Rural Schools

There have been numerous rumors circulating about possible building closures in this district.  On May 10, 2010, the USD 348 Baldwin City Board of Education decided on a course of action for the 2010-2011 school year.  That course of action was to reduce the budget by making several cuts in positions and programs.  These cuts did not include closing any buildings in this district.  Marion Springs and Vinland Elementary Schools are open for the 2010-2011 school year.  The board is not reconsidering that decision.

The school board is making plans for budget and facility decisions for the 2011-2012 school year.  The nation’s, state’s and our district’s financial situations continue to be a challenge and our Board must plan for our financial future.  The board has an obligation to keep the district financially solvent and therefore must examine all possibilities.

New Track

Just wanted to provide some information about the new track.  The six lane track is 400 meters and has all running events marked on it and will make a great place for our teams to practice.  The track was used by our track teams this spring and is available for the public to use.  We do have some rules, we would ask that no bikes, skates, or motorized vehicles be on the track.  We are attempting to keep the track open for public use but we have already had some vandalism on the sidewalks.

We have had one issue with the track.  The outside lane is narrower than the other five lanes.  This does not affect regular running events as runners run to the inside of the lane.  What it does affect is when we place hurdles on that lane.  There is not support for the outside leg of the hurdle.  The other issue is the taxpayers are paying for and expect a full width track.  How is this issue solved?  The present solution is to place a six inch wide concrete curb around the outside of the track, level with the rubber surface.  This creates a surface for the hurdles to stand on.  This is a positive in that the curb will protect the integrity of the outside edge of the track for many years.  For example, it would be like an asphalt roadway that does not have curbing.  The outside edge of the road begins to crumble  over time depending on traffic.

BHS math students fare well

Every year in April, some Baldwin High School students travel to Pittsburg State University to compete for the top spot in Trigonomety, Geometry and many other math subjects.

Each school can enter a student in up to three events, and each team relay event must have at least four members. These events consist of a timed written test, which is graded by the school’s class sponsors.

Students in the honors classes are allowed to sign up a few weeks before the event. Those students who choose to participate are allowed to sign up for events of their choosing.

“They must love math,” sophomore Kole Young said.

Teachers are attempting to support students who wish to participate in these math competitions.

“I think there are excellent opportunities with math days. The problem is the times conflict with students playing sports,” teacher Mike Curran said

Students from BHS show up to school around 7 a.m. Then group of students travel three hours to Pittsburg University.

Many of the participants believe it’s worth the long drive.

“It’s kind of nice to go out there and see how you rank against other students around the state,” sophomore Louis Joslyn said.

Nearly a thousand students pile into seminar rooms and take their tests, but few find their names on the boards at the end of the day.  The winners from BHS were Clint Chapman, Colby Soden, Shaleia BeerBower and Myeong Hyeon Jeong.

Story by Clint Chapman, BHS Journalism

LINK Leaders announced

The LINK program, which will begin next school year at BHS, has announced its LINK Leaders after many students applied to the program.

The 2010-11 female LINK Leaders will be: Karlee Beach, Alison Berg, Ramie Burkhart, Tayler Christian, Sarah Cigard, Lakyn Clark, Kendra Hedges, Erin Jansen, Heather Karlin, Madelynn Knisley, Claire Peterson, Maddison Phillips, Elizabeth Sigvaldson, and Ann Wallsmith.

The 2010-11 male LINK Leaders will be Jesse Austin, Brandon Baltzell, Shawn Berndt, Trevor Bruce, Clint Chapman, Ethan Horne, Louis Joslyn, Jake Mindez, John Robbs, Ryan Rogers, Will Simmons, Colby Soden, Aaron Vajnar, and Brian Wright.

Sponsors of the group are BHS counselor Melody Hoffsommer, and Science teachers Nikki Burnett and Melissa Strother.