Lakin USD 215

It is the time of year for “Spooky Science” All things dry ice and a trick to earn a treat. Happy Halloween from Mrs. Thompson CrAzY Science lab!

SCHOOL BOARD SPOTLIGHT::: With the upcoming election, Lakin Broncs will be posting spotlights on the school board members and school board elects. Our spotlight is Sara Veesart. Please read the document to learn a little about Sara! QUESTIONS: 1. What do you believe are the major issues facing our district? How do you plan to tackle these concerns? My main concern currently is dealing with the pandemic. If we don’t keep our schools safe, we won’t be able to have kids in school to learn and grow. Aside from that, we are in the process of addressing the drug use among some students by implementing a testing program. Getting these kids help early in the addiction process will benefit them well into the future. I believe we will see our test scores improve as we implement new curriculums and teaching strategies throughout the district that build on each other through all three buildings. These things take time to see results, unfortunately our older children will not be able to have as large of a benefit from a new curriculum and teaching strategies as our younger children. We have wonderful administrators in place at all levels and they are working very hard to make up for some past missteps. It will just take time to see the fruits of their labors. 2. Why should you be elected to the school board? I first ran for school board because my son started school. He’s now in third grade, and looking out for his education is my number one priority. In doing so, I am also looking out for the education of all the students at USD 215. Being a 4th generation graduate of Lakin schools, I am very proud of my hometown and look forward to doing my part to move it into the future by giving all students the benefit of a solid education. My hope is these students will raise their families here someday and be knowledgeable citizens, able to make informed choices about their future of our community. 3. If you have a stakeholder come to you with a problem, how are you going to address it? As a Social Worker by profession, I work daily with people to listen to their problems and work with them to find a possible solution. After listening to the problem, I would ask about who they’ve already spoken with about their concern. I would encourage the patron to follow the chain of command, speaking first with the teacher, then the principal, and finally the superintendent. If I am able to speak to the situation, I would let the patron know if there are any plans in place to address this issue. If I am unable to speak to the issue, I would inform the superintendent of the problem and give him the patron’s contact information. If the superintendent can’t resolve the issue, it may be something for the board to discuss. 4. What is your vision for education in this community? I’m very excited to see how the redesign project works out. My hope is that students will be able to learn in an environment that is safe, exciting and engaging. I want all kids, pre-K through high school to be excited about what the next day will bring. I want kids to be able to learn at their own pace, extra help for kids that struggle and opportunities to expand their knowledge for kids that have already mastered the material. We are making good progress, but the pandemic has slowed things down a bit. I want Lakin to be a model of what school can be. 5. What would you change, if anything, about decisions regarding the budget in our district? While the high school campus is the face of the district as far as where we host most events, I’ve been concerned about the grade school playground for years. I know there are plans in the works to make improvements at the grade school and I’m excited to see the results. I’m glad we have a forward looking administration that is able to work to balance the needs of the district with our somewhat uncertain future as a county.

First Grade Finished their Yayoi Kusama Pumpkins in Art today! They are displayed proudly in the grade school!

Kindergarten finished their line monster lanterns in art this week, right in time for Halloween!

STATE CC Send Off!!! Big thanks to the police, fire dept and EMS for the escort. S/o to all three buildings for the spirit lines and thank you to all the businesses and community members who came out to wish them luck! Good luck tomorrow boys!

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Cooperative group contest in consumer math

Consumer math students had great conversations trying to differentiate between fixed expenses and variable expenses for budgeting.

SCHOOL BOARD SPOTLIGHT::: With the upcoming election, Lakin Broncs will be posting spotlights on the school board members and school board elects. Our second spotlight is Kyle Carlisle. Please read the document to learn a little about Kyle! What do I believe are the major issues facing our school district? I feel like the biggest issue facing our district is the citizens perception of our state test scores that are reflected on the internet. I would like to start by saying our kids are more than just a test score or statistic you find on the internet. I know that there is a bit of misinformation out there. Yes, the scores are lower than what you would like to see, however, it was explained to the district that those would be normal results based on becoming a redesign school. Taking the time to talk to the building administrators, you will learn that our scores and competency have improved, and it will continue to improve as we grow. Another issue we see is when we select and implement a curriculum, it takes time to see the results. Another issue we face is parent and community involvement. I have heard several people talk about issues and being involved in the school, but I can tell you there is only one parent volunteer in the middle school. There are very few parent volunteers in the grade school and none that I know of in the high school. Parent involvement at home is as important as teacher involvement at school. Our kids need a healthy support system at home that can continue building and teaching our kids the lesson they need to learn in life as well as help with homework. Why should I be elected to the school board? I feel I should be re-elected to the school board because I have experience. I not only bring 4 years of experience as a current board of education member, but I also bring classroom and life experience. I am the Lakin USD 215 school district school resource officer. That means I am in our buildings everyday working alongside our educators, administrators, and most importantly our kids. I see the issues our buildings and kids face every day, but I also see the positive things going on. I can tell you there are far more positive things happening than negative, and as a community we need to come together and focus on those positive things to build our kids and staff up. I also have life experience I bring such as a military and law enforcement background. I work with these kids everyday and I can tell you some of them come from very difficult situations. I work with these kids daily and have firsthand knowledge of their backgrounds. I can also tell you we have some of the best educators in the country, and they truly care about your kids. This is experience I have of not only my background but working in the schools with the staff and kids is why you should elect me for USD 215 board of education. There is no better experience than firsthand experience. If I have a stakeholder come to me with a problem, how will I address it? Most problems can be solved with communication. There is no reason that sitting down with a stakeholder or citizen and having a civil conversation while keeping an open mind can’t solve most issues. For those of you that know me, know that I am an open book. You know what my stances are on COVID and masks. For those of you that don’t know me you can always reach out. I think that me being an open book and transparent solve a lot of issues on their own, you know exactly where I stand. What is my vision for education in this community? To better the education of our kids there needs to be more continuity of curriculum between the buildings, much like that of the math curriculum we recently revamped. This will better building to building transitions as well as improve the curriculum retention and knowledge gained by the students. What would I change if anything about the decisions regarding the budget? This question is simple. We need community involvement. Our school board meetings are open, and the public can address budget issues or concerns they have. To the best of my knowledge this past budget meeting is the only one I can remember in my duration as school board member where we had any community members come and partake in the discussion. I can also tell you the most community involvement I have seen was regarding masks, not test scores, education, or budget. I just want to take the time to think you for reading this. I feel it would have been better in person, but I am currently in Hutchinson, Kansas completing D.A.R.E. officer training so that I can come home and teach our kids how to handle and deal with situations many of our kids will face in life. Again, if you have and questions please reach out. Kyle Carlisle

SCHOOL BOARD SPOTLIGHT::: With the upcoming election, Lakin Broncs will be posting spotlights on the school board members and school board elects. Our first spotlight is Kyle Berning. Please read the document to learn a little about Kyle! Kearny County, First I would like to state that I believe that an in person forum would have been significantly more beneficial to allow for the community to look each candidate in the eye and hear their unprompted responses. I hope that everyone takes my swift response to this inquiry as a sign that this seat is a priority to me, and that these responses are in no way prepared by outside parties. QUESTIONS: What do you believe are the major issues facing our district? How do you plan to tackle these concerns? By far the biggest concern is the retention and comprehension of knowledge provided by USD 215. As of now I am most familiar with the academic base of the 1st grade to sophomore classes. I will admit that since my kids, nieces, and nephews fall into this age range that these are the students that I am most familiar with. Accountability has to be made a priority. Assignments are to be handed in on time. Tests are to be completed the first time, not given grades based on revisions or purely classroom attitude. A student should receive the grade they earned, and not given a reward. Students who push themselves or respond to teaching should not be held back by others, and those students should be allowed to grow to their academic potential. If we are to change our academic performance going forward it starts with the base education in the grade school and is built upon going forward. Students should be held accountable for their knowledge base at each stage in their academic career or they are unable to build upon it in future classes Overall discipline is also a very high concern. Facilities that are being damaged should not be tolerated, no matter who the parent is. Disruption in the classroom only deviates from a quality learning environment and hinders the growth of others. Appropriate budget allocation needs to occur. Our grade school is falling apart. We continue to spend on our west campus, but the electrical and plumbing in the grade school facility is subpar. Why should you be elected to the school board? As a life-long resident, parent, uncle, property/business owner in Kearny County I have a very high interest in the success of the hopeful future Kearny County residents. I anticipate that by providing an enjoyable and successful experience to students of USD 215 I can help give back to the community who has given me so much. If you have a stakeholder come to you with a problem, how are you going to address it? All residents of Kearny County have an equal opinion regarding the matters involving county funds, property, and management. One of the main reasons I returned to southwestern Kansas is the fact that most people are reasonable people who are capable of talking through situations civilly. Any issue has a solution, and talking through it will alleviate the issue. That being said, as I stated earlier, accountability is key, and part of the growth process of life. If a student is in the wrong based upon policy put forward by USD 215, they will be held accountable for it. What is your vision for education in this community? Going forward I hope that USD 215 is able to give a broad spectrum of experiences to students. A strong knowledge base is key for building a capable individual able to do anything in life. If we produce students with a broad knowledge base, they will be able to get the added specialized education and hopefully return to strengthen our community with the skills they have. What would you change, if anything, about decisions regarding the budget in our district? Transparency is key. Many community members wonder why some projects are pursued and not others. I believe that on major projects a public vote should be done, since it is based on mill levy appropriations/property taxes. This is so that there is as much input as possible. It seems as though information about school board meetings that are published is extremely vague, and with the advent of social media some further explanation on major outlay projects would be warranted. I truly appreciate being a community member of Kearny County. I am proud to be a graduate of USD 215. Sometimes I wonder if today’s students feel this way, but I hope that with some work we can make that happen again. Thank you for your time, Kyle Berning, DVM

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HS parents - Please make sure you call the HS office if your child will not be in school. It is very important that all students are accounted for. Please do not text or email staff; we need you to call the high school office. The number is (620) 355-6411. Thanks!

We kicked off the Scholars Bowl season by hosting our meet!

Positive Phone Call of the Day!! This is a group of solutions focused young ladies. They really want a new merry-go-round for the playground so they came up with a way to solve that problem!

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Great first day of MS boys BB practice. Loved the effort and coach-ability out of everyone. Excited for Day 2 tomorrow.

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Lakin Middle Schoolers Adan Vasquez, Camden Bergkamp, and Audrie Rochat went to Emporia on Sunday to compete at a MS state meet. S/O to Deerfield XC Coach Manny Lujan for organizing such a great experience.

Activities Week at a Glance

Saturday's HS State CC Information Cont...