Jackie Kennedy of Lansing used part of her allotted time at a recent USD 469 school board meeting’s Public Comment Period to criticize board member Amy Cawvey for having a “close relationship” with Kansas Policy Institute and The Sentinel.
Kennedy accused KPI of “mischaracterizing the performance of our district with frightening regularity” and its subsidiary, The Sentinel, of posting “twisted, mischaracterized information blasted on the internet.”
We contacted Ms. Kennedy on two different occasions and offered her a forum here to air specific examples of what she contends is our “twisted” and “mischaracterized” reporting, but she did not respond.
Within the past year, our reporting on USD 469 Lansing has often been critical but fair and fact-based, and the district has not asked for any corrections. The Sentinel’s recent reporting includes stories about the district proposing a 24% property tax increase, making deceptive budget proposals, misrepresenting property taxes to the Chamber of Commerce, and attempting to exclude board members from a meeting with state legislators.
Last year, The Sentinel wrote about the Lansing 2023 state assessment results, with the district having a quarter of students below grade level in math and English language arts and less than half proficient. That remains true for 2024; math results are a little better, but the reading outcomes slightly declined. Only 39% of Lansing students are proficient in math, and just 41% in ELA, while 26% are below grade level in both subjects.
Our reporting on such issues as achievement scores and financial matters is based on public information from the Kansas State Department of Education (KSDE). KSDE data is also available free of charge on KansasOpenGov.org, also owned by KPI, to provide unbiased information for parents and school board members.
KPI CEO Dave Trabert says ignoring low outcomes won’t help students achieve their full potential.
“We don’t doubt that USD 469 Lansing staff members are working hard to help students. Unfortunately, proficiency levels are lower than students need for many of them to be successful in life. No one is to blame, but everyone is responsible to acknowledge the challenge and implement the needed changes to get students the education they deserve.”
