United Teachers of Wichita urges guaranteed teacher voice on financial oversight committee

Mike Harris, vice president of United Teachers of Wichita, addressed the board on June 9 urging formal inclusion of classroom educators in fiscal decision‑making, particularly on the district’s financial oversight committee.

“Public education succeeds when every voice — classroom teachers, parents, students, and civic partners — have a genuine seat at the table,” Harris said in public comment. He praised progress in early literacy, community schools planning and the district’s AI task force, and said those successes show the value of bottom‑up collaboration.

Harris said the financial oversight committee (FOC) had no certified teachers seated despite multiple educator applications and that the committee’s schedule and charter limit meaningful participation by working educators and parents. He said the committee’s current scope risks favoring high‑visibility capital projects over instructional investments such as bilingual ESOL teachers or reading and mental‑health supports.

Harris urged four steps: codify educator voice on future district committees (especially fiscal and strategic committees); hold an open budget workshop before any bond advances; draft a community schools framework that expands partnerships; and replicate the AI task‑force’s teacher‑led, student‑centered model for other innovations.

He said teachers are ready to participate and requested that the board guarantee teacher seats on committees and convene an open budget review to bolster transparency and community trust.

Board members acknowledged the concerns and discussed ways to increase school‑level involvement (principal PLCs, site councils and ambassadors) and the district reiterated its intention to expand community engagement around budget and bond proposals. No formal board action was taken at the meeting on committee composition or bond timing.