AD: FSCC Community Read: The Other Wes Moore
You are invited to the Campus & Community Common Read Speaker Event to be held on Wednesday, November 17th at 12:30 p.m. in the Ellis Center Meeting Rooms on the campus of Fort Scott Community College, 2108 S. Horton.
This event is brought to the students, staff, and local community of Fort Scott Community College by a Humanities Kansas grant which offered opportunities to discuss two books, A Choice of Weapons by Gordon Parks and The Other Wes Moore by Wes Moore.
Both are books related to culture and diversity.
Our speaker for the November 17 event is Dr. Jason Kegler, Associate Vice President of Student Life at Pittsburg State University. He has held a variety of diverse roles and positions related to student life, student rights and responsibilities, instruction, admissions and marketing, and county law enforcement.
Reading of the book is not required, but Dr. Kegler will talk of culture and diversity related to the book as well as his experiences in southeast Kansas.
The event is scheduled to be approximately 30-45 minutes long.
Description of event:
- The FSCC Campus and Community Read is a semester-long book club that first read and discussed Gordon Parks’ A Choice of Weapons. This reading ended with guest speakers during the Gordon Parks Celebration. Topics discussed were culture and diversity topics faced by Gordon Parks.
- The second book read and discussed was The Other Wes Moore by Wes Moore. Dr. Kegler will talk about culture and diversity related to the book as well as his experiences in southeast Kansas
To learn more about Dr. Kegler, please click the link below:
Obituary of Maybelle Mertz
Lifelong Fort Scott resident Maybelle Mertz, 100, passed away comfortably at her home on November 15, 2021.
Mrs. Mertz was born and was raised in Fort Scott. She was born on February 6, 1921, the daughter of Harlan and Mabel (Hicks) Spencer. She graduated from Fort Scott High School in 1939. She and Jim Mertz were married January 20, 1945, at their home in rural Fort Scott, and he preceded her in death May 30, 1982.
She was the owner of The Horseshoe Ranch where she and Jim had horses and cattle throughout their lives. She worked as a bookkeeper at Montgomery Wards and at The Vogue, she was Deputy Clerk of the District Court, then started Mertz Tax Service at their home in the country. After moving to “town” she continued Mertz Tax Service until she was appointed to the Kansas Board of Tax Appeals in 1989 and served a four-year term. During this tenure, she was proud to attend college classes at the University of Reno, Nevada. She worked several years as an Enumerator for the State of Kansas, she was a House Mother for Baker University, University of Kansas, and Kansas State University in her “retirement” years!
Mrs. Mertz was full of spirit and energy; age was never a factor! She was a member of numerous organizations and clubs throughout her life, and she served as president of many as she loved to help lead and make things better for people. She worked tirelessly on the Gaited Horse Show during the Bourbon County Fair to help earn monies for improvements to the fairgrounds. She was a horsewoman and especially loved parade horses. She participated in parades and horse shows with her silver-mounted saddle and fancy parade outfits first on her paint horse Buck and then palomino Sonny through the course of her life. Following her horsewoman days, she became an avid golfer. She was a member of Fort Scott Country Club, Crestwood Country Club, Topeka Country Club, and golfed with Women’s leagues throughout the state and the world when she traveled to Africa and golfed at Victoria Falls, as well as in Europe.
She was a member of the First United Methodist Church, a member of the Bourbon County Conservation Supervisors Board, Federated Women’s Clubs, Beta Sigma Phi, The Area on Aging for Kansas, Elks, United Methodist Women’s Club, PEO. She was a volunteer at Mercy Hospital, volunteered with the Red Cross, American Heart Association, and Meals on Wheels. She was a member of the Daughters of the Nile, a former Mother Advisor for Rainbow Girls, attended Fort Scott Shrine Club events, and Mirza Temple Pittsburg, KS women’s events.
Mrs. Mertz is survived by a daughter Melessa Demo (Brad), Fort Scott, grandchildren Mandy Symons, Centennial, CO, J.T. Symons (Angie) Corolla, NC, and a great-grandson Hunter Symons Norfolk, VA, and grand-dogs Beans and Frank. In addition to her husband Jim, she was also preceded in death by her parents, a son, Jim “Sandy” Mertz on March 15, 2021, and two brothers, Joseph Spencer, and George Spencer.
Rev. Steve Cole will conduct funeral services at 10:30 a.m. Friday, November 19, 2021, at the Konantz-Cheney Funeral Home with burial following at the Evergreen Cemetery.
The family will receive friends Thursday evening November 18, 2021, from 5:00-6:00 p.m. at the funeral home.
Memorials are suggested to the First United Methodist Church and may be left in the care of the Konantz-Cheney Funeral Home, 15 W. Wall Street, P.O. Box 309, Fort Scott, Kansas, 66701. Condolences may be submitted to the online guestbook at konantz-cheney.com.
Legislative Update by State Senator Caryn Tyson
November 12, 2021
2021 Off-Session
Usually, there is not much to write about when the legislature is not in session. That is not the case this year. For the first time in Kansas history, 2/3 of the legislators signed a petition to force the Governor to call a special session. There have been 24 special sessions called in the past, but they were all called by the Governor without a petition from legislators. The special session beginning November 22, 2021 is a result of 29 (27 was required) senators and 84 representatives requesting the Governor call a special session. All Kansas Republican legislators petitioned the Governor for a special session. The first special session was called in 1874.
Any topic can be discussed during a special session. However, all indication is the session will deal with the federal government’s overreach on COVID-19 vaccine mandates. A Special Committee on Government Overreach and the Impact of COVID-19 Mandates is working to put together legislation for the special session. The Committee had informational hearings on two bill drafts. One bill draft would make it clear that a person who loses their job because they refuse to comply with the Biden Administration’s unconstitutional mandates may receive unemployment. The other bill draft would strengthen the language in Kansas law regarding religious and medical exemptions so that these exemptions would be granted to Kansans who seek them.
Contact Tracing
Last year KDHE put rules and regulations (regs) in place for contact tracing. The contact tracing rules and regs sunset on May 1, 2021. However, KDHE wants to continue to invade your privacy and a majority of legislators allowed it by extending KDHE’s contact tracing program to June 30, 2022 in a budget bill (CCR 159 – I voted no). It may not seem like a big deal, but when you look at all of the government overreach from the federal government, it could be a big deal that the current Administration is collecting medical information, individual movement, and other data. The data is being stored online at Saleforce.com. It is your option to deny providing the information, but you may not be told it is optional if it is a not a KDHE person calling. Contact tracing is collecting data on a person who may have been in contact with an infected person. KDHE said that they had 20 contact tracers and increased the number of tracers to 140 and are now at 129 tracers. Wow, 129 people (some out-state contractors) tracing Kansans movement. Keep in mind, KDHE is the department that was tracking Kansans by their cell phone movement last year. I requested that this language be repealed in the legislation that will be considered during the special session.
Unemployment Oversight Council
The legislature formed an Oversight Council comprised of legislators and people from the industry who could be considered experts on unemployment. The Council has made recommendations for a company to audit the unemployment system and the millions of dollars that were stolen using fraudulent unemployment claims. This report should be complete in 2022. After the Council studied the companies that applied to implement a new unemployment system, the Council recommended to the Legislative Coordinating Council (LCC) that the Kansas Department of Labor (KDOL) re-open the Request For Proposal (RFP) process. The original RFP was so poorly written that only 4 companies responded to the RFP. Two of the four companies that responded did such poor jobs implementing new systems in other states, the states would not hire them back. It doesn’t instill confidence moving forward with a new unemployment system which the state needs.
It is an honor and a privilege to serve as your 12th District State Senator.
Caryn
“As You Are Ministry” Starts
As You Are Ministries is a ministry started by Mayra and Jose Montanez, owners of the Fort Scott Barber Shop.
“We were led by God to not only bring this ministry here but also to move here along with our kids and grandkids as well as our barbershop,” Mayra said. The family came to Fort Scott earlier this year from the Kansas City area.
The ministry will provide faith-based community services such as clothing, shoes, hygiene products, food, and hot/cold beverages to those in need.
And they have much bigger plans for those people who are down and out.
“We will also be building two bathrooms with showers for anyone in need of one,” Mayra said.
The ministry is headquartered above their family business, Fort Scott Barbershop, 118 E. Wall.
The next step will be to create a healthy-food pantry, in collaboration with local farmers, she said.
Then they plan to build four family bedrooms for anyone needing a place to sleep or stay until they can be placed in a more permanent situation or program, Mayra said.
The ministry started at the beginning of the COVID-19 Pandemic in 2020.
“We quickly realized that people were desperate for hope and encouragement,” she said.
They started on social media.
“Every Sunday at 7 p.m., we would log in to our Facebook page ‘As You Are Ministries’ and give a word of encouragement to all that would log in.”
“Through our online videos, so far we have reached 15 countries,” she said.
They began to give out Bibles.
“Quickly noticing many people didn’t have Bibles, we started offering free Bibles, of their choosing, and would mail them to them,” she said. “We’ve currently given out close to 100, (with the) price ranging from $40-$100. It’s always what the person chooses, as long as it is Christian-based so that we can be in one accord.”
“Our Facebook page is public, anyone can see it and our goal is to reach all those in need of encouragement,” Jose said. “But the faith-based community service is for Fort Scott.”
The Montanez’s attend Faith Church and go to Bible studies with one of their groups on Mondays, he said.
The family had a setback when money was stolen from them recently.
“Our funds were stolen from our home about two months ago and we are currently in the process of saving up money to put in the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system and bathrooms,” he said. “The community has donated randomly so far $1,075 to help with the money stolen, we are so appreciative of that”
To view the story on the barbershop they opened in May 2021:
Chamber Coffee hosted by Fort Scott Compassionate Ministries
Chamber Coffee hosted by Fort Scott Compassionate Ministries
The Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce invites members and guests to a Chamber Coffee this Thursday, November 18th at 8 a.m. hosted by Fort Scott Compassionate Ministries, located at 26 N. Main St. Coffee, juice, and light refreshments will be served.
Allen Schellack is the Director/Chaplain at Fort Scott Compassionate Ministries. The Ministry Center is sponsored locally by Fort Scott Church of the Nazarene and a designated Salvation Army Disaster Relief and Services Extension Unit for Bourbon County. Their vision is to see every individual and family living successfully and interdependently within a caring community.
Contact the Chamber of Commerce at (620) 223-3566 for more information.
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The Fort Scott Police Department Daily Reports Nov. 15
The Bourbon County Sheriff’s Office Daily Reports Nov. 16
Football Program Information by Alysia Johnston
The decision to terminate the legendary football program at Fort Scott Community College was made with the best interest of student-athletes, coaches, FSCC, and Bourbon county taxpayers.
It was a very difficult decision, as it is hard to place a dollar amount on the value our football athletes have provided to our college and community.
Many of our football students bring needed diversity and perspective to our campus and community.
Our football students have provided many hours of community service, as evidenced by the recent downtown clean-up.
Although many things have changed in the last several years regarding the football program, the opportunity we provided to young men who wanted to advance their college education by means of a football scholarship was not one of the changes.
Although the football program has provided invaluable opportunities for FSCC and football athletes, we had to evaluate the financial impact the program has on the college, as well as the sustainability of providing football students with the best opportunity to play on a competitive team.
Below is a summary of information that was critical in the decision made by the FSCC Board of Trustees, and supported by myself, to close the program.
- At this time the cost vs revenue analysis of the football program indicates the football program is losing approximately $400,000 annually.
- The Jayhawk conference changed the rules in 2017 from allowing D1 community colleges sports programs to provide student-athletes with books and tuition scholarships only – to allowing scholarships for books, tuition, fees, room, board, and $500 in school supplies. The previous cap on the number of out-of-state players for football was removed allowing for up to 85 out-of-state players certified. Two years ago the number of out-of-state football players was changed again and now 55 out-of-state players can be certified. There are no other options to compete in the Jayhawk Conference for football, baseball, golf and track other than D1. The conference also changed the rules for D2 sports scholarships in 2017 from books and tuition only – to books, tuition, and fees only. At FSCC we are designated D2 in women’s and men’s basketball, women’s volleyball, women’s softball.
- Gender equity and equity for all athletes, regardless of the sport played, is required by the Federal Government. We must spend approximately the same dollar amount per student-athlete which is very difficult when D1 and D2 sports have different rules for scholarships.
- The bottom line is, any additional dollars we would add to the football program in an attempt to make them more competitive, we must also add to all our sports programs to meet equity in athletics requirements.
- The 2021 FSCC football roster had 16 Kansas players, 1 player from Bourbon County who quit the program in September. There are 19 community colleges in Kansas of which 8 have a football program. Each school can certify 85 football players for a total of 680 players (this does not include red-shirts or medical red-shirts). The 8 football programs had 163 Kansas players listed for the 2021 season. Local and Kansas students are not as numerous on football rosters as they were before the rule change.
- In 2014/2015 the FSCC football program had a deficit of more than $400,000 in their foundation activities account. It was determined in 2015 for every student credit hour generated, $1 in student fees would be used to reimburse FSCC Endowment for the deficit. Student fees have refunded FSCC Endowment approximately $35,000 to $40,000 each year since then. We currently have approximately $186,000 left of the original $400,000 deficit.
- The cruel, false, and inaccurate accusations that have been shared on many social media platforms, by mostly anonymous individuals and groups, regarding the football program has severely damaged our reputation and negatively affected our ability to move forward with the recruitment of student-athletes.
- FSCC has fewer football coaches than any other school in the Jayhawk Conference. For example at the last FSCC game vs Independence Community College, we had 6 coaches on the sidelines and ICC had 14 (some of which are volunteers as they currently list 9 on their website). Butler has 11 football coaches listed, Coffeyville -8, Dodge – 7, Garden – 8, Highland – 12, Hutchinson – 10, Independence – 8, and FSCC – 6. Fewer coaches means fewer people recruiting students and fewer experts working with individual players on key skills. It also means we would need to spend more money and hire additional coaches to be at a similar level as the other programs in the Conference.
If the money we lose on the football program each year was the only consideration in determining whether to continue the football program at FSCC, we would not have made the tough decision to terminate the program. However, the current losses are only a part of the financial picture in determining the sustainability of a competitive football program at FSCC. When putting together the financial figures for the Board I looked at our current budget, revenue, expenses, and economic impact of the football program. Previous to hiring the current coaching staff I consulted with a past Jayhawk Conference football coach to see what he believed a minimum football budget would be to allow us to be competitive in the conference. He provided me with a detailed breakdown of what he believed we would need to spend based on his past coaching experience in the Jayhawk Conference, and it was more than twice our football budget at the time, which was $273,000. That did not include the fact if we increased the football budget, we would have to do the same for all of our other sports programs. Our FY 2021 unaudited football budget is $365,000, which does not include all football program expenses.
I believe when considering all the financial needs to fund a competitive football program it would take at least an additional one million annually, which would be an additional 10 mils the Bourbon County taxpayers would have to bear. The FSCC Board of Trustees, and myself as president, do not believe continuing the football program would uphold the fiduciary responsibility placed in us by taxpayers. We will continue to provide multiple opportunities for students allowing them to earn a scholarship to advance their educational goals by participating in activities and athletics that allow them to learn and have positive, transformational experiences while at FSCC.
Respectfully,
Alysia Johnston
FS City Commission Holds Special Meeting To Interview City Manager Candidates
The City Commission will meet for a special meeting at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, November 20th, 2021 at City Hall in the City Commission meeting room at 123 South Main Street, Fort Scott, Kansas. The City Commission will meet to interview candidates for the City Manager position. The City Commission will recess into Executive Session for these interviews.
This meeting is open to the public, but the Executive Session is not.
Writers Workshop Held Nov. 17 at Local Bookstore
Wednesday Writers will happen at
Join Hedgehog.INK! on November 17 from
1:30 to 3 p.m.
The bookstore is located at 16 S. Main Street.
Jane M. Tucker, author of the Lottie Braun trilogy, will join the group to share insights into the writing and publishing of her books.
“This will be the third in a three-part series of workshops to give encouragement, motivation, and support to people who want to write,” said store owner Jan Hedges. “If there is enough interest, we may continue as a writers support group after the first of the year.”
Tabletop Ads Available At La Hacienda
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