January 2011
Friends:
AnnouncementsPersonal Activities
Board Activities
Learning Quality Committee
Foundation Board
Local/State politics – NEW!
Kansas Quiz
Resources
Greetings from the snowbound tundra (except the plowed and salted roads!) of northern Lenexa. There’s a lot to cover, so I’ll get right to it:
Announcements
I am officially on the job hunt! My boss at the medical center is moving from Public Affairs back to full-time faculty and with her departure, the department is restructuring. A few positions were eliminated and mine is one of them. Whenever you take a government job, this is always a possibility, so I’m looking for the window that opened where this door is closing. Community Relations is the best description of my unique skills. To learn more about my background, check out the website (http://stephaniesharp.com/biography). I would also be happy to send you a resume and any other information that might be helpful.
17th Kansas House District
While it is belated, I want to wish Representative Kelly Meigs the best
in Topeka. When it comes right down to it, whomever represents the
Shawnee/Lenexa district in the House of Representatives, I want them to
do it well. Kelly and I will agree on 95% of the issues she will face
in Topeka and I have offered myself as a resource if she has any
questions.
In turn, I hope you will do the same – contact her and offer yourself as an expert in your field – insurance, law, medicine, education, self-employment, Sprint employee, etc. etc. Without contact from constituents, no representative can truly represent their district. Plus, I expect you to hold her accountable to her votes, just as I expected you to do for me and for Jill Quigley after me.
I encourage you to subscribe to her newsletter here: http://www.kellymeigs.com/
This job includes a lot of wonderful and fulfilling moments but also many extremely frustrating and sad times as well. She has a very difficult session ahead of her and I know we will all be watching.
Personal Activities
Jury Duty
I was called to Jury Duty on January 10 and selected to serve – I had
always wanted to! The trial lasted an entire week and while the details
were gruesome – the key charge was the rape of a 92 year old woman – I
came out of the trial even more proud to be a part of this community.
The entire process of the jury selection, the professionalism of the
prosecutors, the candor of the witnesses and the efficiency of the
court reinforced my belief that this is a safe community that takes
crime seriously, takes the right steps to ensure criminals have their
due process, which result in fair juries and just verdicts. Kudos to
Judge Steve Tatum for running an efficient, professional court and to
District Attorney Steve Howe’s prosecutors Phil Stein and Lannie
Ornburn for removing every ounce of doubt in 14 of 15 counts. The Star
did an article on the case here:
http://www.kansascity.com/2011/01/18/2592831/man-convicted-in-rape-of-92-year.html
With the state budget in the shape it’s in, I want to launch a preemptive support campaign for Parents as Teachers (PAT) and Infant/Toddler Services (ITS) funding. Yes, this is a little self-serving because I’m personally impacted by these programs but also staunchly supported them before I was married, let alone had a kiddo. ITS is a program for kids with developmental delays that provides speech, occupational, physical, and behavior therapy services that help get kids ready for school. Without these services, many kids would never catch up to grade level. This is obviously a cost to the school districts, but ultimately, it is the child and our entire society that suffers when children are not successful in school. PAT is funded by school districts and we know they will be asked to make even more cuts. They measure kids for developmental markers and provide parents with tools to get kids ready for school. When a child is far enough behind in any stage of development, PAT refers to ITS for additional assistance and targeted therapy.
Speaking of school districts, I want to take this opportunity to
applaud the Shawnee Mission School District board and administration
for the recent decisions on school mergings and closings. Patrons
demanding lower taxes means we demand better efficiency with our tax
dollars and that’s what they’ve done. When you see some buildings with
35-45% efficiency, that’s just not a good use of resources.
Board Activities
Next year’s JCCC budget is currently being built on the need for
another small tuition increase. Have you taken classes at JCCC and do
you find it affordable? Will another increase make it out of reach for
you? Or, do you find this is a good bang for the buck? I would be
interested in your feedback.
Learning Quality Committee
We have had continuing conversations about the quantity of adjunct vs.
full-time professors at the college. We are currently about 65% adjunct
and 35% full-time faculty. While this may sound like a large number of
adjunct faculty, keep in mind that community colleges focus on
workforce development, continuing education, and trade-specific
courses, as well as general education requirements for those pursuing a
four-year degree. What are your thoughts on the adjunct vs. full-time
debate and what has your experience been with other institutions or
courses taught by an adjunct faculty compared to that of a full-time
faculty?
Foundation Board
I missed this month’s update due to my jury duty commitments,
but I am very excited to tell you that the fundraising for the new
culinary arts building is coming in quite well. We are very close to
our goal and may have exceeded it by now (fingers crossed!). In fact,
you can gear up your tastebuds by taking a Tapeo Tour with renowned KC
chef and James Bear Award winner Michael Smith. It’s only $20, or just
$5 with a JCCC student ID! Learn more here: http://www.jccc.edu/press_releases/2011/gen-smith-tapeo.html
The JCCC Foundation has a $20 million endowment and provided more than
650 scholarships this school year.
Local/State politics
Since I tend to enjoy weighing in and making it easy for you learn
about happenings in the local political sphere, I decided to add
another section to the newsletter instead of blabbing on about it in my
Announcements section. Hope you enjoy!
In April of this year, 3 seats on the JCCC Board will be up for
election. Board chair Don Weiss (Olathe) will be running for
re-election. Don has done a great job managing the board operations and
has his finger on the pulse of the workforce needs of the business
community as a professor at DeVry University.
A friend and my JCCC campaign treasurer, Greg Musil, has announced he
is running for one of the open seats – I am THRILLED about this! Greg
will be a great asset to the board with his knowledge of the
foundation, the college’s history and his “real job” as an attorney
with the Polsinelli firm. You likely recognize Greg’s name from a
number of different community organizations where he gives his time,
and he also lead the Johnson Countians for Justice campaign which saved
the Johnson County judiciary from the bias of elected judges.
As many districts changed hands this election cycle, I wanted to
provide update information about how to contact our new 3rd
District Congressman, Kevin Yoder. His official website is here: http://yoder.house.gov/ and his KCK
office is open at 500 State Avenue #176, KCK 66101, and 913-621-1533.
The site also provides links to follow him on Facebook and
Twitter.
Kansas Quiz
OK, no quiz! How about you just let me know if you would like 2 tickets
to any of the following shows:
Feb 4: Hot Club of San Francisco
http://www.jccc.edu/performing-arts-series/events/2010-2011/event-hot-club-san-francisco.html
March 4: Opole, Philharmonic of Poland
http://www.jccc.edu/performing-arts-series/events/2010-2011/event-philharmonic-poland.html
March 5: Hot Tuna Blues
http://www.jccc.edu/performing-arts-series/events/2010-2011/event-hot-tuna-blues.html
March 12: Janis Ian
http://www.jccc.edu/performing-arts-series/events/2010-2011/event-janis-ian.html
April 16: Bela Fleck, Zakir Hussain & Edgar Meyer
http://www.jccc.edu/performing-arts-series/events/2010-2011/event-fleck-hussain-meyer.html
Resources
JCCC Board of Trustees meetings on video: http://video.jccc.edu/board.htm
JCCC Carlsen Center shows: http://www.jccc.edu/home/depts.php/001440/site/toc_events
KS Legislative Research: http://skyways.lib.ks.us/ksleg/KLRD/klrd.html
Johnson County Election Office - www.jocoelection.org
Upcoming Board of Trustees meetings:
http://www.jccc.edu/home/depts.php/000001/site/BoardMeetingInfo/Board_Meeting_Dates
Find your long lost CASH!!! http://www.kansascash.com/prodweb/up/disclaimer_page.php
Please do not hesitate to contact me about these or any other issues of
interest to you. I appreciate the opportunity to represent you on
the Board of Trustees.
Stephanie Sharp
Trustee, Johnson County Community College
12345 College Blvd
Overland Park, KS 66210
www.stephaniesharp.com
www.twitter.com/4stephaniesharp
www.facebook.com/4stephaniesharp
913-256-5862
About the Sharp Record
Stephanie Sharp was elected to represent Lenexa and Shawnee in the
Kansas House of Representatives in November 2002 and started the
Sharp Record as a way to inexpensively inform Kansans
on activity at the Kansas Statehouse. The newsletter boils down
complicated political and legislative procedures to explain their
impact on your everyday life.
Stephanie left the legislature in 2008 to further her career and start a family. In 2009, she was elected to the Johnson County Community College (JCCC) Board of Trustees where she now focuses the newsletter on a county-wide audience.
The Sharp Record is a conduit for the two-way
conversation Stephanie believes is critical to representative
government. To view previous editions and learn more about her, visit
www.StephanieSharp.com.
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