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Hartzler listening post tries different format
By RICHARD COOPER Democrat staff writer LAMAR-Visits by field representatives of U.S. senators and congressmen to gain input from constituents is usually conducted on a one-on-one basis. Unfortunately, only a scant few constituents normally show up for the visits. When a field representative for Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler arrived in Lamar, February 24, for a “Listening Post” visit, a decision was made to bring all the constituents into a conference room for a group discussion. Such a format had already been scheduled for February 27 in Columbia and billed as an “open house.” Maybe an equally appropriate description of such a format would be “round table” discussion. Cole Karr was the field representative, the location was the conference room of the Mary K. Finley Library, and the result was a lively discussion of grievances by 13 well informed constituents. During the one hour of allotted time, each person entered into the discussion to express his/ her concerns about issues in Washington. At least 12 issues were brought before the group, some for spirited discussion. In no particular order, the issues that seemed to receive the most attention were immigration reform (secure the borders), education (restore local control), health care (the Affordable Care Act), the national debt, cuts to the military, government waste, and violations of the U.S. Constitution. Karr was obviously pleased with the turnout and participation. He told the group that he would be back for another meeting in three months.
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East Primary exceeds goal
Lamar East Primary collected change recently for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. The classes had set a goal of raising $300 and it was agreed that if they reached that goal, Zach Lemert, principal, would shave his head. East Primary, consisting of grades pre-K Lamar Democrat/Melissa Little through second grade, collected a total of An assembly was held at Lamar East Primary on February 24, as the students got to see their $1739.93. Miss Camp- principal shave his head. bell’s first grade class collected the most amount, which was $338.38. On February 24, Brock McManis showed up with his clippers to shave Lemert’s head.
Lamar Democrat/ Melissa Little Lamar East Primary Zach Lemert got his head shaved February 24, after the school reached its goal for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
Lamar Democrat/Melissa Little Miss Campbell’s first grade class collected the most of any of the classes, for a total of $338.38.
Common Core State Standards excoriated in Lamar meeting By RICHARD COOPER Democrat staff writer
LAMAR-An education reform movement known as Common Core State Standards was the center of attention and critical review at a meeting, Thursday night, in Thiebaud Auditorium attended by upwards of 70 parents, grandparents, teachers, and the general public. The 90-minute meeting was sponsored by Concerned Women for America of Missouri. Speaker was Mary Byrne, cofounder of the Missouri Coalition Against Common Core, who has spent 35 years in education. She resides in Springfield. Throughout her presentation, Byrne stressed that Common Core is not designed to preserve state standards, but instead reflects a national goal in education. She asserted that
formulating the common core initiative was accomplished largely without the knowledge of the public. The effort was heavily financed by book publishers and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, she said. Missouri’s educational policy has historically recognized local differences, Byrne noted, and has been in keeping with James Madison’s writing in the Federalist Papers. Now, however, Common Core has changed it into preparing children for the work force. “We have been sold out to the entrepreneurs,” she said. Testing in Common Core does not include local values, starts too early in a child’s educational experience, and is convoluted and stressful, she asserted. Also targeted for criticism was the requirement that data on children must be shared, including across state lines. This
Lamar Democrat/ Richard Cooper Mary Byrne was the featured speaker at a forum, Thursday night in Lamar, during which Common Core State Standards were closely scrutinized. The meeting was one of several being held in Missouri.
violates a child’s privacy, she said, and it causes children to be targets for hackers. Video clips were shown relating that the states of Iowa and Mississippi have put stays on Common Core’s implementation, and the state of New York has opted out altogether. One unique incident included a school district in Silicon Valley of California that returned to
Extension celebrates 100 years
By MARK TURNBOUGH Lamar United Methodist Church
Recently, scammers have broken into debit/credit card accounts, stealing our numsee PASTOR, page 4A
INDEX
SECTION A Correspondents ........................ 2 Friends & Family ...................... 3 Friends & Family ...................... 4 School/Sports ............................ 5 Sports ......................................... 6 SECTION B Area News ................................. 2 Records ...................................... 3 Records/Legals .......................... 4 Records/Classifieds .................. 5 Area News ................................. 6
Lamar Democrat/Ben Bunton New council members sworn in by Barton County Deputy Clerk Nikki Brand, far left, were, left to right, Clifford Blanchard, Roger Mayfield, Marshall Miller and Ed Patterson. By BEN BUNTON Lamar Democrat
took place on Monday, Feb. 24, at the Lamar First Baptist Church. The swearing in of new The Barton County Exten- council members, the acknowlsion Council Annual Meeting edgement of retiring members,
and a program put on by David Baker, the assistant dean of Agriculture Extension with the University of Missouri, were main points in the meeting.
First filings for August 5 primary
The filing period for the August 5 primary opened February 25 and will close at 5 p.m., March 25. The first day saw five incumbents, all Republicans, file for their party’s nomina-
P.O. Box 458 | 100 East 11th Street Lamar, Missouri 64759-0458 Phone: 417-682-5529 | Fax: 417-682-5595 info@lamardemocrat.com www.lamardemocrat.com
tions. They were Charles Curless who filed for Associate Circuit Judge, Mike Davis for Presiding Commissioner, Kristina Crockett for County Clerk, Janet Maupin for Circuit Clerk,
and Katheen Dimond for Recorder of Deeds. Incumbent Steven Kaderly, a Democrat, has filed for his party’s nomination for Prosecuting Attorney.
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the “old school.” All computers were removed, and everything returned to “hands on” education. The district claimed an improvement in student performance, and it was observed that “the past may become the future” for the district. Common Core was adopted by the Missouri Department of see CORE, page 2A
The new council members that were elected were Clifford Blanchard, Marshall Miller, Roger Mayfield, Ed Patterson, and Clark Wood. Blanchard, Miller, Mayfield and Patterson were all sworn in at the meeting by Barton County Deputy Clerk Nikki Brand. Retiring members were honored at the meeting. Mark Clements, Lee Howard, Darrell Kentner, Cinda Miller and Belinda Shoff are the five members that have retired. David Baker gave a program outlining the past 100 years of extension history, beginning with the Smith-Lever Act on May 8, 1914, which created cooperative extension in Missouri. He also talked about the future of extension, hoping for another good 100 years. The continuing members of the council are Leisa Blanchard, Lendi Davis, Jesse Medlin, Susan Roland, Sondra Smith, Charles Winslow, Paul Crabtree, Dean McKibben, Joyce Moser, Dale Robertson, Barb Thrasher, Lynn Calton, Sherry Keith, Chad McCulloch and Dennis Wilson.
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