Wichita school board to discuss calendar, property sales

Will some Wichita schools start earlier next year to keep elementary students from dismissing so late?

That’s one of several topics Wichita board members are scheduled to discuss at their regular meeting Monday.

The board will hear the results of an online survey about the school calendar, which showed that a majority of elementary school teachers and families don’t like this year’s schedule, which ends at 4:40 p.m. for most elementary students.

The Wichita district, as part of a $3 million budget cut last year, added 30 minutes to each school day and trimmed 15 days from the academic calendar. Board members on Monday could consider a plan to keep the calendar as is but tweak start and end times.

Also on Monday, board members will:

▪ Consider a plan to sell five surplus school buildings and a 17-acre tract at 29th Street North and Woodlawn.

The district plans to sell: Black Bosin Academy (formerly Price Elementary), 6123 E. 11th St.; Gateway Alternative (formerly Metro-Midtown), 640 N. Emporia; Longfellow Elementary, 2116 S. Main; Metro-Boulevard Alternative High School, 751 S. George Washington Blvd.; Metro-Meridian Alternative High School, 301 S. Meridian; and about 17 acres of excess land near Jackson Elementary, 2727 N. Woodlawn.

▪ Vote on a proposal to drop the International Baccalaureate program at Gordon Parks Academy, a K-8 school near 25th St. North and Grove.

The plan calls for Gordon Parks Academy to become a STEM and media arts magnet and to partner with Northeast Magnet High School to offer the district’s first K-12 magnet pathway.

▪ Adopt a resolution to create five more STEM magnet schools as part of an application for federal funds through the Magnet Schools Assistance Program. The plan calls for new or enhanced science, technology, engineering and math programs at Southeast High School, Marshall Middle School, Gordon Parks Academy, Enders Elementary and Woodland Elementary.

▪ Hear an update on the 2017-18 budget. Finance officials have said the district will have to cut about $8.2 million from next year’s budget to keep up with rising costs.

The Wichita school board meets at 6 p.m. Monday at the North High lecture hall, 1437 Rochester, near 13th and Waco.

This story was originally published April 9, 2017 at 1:11 PM with the headline "Wichita school board to discuss calendar, property sales."