Olathe celebrates 'Joy of Learning' at school foundation breakfast

During her annual state of the district address, All listed challenges, including that enrollment increased by 348 students; the number of students who are considered to live in poverty under federal guidelines increased; and the district has about 180 fewer employees, due to budget cuts.

“We have more students, more customers and less money,” All said.

Nearly 500 staff members changed positions throughout the district in a redistribution of staffing to help save funds this year, All said. But she said she expects the months ahead to bring even more challenges.

“I want you to pay attention to what is coming over the next several months because there have been challenges in the state of Kansas and important and hard decisions to be made,” All said.

Despite the painful times, All shared some of the successes of Olathe students in the last year. Students who took the ACT earned a composite average score of 23.3, the highest school district average recorded. The entire district made Adequate Yearly Progress. The district’s attendance rate is 95.7 percent.

“Many of our children choose whether they come to school each morning because they are the ones that are getting themselves out of bed and to school,” All said. “They come to school because there is something important going on in every single classroom.”

The graduation rate was 94.9 percent, a number All called a “gold-standard graduation rate in this country.”

Earlier in the year, the district celebrated convocation with the theme “Keepers of the Dreams.” All said it will be even more important to keep the dreams of the school district alive as it moves forward in challenging times.

“We are responsible for keeping the dreams of young people,” All said. “Somebody has to be responsible for those dreams and we have to take that responsibility very seriously as a school district and all parts of the community.”

All plans to retire at the end of this academic year. She expressed her appreciation after having served in Olathe for 31 years.

“I assure you that the school district is, outside my family, my No. 1 priority,” All said. “I care about it and care about the children we serve and the community that has embraced this district for decades and I hope for decades to come.”

The Olathe Public Schools Foundation revealed a new logo and Web site at the breakfast. The new look revolves around the “mantra of meeting the need” for students, Cindy VonFeldt, executive director, said.

In the past year, the foundation provided $325,248 in scholarships, grants, recognitions and aid for Olathe students and teachers, which represented a 10.4 percent increase over the previous year. That included about $12,000 in emergency aid to families and about $50,000 in summer school scholarships for students in need.

Nearly 500 people attended the breakfast, which raised $74,360 for the foundation.

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