Opinion

GUEST COLUMN, Dave Trabert, Kansas Policy Institute

Congratulations to the four newly elected members of the Kansas State Board of Education: Betty Arnold, Beryl New, Connie O’Brien, and Debby Potter. You were elected with a D or an R next to your name, but we hope you will retire those labels and adopt the only one that matters: student-focused.

Student-focused state school board members are constitutionally and statutorily charged with setting high standards and improving student outcomes. The standards (what students are expected to know and be able to do to qualify as proficient) are pretty good. Unfortunately, achievement levels are nowhere near what students need and deserve.

GUEST COLUMN, Sally C. Pipes, Thomas W. Smith Fellow

America's health bill will surpass $7.7 trillion by 2032. That's equivalent to one in every five dollars flowing through the economy.

To address this crisis, we must make health care work like other sectors of our economy, rather than the bloated, over-regulated mess it is today. And that will require giving patients more control over their healthcare dollars.

GUEST COLUMN, Nina Teicholz, Ph.D

No matter where you stand politically, the return of Donald Trump to the White House presents a chance to reshape America's approach to health and nutrition. His administration will have the opportunity to overhaul outdated federal dietary guidelines, which lack scientific rigor and have long contributed to our chronic disease epidemic.

Every five years since 1980, the government has published its Dietary Guidelines for Americans, advising people to get 52 percent to 56 percent of their calories from grains and other carbohydrate-rich foods, while largely avoiding the natural saturated fats found in whole milk, butter, and meat.

MY PERSPECTIVE, Gary Damron

Leading up to Christmas, we're focusing on God's words spoken through the prophet named Isaiah. Last week we learned that we can hope for change, because Jesus the Messiah brings light to a darkened world. This week, given the turmoil internationally and individually, we'll look at hope for healing in a damaged world.