Well, the busses are running (mostly on time) and the viaduct is open once again. We have had a great start to the school year and I can’t wait for the Gentlemen of the Road Tour! This month I want to address an area that seems to be a buzzword for many—transparency.
Last week I wrote about my desire to help local school boards save money for infrastructure needs while avoiding debt and property tax increases. House District 31’s rapid growth and corresponding increase in property tax collections continue to provide area school districts with new resources. Districts should be allowed to set aside some of these […]
Guthrie and all of Logan County are in the midst of growth from a population and residential building boom. Representative Jason Murphey recently opined an article where he discussed the growth of revenue that school districts will see from collection of ad valorem taxes. This revenue growth is spurred by residential growth through new construction […]
A month ago I wrote about this area’s rapid growth and described local tax collections continue to grow as formerly empty fields fill up with new homes and taxpayers.
Several weeks have passed since the last communication from District 2 so I want to update you on what we’ve been doing.
“So do you work in the summer?” This question has been posed to me often since June 1st and the answer is yes. That question is usually followed with, “Really?? What do you do?” With the summer officially at its halfway point, I thought I would share what we do.
I’ve been asked by many members of the community “How did the first year go?” That is such a tough question because so many things have happened in education in this state as well as on a national scale.
“So, is that new superintendent going to run a bond issue before the voters sometime soon?” Many of you may have heard this question and it brings me to another question…am I still the “new superintendent”? We are doing the final testing for this school year, a successful prom has been completed and commencement is […]
I’m unhappy with something my child’s teacher did. What should I do? I’ve heard this question many times by involved parents who love their child but were frustrated with something that happened at school. Many different options are available when a parent is unhappy with the school district. Those options obviously vary with the situation […]
“Are we having school tomorrow?” I can still remember asking my parents that same question and the anticipation of a magical gift of a day off as a student with snow and ice on the ground. I always got so frustrated because they never announced school would be closed until the morning. Of course this […]
“Can I have some more money?” How many of you have heard that question before from your child? I’m sure that is why members of the state legislature have at times compared many of us in public service to the child that continues to ask for more money. We can come with doomsday predictions of […]
When you are used to something (good or bad), you can take it for granted and expect it to happen. Because of this, I want to begin with congratulations to our Bluejay football team. They are an outstanding group of people led by a dedicated coaching staff. With the success achieved in the recent past, […]
Since my last article, I’ve seen the best and worst education has to offer. Let me start with the best, which is the Guthrie homecoming. Words can’t describe the loyalty exhibited at the Friday morning alumni assembly. This is yet another item our community should find as a source of pride. Homecoming is much more […]
Last month I pledged to you to identify in this column what I’ve found to be items valued by our community. With that in mind, I should mention that I am a strong proponent of extra-curricular activities as they extend the school experience past the last bell and often into the evening. This extension of […]
Officially, I started with GPS on July 1st but my work here started shortly after the Board of Education meeting on March 29th. During this time, I’ve been identifying areas where this community places the greatest value and how it relates to the school district. What I’ve found and continue to find along the way, […]
At the last meeting of Circuit Engineering District 5, on Feb. 28, 2012, the scene was packed with commissioners from the 7 county region. To be presented were various projects from these counties to be included for funding for the next 5 years through the County Improvements for Roads and Bridges program (CIRB).
Winter is here after the driest summer ever recorded and road maintenance has kept us quite busy. Using my annual contribution and working with Guthrie, we were successful getting safety striping on Roller Coaster and Prairie Grove from Division to Pine.
In 1878, Iowa Tribal members began moving into Oklahoma. In 1883 they were given lands within the Sac and Fox Reservation. Originally the tribe’s main settlement was in the Fallis area, but later, headquarters was moved a few miles south of Perkins, where it is today.
