Q: I’ve heard that BV Schools may cut its 5th-Grade Strings program. This is terrible! 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗜 𝗱𝗼 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝘀𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀?! A: We completely agree that 5th-Grade Strings is a valuable program. (Some of our own kids have participated over the years.) Parents are right to be concerned about cutting it. The BV School Board has NOT made a decision on the program - or any possible cuts - yet. But what they HAVE made clear - and what BV parents need to kn

School Board members and district Superintendents from all 6 Johnson County school districts made a plea this week to BV-area legislators: 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗘𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻. (That is, to the legislators who attended the invitation - see below.) They distributed the attached handout which explains: In 2024-2025, districts transferred $1397 𝙋𝙀𝙍 𝙎𝙏𝙐𝘿𝙀𝙉𝙏 out of their general funds to cover excess Special Education costs Total Base State Aid per Pupil = $5378 (b

Budget cuts are coming to Blue Valley - unless the Kansas Legislature fully funds Special Education. This weekend we’re urging our members to email ALL Blue Valley-area legislators to ask for their support in fully funding our neighborhood schools, by fully funding excess Special Education costs. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗻 if KsLeg does NOT fund SpEd? BV Schools has recently announced that it will have to 𝗰𝘂𝘁 $𝟭𝟬 𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 from the 2026-27 budget

We highly recommend this recent podcast from Blue Valley Schools. Taking a walk? On your daily commute? Doing laundry? Take a listen! Search “BV Unmuted” wherever you get your podcasts. Link below to listen on your mobile device or laptop. In this episode, BV Schools Superintendent Dr. Gillian Chapman is joined by Board members Jan Kessinger and Clay Norkey, along with Chief Financial Officer Jeremy McFadden, to discuss the district's 2026 Legislative priorities. Like every y

Blue Valley Schools’ operating budget, which provides funding for class sizes, teacher pay, availability of specials classes, and many other factors that impact BV students, is determined by the Kansas Legislature. The 2026 KsLeg session starts tomorrow, Mon., Jan. 12. KsLeg is required by law to fund 92% of excess Special Education costs - that is, the excess money it takes to educate students with IEPs (gifted and disability). But did you know that KsLeg has actually FAILE

We’ve compiled news excerpts detailing the state budget approved by the KsLeg March 27, along with our comments. Links to each news article are listed at the bottom of this post. Kansas lawmakers last week passed a budget that would put the state roughly $460 million in debt by 2028.  When coupled with the   five-year, $2 billion slash to income taxes  from last year’s special session, and assorted new legislation that would deliver tax cuts, the state would be an estimated $

Despite having enough revenue to do so, the Kansas Legislature has refused for years to fully fund excess Special Education costs - which they are mandated to do by state law to 92% of excess costs. What does that mean for Blue Valley students, teachers, and schools? In short: Schools are NOT fully funded. This impacts every BV student, whether or not they receive SPED services. During the current school year alone, Blue Valley has transferred $25 million from their General

More than 18% of Blue Valley students receive SpEd services - that’s much higher than the state average. The law calls for the state to reimburse 92% of the excess costs the district incurs - that is, costs over and above that of students who don’t get SpEd services. But the legislature has ignored this responsibility for years, and is currently only reimbursing 63%. This year, the difference is $12 million in Blue Valley. That means thdistrict must pull $12 MILLION from gene

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