full board because this is such a big deal," Usleaman said. "There are a lot of things that we have to look at."

The seats were vacated in August when Chris and Janean Parsons moved out of the district, leaving just three board members. The department interviewed seven candidates last week and will recommend potential board members to Education Commissioner Terry Holliday, who has until next month to make the appointments.

The school district's facility planning committee voted last week to recommend that Mildred Dean close after this school year. Mildred Dean is the district's smallest building, with less than 40,000 square feet.

If it closed, the roughly 270 students would go to one of the other district schools. The committee is recommending that the other schools be reconfigured for the 2010-11 school year.

Under that proposal, A.D. Owens Elementary would hold grades K-3, Fourth Street Elementary would house grades 4-6, Newport Middle would become a grades 7-9 school, and Newport High would be for grades 10-12.

The committee is expected to make its recommendations Wednesday.

"But other than that, we won't have any discussion or a first reading," Usleaman said.

The committee has been discussing consolidation and reconfiguration since July, just a few months after the district was put on the state's financial watch list.

State law requires each district to keep a contingency fund of at least 2 percent of its annual budget. For Newport, that fund should be about $475,000, but is currently less than $50,000.

The district's enrollment has fallen to fewer than 2,000 students, down from more than 6,000 in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

It's unclear what Newport would save by closing the school or if the district would immediately put the property up for sale. It would likely be prime real estate, given its location on a hill just east of Interstate 471, bordering Fort Thomas.

The seven people who applied for the vacant board seats are Bradie Bowen, Rick Buechel, Victor Cummins, Ramona Malone, Rob Rummel, Melissa Sheffel and Bryan Wright.

The board will have a first reading, a public hearing and a second reading on the committee's recommendations before a final vote. If the vote is in agreement with the committee, the plan would then require approval by the Kentucky Department of Education.

Wednesday's meeting is at 7 p.m. in the Newport Middle School library, 30 W. 8th St.

[ohmy]

news wrote:

Newport school closing on hold
By William Croyle • [e-mail] • October 27, 2009
Comments Post a Comment • Recommend • Print Print • ShareThis • Type: A A • Click To Listen Click-2-Listen
NEWPORT - A first reading of a proposal to close Mildred Dean Elementary School at the end of the school year has been delayed.
Advertisement
The board of Newport Independent Schools meets tonight, but Board Chairman Rob Usleaman said he wants to wait for Kentucky's Department of Education to fill two vacant seats before deciding the school's fate.
"I think it's important that we have a full board because this is such a big deal," Usleaman said. "There are a lot of things that we have to look at."
The seats were vacated in August when Chris and Janean Parsons moved out of the district, leaving just three board members. The department interviewed seven candidates last week and will recommend potential board members to Education Commissioner Terry Holliday, who has until next month to make the appointments.
The school district's facility planning committee voted last week to recommend that Mildred Dean close after this school year. Mildred Dean is the district's smallest building, with less than 40,000 square feet.
If it closed, the roughly 270 students would go to one of the other district schools. The committee is recommending that the other schools be reconfigured for the 2010-11 school year.
Under that proposal, A.D. Owens Elementary would hold grades K-3, Fourth Street Elementary would house grades 4-6, Newport Middle would become a grades 7-9 school, and Newport High would be for grades 10-12.
The committee is expected to make its recommendations Wednesday.
"But other than that, we won't have any discussion or a first reading," Usleaman said.
The committee has been discussing consolidation and reconfiguration since July, just a few months after the district was put on the state's financial watch list.
State law requires each district to keep a contingency fund of at least 2 percent of its annual budget. For Newport, that fund should be about $475,000, but is currently less than $50,000.
The district's enrollment has fallen to fewer than 2,000 students, down from more than 6,000 in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
It's unclear what Newport would save by closing the school or if the district would immediately put the property up for sale. It would likely be prime real estate, given its location on a hill just east of Interstate 471, bordering Fort Thomas.
The seven people who applied for the vacant board seats are Bradie Bowen, Rick Buechel, Victor Cummins, Ramona Malone, Rob Rummel, Melissa Sheffel and Bryan Wright.
The board will have a first reading, a public hearing and a second reading on the committee's recommendations before a final vote. If the vote is in agreement with the committee, the plan would then require approval by the Kentucky Department of Education.
Wednesday's meeting is at 7 p.m. in the Newport Middle School
library, 30 W. 8th St.

Just another joke, everyone afraid to speak up and make a decision! Come on get it over with. It will never work with the proposed "Brandt" way anyway!

[What]

Pied Piper wrote:

<quoted text>
Who voted to hire him that is on the board?

They may not have voted to hire him but they keep giving him great reviews and renewing his contract so they are responsible

[baffled]

Amen

[George Harris]

State is Watching wrote:

Newport is proposing to keep the oldest building in the district open and close the highest performing school in the district to save money.
Fourth Street Elementary is a school that is being used at a third of its capacity. Fourth Street Elementary has consistently had the lowest test scores.
Mildred Dean Elementary is a school that is currently serving students at capacity. It consistently has the highest test scores.
Fourth Street Elementary is located next to a multi-million dollar entertainment complex however the district claims the property is not marketable.
Mildred Dean Elementary is located on an isolated, quiet green space on the south east side of the city. The district claims that Mildred Dean is marketable or that it could be used by the district for some other purpose.
Neither property has been listed with a Realtor.
The Newport School district's internal reports have indicated that it will cost several million dollars for maintenance and repairs, air conditioning, elevator for disabled students, and other remodeling to keep the school up to current code as required by law. Fourth Street is 75,000 square feet.
District reports indicate that it would take $2 million to renovate to Mildred Dean's 38,500 square feet.
All statistical data projects Newport population to continue to decline, especially in the entertainment district along the river, where Fourth Street is located.
Data has shown that population has shifted and increased in the Mildred Dean district. Proposed housing development projects an even further increase.
Does anyone else see the problem with this scenario?

Yes. Many do.

[Vivian]

George Harris wrote:

<quoted text>
Yes. Many do.

You are right George. Many are watching.

[no way Ray]

What wrote:

<quoted text>
They may not have voted to hire him but they keep giving him great reviews and renewing his contract so they are responsible

When was his contract renewed?

[James Wilder]

Send them kids to a concentration camp where they belong. I'm kidding.

[NMS]

Why are we closing schools to save money, but hiring more consultants at the middle school?

[clueless]

Because nobody currently on the payroll can figure out how to teach Newport children?

[NMS2]

You are clueless. The problem is that the Newport Board of Education continues to spend money they don't have. Wait until the next election. They all will be gone. Time to clean house.

[u r clueless 2]

Bull. The problem with NIS is NOT MONEY...it is, and always has been, the employees. It's about education (or lack thereof).

[truth hurts]

It's about EDUCATION. NIS stunk BEFORE Brandt and all the money problems. Brandt isn't fixing the problem because he isn't going after the teachers who cannot teach. I say fire him for that!

[Laffin on the Hill]

truth hurts wrote:

It's about EDUCATION. NIS stunk BEFORE Brandt and all the money problems. Brandt isn't fixing the problem because he isn't going after the teachers who cannot teach. I say fire him for that!

Most of the teachers who can't teacher are tenured. That's the problem. Remember the one who was more worried about the gravy on her mashed potatoes than actually teaching? She finally retired. Guess she got fed up with no gravy.

[former parent]

It is a shame you all believe Newport has never had good teachers. My children attended Newport k-12 and I feel they were taught by excellent teachers. My children also graduated from college with honors and went on to achieve higher degrees. I am thankful for the wonderful educators who shared their knowledge, expertise, and time with my children.

[knows a little]

Thank you, former parent. I have said that in the past but all anyone on here wants to do is talk about the bad. Very rarely is there a good comment about Newport Schools. While there is bad, I agree, there is also good, but no one wants to see that or hear that. Doesn't make for good arguing, I guess.

[IDE]

knows a little wrote:

Thank you, former parent. I have said that in the past but all anyone on here wants to do is talk about the bad. Very rarely is there a good comment about Newport Schools. While there is bad, I agree, there is also good, but no one wants to see that or hear that. Doesn't make for good arguing, I guess.

You do not fool the wise.