#KSEdTalk

KNEA Government Relations Directors, Mark Desetti and Terry Forsyth, join Marcus Baltzell (Director of Communications) to discuss the current school funding situation and upcoming elections.

In this episode, KNEA Comms Assistant, Samantha Harms interviews the President of the Johnson County Community College Faculty Association and Philosophy Professor, Dennis Arjo, Ph.D.  Dennis gives some great perspective on what academic freedom is and why it is so important in supporting a free and open exchange of ideas.  

KNEA Director of Legislative Advocacy, Mark Desetti and KNEA General Counsel, David Schauner discuss the legislative landscape as well as pending cases in the Supreme Court in 2018.

Interviewer Samantha Harms spent some time with a full-time faculty member and member of KNEA, Terri Easly-Giraldo, at Johnson County Community College to talk about distance learning in higher education.

With public educators at every level working through policy changes, funding shortages, and even attacks on the profession, it has never been more important to cultivate a spirit of advocacy.  Johnson County Community College is lucky to have many fine professionals who work as advocates for their profession and for their students.  Deborah Williams is […]

It is late April, spring has sprung and the regular session of the Kansas Legislature has concluded.  But as some have noted, much work remains.  While some progress has been made on a new school funding formula (mostly a return to the old funding formula) it seems we’re still a significant way from solving the […]

A sensible and comprehensive plan to get Kansas moving in the right direction now and for the future. This very special podcast focuses on the current Kansas Legislative landscape courtesy of KNEA Director of Political and Legislative Advocacy, Mark Desetti.  Then, we switch gears a bit as Duane Goosen, Senior Fellow for the Kansas Center for […]

How are public schools in Kansas dealing with the use of Social Media in the classroom?  Mobile devices like smartphones have become ubiquitous for students and adults.  Are there ways to use these devices and social media platforms for learning or are they simply a distraction?  What legal boundaries exist around this issue? KNEA General […]

Quality early childhood programs, pre-kindergarten education services and the like, have been show to improve readiness to learn and give children a strong foundation for future success.  In this episode we explore how Kansas is handling early childhood issues and how this will impact students in the present and the future. Panelists: LeEtta Felter, Olathe […]

As severe weather was bearing down on us in Topeka last week, we were unable to host a live broadcast. The safety of our panelists driving in from throughout Kansas was our first concern. However, I was able to sit down for a few minutes last week with Senator Anthony Hensley, a teacher and the […]

The Community College system in Kansas provides a variety of valuable services to students but also to the communities they are a part of. Recent legislation promoted by a group of community college administrators seeks to end statutory due process for faculty. What are the issues that community colleges face? How do community colleges impact […]

Recent polling indicates very strongly and very clearly that Governor Brownback has failed to manage the State of Kansas to the satisfaction of its citizens.  Starting with his effort to purge the legislature of moderate policy makers from his own party in 2012, the Governor and his staunch allies have unleashed an anti-public education agenda which […]

Episode 2:  11/17/2015, Poverty and KS Public Schools As revenue in Kansas has declined (many would argue collapsed) under Governor Brownback’s “march to zero” tax scheme, public services throughout the state have suffered.  This is most apparent in Kansas public schools.  While teacher exodus, school closures and other actions are very clear and capture headlines, […]

For good reason, Kansans are concerned about the state of public education.  As revenue has fallen statewide and while the Kansas Legislature passed a “block grants” funding bill, the reality in Kansas classrooms is changing.  While Kansans align themselves on each side of the issues, it’s important to discuss where we can meet in the […]