USD
408
PROFILE
Marion-Florence
Unified
School
District
408
is
located
in
Marion
County
in
Central
Kansas
along
the
western
edge
of
the
scenic
Flint
Hills.
All
three
attendance
centers,
Marion
Elementary
School
(K-6),
Marion
Middle
School
(7-8)
and
Marion
High
School
(9-12)
are
located
in
Marion,
the
county
seat.
Administrative
offices
for
Marion
County
Special
Education
Cooperative
and
OASIS,
a
day
school
for
behavior-disordered
children,
are
housed
in
facilities
located
in
Florence.
Marion
and
Florence
are
typical
rural
communities,
both
suffering
from
the
need
for
fewer
people
to
be
actively
involved
in
production
agriculture.
Marion
County
and
all
of
its
towns,
have
lost
population
as a
result
of
the
employment
shift
from
agriculture
to
manufacturing
and
services.
Main
employment
categories
in
descending
order
are
service,
government,
agriculture,
wholesale/retail
and
manufacturing.
The
employment
rate
for
the
county
remains
low,
as
people
who
need
a
job
can
usually
find
one.
Marion
and
Florence
offer
the
security
of
small-town
life
as
well
as
the
conveniences
of
modern
day
living.
Municipal
services
include
volunteer
fire
departments,
police
departments,
a
public
airport,
banks,
a
hospital,
nursing
homes,
doctors,
dentists,
a
chiropractor,
an
optometrist,
retirement
housing,
senior
citizen
centers,
a
number
of
churches,
motels
and
most
recently
homes
used
as
bed
and
breakfast
establishments.
Recreational
opportunities
include
a
golf
course
with
watered
fairways
and
greens,
tennis
courts,
baseball
diamonds,
parks,
municipal
swimming
pools,
and
fitness
centers.
Nearby
Marion
County
Lake
and
Marion
Reservoir
provide
opportunities
to
swim,
fish,
water-ski,
boat,
and
camp.
Hunting
is
another
popular
pastime
in
this
area.
A
newly
organized
Marion
Recreation
Commission
organizes
and
governs
a
number
of
activities
for
citizens
of
the
area.
The
communities
boast
a
weekly
newspaper
and
receive
broadcast
television
channels
and
numerous
cable
TV
channels.
Marion-Florence
USD
408
was
consolidated
in
1969.
The
school
district
encompasses
237
square
miles.
The
full
time
equivalency
(FTE)
enrollment
for
the
2006-2007
school
year
is
615
students.
In
2006
approximately
35%
of
the
students
lived
more
than
2.5
miles
from
an
attendance
center
and
were
transported
to
school
by
the
district
transportation
system.
The
student-teacher
ratio
is
13:1.
The
school
district
employs
100
people
who
either
teach
children
or
support
that
mission.
In
addition,
the
Marion
County
Special
Education
Cooperative
employs
approximately
40
people
who
work
along
with
district
staff
to
serve
special
needs
children.
USD
408
offers
a
wide
variety
of
classes
that
encompasses
both
core
curriculum
and
elective
subjects.
New
for
2006-2007
is
the
Construction
Technology
class
which
enhances
vocational
curriculum.
In
the
class
students
learn
modern
construction
skills
utilized
in
home
construction.
The
Marion
County
Special
Education
Cooperative
#617
provides
special
education
services.
Butler
County
Community
College
of
Marion
provides
continuing
education
opportunities.
Through
a
cooperative
effort
of
the
Marion
County
school
districts,
an
Alternative
Learning
Center
was
opened
in
1997-98.
This
facility
is
intended
to
serve
the
needs
of
former
students
and
patrons
that
have
not
completed
their
high
school
education.
To a
limited
extent
the
Learning
Center
may
be
used
by
students
who
need
opportunities
to
make
up
lost
credits.
Technology
education
and
the
improvement
of
available
technology
are
included
in
one
of
the
seven
strategies
outlined
in
the
district
strategic
plan.
In
1993,
five
area
school
districts
formed
the
Technology
Excellence
in
Education
Network
(TEEN).
Through
this
network
students
participate
in
classes
taught
through
interactive
television.
A
local
area
network
connects
all
classrooms
at
Marion
Elementary,
Marion
Middle
and
Marion
High
School
to
the
TEEN
network
and
to
the
Internet.
The
District
School
Improvement
Team
(DSIT)
supervises
the
review
and
revision
of
district
curriculum
guides
on a
five-year
cycle.
Teaching
materials
and
textbooks
are
also
subject
to
DSIT
review.
The
district
assessment
program
including
state
assessments,
norm-referenced
achievement
tests
and
locally
prepared
assessments
is
coordinated
by
DSIT
as
directed
by
the
District
Coordinator
of
Curriculum
and
Assessment.
Staff
development
activities
and
the
documentation
required
for
teachers
to
recertify
through
professional
development
points
are
coordinated
and
supervised
by a
newly
reactivated
Professional
Development
Council.
Numerous
staff
development
activities
are
offered
by
the
Educational
Services
and
Staff
Development
Association
of
Central
Kansas
(ESSDACK)
of
which
USD
408
is
an
active
member.
During
the
1998-1999
school
year
the
USD
408
Board
of
Education
authorized
the
development
of a
district
strategic
plan.
On
March
4-6,
1999
a
Strategic
Planning
Team
composed
of
twelve
representative
school
employees
and
twelve
representative
school
patrons
met
at
Rock
Springs
Ranch
to
draft
the
plan.
The
Marion-Florence
USD
408
Strategic
Plan
was
approved
by
the
Board
of
Education
in
April,
1999,
and
serves
as
the
compass
for
the
district.
Centered
on
teaching/learning
issues,
the
Strategic
Plan
will
guide
all
aspects
of
district
activity
for
the
next
three
to
five
years.
