Shawnee Mission School District allows nepotism hires--and overcharges $1054 upfront if you dare to request Open Records search

Here's to my esteemed and finally emboldened leader friends at the news reporting website, www.ShawneeMissionPost.com!  Generally they just kiss the asses in power.  But FINALLY, THEY TOOK A STAND.  And got punished for daring to report the news.

They outed the Shawnee Mission School District for allowing the hire of the daughter of one of their school board members, Deb Zila.

Photo from SMPost.com: Deb Zila, the smug silent Mom who approved the contract with CBIZ to be
benefits MANAGER for the school district where she was elected to serve on the board!!
Hey, Deb.  Save us all the trouble of  a KORA records search--divulge the answers for FREE! 

Meet Mallory Zila.  Fresh from KState, until last April, when this former Nordstrom employee became a highly paid Employee Benefits Manager for CBIZ.  She manages insurance and benefits for SM School District,
where Mommy Deb Zila serves as SM South area's elected school board member!
Note: this ruffled grey sweatshirt is NOT from Ivanka Trump.

And then, when the website made a KORA request (Kansas Open Records Act) Shawnee Mission Post was gobsmacked to be told they were slugged with a preposterous $1000 downpayment demand!!!

Here's that link:
https://shawneemissionpost.com/2017/03/13/shawnee-mission-school-district-asks-for-1000-prepayment-in-order-to-comply-with-open-records-requests-61471

Note that the rate for searching and copying is $56 per hour, when the district publishes a rate of $30 to respond to KORA requests.  But working at the copier at SMSD comes with a benefit: all the Koolaid you can drink.

Today Shawnee Mission Post ran a survey on their web site.  Asking inoccuously:  "Are you satisfied with the level of transparency of the Shawnee Mission School District?"  

Knowing the facts, what fool would answer "yes"??  None.  But that doesn't count the district's horde of employment slaves...and Facebook and LinkedIn friends of Mallory and Deb Zila.!!

Well, so far the tally is 65 yes, 458 no. I thus conclude that the staff of the Shawnee Mission School District logged on after drinking their morning Koolaid, to vote yes. Couple that with the new policy of charging a deposit of a preposterous $1000 for Open Meetings requests for documents, which will likely be overturned as burdensome and thus illegal. Shame on overpaid Jim Hinson and the school board that condones this crap. 

The SM Schools should be merged with Blue Valley School District, and Olathe and Desoto. Fire some administrators, consolidate and save the taxpayers money. Then the Mom on the board, Mrs.Deb Zila, should submit the answers now, for free--and then resign based on conflict of interest.  Did she abstain from a line item on a SMSD board consent agenda that authorized her daughter's company's employment contract?  That's how these things sneak through. 

And folks wonder why the Ks. Legislature wants to cut down on wasteful taxpayer subsidies of public schools. We all have the governance we are willing to put up with. And yes, I know that's a dangling participle...I'm from Iowa, a "state of minds"... 

Pulse of Northeast Johnson County: Are you satisfied with the level of transparency from the Shawnee Mission School District?

SHAWNEEMISSIONPOST.COM

Note: if you like being informed about government transgressions and consumer issues, check regularly with www.jocopost.com and www.kcmopost.com