Friday, October 12, 2012
New law aimed at reducing the number of vehicles passing stopped buses.
Marion school bus drivers logged a total of 96 violations of drivers passing stopped school buses during the past school year, and the number of violations already this year is on pace to be nearly as high. This school year, a new law went into effect that increases penalties for those who don't yield to school buses, but so far it doesn't seem to be making a difference. School has been in session less than two months, and 23 violations have been noted so far. That's between both districts — Linn-Mar and Marion Independent. District officials have told the Marion Times that school bus drivers can't log each infraction, so the number is actually higher. Linn-Mar Information Services Coordinator Laura Mallicoat estimated that there may have …
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
The Marion Independent School District had a special education deficit of $359,124 last year.
The Marion Independent School District went $359,124 over their special education budget last year. A recent story by the Gazette looked at several area schools that were seeing rising costs associated with providing special education. Sarah Pinion, Marion's Superintendent, told the Gazette that the district is struggling to cover these costs. "When we build our budget, because we try to keep our levy rate close to what it has been in the past, unless it’s a special situation … if we are levying for the special education deficit, then that kind of limits how we might levy in other areas," Pinion said to the Gazette. Schools are mandated to provide for students with special needs. While the national and state government help with funding, …
Monday, April 23, 2012
Marion Patch will be recognizing students in the Linn-Mar and Marion Independent school districts for their achievements.
For many, school is about self-discovery. Many find the upper limits to their abilities and try to find a place in a world that can be both exciting and frightening. Marion Patch will be recognizing students in the Linn-Mar and Marion Independent school districts whose hard work and concerted effort in any area shows them reaching towards their potential. We'll do so by interviewing these students to try to learn how they achieve, how they see themselves and how they see the world around them. More importantly, we are writing to ask you to start thinking of the students you know that you feel are deserving of recognition. Remember, they don't necessarily have to have gone to a state competition, earned a perfect GPA or have been crowned be…
Friday, April 20, 2012
The suicide of a Primghar teen who'd been bullied after he said he was gay has elevated public discussion of the problem of cyber-bullying.
The suicide of a 14-year-old Primghar boy who endured weeks of bullying in school and on the Internet after he came out as a gay teen has elevated public discussion of cyber-bullying. Des Moines Register columnist Kyle Munson has been following the story since Kenneth James Weishuhn hanged himself in his family's garage last weekend. Weishuhn, who before he came out had been a popular teen at South O'Brien Community School in Paullina, was taunted in the hallways, was vilified on Facebook and received threatening messages on his cell phone, said his family. His school's administrators confirmed one incident, but said they weren't aware the bullying continued and Weishuhn never filed complaints. School Superintendent Dan Moore told Munson…
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
In a special session of the Marion Independent Board of Education, board members passed a plan for renovations to the home side football field bleachers.
The Marion Independent School District approved a proposed construction estimate for a new set of home-side bleachers for the Marion High School football field. The School Board met in a special 10-minute session in the district office at 4:30 p.m. on Monday. Marion School Board Member Dennis Trout said the plan will cost an estimated $345,400. He said the changes were needed as the current home side bleachers are old and increasingly structurally unsound. He added that the seating capacity of the bleachers will not increase. In addition, the plan comes with improvements to the electrical system in the football field. Trout said it isn't uncommon for the stadium lights to go off in the middle of a football game. He said the next step in …
Monday, March 19, 2012
A bill was recently unanimously approved by the Iowa Legislature that is designed to curb school bus accidents by raising the penalties for not yielding to a school bus.
Marion Independent School District Superintendent Sarah Pinion said a new law that increases penalties for those that fail to yield to a school bus is a step in the right direction. Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad recently signed Kadyn's Law, which is designed to halt school bus accidents by raising the penalties for not yielding to a school bus. The law raises the offense of passing a stopped school bus by raising the fine from $250 to $675 and imposes a possible jail sentence of 30 days. A second offense within five years can earn a fine of $500 to $1,000 and up to a year in jail. Pinion said she thinks this could make some drivers think twice about not yielding to school buses. "Anything that we can do to make sure that our children are safe …
Thursday, February 2, 2012
The Marion Independent School District recently bought the Marion Kirkwood Center in an effort to meet the demand of an increasing student population.
The Marion Independent School District may be moving Emerson Elementary School to the current site of the Kirkwood Marion Center. At the latest Marion Independent School Board meeting, the board approved a purchase of the building for $700,000. Brian Bartz, business manager of the Marion Independent School District, said the purchase was made to accommodate an increase in the student population. Additionally, he noted that the Kirkwood Marion Center, unlike Emerson Elementary School, is not landlocked, allowing for additions in the future. President of Kirkwood Community College, Mick Starcevich, said that programming in the Kirkwood Marion Center will end in January of 2013, at which time Starcevich said the classes will resume at the …
Scott Raynor
2:09 pm on Monday, April 23, 2012
We have our first Class Act coming up later this week. Aside from this student, we've got nominations for Linn-Mar students Emilie Berg, Quinn Treiber and Trevor Berry. more ›