Wichita Public Schools elections (2015)

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2015 Wichita Public Schools Elections
General Election date:
April 7, 2015
Table of Contents
About the district Method of election Elections What was at stake? Key deadlines Additional elections External links
See also
Kansas Wichita Public Schools Sedgwick County, Kansas ballot measures Local ballot measures, Kansas

Three seats on the Wichita Public Schools Board of Education were up for election on April 7, 2015.

District 3 incumbent Barbara Fuller was the only incumbent to win re-election due to an unopposed race. At-large incumbent Sheril Logan triumphed over challenger Michael Capps. District 4 incumbent Jeffery Davis defeated challenger Joshua Blick.

Davis' re-election came despite his announcing that he would not be campaigning for the seat in March 2015. He stated at the time he did not know his opponent, Blick, was going to file, and he would not have sought re-election if he had known. Davis' decision not to run came after the deadline to have his name removed from the ballot. Therefore, his name appeared on the ballot, and voters casted their ballots for him. Prior to the election, Davis stated, "We’ll see what happens in the election. I don’t think I’ll win. If I do, we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. But I am not actively campaigning for the position."

On election night, Davis announced, "I will do what the voters want and I will serve my four years." He also said that after that he would be done serving on the school board.

The 2015 election marked the last spring election for school boards statewide. House Bill 2104 was signed into law by Governor of Kansas Sam Brownback (R) on June 8, 2015. Another bill, Senate Bill 171, originally proposed moving the school board elections to November of even-numbered years, in line with statewide general elections, and would have made all school boards into partisan offices.

HB 2104 did not change the nonpartisan nature of the boards, but it did move their general elections to November of odd-numbered years. A number of school boards across the state opposed the more drastic changes proposed by SB 171, particularly the possibility of partisan elections.

Election changes were not the only point of contention between the state government and Kansas school boards in 2015; all districts also had to adapt to changes in state funding for education due to budget shortfalls.

Income tax reductions in 2012 and 2013 championed by Brownback were blamed by some as the cause of the state's financial woes and, therefore, the reason cuts to education spending were considered. Supporters of the changes emphasized the state's decade-old education funding formula as being the real reason a funding overhaul was necessary. Regardless of the cause, legislation was passed issuing block grants to public school districts while legislators debated how to replace the repealed 1995 funding formula.

One of the five candidates in this election participated in Ballotpedia's 2015 survey of school board candidates.

See also: What was at stake in the 2015 Wichita Public Schools elections?

About the district

See also: Wichita Public Schools, Kansas

Wichita Public Schools is located in Sedgwick County, Kan.

Wichita Public Schools is based in Wichita, the county seat of Sedgwick County, in south-central Kansas. The county was home to an estimated 505,415 residents in 2013, according to the United States Census Bureau. Wichita Public Schools was the largest school district by enrollment in Kansas and served 49,389 students in the 2011-2012 school year.

Demographics

Sedgwick County underperformed in comparison to the rest of Kansas in terms of higher education achievement, median household income and poverty rate in 2013. The United States Census Bureau found that 28.7 percent of county residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree compared to 30.3 percent for Kansas as a whole. The median household income in Sedgwick County was $49,865 compared to $51,332 for the state of Kansas. The poverty rate in was 15.3 percent in the county compared to 13.7 percent for the entire state.

Racial Demographics, 2013
Race	Sedgwick County (%)	Kansas (%)
White	81.2	87.1
Black or African American	9.5	6.2
American Indian and Alaska Native	1.4	1.2
Asian	4.3	2.7
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander	0.1	0.1
Two or More Races	3.5	2.7
Hispanic or Latino	13.7	11.2

Presidential Voting Pattern, Sedgwick County
Year	Republican Vote	Democratic Vote
2012	106,506	71,977
2008	106,849	82,337
2004	110,381	64,839
2000	93,724	62,561

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.

Voter and candidate information

The Wichita Board of Education is composed of seven members who are elected to four-year terms. Either three or four seats are up for regular election at each time. Six members are elected by geographically defined districts, and the seventh member is elected at-large. The at-large, District 3 and District 4 seats were up for election in 2015.

House Bill 2104 made this the last election for the district to be held in the spring of an odd-numbered year. Signed into law by Governor of Kansas Sam Brownback (R) on June 8, 2015, the law changed school board election dates to November of odd-numbered years.

Candidates had to file a petition containing 50 signatures or pay a filing fee of $5 by January 27, 2015. If more than three candidates had filed for any one position up for election, a primary election would have been held on March 3, 2015. The general election was held April 7, 2015.

Voters had to register by March 17, 2015, to vote in the general election.

District 3

Barbara Fuller
	Incumbent, member from 2007-2015 M.Ed., Wichita State University B.S., University of Arkansas Retired educator

District 4

Jeffery Davis		Joshua Blick
	Incumbent, member from 2007-2015 Unofficially withdrew March 2015 Sergeant, Wichita Police Department		Part-owner, computer and console gaming company Admissions coordinator for a technical institution Self-identified Republican

At-Large

Sheril Logan		Michael Capps
	Incumbent, member from 2011-2015 Bachelor's, master's and specialist degrees, Wichita State University Grant and handbook writer, Wichita State University College of Education		B.S., Western Governors University President and CEO, itKansas Veteran, United States Air Force, 2000-2002

Election results

District 3

Wichita Public Schools, District 3 General Election, 4-year term, 2015
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Nonpartisan	Barbara Fuller Incumbent	98.4%	20,016
	Nonpartisan	Write-in votes	1.6%	327
Total Votes				20,343
Source: Sedgwick County, "April 7th, 2015 General Election: Official Results," April 13, 2015

District 4

Wichita Public Schools, District 4 General Election, 4-year term, 2015
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Nonpartisan	Jeffery Davis Incumbent	54%	12,511
	Nonpartisan	Joshua Blick	45.3%	10,503
	Nonpartisan	Write-in votes	0.8%	175
Total Votes				23,189
Source: Sedgwick County, "April 7th, 2015 General Election: Official Results," April 13, 2015

At-large

Wichita Public Schools, At-Large General Election, 4-year term, 2015
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Nonpartisan	Sheril Logan Incumbent	63.2%	15,876
	Nonpartisan	Michael Capps	36.2%	9,096
	Nonpartisan	Write-in votes	0.6%	143
Total Votes				25,115
Source: Sedgwick County, "April 7th, 2015 General Election: Official Results," April 13, 2015

Endorsements

Sheril Logan was endorsed by former United Teachers of Wichita President Paul Babich.

Campaign finance

See also: List of school board campaign finance deadlines in 2015

Candidates received a total of $16,759.42 and spent a total of $13,279.23 in this election, according to the Sedgwick County Election Office.

Candidate	Receipts	Disbursements	Cash on hand
District 3
Barbara Fuller	$391.37	$391.37	$0.00
District 4
Jeffery Davis	Filed Affidavit of Exemption
Joshua Blick	$3,700.00	$1,226.87	$2,473.13
At-large
Sheril Logan	$8,180.00	$8,180.00	$0.00
Michael Capps	$4,488.05	$3,480.99	$1,007.06

Candidates who intended to receive or expend less than $500.00 in their campaign were allowed to file a K.S.A. 25-904(a) form called an "Affidavit of Exemption" attesting to those intentions. Candidates' contributions to their own campaigns are included in those limits. If a candidate exceeded these limits after filing as exempt, he or she would be required to comply with the reporting requirements from that point forward.

Past elections

Information about earlier elections can be found by clicking [show] at the right.

2013 District 1 Wichita Public School, District 1 General Election, 4-year term, 2013 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Nonpartisan Betty Arnold Incumbent 94.4% 7,573      Nonpartisan Write-in votes 5.6% 453 Total Votes 8,026 Source: Sedgwick County Election Office, "April 2, 2013, General Election Official Results," April 8, 2013 District 2 Wichita Public School, District 2 General Election, 4-year term, 2013 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Nonpartisan Joy Leigh Eakins 49.9% 4,654      Nonpartisan Scott B. Poor 49.4% 4,608      Nonpartisan Write-in votes 0.6% 60 Total Votes 9,322 Source: Sedgwick County Election Office, "April 2, 2013, General Election Official Results," April 8, 2013 District 5 Wichita Public School, District 5 General Election, 4-year term, 2013 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Nonpartisan Michael Rodee 37.7% 2,922      Nonpartisan John D. Crane 33.6% 2,607      Nonpartisan Peter V. Grant 27.5% 2,134      Nonpartisan Write-in votes 1.2% 90 Total Votes 7,753 Source: Sedgwick County Election Office, "April 2, 2013, General Election Official Results," April 8, 2013 District 6 Wichita Public School, District 6 General Election, 4-year term, 2013 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Nonpartisan Lynn W. Rogers Incumbent 97.9% 7,699      Nonpartisan Write-in votes 2.1% 163 Total Votes 7,862 Source: Sedgwick County Election Office, "April 2, 2013, General Election Official Results," April 8, 2013 2011 District 3 Wichita Public School, District 3 General Election, 4-year term, 2011 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Nonpartisan Barbara Fuller Incumbent 98.5% 15,198      Nonpartisan Write-in votes 1.5% 237 Total Votes 15,435 Source: Sedgwick County Election Office, "April 5, 2011, General Election Official Results," April 8, 2011 District 4 Wichita Public School, District 4 General Election, 4-year term, 2011 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Nonpartisan Jeffery Davis Incumbent 61.3% 10,020      Nonpartisan Michael Ackerman Jr. 28.2% 4,616      Nonpartisan Clayton W. Houston 9.8% 1,603      Nonpartisan Write-in votes 0.7% 118 Total Votes 16,357 Source: Sedgwick County Election Office, "April 5, 2011, General Election Official Results," April 8, 2011 At-large General Wichita Public School, At-Large General Election, 4-year term, 2011 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Nonpartisan Sheril Logan 41.6% 8,158      Nonpartisan Phil Neff 36.4% 7,128      Nonpartisan Carly Miller 21.7% 4,251      Nonpartisan Write-in votes 0.3% 67 Total Votes 19,604 Source: Sedgwick County Election Office, "April 5, 2011, General Election Official Results," April 8, 2011 Primary Wichita Public School, At-Large Primary Election, 4-year term, 2011 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Nonpartisan Sheril Logan 27.9% 3,420      Nonpartisan Phil Neff 20.9% 2,559      Nonpartisan Carly Miller 9.1% 1,119      Nonpartisan Kim Bush 8.8% 1,075      Nonpartisan Susan Kiefer 8.5% 1,043      Nonpartisan Mary Dean 6.2% 759      Nonpartisan Chris Colvin 5.4% 655      Nonpartisan Margarita LaFarelle Hunt 4.3% 527      Nonpartisan Steven G. Flesher 3.6% 440      Nonpartisan Matt Smith 3% 367      Nonpartisan Peter V. Grant 2.3% 278 Total Votes 12,242 Source: Sedgwick County Election Office, "March 1, 2011, Primary Election Official Results," March 4, 2011

What was at stake?

2015

With three seats up for election, Wichita's Board of Education was guaranteed to see at least one returning incumbent in the 2015 election as the District 3 incumbent was unopposed. The District 4 and at-large incumbents faced one challenger each. The unofficial withdrawal of incumbent Jeffery Davis from the race made his opponent, Joshua Blick, seem likely to win the District 4 seat. Nevertheless, voter still chose to return Davis to his seat.

Wichita Public Schools, like the rest of Kansas' public schools, saw funding changes from the state in early 2015. Additionally, its election system changed from a spring cycle to a fall system.

Issues in the election

Wichita Pachyderm Club candidate forum

As the only truly contested race in the election, at-large incumbent Sheril Logan and her opponent Michael Capps faced off over budget issues at a candidate forum hosted by the Wichita Pachyderm Club on March 13, 2015. Joshua Blick also attended the forum but, as his race was unofficially uncontested, the majority of discussion focused on Logan and Capps.

Capps criticized the sitting board's approach to the possible budget reductions facing the district, saying, "I keep hearing, ‘We can’t succeed with what we have. This isn’t going to work.’ But I don’t believe that. I believe we need to change the way we look at our spending. ... Whether we like what’s happening in Topeka or not, the reality is the landscape is changing. We need to embrace it." He also claimed that Wichita spends more than other similarly sized districts. As a specific example, Capps claimed that Omaha Public Schools in Nebraska, which had an enrollment of 50,340 students compared to Wichita's 49,389 students in the 2011-2012 school year, had spent $100 million less than Wichita annually. Logan, however, contested Capps's claims. She stated that Omaha schools receive a significant amount of endowments, $15 to $20 million a year, and that its budget does not include retirement funds like Wichita's budget.

According to the 2014-2015 budgets published by each district, Omaha had a budget of $536,187,024 while Wichita's was $680,116,074.

Issues in the district

State education funding changes

See also: Kansas state budget and finances

A looming state budget deficit of $600 million led the state legislature to approve a block-grant funding system to replace the state's public school funding formula. Governor of Kansas Sam Brownback (R) had proposed that $44.5 million be cut from state funding for education to make up for budgetary shortcomings on February 5, 2015.

Cuts proposed by governor

Gov. Sam Brownback (R)

Of the total cuts Brownback suggested, $28 million would have come from elementary and secondary education funding, while another $16 million would have been taken from higher education funding.

Critics of Brownback pointed to his campaign promises supporting education in 2013. Kansas State Senate Minority Leader Anthony Hensley (D-19) called the move, “just another deception [Brownbeck] put upon the voters of Kansas." Brownback's spokesperson, however, has stated that the governor “has consistently maintained that the education funding formula is broken and reform is needed to ensure more money goes to the classroom to benefit Kansas students."

Wichita Public Schools response
Wichita Public Schools could have lost anywhere from $3 million to $11 million as a result of the cuts, and the district would have had to use its reserves to balance its budget. The district had approximately $14.8 million in its contingency fund. The district announced that it would be waiting to fill some positions to try to save money, but the district's chief financial officer Jim Freeman stated that those actions would not be enough.

Freeman also stated that the district's contingency fund would only be enough to fully fund the district for 10 days, and he expressed the district's reservations about using those funds, saying, “Once you use it, it’s gone so if we have to tap into it this year that means that our reserves for next year are diminished, and we might have to cut more in coming years." Board member Mike Rodee also commented on the matter, saying, “Say we spend down our contingency reserves this year and we have zero for Special Ed and zero for anything we can’t open our doors July 1."

Income taxes blamed and defended
Some blamed the income tax reductions signed into law by the governor for the significant shortfall looming for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2015. Income tax cuts were championed by Brownback and passed by the Legislature in 2012 and 2013. In 2015, the state had to reassess its spending and consider new forms of revenue. Possible revenue sources that were considered included raising taxes on cigarettes and alcohol or changing tax assessments for farmland, gasoline, and sales and passive income. In 2013, the state collected $2.96 billion in individual income taxes, which made up 38.80 percent of the state's tax collections.

Brownback defended the income tax cuts and pushed for consumption taxes to replace lost funds in April 2015. “I still want to get away from the income tax. Over time, I would like to see us move toward the consumption basket of taxes," he stated at that time. He also voiced support for a higher sales tax. The governor remained vague about exactly which consumption taxes might be used but noted his support for tax increases on cigarettes and alcohol.

At the same time, Brownback responded to criticisms over the fact that he shared budget information prior to the legislative session with David Kensinger, his former chief of staff and current lobbyist for Reynolds American tobacco company. Brownback defended the move, saying, “What I try to do is get as much input from people as possible. I’ve tried to operate most of my public career in trying to solicit lots of input. I wish he wasn’t lobbying for that group. He’s free to do what he’s doing.”

Legislative response
In response to Brownback's proposal, the Kansas State Legislature outlined a plan in March 2015 to fund public schools with block grants for two years while they rewrite the school funding formula. According to The Kansas City Star, the block grants would provide an increase of more than $4.2 billion for the 2016-2017 school year, which would represent a 9 percent increase from the 2013-2014 allocations. Additionally, the block grants would return the 2014-2015 district allocations to the amounts they were set at before Brownback announced his planned budget cuts. Whether or not these funds actually indicate an increase in classroom spending and how the Legislature would pay for the increase in funding remained unclear as of the bill's introduction.

Democratic legislators criticized the bill, arguing that the majority of the additional funding would go toward retirement and meeting the requirements of a 2014 Kansas Supreme Court ruling mandating more funding for schools. Sen. Hensley argued, "Their proposal does not do what they claim it’s going to do. It does not allocate $300 million in new money, nor does it put more money into the classroom.”

Sen. Susan Wagle (R-30)

In a 64 to 57 vote on March 13, 2015, the House of Representatives approved Senate Bill 7, a plan to overhaul the state's 13-year-old school finance system. State law required at least 63 votes in favor of the measure for it to pass the House. The bill was immediately moved back to the Senate. This prevented any motions to reconsider the House vote. On March 16, 2015, the Senate approved the revised bill 25 to 14. Because the bill sent back from the House had been a Senate bill with additions from the House, senators only had to vote yes or no to the House revisions and were not able to offer amendments. The bill was signed into law by Brownbeck on March 25, 2015.

The approved bill replaced the current system with block grants for two years while the funding formula is overhauled. Republican leaders argued that the state's funding formula, which is based on a per-pupil formula and includes weighting for bilingual and low-income students, was broken. Senate President Susan Wagle (R-30), who voted in favor of the old formula in 1992 and in favor of SB 7, said, "We are no longer talking about student outcomes and student achievement. We’re fighting for money."

Sen. Tom Holland (D-3)

Not all of her colleagues agreed that SB 7 was a solution to education funding woes. Some senators objected to how quickly the bill was passed and to the lack of discussion before the final Senate vote on the matter. Sen. Tom Holland (D-3) voted against the measure and said:

“	While Charles and David Koch may have won this particular battle, Kansas families can at least take some small measure of comfort in knowing that our Kansas courts — as yet uncorrupted by the supply-side ideology cancer that has metastasized Kansas’ legislative and executive branches of government — that they are keeping a watchful eye on this Legislature’s actions.	”
—Sen. Tom Holland (D-3) (2015)

Judicial response
Holland was referencing judicial action taken the same day the House passed SB 7, when a three-judge district court panel ordered the reopening of a school funding lawsuit that had been settled in 2014. The lawsuit was settled after the Legislature equalized funding between districts through increased allocations, but the new court order reopened the equity portion of the case. It also added new state officials to the list of defendants in the case, including the state treasurer and revisor of statutes. The panel announced that it might issue temporary orders blocking the recent legislative action if necessary "to preserve the status quo and to assure the availability of relief, if any, that might be accorded should the Court deem relief warranted.”

Election date changes

Early legislative action in 2015 could have made all Kansas school board elections into partisan races held in November of even-numbered years. Those changes were not approved, but a smaller change was signed into law on June 8, 2015; House Bill 2104 changed all school board election dates to November of odd-numbered years.

HB 2104
HB 2104 was introduced to the Kansas House of Representatives on January 23, 2015, and sponsored by the House Elections Committee. The house approved the measure 69 to 54 on February 26, 2015. Following the withdrawal of a similar senate bill, HB 2104 was approved by the senate by a vote of 28 to 12.

The portion of the Conference Committee Report of the bill relating to the election date changes states:

“	The bill would move all elections for office holders of local governments currently held in the spring of odd-numbered years to the fall of odd-numbered years, with one exception (described below). In general, the elections would remain nonpartisan, although a city could choose to make its elections partisan. Sections to be added to the law, Sections 7, 8, and 13 through 16, would be cited as the Help Kansas Vote Act. Beginning in 2017, the election dates for the specified units of local government would mirror the election dates for the elections held in even-numbered years. That is, the primary election would be held on the first Tuesday in August, and the general election would be held on the Tuesday following the first Monday in November. The elections, to be administered by the county election officers, would be consolidated into one ballot, which would be prescribed by the Secretary of State through rules and regulations. Those entities currently with district method elective offices (i.e., cities and school districts) would retain that authority.	”
—HB 2104 Conference Committee Report (2015)

SB 171

Sen. Mitch Holmes (R-33) introduced SB 171 on February 9, 2015.

On February 9, 2015, Sen. Mitch Holmes (R-33) introduced Senate Bill 171 to the Ethics, Elections and Local Government Committee. The bill, as it was initially introduced, would have moved school board and other local elections to November in even-numbered years, in addition to changing school boards from their current nonpartisan status by requiring candidates to declare party affiliations.

Supporters claimed that moving the school board elections to a date when there are more elections would increase voter turnout for such races as well as reduce the costs of printing the number of current ballot variations. Others questioned whether or not a move would actually improve turnout, as it would place school board elections on an already lengthy ballot.

The bill was amended before being approved 21 to 18 by the Senate on February 26, 2015. The approved version would move school board and other local elections to the November general election date in odd-numbered years. It removed the language that would have made those elections partisan. During the debate of the revised version, Holmes expressed frustration with the resistance to moving local elections. He argued that such a move would increase voter turnout and bring greater transparency to local government, saying that such offices are "elected on a day that nobody notices."

Holmes also argued that the disproportionately white city council of Ferguson, Mo., was caused by holding off-year elections and postulated that "minorities vote better in on-cycle elections than off-cycle elections." Sen. Oletha Faust-Goudeau (D-29), the first African American woman elected to the State Senate and one of the two African American members of the body, dismissed this argument, saying, “I don’t live in Ferguson. I don’t know anybody who lived there. ... We’re here in Kansas."

On March 4, 2015, the revised Senate bill was introduced in the House of Representatives. The House Elections Committee recommended the revised bill be approved with some amendments regarding date changes in the law on March 19, 2015. The measure was withdrawn from the Senate calendar shortly thereafter.

Ballotpedia survey responses

One of the five candidates in this election participated in Ballotpedia's 2015 survey of school board candidates as of February 17, 2015. The following sections display the responses to the survey questions from at-large candidate Michael Capps.

Top priorities

Michael Capps

When asked what his top priorities would be if elected, Capps stated:

“	Succeed with what we have. Kansas legislature continues to debate the funding of our public schools. For years, our district has continued to argue how it cannot function without more money. However, year after year, the district does continue to function and continues to create successful students. It is time to stop complaining about funding, and get to the business of growing our district, with the resources we have been given. It is time to think outside the box and look to our community, to our educators for ideas, suggestions and methods to creating new pockets of success. The time has arrived to begin taking care of our staff, in training and pay, without using the budget as a scape-goat to doing nothing. The time has arrived to succeed with what we have.	”
—Michael Capps (2015)

Ranking the issues

The candidates were asked to rank the following issues by importance in the school district, with 1 being the most important and 7 being the least important. This table displays the candidate's rankings:

Issue importance ranking
Issue	At-large
Capps' ranking
Balancing or maintaining the district's budget	1
Closing the achievement gap	4
Expanding arts education	7
Expanding career-technical education	2
Expanding school choice options	5
Improving college readiness	3
Improving education for special needs students	6

Positions on the issues

The candidates were asked to answer 10 multiple choice and short answer questions from Ballotpedia regarding significant issues in education and the school district. Links to the candidate's responses can be found below.

• Michael Capps survey responses

Key deadlines

The following were the key deadlines for the 2015 Kansas school board election cycle:

Deadline	Event
January 27, 2015	Candidate filing deadline
March 17, 2015	Voter registration deadline
March 28, 2015	In-person advance voting begins
April 2, 2015	Last campaign finance deadline before the election
April 7, 2015	Election Day
May 7, 2015	Last campaign finance deadline for the election cycle
July 1, 2015	Election winners begin terms

Additional elections on the ballot

See also: Kansas elections, 2015

The school board ballot included elections for county, municipal and other local offices. The Mayor of Wichita City and Wichita City Council Districts 2, 4 and 5 were up for election.

Recent news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Wichita Public Schools Kansas. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

Wichita Public Schools elections (2015) - Google News

See also

Wichita Public Schools	Kansas	School Boards
List of school districts in Kansas	Kansas school board elections, 2015 Public education in Kansas Local ballot measures, Kansas	School board elections, 2015 School board elections, 2014 School board election data analysis, 2015 School board election data analysis, 2014

External links

Suggest a link

• Wichita Public Schools
• Sedgwick County Election Office