A program that is helping approximately 360 students in this area and has helped many others in the past is on the chopping block in President Bush's budget proposal.
At a time when President Bush is suggesting extending the so-called reforms of his No Child Left Behind to ensure accountability in high schools, he is suggesting the elimination of a program that has long been proven to be successful with just the kind of people who have not been receiving a quality education. In fact, the president is suggesting that this program be eliminated and all of the savings be directed to his new initiative.
At Crowder College in Neosho, Upward Bound serves 300 students, while 60 students are enrolled in the program at Missouri Southern State University in Joplin. An explanation of the program is provided on Crowder's website:
"The Crowder College Upward Bound programs provide 300 high school participants in Newton, McDonald, Barry, Jasper, Lawrence, Dade, Barton, Bates, Vernon, and Cedar counties in southwest Missouri with an opportunity to complete a course of college preparatory study, which equips them for success in postsecondary education.
"The highlight of the project is the College Prep Academy in which the participants spend five weeks in residence on the Crowder College campus. Participants engage in college prep curriculum part of the day and work with faculty on topical research projects (e.g alternative energy, stream ecology, archaeology, etc. for math/science participants and journalism, art history, health, etc. for regular Upward Bound participants) for the remainder of the day.
"Participants who have completed their secondary education and are preparing to attend college in the fall to take part in the Bridge. The Bridge gives graduates the opportunity to enroll in Crowder College courses and make final preparations for college. The final week of the College Prep Academy consists of a cultural trip to a metropolitan area (Chicago, Dallas, Washington, D. C., etc.). Participants are awarded for academic progress during the summer and can earn up to $60 a month.
"During the academic year, participants attend Closer to College, once per month. Participants work on study skills, technical writing, data analysis, attend student success workshops, and receive ACT preparation assistance. Participants also receive tutoring after school and are awarded up to $40 per month for academic progress during the academic year."
The participants do not pay for this program, except for a $50 fee for the trips. Once the student is accepted for the program, he or she is in it all the way through high school and through the Bridge part of the program.
The Crowder Upward Bound program also has a Math Science section for students interested in getting a four-year degree in a math, science, or technology-related field.
The biggest problem with Upward Bound, according to U. S. Department of Education officials is that it actually appeals to students who want to make something of themselves. It doesn't reach that target area, the "at-risk" students, those in danger of dropping out.
"The efforts to serve students through Upward Bound are certainly earnest and in no way should be diminished, "Education Department spokesman C. Todd Jones told the Los Angeles Times. "But just because these programs are doing their work faithfully and with great passion doesn't mean they are best suited to meet the needs of the local communities in which they are working."
The program, which was created as a part of President Lyndon Johnson's War on Poverty is one of the longest-running federal education programs. It serves half a million high school students at 1,400 sites, according to the Times. In the year 2000, the Times article said, 92 percent of the Upward Bound students who graduated from high school enrolled in college.
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Today's Neosho Daily News indicates that the Daily did not have a reporter available to cover the preliminary hearing of Edward Meerwald, 51, Noel, who allegedly was driving drunk when his car veered off Highway 86 and killed James Dodson, 69, Neosho, and Dodson's granddaughter, Jessica Mann, 7, Joplin.
Though the Daily's John Ford's article is well-executed, this is one of those stories where, if it is at all possible, the newspaper should have had an in-person presence just to demonstrate the importance it attaches not only to the story, but to the issues involved.
When you are not there, you have to rely on information coming from only one source, in this case the prosecution. You cannot provide the reader with any information on the atmosphere in the courtroom or any telltale details that the reader might think is important, but which might not readily occur to the prosecuting attorney during an interview.
Of course, with a small staff some things are not going to be covered, but this is one of those events that was scheduled far enough in advance that it should have been possible to find someone to offer in-person coverage.
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I am still bothered by a recent article written by the Daily's managing editor Buzz Ball, in which he extolls the virtues of a Roggen, Colo., hen-laying operation. The article begins, "Approximately 50 miles northeast of Denver, Colo., in the sleepy little town of Roggen, lies a hen-laying operation that has become the envy of and even the model for similar operations (including Neosho) throughout the nation."
It continues, "Nestled on the flat upper desert of Colorado, with the Rocky Mountains peaking on the western horizon, is the Boulder Valley Egg Co. A casual drive by this operation that has six hen-laying houses would not cause one to do a second glance. But then again, that driver doesn't know the real story of the Boulder Valley Egg Co., but more specifically about House No. 6."
I would be surprised if Neosho Daily News readers know the real story either. The description of the area is done rather well, but has Mr. Ball actually been there? Does this information come from personal observations, a handout by the Roggen Chamber of Commerce, a brochure from the Boulder Valley Egg Co.? The reader cannot tell, because that information is not provided.
This article was a sidebar to an article announcing Moark's intention to expand its operations in Neosho. Apparently, this was Moark's effort to assure Neosho residents that there would be no environmental problems from this expanded facility.
What makes House No. 6 important, Ball's article says, well, let's just use his words:
"Constructed less than a year ago, House No. 6 has already become the model for current remodeling operations in Neosho and for future operations throughout the Moark industry. House No. 6 is a state-of-the-art hen-laying facility that is quickly setting the standard for the industry.
Are these Buzz Ball's words, are they taken from a company brochure or were they spoon-fed by a Moark representative since apparently Moark owns House No. 6, even though that is never made clear in the Daily's article.
If House No. 6 is the envy of the industry why does a Google search for it only turn up one mention...that same Neosho Daily News article? Were any efforts made to check with officials in Colorado's equivalent of the Department of Natural Resources or with the EPA or with Roggen city officials to see if there have been any problems with Boulder Valley Egg Co?
If there have been, readers need to know about it. If there haven't been, that would probably go a long way toward easing Neosho residents' fears about this chicken operation expansion.
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The controversy over former Webb City High School student Brad Mathewson's ill-fated lawsuit against the school and Principal Steven Gollhofer over not being allowed to wear a Gay Pride t-shirt, has completely subsided, but the issue that it brought up is one that is being fought in many settings all across the United States every day.
As anyone who reads The Turner Report knows, I was no fan of Mathewson or his lawsuit because it appeared to be designed mainly to draw attention, similar to Michael Newdow's continuing efforts to ban "one nation under God' from the Pledge of Allegiance.
An issue of the Chicago Sun-Times this week featured an article about a similar type of lawsuit that began in an Illinois elementary school and though it doesn't have a high-concept gay rights issue to propel it into the national limelight, it does paint a horrid picture of the lengths some officials will use to stifle free speech in the schools.
Eighth grade gifted students at Beaubein Elementary School (apparently, this elementary school is for grades K-8) were threatened with suspension and confined to their classrooms for wearing t-shirts with the word "Gifties" on them.
Though the 27 students are now in high school, the article said, they are continuing the court battle. Last week, U. S. District Judge Amy St. Eve allowed the case to be certified as a class action lawsuit.
The Sun-Times related how the lawsuit started. In 2003, a vote was held for a class shirt and apparently the "Gifties" idea won with that name on the front and a caricature of a boy walking a dog on the back. School administrators didn't like the winning concept, so they tossed out the results, never telling for sure which concept had won and refusing to answer any questions about it.
Students and parents challenged the election, but got nowhere, according to the Sun-Times article. The students decided to wear the shirts anyway, though they had been asked not to. The principal told them they would be suspended for five to seven days. That never took place, but the protesting students did find themselves being punished in other way for exercising their First Amendment right to free speech.
"The students say (principal Chris) Kotis confined them to their classrooms and denied them access to different parts of the school. Administrators wouldn't allow them to use the bathroom unless they removed the shirts, according to the students. At one point, they were forced to write an essay describing whether they felt worthy or using the computer lab, the lawsuit says. Later, the school allegedly threatened disciplinary action against any student who signed a petition supporting the T-shirt."
The students are asking that their records be cleared of any disciplinary infractions and similar occurrences be prevented in the future.
"Freedom of expression is not just about fighting for big issues but defending small issues, too" 16-year-old Michael Brandt told the Sun-Times. "That's what we did."