Wichita Public Schools, Kansas

Wichita Public Schools
Wichita, Kansas
District details
Superintendent: Kelly Bielefeld
# of school board members: 7
Website: Link

Wichita Public Schools is a school district in Kansas.

Click on the links below to learn more about the school district's...

• Superintendent
• School board
• Elections
• Budget
• Teacher salaries
• Academic performance
• Students
• Staff
• Schools
• Contact information

Superintendent

This information is updated as we become aware of changes. Please contact us with any updates.

Kelly Bielefeld is the superintendent of Wichita Public Schools. Bielefeld was appointed superintendent on in March 2023 and started serving on July 1, 2023. Bielefeld's previous career experience includes working in the district as an executive director of college and career readiness.

Past superintendents

• Alicia Thompson was the superintendent of Wichita Public Schools from July 1, 2017 until June 2023. Thompson's previous career experience includes working as a teacher and as a district-level administrator.
• John Allison was the superintendent of Wichita Public Schools from 2009 to 2017. Allison's previous career experience included working as the superintendent of the Mt. Lebanon School District in Pennsylvania and as deputy superintendent of the Grapevine-Colleyville ISD in Texas.

School board

The Wichita Public Schools Board of Education consists of seven members elected to four-year terms. Six board members are elected by district, and one is elected at large.

Office	Name	Date assumed office
Wichita Public Schools, At-large	Melody McCray-Miller	January 8, 2024
Wichita Public Schools, District 1	Diane Albert	January 10, 2022
Wichita Public Schools, District 2	Julie Hedrick	January 8, 2018
Wichita Public Schools, District 3	Ngoc Vuong	January 8, 2024
Wichita Public Schools, District 4	Stan Reeser	2017
Wichita Public Schools, District 5	Kathy Bond	January 10, 2022
Wichita Public Schools, District 6	Hazel Stabler	January 10, 2022

Elections

See also: Wichita Public Schools, Kansas, elections

Board members are elected on a staggered basis in November of odd-numbered years.

Prior to 2017, school board elections were held in the spring of odd-numbered years, with primaries in February and general elections in April. House Bill 2104, signed into law on June 8, 2015, changed all school board election dates to November of odd-numbered years.

Four seats on the board are up for general election on November 4, 2025. A primary was scheduled for August 5, 2025. Primaries were canceled if less than three times the number of open seats plus one candidate filed. The filing deadline for this election was June 2, 2025.

Ballotpedia covered school board elections in 367 school districts in 29 states in 2024. Those school districts had a total student enrollment of 12,203,404 students. Click here to read an analysis of those elections.

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Public participation in board meetings

The Wichita Public Schools Board of Education maintains the following policy on public testimony during board meetings:

“

10. Public Comment: Speaking Privilege of Non-members a. KOMA does not require the Board to take public comment, though the Board recognizes the importance of allowing public comment. b. Public comment will be allowed only at Regular Meetings and Special Meetings. Public comment at a Regular Meeting must be addressed to agenda items or topics that are within the jurisdiction of the Board generally. Public comment at a Special Meeting will be limited to the topics identified in the meeting notice. c. Public comment shall be limited to ten (10) speakers at any meeting. Speakers will address the Board at the podium or other place in the meeting room designated by the presiding officer. d. All speakers will address the Board during the Public Comment section of the agenda. e. Registering for Public Comment i. A member of the public who desires to address the Board must register with the Clerk of the Board not later than noon on the day of the Regular Meeting, or else by speaking to the Clerk at the site of the meeting not less than ten (10) minutes prior to the beginning of the meeting. Members of the public who wish to address the Board must provide their name, address, phone number (if available), and identify the topic of their comments. Speakers will not be allowed to register by proxy, except as an ADA/Section 504 accommodation. Unless specified in the meeting agenda or meeting notice, the privilege of addressing the Board will be limited to district stakeholders. ii. If an elementary or middle school student wishes to address the Board, both the student and their parent/guardian must register, and the parent/guardian must accompany the student to the Board meeting. iii. At the time of registration, speakers will be notified that their comments should be limited to the registered topic and should not include personnel matters and/or issues that would violate the privacy of students. iv. Speakers who wish to provide Board members with handouts must bring twelve (12) copies for the Clerk to distribute to Board members. v. Speakers are limited to three (3) minutes, which time limit will be enforced by the presiding officer. Speakers will be taken on a first come, first serve basis until the maximum is reached. Persons who registered with the Clerk’s office prior to noon on the day of the Board meeting will have their names, addresses, and topics listed on the agenda published on the district website. vi. When several members of one group or organization wish to speak to the Board concerning a specific topic, the group shall appoint a spokesperson to conserve time. vii. The Board of Education will not permit attacks by public speakers on the personal integrity, character, or competency of any employee or student of USD 259. Speakers shall maintain an appropriate level of decorum, courtesy, and professionalism in their comments to the Board. viii: Any speaker who has previously failed to conform to the requirements of this policy, or whose statements, conduct, or other circumstances suggest that they may disrupt the orderly conduct of a Board meeting, may be barred from addressing the Board. f. Other communication to the Board i. Members of the public may contact Board members using contact information available on the district website, phone directories, or from the Clerk of the Board’s office. Anonymous messages submitted to district employees will not be forwarded to Board members. 11. Interference with the Conduct of Public Business at Board of Education Meetings a. Persons attending Board meetings shall not interfere with orderly conduct of the meeting. Prohibited interference includes, without limitation, any activity that impedes, disrupts, or hinders the conduct of any meeting, such as unsolicited comments or remarks, heckling, stamping of feet, whistling, clapping, yells, or exclamations of approbation or disapproval. Board security may remove any person whose conduct interferes with a Board meeting.

”

District map

School district map

Budget

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.

• Revenue
• Expenditures

Revenue, 2020-2021

SOURCE	AMOUNT	AMOUNT PER STUDENT	PERCENT
Federal:	$70,949,000	$1,513	10%
Local:	$135,087,000	$2,880	18%
State:	$539,479,000	$11,501	72%
Total:	$745,515,000	$15,893

Expenditures, 2020-2021

TYPE	AMOUNT	AMOUNT PER STUDENT	PERCENT
Total Expenditures:	$710,798,000	$15,153
Total Current Expenditures:	$637,307,000	$13,586
Instructional Expenditures:	$355,770,000	$7,584	50%
Student and Staff Support:	$96,748,000	$2,062	14%
Administration:	$72,776,000	$1,551	10%
Operations, Food Service, Other:	$112,013,000	$2,387	16%
Total Capital Outlay:	$57,761,000	$1,231
Construction:	$23,797,000	$507
Total Non El-Sec Education & Other:	$0	$0
Interest on Debt:	$15,722,000	$335

Teacher salaries

The following salary information was pulled from the district's teacher salary schedule. A salary schedule is a list of expected compensations based on variables such as position, years employed, and education level. It may not reflect actual teacher salaries in the district.

Year	Minimum	Maximum
2024-2025	$50,123	$78,719
2023-2024	$47,736	$74,971
2020-2021	$43,654	$68,559

Academic performance

Each year, state and local education agencies use tests and other standards to assess student proficiency. Although the data below was published by the U.S. Department of Education, proficiency measurements are established by the states. As a result, proficiency levels are not comparable between different states and year-over-year proficiency levels within a district may not be comparable because states may change their proficiency measurements.

• Mathematics
• Reading/language arts
• Graduation rates

The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:

School year	All (%)	Asian/Pacific Islander (%)	Black (%)	Hispanic (%)	Native American (%)	Two or More Races (%)	White (%)
2020-2021	12	32	4	8	10-14	11	19
2018-2019	18	42	8	12	15-19	17	28
2017-2018	19	42	8	13	15-19	18	28
2016-2017	20	46	9	14	10-14	21	30
2015-2016	20	45	9	14	10-14	21	30
2014-2015	20	46	9	14	14	21	29
2012-2013	66	85	52	61	65	67	74
2011-2012	71	89	58	67	72	71	79
2010-2011	71	86	58	67	71	71	79

The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:

School year	All (%)	Asian/Pacific Islander (%)	Black (%)	Hispanic (%)	Native American (%)	Two or More Races (%)	White (%)
2020-2021	20	40	10	15	15-19	19	30
2018-2019	23	41	12	16	20-24	23	35
2017-2018	23	40	12	15	15-19	26	35
2016-2017	24	41	12	17	15-19	27	36
2015-2016	27	43	14	19	20-24	31	39
2014-2015	27	47	15	20	23	30	38
2012-2013	72	84	61	66	71	74	82
2011-2012	75	86	64	68	76	75	84
2010-2011	77	86	67	70	80	81	85

The following table shows the graduation rate of district students each school year:

School year	All (%)	Asian/Pacific Islander (%)	Black (%)	Hispanic (%)	Native American (%)	Two or More Races (%)	White (%)
2019-2020	81	90-94	78	80	70-79	80-84	80
2018-2019	75	90-94	75	75	50-59	70-74	75
2017-2018	74	90-94	76	70	70-79	70-74	74
2016-2017	74	85-89	73	72	60-69	75-79	74
2015-2016	73	85-89	73	69	55-59	75-79	74
2014-2015	75	90-94	77	69	80-89	75-79	77
2013-2014	75	90-94	74	72	60-69	75-79	76
2012-2013	77	85-89	73	74	70-74	75-79	79
2011-2012	74	85-89	73	70	60-69	75-79	75
2010-2011	66	75-79	68	59	50-54	70-74	68

Students

• Enrollment
• Demographics

Year	Enrollment	Year-to-year change (%)
2022-2023	46,796	0.3
2021-2022	46,657	-0.5
2020-2021	46,908	-5.1
2019-2020	49,323	-1.1
2018-2019	49,885	-1.0
2017-2018	50,375	-0.4
2016-2017	50,600	-0.7
2015-2016	50,943	0.0
2014-2015	50,947	0.6
2013-2014	50,629	0.6
2012-2013	50,339	1.9
2011-2012	49,389	0.1
2010-2011	49,329	2.0
2009-2010	48,324	2.2
2008-2009	47,260	1.0
2007-2008	46,788	-0.3
2006-2007	46,938	-3.4
2005-2006	48,547	-0.4
2004-2005	48,737	-0.3
2003-2004	48,894	0.0
2002-2003	48,913	0.1
2001-2002	48,852	1.3
2000-2001	48,228	0.9
1999-2000	47,778	0.0

Racial Demographics, 2022-2023

RACE	Wichita Public Schools (%)	Kansas K-12 STUDENTS (%)
American Indian/Alaska Native	0.8	0.7
Asian or Asian/Pacific Islander	4.8	2.8
Black	19.5	6.7
Hispanic	37.0	21.5
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander	0.3	0.2
Two or More Races	8.1	6.2
White	29.7	61.9

Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Staff

• Teachers
• Administrators
• Other staff

As of the 2022-2023 school year, Wichita Public Schools had 4,462.97 full-time classroom teachers. The student-teacher ratio was 10.49.

Teachers, 2022-2023 school year

TYPE	NUMBER OF TEACHERS
Prekindergarten:	1,145.60
Kindergarten:	617.18
Elementary:	1,020.39
Secondary:	1,679.80
Total:	4,462.97

Wichita Public Schools employed 5.00 district administrators and 208.00 school administrators as of the 2022-2023 school year.

Administrators, 2022-2023 school year

TYPE	NUMBER OF ADMINISTRATORS
District Administrators:	5.00
District Administrative Support:	161.10
School Administrators:	208.00
School Administrative Support:	237.70

Other staff, 2022-2023 school year

TYPE	NUMBER OF OTHER STAFF
Instructional Aides:	950.70
Instruc. Coordinators & Supervisors:	241.23
Total Guidance Counselors:	142.60
Elementary Guidance Counselors:	0.00
Secondary Guidance Counselors:	0.00
Librarians/Media Specialists:	61.10
Library/Media Support:	11.40
Student Support Services:	576.50
Other Support Services:	765.60

Schools

Wichita Public Schools operates 88 schools. They are listed below in alphabetical order.

List of schools

SCHOOL NAME	NUMBER OF STUDENTS	GRADES
Adams Elem	377	PK-5
Allen Elem	472	PK-5
Allison Traditional Magnet Middle	557	6-8
Anderson Elem	471	PK-5
Beech Elem	480	PK-5
Benton Elem	290	PK-5
Black Traditional Magnet Elem	320	PK-5
Bostic Traditional Magnet Elem	294	KG-5
Brooks Magnet Middle School	534	6-8
Bryant Opportunity Academy	38	KG-5
Buckner Performing Arts Magnet Elem	348	PK-5
Caldwell Elem	412	PK-5
Cessna Elem	356	PK-5
Chisholm Life Skills Center	71	10-12
Chisholm Trail Elem	417	PK-5
Christa Mcauliffe Academy	863	PK-8
Clark Elem	258	PK-5
Cleaveland Traditional Magnet Elementary	262	PK-5
Cloud Elem	507	PK-5
Coleman Middle School	404	6-8
College Hill Elem	395	PK-5
Colvin Elem	602	PK-5
Curtis Middle School	828	6-8
Dodge Literacy Magnet	513	PK-5
Earhart Environ Magnet Elem	445	PK-5
East High	2,295	9-12
Education Imagine Academy	520	KG-12
Enders Stem And Leadership Magnet	403	PK-5
Enterprise Elem	419	PK-5
Franklin Elem	324	PK-5
Gammon Elem	428	PK-5
Gardiner Elem	403	PK-5
Gordon Parks Academy	396	PK-8
Griffith Elem	418	PK-5
Hadley Middle School	532	6-8
Hamilton Middle School	566	6-8
Harry Street Elem	339	PK-5
Heights High	1,292	9-12
Horace Mann Dual Language Magnet	613	KG-8
Hyde Intl Studies/Commun Elem Magnet	270	PK-5
Irving Elementary	312	PK-5
Isely Traditional Magnet Elem	626	PK-5
Jackson Elementary	338	PK-5
Jardine Technology Middle Magnet	516	6-8
Jefferson Elem	396	PK-5
Kelly Liberal Arts Academy	379	PK-5
Kensler Elem	503	PK-5
Lawrence Elem	363	PK-5
Levy Sp Ed Center	75	1-12
Linwood Elementary	428	PK-5
L'Ouverture Computer Technology Magnet	236	PK-5
Marshall Middle School	490	6-8
Mayberry Cultural And Fine Arts Magnet Middle	629	6-8
Mccollom Elem	321	PK-5
Mclean Science/Tech Magnet Elem	259	PK-5
Mead Middle School	543	6-8
Minneha Core Knowledge Elem	578	PK-5
Mueller Aerospace/Engineering Discovery Magne	299	PK-5
Northeast Magnet High School	630	9-12
North High	2,074	9-12
Northwest High	1,416	9-12
O K Elem	297	PK-5
Ortiz Elementary School	311	PK-5
Park Elementary	329	PK-5
Payne Elem	258	PK-5
Peterson Elem	354	PK-5
Pleasant Valley Elem	304	PK-5
Pleasant Valley Middle School	595	6-8
Price-Harris Communications Magnet	418	PK-5
Riverside Leadership Magnet Elementary	206	PK-5
Robinson Middle School	739	6-8
Seltzer Elem	492	PK-5
Southeast High	2,189	9-12
South High	1,632	9-12
Sowers Alternative High School	75	9-12
Spaght Multimedia Magnet	423	PK-5
Stanley Elem	380	PK-5
Stucky Middle School	585	6-8
Truesdell Middle School	981	6-8
Washington Accelerated Learning Elem	455	PK-5
Wells Alternative Middle School	29	6-8
West High	1,370	9-12
White Elem	417	PK-5
Wichita Alternative High	238	9-12
Wichita Learning Center	181	UG-UG
Wilbur Middle School	800	6-8
Woodland Health / Wellness Magnet Elem	323	PK-5
Woodman Elem	577	PK-5

Noteworthy events

2017: Kansas Supreme Court rules state underfunded public education

The Kansas Supreme Court ruled on October 2, 2017, that the Kansas State Legislature had not met its constitutional obligation to adequately and equitably fund public schools, echoing a March 2017 ruling from the same court that had required the state legislature to send more money to public schools. State lawmakers responded to that March 2017 ruling by a passing a bill that increased funding for the 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 school years by $293 million. The October 2017 ruling said that increase was not enough and directed lawmakers to craft a new education funding bill by June 30, 2018.

The October 2017 ruling found that the $293 million increase failed to meet the state constitution's requirement for public education. Article 6 states, “The legislature shall make suitable provision for finance of the educational interests of the state.” In earlier court decisions Article 6 was interpreted to require the state to provide funding to public schools that is adequate and equitable. The adequacy requirement calls for the state's education funding system to be "reasonably calculated to have all Kansas public education students meet or exceed the standards." Under the equity requirement, “School districts must have reasonably equal access to substantially similar educational opportunity through similar tax effort.”

The October 2017 ruling was the latest in a 20-year state battle over school finance, and it was the fifth time in three years that the Kansas Supreme Court determined the state legislature had underfunded public education. The case, Gannon v. Kansas, was filed by the Wichita, Hutchinson, Dodge City, and Kansas City school districts in November 2010.

Republican leadership in the state legislature issued a statement that condemned the court's ruling and called it an unrealistic demand. “This ruling shows clear disrespect for the legislative process and puts the rest of state government and programs in jeopardy,” the statement said.

Sen. Julia Lynn (R-9) said she believed there would “never, ever be enough money” to meet the court's satisfaction. “And unless somebody else has a better idea, we’re going to be doing this for the rest of our legislative lives, the Legislature will be fighting this,” said Lynn.

When the legislature was directed to pass a new education funding plan in March 2017, the court did not say how much education funding had to increase. Before the final bill was passed, Senate Minority Leader Anthony Hensley (D-19) said he believed drafts from both the Senate and House were inadequate. He proposed an increase of $420 million for two years, but it was rejected in a 23-16 vote.

When the bill was passed on June 6, 2017, the legislative session had been open for 108 days of what was scheduled to be a 100-day session. It was one of the longest sessions in the state's history. State lawmakers passed a bill to increase income taxes and end a tax exemption for farms and businesses on June 7, 2017, as part of a plan to fund the education increase and fill an $889 million budget shortfall. Gov. Sam Brownback (R) vetoed the tax bill, but both chambers of the legislature voted to override the veto with a two-thirds majority.

The justices allowed the education funding bill to take effect while they determined if it met constitutional requirements, which allowed school districts to create their budgets for the 2017-2018 school year. With a deadline of April 30, 2018, to craft a new education funding bill to meet the October 2017 ruling's requirements, the legislature did not have to go into special session in 2017. The 2018 session of the legislature began in January 2018.

On April 7, 2018, legislators passed a school funding bill (SB 423) intended to increase K-12 funding by more than $500 million over five years. Gov. Jeff Colyer (R) signed the legislation on April 17, 2018. The Kansas State Department of Education identified that the legislation contained an $80 million error in the first year, decreasing the amount of funding from $150 million to $72 million. On April 30, 2018, lawmakers approved a measure correcting the error. Gov. Colyer signed the legislation on May 4, 2018.

On June 25, 2018, the Kansas Supreme Court ruled that the state's legislative adjustments to education funding, SB 423 and SB 61, were equitable but inadequate. The court concluded that Kansas had not met the adequacy requirement in Article 6 of the state constitution. The court advised the state to undertake further adjustments to inflation and allowed the legislation (SB 19, SB 423, and SB 61) to temporarily remain in effect, thus providing funding for Kansas schools for the 2018-2019 school year. The court extended the deadline for the state to fulfill its constitutional duties to June 30, 2019.

In April 2019, the Kansas legislature passed a law that increased the state's education budget by $900 million each year. On June 14, 2019, the Kansas Supreme Court ruled that with the passage of the April 2019 law, the state was adequately funding education. When issuing the ruling, the court chose to keep the lawsuit open so it could monitor education funding in future years' budgets.

Contact information

Wichita Public Schools
903 S. Edgemoor St.
Wichita, KS 67218
Phone: 316-973-4000

About school boards

Education legislation in Kansas

Bills are monitored by BillTrack50 and sorted by action history.

See also

Kansas	School Board Elections	News and Analysis
List of school districts in Kansas School board elections in Kansas Public education in Kansas	School board elections, 2025 Kansas school board elections, 2025	School board election data analysis, 2024 United States school shootings, 1990-present

External links

• Search Google News for this topic
• Wichita Public Schools
• Kansas Association of School Boards
• Kansas State Department of Education