School board to draw new district boundaries

Above, Above, Lyon Middle School Principal Victor Zimmerman explains home work charts to school board members.-Bobbie Foust/Herald Ledger

Lyon County School Board members will likely redraw their respective district boundaries at the board’s next meeting Nov. 23.
Board member Denny Gray proposed a redistricting plan that would more nearly equalize the population of each of the five districts. Although state law (KRS 162.210) specifies redistricting every five years, school board districts here have not been redistricted since 1983.
Gray’s plan would shift third district board member Amy DeFew into Chairwoman Ruthanne Williamson’s second district. But Williamson said that wouldn’t present a problem because in such a case, the law allows both board members to serve until the next election. And because no one ran in the last election for Williamson’s seat, which she had tried to vacate, she was appointed to serve through the 2010 election. She has indicated she won’t run again.
A big problem with the districts now is that Williamson’s second district includes both Kentucky State Penitentiary and Western Kentucky Correctional Complex. Because the Census numbers include the inmates who cannot vote, the second district was left with only 658 residents. Another problem is the fifth district represented by George Glass, which covers only the limits of city of Eddyville. However, the city limits of Eddyville have changed dramatically since 1983.
In preparing his redistricting proposal, Gray said he tried to put 20 percent of the population in each district.
Another major issue that has the board members’ dander up is Kentucky Speaker of the House Greg Stumbo’s proposal to “capture all or a portion of” local schools’ contingency funds to offset a looming state budget deficit in the 2010-2012 biennium.
State law requires Kentucky schools to set aside a rainy day fund of at least 2 percent of their annual budget, and the law encourages a 5-percent contingency fund. Lyon County reserves about 4 percent of its annual budget for its rainy day fund.
Local and state tax dollars are co-mingled in schools’ contingency funds, however, in Lyon County a greater portion of the school district’s budget comes from local dollars.
School districts across Kentucky strongly oppose Stumbo’s plan, and Lyon County is no exception.
Brad Hughes, a spokesman for the Kentucky School Board Association, told Louisville Courier Journal reporter Tom Loftus, that “any effort to tap the contingency funds would be unfair to districts that have prudently saved more.” He also said it could be illegal because some contingency money comes from local taxes.
Superintendent Quin Sutton said some school districts have as much as $5 million to $10 million in their contingency fund.
At the meeting local board members signed a resolution strongly opposing Stumbo’s idea.
Citing their responsibilities to the community to “operate this school system to meet both anticipated and potential fiscal needs and continued learning of students,” the board’s resolution said:
“... We hereby register our strong opposition to this proposal and call on all citizens of this community to contact their state representatives and senator with similar statements in support of community control of this district’s vital financial resources for the teaching and learning of our children.”
In other business the board:
 Heard a proposal from Billy Breedlove to fingerprint and photograph every elementary student for identification should the child go missing. Breedlove referred to television programs he has seen regarding missing and abducted children and expressed his concern to protect students.
Sutton said that after Breedlove brought the issue to his attention, he discussed it with school resource officer Brooks Dixon. Dixon told him the program has been conducted in the past, but it cannot be mandatory. Parents must sign to have their child fingerprinted and photographed.
 Heard a report from middle school Principal Victor Zimmerman regarding homework assignments. He showed charts showing the amount of time students spend on homework, which were prepared by the students following a survey they made. He also reported 166 parent-teacher conferences.
 Watched a presentation by Jayne Stovall’s 21st Century Explorers Club who were among four programs that received awards for improving reading and math. The club will attend the Fall Institute for Family Resource, Community Education and 21st Century Centers in Louisville.
 Discussed pending litigation in closed session. No action was taken after the executive meeting.