Board votes to close 26 schools

Kansas City, Mo., School District will close 26 schools, following a vote of approval by the board of directors Wednesday.

The board cast a 5-4 vote in favor of Superintendent John Covington’s “Right Sizing” plan.

The plan, originally presented in February, includes the closure of 26 schools and for some schools to be moved to another building or restructured. Covington said the plan was necessary because the district was in danger of going bankrupt and too many students were not learning at a proficient level.

Board members Arthur Benson, Duane Kelly, Joel Pelofsky, Derek Richey and Airick Leonard West voted for the plan.

Board members Cokethea Hill, Helen Ragsdale, Ray Wilson and board president Marilyn Simmons voted against the plan.

Covington said he was “thankful” to school board members for approving the plan.

“No one likes closing schools,” Covington said. “It is hard on families and hard on the community. … It was unquestionably the right thing to do.”

Simmons said she still had concerns the plan was too much to implement at once and would drive more people out of the district.

Center Middle School students read across America

Out of all the United States, Center Middle School sixth-grader Caitlin Campbell said she has only visited Tennessee and Arizona.

But, with the help of 486 of her peers at the school, 326 E. 103rd St., she is working on completing a cross-country trip.

As part of an all-school, yearlong reading goal, the student body is participating in a simulated trip across the United States.

March 10 School briefs

New dean at pharmacy school

The University of Missouri-Kansas City has announced the appointment of Russell B. Melchert as Dean of UMKC’s School of Pharmacy.

Melchert is currently Professor and Chair of the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, Ark.

Federal grant would add bus route along 75th Street

Prairie Village soon could get a major east-west transit link.

An $800,000 federal grant has been offered to fund operating expenses for a new bus route running along 75th Street that would allow riders to travel across the state line and as far west as Quivira Road.

Alice Amrein, director of Johnson County Transit, said she will present the grant proposal to the County Commission for consideration early next month.

Chamber names new president

Kansas City lawyer and community leader James Heeter is the new president and CEO of the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce.

The announcement of Heeter’s selection was made March 2 by Chamber Chairman Peter deSilva, UMB Bank chairman and CEO.

Heeter, 62, Mission Hills, succeeds Pete Levi, who retired in December after leading the chamber for 19 years. Heeter’s first day as chamber president and CEO will be Monday, April 19.

March 10 News Briefs

PEMBROKE STUDENTS TOUR AREA

During the week of March 8-12, seventh-grade students from Pembroke Hill will tour the Waldo and the Brookside areas as part of their "Kansas City Week" activities.

Students will play the role of consultant or Chamber of Commerce staff, with the goal to generate ideas for attracting people to the area. Through research, interviews and walking tours with staff and local merchants, students will identify community strengths and plans of action for issues they see as challenges.

Brookside and Waldo business leaders said they are "delighted to be a part of this fun, educational project. We look forward to hearing what these potential future patrons, neighbors or business owners/leaders have to say about our community."

Communities host St. Patty’s Day events

Green will be all the rage this weekend as local communities bring on the parades.

Brookside’s 30th annual St. Patrick’s Day Warm-up Parade starts at 2 p.m. Saturday, March 13, at 65th Street and Wornall Road. Martin City’s 23rd annual St. Patrick’s Day events begin at 11:30 a.m. Sunday, March 14, with a 2 p.m. parade start time.

Both family-oriented events attract more than 20,000 spectators and participants annually.

"This is a favorite event I do," Jennifer Leon, Brookside parade coordinator. "Everybody’s out. It’s the start of spring."

Historic house needs major help

Drivers pass the old house with its white columns and clapboard siding intact, perhaps unaware of its profound influence on the town in which they drive.

If only houses could talk.

Alexander Majors Historic House, an 1856 antebellum house, where Pony Express riders mounted their saddles and supply oxen headed west, is full of history to share.

"The next generation needs to understand this is where commerce started in Kansas City," Joe Huber, Alexander Majors Historic Foundation board president, said.