Tune in tomorrow…

Martin HawverWe’re coming to what might become one of the most significant confrontations of recent Kansas history, when Gov. Sam Brownback inevitably signs into law the new K-12 block grant school finance bill—policy and appropriations all in one.

The bill? It’s just about what the governor called for in his State of the State address to the Kansas Legislature: Eliminating the current finance program for K-12 schools and handing out block grants for two years while the Legislature figures out a new plan for sending money to school districts.

But…there is a three-judge panel working at the direction of the Kansas Supreme Court which is assessing whether the state is providing “adequate” support—that’s money—for operation of the state’s elementary and secondary schools to make sure that our children get a good education.