Connie O’BRIEN

There’s A Need To Get Back To The Basics

Focus On Education Excellence

Connie O’Briens motto:

“Good, Better, Best, I’ll never let them rest until good is better and better is best.”

Encourage And Support Local Control

Local School Board members have authority over many things including the hiring or firing of a school superintendent. The Kansas Legislature controls the funding for education in Kansas. It’s up to School Board members to decide how that money is being spent.

Encourage And Support Parental Involvement

It’s parents and voters in the district that elect school board members. We need to listen and encourage these voters, especially the parents, to be involved in the decision making process.

Encourage And Support Student Opportunities

Not every student needs to go to college. Vo-tech education provides students with the opportunity to learn a skilled trade such as HVAC, welding, culinary, construction, plumbing, electrical, mechanic, and small appliance repair. All of these skills lead to good paying jobs. Jobs that are in high demand. Students that complete this training make good money and they are not straddled with college debt.

Encourage And Support Teachers

Here’s what I’m hearing from teachers. Teachers want to teach. They’re currently being held back by bureaucracy and the excessive paperwork that they deal with on a daily basis. Teachers would like to see improvement in basic reading skills and they believe a return to phonics would help. There is a need to assist first year teachers with well planned mentoring programs.

Encourage And Support School Accountability

The Kansas Department of Education is required to put a school accountability report on-line for all school districts. This website covers a plethora of topics such as, High School Graduation Rate, Success Rate, Effective Rate, Math Scores, Science Scores, English Language Arts Scores and Spending Per-Pupil just to mention a few.