Local TV Show Implicates Bismarck School Board In Dirty Politics
I happened to catch a recent local TV Talk show on BEK TV that had some interesting findings on the Bismarck School Board.
A former hockey coach from Bismarck High School Brad Miller was the guest on the TV program "Ladies of Another View" and he had some "head-scratching" findings about the Bismarck School Board and the transparency of the board. The TV show "Ladies of Another View" airs on weekdays at 4:30 on BEK TV.
It included emails obtained after a "FOIA" request (Freedom of Information Act) that seemed to show favoritism toward Bismarck Legacy High School. The accusations allegedly include the expansion of Legacy High School when other high schools like Bismarck High School are only at 75% capacity. The redrawing of school district lines in the city of Bismarck to make it so more students will attend Legacy, despite the fact that other schools are not at capacity. These new lines took kids from the south end just in time, as they awarded an expansion to Legacy High School. According to the TV show, all of this comes at the expense of Bismarck taxpayers.
After some digging into the insights.nd.gov website, it also showed test scores and proficiencies scores are going down or are very poor in our Bismarck High Schools. Legacy has the lowest scores with the newest facility and highest enrollment.
The interview also implies that it became very political with the school board and a group of parents from Legacy. Decisions were being made before the school board meetings were even held. It was brought up that "dirty politics" seem to be happening.
The interview finished up by saying there has not been enough growth in population or student enrollment to justify all the new schools. It was also implied that more money should be spent to help students who are struggling in academics, not on new schools. "The numbers don't add up, it's all fuzzy math" is what was said in the interview.
You can watch the full interview of Brad Miller with the "Ladies of Another View" when you click here.
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