Topeka Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Julie Ford welcomes children to school.
Topeka Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Julie Ford has announced she'll be retiring at the end of the 2015-2016 school year. After 30 years of working in education, she noted it was time to move on so she could spend time with her growing brood of grandchildren, but she also makes clear that the current political environment in Kansas is
also a key factor:
I have prided myself in being an effective administrator, but the current political environment in Kansas makes it nearly impossible to lead a school district. The challenges are unlike any challenges I have experienced in my 35 year career. Never before have I experienced educators in Kansas reduced to so little and so undervalued by legislators and the governor.
It is my sincere hope for the children and their families of Topeka Public Schools, including my grandchildren, and the local community will continue to support Topeka Public Schools teachers and staff as they work hard for our students each and every day. I promise that in my last months before retirement, I will commit to speaking out for public schools and public school employees in Kansas.
Governor Sam Brownback and Kansas conservatives have been waging war
on public school funding, effectively trying to dismantle the public school system. Massive funding cuts have been so dramatic that it has sent hundreds of
Kansas teachers fleeing the state for positions in neighboring states.
And so it goes. Kansas loses one more dedicated teacher and administrator. Unless they turn things around, they will have a hard time filling these roles and it's really the children and the future of Kansas who will suffer the most.
Here's a brief interview with Dr. Ford in 2014 as she welcomed students to the first day of school and encouraged Kansans to visit public schools to see the necessary work they do every day to prepare "the next generation of citizens":