Volume 3, Issue 7

USD 398 District Newsletter

Warrior Times

Peabody-Burns

Board of Education

Julia Ensminger—Pres.

Bruce Burke—V. Pres

Shayla Clark

Terry Eberhard

Travis Foth

Glendon Parks

Tony Zappone

Information on the

current status of the Kan-

sas Budget

2

Valentine Day Care Op-

portunity

3

PBES Bingo & Reading

Article

4

Principally Speaking 5

Counselor’s Corner &

Calendar Updates

6

Upcoming Events 7

PBES Happenings 8

Lunch Calendar 9

PBES Spelling Bee 10

Free Parenting Class 11

Adventure Club 12

Adventure Club Order

Form

13

2nd Grade & 5th Grade

Articles

14

Bullying Article 15

PBMSHS Music News 16

Inside this

issue:

Can there be any more craziness with

everything surrounding the state’s

financial woes? If the state was as re-

sponsible with its budget and spend-

ing as USD 398 and school districts

everywhere, we would not have issues

of maintaining constitutional laws

concerning its funding of public

schools.

Last year about this time the board

was discussing passing a bond issue

that would focus on taking care of fa-

cilities, HVAC, security, and technolo-

gy that would meet this district’s long-

term needs. After much discussion the

board elected to establish a 5 year

plan with current and look for a 3 mill

increase for 2015-16. In meeting its

responsibilities to this district’s tax

payers they chose to look long term

rather than a quick fix, keeping the

option of lowering mills rather than

being set for 5 years.

Presently Kansas law provides local

boards the authority to establish a

Local Option Budget (LOB) that is up

to 30% of the General Budget without

a vote from the public. The LOB for

USD 398 is a supplemental operation-

al budget consisting of local property

taxes and state aid. The LOB and

General fund are used to pay for daily

operations of the school district. Last

year when the board considered a

bond to address district needs, the

state passed SB2506 allowing local

boards of education to raise the cap on

the LOB from 30% to 33% last July.

The board wisely has waited until this

spring to address it with voters. Why?

Mainly because of the timing with the

large district mill levy drop in the

2015-16 school year.

HB2506 was passed in an attempt by

the Kansas Legislature and governor

to equalize funding for public schools

in response to the Kansas Supreme

Court’s ruling on school funding equity.

The high court ruled school funding equity

is a constitutionally guaranteed right for

public school students. The outcome of

this ruling resulted in a reduction on local

property taxes.

Keeping the LOB at 30% has not generat-

ed any increase in operational dollars for

USD 398 while lowering property taxes.

Giving the board the authority to raise the

LOB to 33% will generate more revenue

and state aid dollars for the district while

local property taxes are reduced more.

Even with the 3% increase, USD 398 is set

for a 15% drop in property tax mills be-

tween this year and next year. The im-

portant point to remember here is that

only by passing approval of a 3% increase

in March can USD 398 meet increases in

operating costs.

In the past two years USD 398 has cut its

automotive program, reduced its instruc-

tors by 4, cut an administrative position,

and reduced support staff. The district has

cut spending in areas of service and pur-

chasing all in the efforts to meet the state

cut-backs to our district. The board has

been fiscally responsible in meeting dis-

trict needs.

In the next month I will have a couple of

meetings to provide more in-depth

information to the public concerning the

mail-in ballot approving the board to go

from 30% to 33% LOB authority, and the

reasoning behind it.

I will be sending out information in Febru-

ary concerning these meetings as well as

updates concerning state decisions affect-

ing district funds. I hope that you take the

opportunity to attend and visit with me

concerning the ballot approval. At that

time I hope to provide any up-to-date in-

formation with what’s going on with legis-

lative actions concerning the current eco-

nomic issues we face.

From the Superintendent…..

February 2015

PAGE 2 USD 398 DISTRICT NEWSLETTER VOLUME 3, I SSUE 7

Valentine’s Day Daycare

Peabody Adventure club is sponsoring a date night childcare ser-

vice for Saturday February 14th.

Bring your kids to Peabody Burn High school from 5pm -9pm on Valentine’s

Day and enjoy an evening with your Valentine. This night will be supervised

by the club members, and sponsors Mr. Green, Mrs. Partridge and Ms Claas-

sen. We are planning to have activities for the children such has basketball,

board games, movies, nail painting etc. The cost is $10 a child and will help

fund the Adventure Club Members trip to Colorado this summer.

Childs name ____________________________________________

Age ____________________________________________

Parent name __________________________________________

Parents phone number_____________________________________

Secondary Contact name and number

___________________________________________________________

Please have money and form returned to school by Friday January 30th. If

you have any questions please contact Mr. Green or Mrs. Partridge at 620-

983-2196.

PAGE 3 USD 398 DISTRICT NEWSLETTER VOLUME 1, I SSUE 1 VOLUME 3, I SSUE 7

DRIVER EDUCATION CLASS INFORMATION: Before you know it, it will be that time of year again when incoming freshmen and those high school students who have not taken Driver Ed will be beginning Driver Ed. classes. Sign-Up sheets are being taken care of by Mr. Simmonds. Enrollment fees are $202 for those students residing in USD 398 during the 2014-2015 school year. Non-District students wanting to take drivers education will be charged $302. Classes will be held on May 15, 18-22, 26-29, 2015. These ten classroom dates will be the only time classroom instruction is given. Students will need to be in attendance each day with no absences or they will have to take driver education next year. Payment will need to be made in full before starting the classes. If you are planning on your child taking driver ed. classes, you can start making payments ahead of time. Just contact Lisa Burnett in the HS office and set up your payment plan.

Celebrate! Monday, March 2, 2015

“Oh, the Places You'll Go when you read!. March 2, 2015 is NEA's Read Across America Day and

this year, the book is the Seuss classic, Oh, The Places You'll Go.” Take the time to sit down and

read some classic Seuss with your young students, they’ll love the time and you will be fostering

the joy of reading!

How can you celebrate?

Turn off the television and read Dr. Seuss or another favorite children’s author to your

child.

Show your student where the “funnies” are in the newspaper and then share your

favorite.

Hold a conversation with your student about what they read in school that day.

Download a children’s book onto your Kindle, Nook or e-reader device and share a book

and technology with your child.

Check out one of these children’s internet sites with your child:

www.lexiacore5.com This is a reading program that we use daily at school. Have

your child use their login from school and show you what reading skills they have

been learning.

www.ixl.com This is a math site that we use to improve math skills.

Tweentribune.com is a news site for kids. This site can be used for children from

kindergarten through high school. You shouldn’t need a login to just read the

articles.

Whatever you do to mark this special day with your child remember:

“You’re never too old, too wacky, too wild, to pick up a book and read to a child.”

Mrs. Riggs

Title I Reading and Math

PAGE 4 USD 398 DISTRICT NEWSLETTER VOLUME 3, I SSUE 7

B there…..

On February 7, 2015, PBES PTO will be hosting Bingo Night. Bingo will begin at 6:00

pm and will go until 7:30 pm. Bingo games and prizes are free to those who attend. We

will have a concession stand available, with snacks and drinks to purchase. All are wel-

come to attend this event, we simply ask that children be accompanied by an adult. As an

added bonus, we will be doing a Book Fair preview from 4:45-5:45, before the Bingo event.

Families may purchase items at this time or just browse before anyone else. We look for-

ward to seeing you on February 7th!!!!

the National Assessment of Edu-cational Progress (NAEP). This is a nationally monitored test that compares our 8th graders to other 8th graders across the state and nation. Our seniors will be taking the CPASS. The Career Pathways Assessment System (cPass) offers a way to measure high school students' readiness for postsecondary education or entry into the workforce. Rather than focusing on academic skills alone, cPass also measures the

knowledge and skills needed for specific career pathways. With a mix of multiple choice ques-tions, technology enhanced items, and performance based tasks, cPass measures skills both in the classroom and in real-world situation These assessments given assist us in helping our students gain-ing the knowledge and skills necessary to be successful in life after high school. We realize that many students should begin the transition from high school well before they receive their diploma. Some hold paid or vol-unteer jobs where they learn re-sponsibility by showing up on time and carrying out duties as-signed. Some of our students have been responsible for their own welfare while others have already received acceptance let-

What is the purpose of high school? In my opinion, our pur-pose here at Peabody-Burns Middle School/High School is to prepare our students for life after high school. Some of our stu-dents will go directly into the workforce, while others may go ahead and receive some post sec-ondary training of some sort. Some of our students will enter the military, while others enroll in four year colleges and univer-sities.

Trying to prepare students for life after school and to be able to meet them where they are is a daunting task. One of the ways that we help make educational decisions for our students is by using a variety of assessments. As you know, in October our freshmen and sophomores were given the ACT Aspire. In Feb-ruary, we will give our sopho-mores as well as a few other stu-dents, the Work Force assess-ment. This is given to assess students in the area of Career and Technical readiness for those students who may want to enter the workforce or receive additional technical education, including the health fields. In addition, we have two other assessments given to a select group of students this month. Our 8th graders will participate in

ters from colleges and universi-ties. However, some of our high school students have spent 12 years in schools that have made most of their decisions for them. These students are often unpre-pared for postsecondary academ-ic learning environments and the world of work. Moving from this structured and contained envi-ronment of the high school to situations in which they conse-quences for their own decisions is a very difficult move. That is the reason that more and more responsibility is placed on our students as they advance throughout our system. We real-ize that it is very difficult to jug-gle school work, home life, and activities. However, isn’t that what will be expected of them as they leave our school? Our in-tent is to give students a little more responsibility each year, so that upon leaving PBHS, the transition into a postsecondary experience is not overwhelming. It is my hope that we can pro-vide an opportunity for ALL stu-dents in Peabody-Burns Middle School/High School where our students can, as shared in our district mission statement, devel-op into productive citizens and become lifelong learners.

Principally Speaking…...Mr. Parry

PAGE 5 USD 398 DISTRICT NEWSLETTER VOLUME 3, I SSUE 7

“Our mission is to train those who will grow up

to be the adults of tomorrow, those who will

live in the world we will leave behind as a

legacy, a world they will have to keep shaping

and constructing on and on. Their success will

also be ours.” ~ Christian Guellerin

Protecting public

education in Kansas

through community

participation

gameonforkansasschools.com

PAGE 6 USD 398 DISTRICT NEWSLETTER VOLUME 3, I SSUE 7

Counselor’s Corner Katie Fooshee kfooshee@usd398.com 620-983-2196

www.peabody-burnscounselorinfo.weebly.com

$AVE THE DATE FEBRUARY 22, 2015

COLLEGE GOAL SUNDAY YOU CAN VISIT www.CollegeGoal.org for more information

The FAFSA is available at https://fafsa.ed.gov/ and the deadline to submit it is

APRIL 1st, 2015

Kansas Low Income Energy Assistance Program (LIEAP) The Kansas Low Income Energy Assistance Program (LIEAP) is Federally funded program that helps eligible households pay a portion of their home energy costs. Benefit levels vary according to the following factors: 1) Household income, 2) number of persons living at the address, 3) type of dwelling, 4) type of heating fuel, and 5) utility rates. In order to qualify for this benefit program, you must be a resident of the state of Kansas and you must need financial assistance for energy costs. Visit http://www.dcf.ks.gov/services/ees/Pages/Energy/EnergyAssistance.aspx

For more information or contact the LIEAP Program Manager at 785-368-8122.

Access to the online application is found at http://www.dcf.ks.gov/services/ees/Pages/Application-for-benefits.aspx or see Katie Fooshee at PBMSHS.

USD 398 Calendar Changes/Updates

Feb. 7th ~ PBHS Forensics Tournament @ Herington

Feb. 11th ~ Marion County Spelling Bee @ Centre Schools at 10 a.m.

Feb. 12th ~ PBHS Forensics Tournament @ Marion

Feb. 28th ~ PBHS Forensics Tournament @ Centre HS

Mar. 10th ~ MS WSL Music Festival @ PBMSHS instead of the 11th

~ No School for 6-12 students, except MS Music students

Mar. 26th ~ PBHS Forensics Tournament @ Derby

Apr. 11th ~ PBHS Forensics Tournament @ Buhler

PAGE 7 USD 398 DISTRICT NEWSLETTER VOLUME 3, I SSUE 7

Book Fair Sneek Peek

February 7th 4:45-5:45

~Before Bingo Night

The PBES Book Fair week will be

February 9th-13th

February 12th the Book Fair will

be open to the public 5:00—7:30 pm

129th Groundhog Day Pancake Breakfast

February 7th 7 am—1 pm

Senior Center

By Donation Grants Awarded at 10 am

Proceeds go to the Peabody Community

foundation for projects in Peabody

USD 398 Parent & Patron Survey

Due to a lack of response, the district survey has been extended to

February 11th. PLEASE go online and complete the survey. This is im-

portant for the Board and Administration in its role to continue to grow

and serve the student needs at USD 398.

This survey is administered electronically and allows participants easy access to the information.

All you have do to participate is go to the following web site;

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/RV9229Y

continues.

Try to understand the reasons

behind your child's behavior. In

some cases, kids bully because

they have trouble managing

strong emotions like anger, frus-

tration, or insecurity. In other cas-

es, kids haven't learned coopera-

tive ways to work out conflicts

and understand differences.

Adults can help by letting all kids

know that teasing and making fun

is never OK — that it is unkind,

unfair, and hurtful.

Still, many kids will experience

occasional teasing, and it can be

difficult for them to handle. Kids

with a personal or physical differ-

ences can be easy targets because

the differences are so visible.

Kids who get teased

may need help know-

ing how to respond.

Encourage your child

to tell you if he gets

teased. Calmly listen

and show him that

you understand his

feelings. Then talk

together about some

ways he can deal with

it if it happens again.

Sometimes behavior

between students

does not allow a clear

understanding as to

“who did what”, and

“where it started”.

When this happens it

creates feelings that

the problem is not

being dealt with. But

trust me, the individ-

uals who work with

the kids all day long

have a pretty good

idea what’s going on

and have a handle on

Once again February is shaping up

to be a busy month at Peabody-

Burns Elementary School with

many exciting things going on in

and outside the classrooms.

As the year progresses, activities

are limited to indoor activities, and

interactions are strained. Some-

times bullying behavior manifests

itself more than usual.

Bullying exists in every school in

some form or another. At PBES we

take bullying seriously. We consider

the safety of our children the up-

most priority Teaching these com-

petencies and skills to them is one

of the ways to empower them to

take the necessary action to stop

bullying. Working together , we can

create a safe, caring and respectful

school climate, one that provides an

optimal learning environment.

Kids bully for many reasons. Some

bully because they feel insecure.

Picking on someone who seems

emotionally or physically weaker

provides a feeling of being more im-

portant, popular, or in control. In

other cases, kids bully because they

simply don't know that it's unac-

ceptable to pick on kids who are

different because of size, looks,

race, or religion.

Some kids who bully at school and

in settings with their peers are cop-

ying behavior that they see at

home. Kids who are exposed to ag-

gressive and unkind interactions in

the family often learn to treat oth-

ers the same way. And kids who are

on the receiving end of taunting

learn that bullying can translate

into control over children they per-

ceive as weak.

Let your child know that bullying is

unacceptable and that there will be

serious consequences at home,

school, and in the community if it

the situation...no matter what the

child sometimes say,

On page 15 is a tip sheet for your

benefit. We hope that you join us as

we strive for safe learning environ-

ment at PBES.

As with everything, we try to make

everything a “learning experience”.

As we teach our students their aca-

demics studies we also teach toler-

ance, good behavior, compassion ,

and response.

The students recite this PBES

Creed each morning before the

Pledge of Allegiance;

I will respect myself and others. I

will do my best to learn”

PBES Happenings by Ron Traxson

PAGE 8 USD 398 DISTRICT NEWSLETTER VOLUME 3, I SSUE 7

PAGE 9 USD 398 DISTRICT NEWSLETTER VOLUME 1, I SSUE 1 VOLUME 3, I SSUE 7

WSL Honor Band

Br

avi

ng

the

Ele

The Warrior Times can be found on-line In Color at

http://www.usd398.net/district-newsletter/

Peabody-Burns Elementary held the annual school spelling

bee on Friday, January 23rd. Twenty-one students from 4th

and 5th grades earned the right to represent their classrooms

in the spelling bee.

Contestants were:

Jeremy Sears, Anthony

Huls, Alex Young, Hayli

Newman, Johnathan

Glover, Justin Holt,

Alexis Davis, Spicher,

Jefferson Glover, Sophie

Coover, Ciara Frye, Hel-

en Henry, Sarah Spen-

cer, Kaleb Erlich, Noal

Reynolds, Analiyah

Torres, Lukas Spencer,

Blake Percival, Kael

Hutchison. Not in the

picture; Weston McFall,

Mason Schreiber &

Philip Young

After a great competition from the field, Jonathan Glover spelled

the word, “novelist” correctly to become the champion speller.

Justin Holt placed second in the school spelling bee. Our third

place winner was Alexis Davis. These top two spellers will rep-

resent PBES in the Marion County Spelling Bee. The alternate

will participate if one of the

others is not able to do so.

The Marion County Spelling Bee is on

Wednesday, February 11th at 10:00am

at Centre Elementary - Centre

Schools. The public is invited to

attend, but visitors are asked to be seated by 10:00am

so that the bee may start on time.

PBES holds annual spelling bee

PAGE 10 USD 398 DISTRICT NEWSLETTER VOLUME 3, I SSUE 7

Former USD 398 superintendent John Glover

was in attendance for his grandson’s win.

PAGE 11 USD 398 DISTRICT NEWSLETTER VOLUME 1, I SSUE 1 VOLUME 3, I SSUE 7

PAGE 12 USD 398 DISTRICT NEWSLETTER VOLUME 3, I SSUE 7

PBHS Adventure Club

February 2014

Peabody-Burns Adventure Club

February 2015

“It is our belief that bicycling provides a means to nurture physical and emotional health, develop a lifelong

healthy lifestyle and create fun.”

It’s hard to believe that we are already two months into 2015. The New Year has come and is moving right along.

The Adventure Club would like to say thank you to everyone who bought burritos and supported the club in their first

fundraiser for the school year. It is only with your support and encouragement the club can continue teaching and shar-

ing a healthy lifestyle to our young people through mountain biking and other adventure based activities. A lifestyle they

can take with them as they venture on in their lives.

We appreciate all you do for us as you invest in the future of our young people. They are worth every dollar you have in-

vested.

The Adventure Club is now taking orders for Adventure Club shirts and hoodies. The shirts/hoodies have a cool design

this year which represents both the school as Peabody-Burns Warriors and the club as a mountain biking club. To en-

courage safety while riding your bike, the color is Safety Yellow. But, for those of you who might not want yellow, we are

offering this year other colors you can pick from.

For example:

a. Light blue

b. Orange

c. Light Green

d. Royal Blue

We hope to have the color chart available soon.

The cost this year is:

T-Shirt: $15.00

Hoodie: $25.00

Long Sleeve T-Shirt: $18.00

Short Sleeve Performance Shirt: $20.00

If interested, please feel free to contact one of the club kids, club

sponsors, or myself. Call the school at 620-983-2196 and ask for Mr. Green (Gene). I will make sure your order is taken.

Orders are to be in no later than February 19th.

Our Spring Fling Golf Tournament this year is April 11th. The Adventure Club’s goal this year is to have no less

than twenty (20) teams participating in the tournament. The tournament is a 4-man scramble. Start thinking about who

you want to be on your team and plan on being with us. Mark the date on your calendar. APRIL 11th!!!

Also coming up, the club is sponsoring a Valentine’s Day Daycare. This is a date night childcare service for Saturday,

February 14th. From 5:00pm to 9:00pm. The club watches and cares for your children while you and your sweetheart

go out and have an enjoyable and romantic evening with no distractions. The night will be supervised by the club mem-

bers, and sponsors Mr. Green, Mrs. Partridge, Mr. Savage, and Ms. Claassen.

We are planning to have activities for the children such as basketball, board games, and movies, nail painting, etc. The

cost is $10.00 a child. The funds raised will go towards helping the club with their adventure trip to Colorado this sum-

mer.

The club kids and the sponsors thank you again for all your support. We are so glad you are a part of our adventures.

PBHS Adventure Club – The only high school club of its kind in Kansas!

View the newsletter online to see the colors

PAGE 13 USD 398 DISTRICT NEWSLETTER VOLUME 3, I SSUE 7

PAGE 14 USD 398 DISTRICT NEWSLETTER VOLUME E, I SSUE 7

By The …… Awesome Virtual Field Trips

What is a virtual field trip? We followed someone on our chrome-

books that is a virtual field trip. It is cool because we stayed in our class-

room looked at pictures of geese and traveled with a former student of

Peabody-Burns to Israel.

Here are awesome facts about geese.

Did you know that Canadian Geese and Snow Geese don’t mix? Geese only land if they see a

lot of other geese on the ground. In a field can be thousands of geese. Blue Geese and Ross

Geese can be with Snow Geese. Geese are fun to watch!

Here are some facts we learned about Israel.

Camels and donkeys are used for transportation. Palestinians drink water out of the black bar-

rels. Israelites drink water out of the white barrels. There are no sidewalks. The streets go

straight up to the buildings. Did you know that a church is around Mary’s house? Israel is an

old country. There is a boat in Israel that is 2,000 years old.

It was fun to go to Israel and look at pictures of geese. It was awesome, cool, exciting, and

a different way to learn!

5th Grade News

The 5th graders attended their second

performance of the Wichita Symphony

Orchestra at Century I I on Thursday,

January 29. This was an amazing expe-

rience for the students to see and hear.

The Symphony was joined by a group,

Time for Three(Tf3), who played several

entertaining selections for the audience.

The group included two violinists and a

double-bassist dressed in blue jeans, t-

shirts and Converse. One student next

to me said, "They remind me of a garage

band". They are the equivalent of a gar-

age band who has played at Carnegie

Hall, Indianapolis Colts games, the Indy 500, Yoshi's in San Francisco, on the US Intrepid aircraft carrier, in

New York Harbor, and have teamed with Kanye West to produce an anti bullying video.

This kind of field trip experience is meaningful for our students in many ways. They not only are able to hear mu-

sic that awakens theirs senses, but they also are introduced first hand to new instruments and questions that

might not have surfaced in the regular classroom setting. As I close I'd like to share several of the comments and

questions I heard from my 5th graders as we took part in the glorious Wichita Symphony for Young People's Con-

cert last Thursday. One of the students noticed the director for the Symphony was the same as our last visit in

October, Daniel Hege. I told the student he went to Bethel College, North Newton, Kansas, the same college I

attended. The student's response, "But he's a professional? " This came from the same student who, in

class, described a scientist as "a man". Again, the experiences we provide in the classroom and outside of the

classroom are meaningful and influential.

PAGE 15 USD 398 DISTRICT NEWSLETTER VOLUME 3, I SSUE 7

PEABODY-BURNS USD 398

506 Elm

Peabody, KS 66866

Postal Patron

Non-Profit Org. U.S. POSTAGE

Permit No. 5 Peabody, KS

♪ Music Department February News ♫ It’s a busy month for the Peabody-Burns Music Department. We would love to see you at any or

all of the following events!

February 1st- Prairie Winds Music Festival Concert featuring four PBHS band students at

the Lied Center in Lawrence at 12:30pm.

February 2nd- Head over to McPherson College to see our Juniors and Seniors perform with

other Kansas Band Students at the Wheat State League Honor Band Concert at 7pm.

February 5th Voices Dinner Theatre Committee Meeting- Interested in helping plan Dinner

Theatre? Meet us at 6pm in the PBHS cafeteria to help plan the menu, set-up and decora-

tions!

February 13th Singing Valentines- Choose a song and have it sung to your favorite someone

by Voices! And don’t worry, we deliver. Chocolate, Candy and Flowers will also be available.

February 15th Wichita Thunder- Support the PBHS Band and buy $12 tickets to the game

and come early to see the pep band perform before the puck drops at 5:05 pm!

February 28th Voices Dinner Theatre- Join us at 7pm in the Brown Gymnasium for dinner

and a show! The menu will be announced shortly and you can buy your tickets ($15 reserved,

$12 General) from any Voices member.

Also, thank you for your support in the Band Fruit Fundraiser before the holidays!

We made somewhere in the neighborhood of $1000! This money will go towards

supplies and sending students to concerts, contests and other festivals.