Ark Valley News - Out of the office

Out of the office
By Chris Strunk
Last Updated: September 17, 2015

Of belated award, math that doesn't add up

Belated congratulations are in order for Myles Carter.

The 2015 Valley Center High School graduate received the Les Anderson Memorial Scholarship during the Sept. 11 football game. Myles played football for four years for the Hornets. He is a freshman at Wichita State University and is pursuing a career in pharmacy.

The scholarship, valued at $500, was announced during the football banquet last year, but coach Caleb Smith wanted Myles to be recognized at a home game when his family and the Anderson family could be there.

That's so coach Smith.

Anyway, Myles deserves the honor.

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Speaking of the football game, the District Stadium was electric after the Hornets defeated Ark City 7-6 last week. It was the first home win since 2012 and the first home-opening win since 2011.

I remember both of those games well.

In 2011, Justin Holdaway kicked the game-winning field goal against Circle. (It was Valley's only win that year.) That was one of those two-day games postponed because of the weather. We've had a couple of those during the past 10 years, but Friday nights have been mostly pleasant.

In 2012, the Hornets smothered Sunrise Christian Academy, which was playing its first season of 11-man football.

Now, the Hornets are looking for back-to-back wins, something they haven't done since 2007. (I remember those two games well.)

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I agree with Brad Barbour. (I think I've admitted that before.)

The school board president said he's "not real comfortable" with the new math the Valley Center school district is teaching his middle school daughter.

"It's not the way I learned math," he told Rebecca Khosravipour, the district's director of student learning, during the Sept. 14 school board meeting.

I feel the same way. My daughter is in the same grade as Brad's daughter and I'm apparently having the same problems.

My daughter asked for some help the other day on her math homework. It was converting decimals or fractions or something. I could tell her how to solve the problem, but I couldn't tell her how to show her work like the new curriculum requires.

"As a parent, that's a little frustrating," Brad said.

My sentiments, exactly.

Before the school year started, the Valley Center school district adopted new curriculum for math, language arts, science and technology courses. It is designed to meet Kansas college and career ready standards in those subjects.

Go Math was adopted for kindergarten through eighth grade, replacing Everyday Mathematics.

Apparently, the new curriculum requires students to better understand numbers and their relationships rather than just learn ways to solve problems.

Khosravipour said teachers love the new math curriculum, and she hasn't been contacted by anyone frustrated with it so far.

Brad said she probably will.

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I learned another interesting tidbit about the Valley Center school district during the school board meeting this week.

The district has about 40 students who technically qualify as "homeless" and are eligible for federal assistance, such as free meals and enrollment fees.

Mike Bonner, assistant superintendent, said the students' situations are varied. Some students' families are without homes, so some are living with relatives or other families in the district.

That's unreal to me. I figured there would be two or three such cases, but 40?

I'm glad federal funds are available to help these students. I just wish our community could do more to assist the families.

Chris Strunk is publisher of The Ark Valley News. Reach him at 755-0821, news@arkvalleynews.com or on Facebook.