KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A bill to dissolve the Kansas City, Mo., School Board but keep the district intact has been introduced at the Missouri Legislature by Clay County state Rep. Myron Neth.
Rep. Neth, a House education committee member, said House Bill-2043 would replace the school board with a special administrative board. The five-person SAB would consist of three appointees by the Commissioner of Education and two named by the Kansas City mayor.
“It is time that the legislature steps in to stop the downward spiral that the Kansas City School District has been on for decades”, Neth said in a news release. “Although there is no silver bullet, I believe a change in governance of the district is the right first step towards positive change for students and families.”
The Kansas City School District lost its accreditation in January after years of poor academic performance. As a solution to the problem, Mayor Sly James recommended the city, rather than the state, take over the district.
A spokesman for Mayor James tells Fox 4 News the bill is just the latest of many seeking changes in the Kansas City school district. “It may or may not get a hearing,” said Danny Rotert, an aide to Mayor James. Rotert says the mayor is not available today for comment on the proposal.
Troubled schools within the district would be turned into charter schools and supervised by an entity hired to run them independently, while performing schools would be supervised by the special administrative board.
The bill is unlikely to pass this session, which ends in May.
On Tuesday, voters will choose four Kansas City School Board members in the election.
