Northland misses opportunity; PH candidates aligned in two camps

Yet another election date is before us on April 5th as school board, municipal, and Kansas City’s earning tax are on the ballot this coming Tuesday. But before broadly touching on those subjects, it’s important to note the significance of last Tuesday’s Kansas City mayor and council elections. Although the Northland missed its chance to elect the first mayor from north of the river, it also missed an opportunity to solidify itself as a stronger voting bloc in relation to its growing population. Only 20,000 of the 70,000 votes cast were from Northland voters, nearly 28% of the vote compared to the approximately 35% of Kansas City’s population living north of the river.

Voter turnout in the Northland is just one of the reasons Kansas City’s earnings tax will pass. Without a considerable turnout and vote margin in the Northland there is an unlikely chance the tax will be repealed. Voters who oppose the earnings tax are more likely to hold conservative positions on taxes and the Northland is generally considered more conservative leaning than other areas within in the city limits of Kansas City.

There are several issues on the ballot for the Park Hill School District. First is approval for the issuance of $49 million in bonds for the construction of a new elementary school, infrastructure projects, and security upgrades. District officials have gone to great lengths to explain the specifics of the bond in promoting its passage. The key selling point is it doesn’t require an increase in taxes because the district is able to pay for the bond payments under the current debt structure already in place. Funds made available through the bond issue would then be able to be used towards capital projects that without passage will need to be paid for through the general operating budget. Requiring these improvements to be paid out of the operating fund would leave the district more vulnerable to state funding cuts that have affected school districts in recent years with the most recent round of budget reductions totaling more than $2 million dollars. There is no organized opposition to the bond.

Also before Park Hill residents will be the task of electing four people to the Park Hill School Board, three for three-year terms and one to a fill a one-year unexpired term. While there are now 11 candidates for the four spots, two different slates of candidates seem to have formed. The first is made up of incumbent board members Fred Sanchez and Pauli Kendrick along with Boon Lee and Rick Turley. All are endorsed by the teachers of Park Hill’s chapter of the National Education Association. The second ticket consists of Timothy Thompson, Chris Seufert, and David Cox who seem to have joined their campaign efforts together. Also running is incumbent Janice Bolin, Michael Atchison, Josh Blackman, and Todd Burr.

The NEA slate for the most part resembles a politically diverse makeup of two Democrats, one Republican, and an Independent while the opposing ticket has is contrasting itself as strongly conservative. Unfortunately, the intentional nonpartisan nature of school board elections has been lost to some extent. This was reinforced earlier this week when the conservative slate announced an endorsement from the Club for Growth PAC, a group traditionally focused on electing like-minded members to Congress and whose education policy revolves around the issuance of school vouchers, essentially a free-market system of educational choice. When this happens, more of a politically charged debate takes place about finances, classroom experience, and the district’s future. Perspective, practical ideas, and electing quality board members take a backseat to ideology. Presenting candidates to voters in the form of a slate also leaves open the opportunity to elect less qualified board members instead of selecting an individual candidate on their own merit.

Park Hill’s board has had a mix of ideologies throughout the years, but has avoided the political battles we often see fought in other public arenas. While challengers to the current board should be welcomed, and even encouraged to ensure the best board member makeup as possible, be sure to note the number of state and national awards the district has been recognized with in regards to overall performance, financial management, student achievement, top administrators, and quality teachers in recent years before you’re led to believe arguments about needed changes and misplaced priorities.