Kinsley High School

Kinsley, Kansas

Teacher:  Dr. Galen R. Boehme

 

 

Community Growth Through Business

Presented by:

Mr. Ian M. Schaller

 

 

To infuse character and value in our community while increasing its survivability, we of the Kinsley, Kansas community need a common vision:  Growth of business.  Reaching this goal requires the personal responsibility and involvement of community leaders, retirees, and local schools.

 

Business provides growth and longevity to the community.  To improve our current living standards we need to make a conscious effort into investing in new business growth.  This growth needs to be driven towards a balance in the economy, environment, and quality of life of Kinsley.  The increased business will bring jobs that stimulate a population increase.  People moving into our area will create a sustainable cycle of growth.  Increasing business is a good opportunity in promoting community values.¹  Public investments show character and enhance the tax base.  A tax base is the funding used on services that the community requests.  These services, like fire and police stations, help stimulate private investment in creating new business.  The only way business can truly thrive is through shared vision.  There must be public investment, private investment, and a strong planning process.²

 

The community leaders are essential to starting the process.  The initial planning and resource management will be up to the people who run the city such as the mayor, and the people who attend town meetings.  The people who are responsible for improving the community are the people who live within the community.  Not everyone can make the changes, so leaders become the driving force.  They bring ideas to the table, such as business investment, and then see to it that the plans are carried through. Leaders represent the silent majority who stand to gain the most from business increases. Leaders listen to the community’s requests, and then relay them to a city manager who has access to the resources.³  The city managers in power are also leaders.  They need to examine all the possibilities available to reaching the town’s goals.  In increasing business, they can draw upon local resources as well as government help.  The Kansas Department of Commerce and Housing offers many grants and services for developing business within communities.  Kansas’ financial incentives, tax levies, and tax credits are favorable for creating and maintaining business.⁴

 

Retirees also play an important part in increasing business.  The “gray” population has many opportunities to work within the community.  They have more experience than the younger generations, which makes their influence and advice very important.  They will be able to fuel the business generation by using previous business contacts to increase competition.  As they become older, elder care can be an area of new business for our community.  Programs such as Home Health and the Medicalodge Retirement Home can be expanded.⁵  This is also an important area of responsibility because older people want to find a sense of value and significance in retirement.  A community goal such as improving and expanding business can be the outlet they need.  Older members of the community can help through volunteering; this involvement makes them feel as though they are working on a worthy project.⁶

Our local schools must also play a part in business progress.  Children need some form of interaction between them and the community members to learn in a social environment.  Children can gain values, ethics, and insight into their own personality and future.⁷  The addition of a mentoring program to our schools is the key step needed.  Businesses will benefit from having more community support and interest.  Bringing youngsters into the workplace is a rewarding experience for all involved.  This can boost employee productivity while providing the extra guidance children need to be successful.  Mentoring builds on the child’s reading and writing skills while teaching new abilities in the work place.⁸  Schools complete the common vision of the community by including the youth of our area.

 

Kinsley is taking the necessary steps in these areas to be successful in generating business and creating higher community value.  Just recently, the Edwards County Economic Development Corporation garnered $100,000 for local business development.  This micro-enterprise revolving loan fund for businesses with five or fewer employees is a critical step in furthering county business.  The elderly are becoming highly involved in Kinsley’s management and quality.  Programs within Kinsley, such as Pride, an organization based on volunteerism and involved in community functions, has a high number of retired individuals.  Members of this group raise money within the community and invest in areas that benefit the entire community.  Our county commission is another area of increased elderly involvement.  The older members of Kinsley want to be involved in making important decisions.  Kinsley High School has recently become involved in business and mentoring.  A work-study program was implemented at the beginning of the year.  Students can take several hours of class time to work for a business within the community to learn the skills required by the job. 

 

As an individual within the community, I can take personal responsibility in increasing business and community values.  I can accomplish both through furthering my education.  As I become successful financially, I can invest in my community.  This could involve starting my own business, providing jobs and growth.  A higher level of knowledge increases the quality of my interactions within the community.  People will look to me for guidance, so I must be a positive role model.  I can be a mentor to children within the community and the individuals who work for me.  As a high school senior, I have already begun this process.  I am a positive role model to my underclassmen, and I am a leader in my workplace.  I share my values in the hope that other students will follow my example.     

 

The growth of business and values through the involvement and responsibility of community leaders, retirees, and local schools provides the common vision needed for success.

 

 Footnotes

¹Eckersley, pp. 6-9.

²Davis.

³Bagby.

⁴“Community Development Resource Directory.”

⁵Minerd, p. 16.

⁶Squires, p. 15.

⁷Hersch, p. 11.

⁸Groal, p. 14.

 

Selected Bibliography

Bagby, Marsha.  Classroom interview.  Kinsley High School, Kinsley, Kansas, January 20, 2000.

“Community Development Resource Directory.”  Kansas Department of Commerce and Housing.  Community Development Division.  February 17, 2000.  http://www.kansascommerce.com

Davis, Gregory.  “Guiding Community Growth Is a Challenge.”  Ohio State University.  February 20, 2000.  http://ohioline.ag.ohio-state.edu/~craw/cd/essay.htm

Eckersley, Richard.  “Is Life Really Getting Better?”  The Futurist.  January 1999, n.p.  Singer packet article, pp. 6-10.

Groal, N’Gai.  “Mentoring Makes a Difference.”  Newsweek, November 2, 1998, p. 20.  Singer packet article, p. 14.

Hersch, Patricia.  A Tribe Apart.  New York:  Balantine Publishing Group, 1998.  Singer packet articles, pp. 10-11.

Minerd, Jeff.  “A ‘Gray Wave’ of Entrepreneurs.”  The Futurist, January 1999, n.p.  Singer packet article, p. 16.

Squires, Pamela.  “A Retiring Nature.”  Secure Retirement, July/August 1999, n.p.  Singer packet article, pp. 15-16.

 

Responses to the Questions

for Required Reading

 

 

Question 1:  How does society invest in marriage in the USA and in Manus?

Investment in marriage differs greatly in the United States and in the Manus.

            In the United States today, marriage is given importance by the financial “strings attached.”  Our society puts more emphasis on the divorce and its implications.  When a couple becomes engaged, they often sign a contract.  The contract ensures both parties financial stability after a divorce by splitting the money and property value in a way to provide for both sides.  The money comes out of the pockets of the individuals.  If the man is rich and the woman is poor, he will lose a large sum of money in the settlement.  This and religion are the primary factors influencing the decision of divorce.  In the United States, long marriages receive little praise or incentive to keep going.

            In the Manus tribe, marriage investment is economic and determined by length.  The Manus differs from the United States in the way the people put more emphasis on the relationship itself.  Investors pay in dogs’ teeth and shell money at the initial betrothal for a male child.  The money is used to raise the child and help the couple pay for their living needs.  The family on the bride’s side later repays the dog’s teeth and shell money in pigs and oil providing that the marriage remains intact.  Investors shun people who have been divorced because no return exists in a failed marriage.  Unlike the United States, this puts a community influence into having the marriage last longer.  The longer the marriage, the greater the investments and returns.  Long marriages receive great prestige in the Manus society.

            Marriage in both the United States and in the Manus tribe involves wealth, but the two societies place a different value on staying together.    

 

Question 2:  Interview 10 married people(no names).  State the length and number of each one’s marriages and a line or two of advice from each on how to maintain a long, happy relationship.

 

            To better understand marriage, I have gone directly to the source and asked married individuals for advice to what they believe is critical in creating a longer and happier marriage.

            Individual #1:  She has been married once to the same individual for 23 years.  She has two children in her marriage.  "Communication and respect are important in a marriage.  You need to be friends as well as lovers in the relationship.”

            Individual #2:  She has been married only once to the same man for 25 years.  She has one child and two dogs.  “Listening and pretending to let him get his own way smoothes the relationship.  Doing things together is important because it is not just sex.  Couples need to go out and spend time together.”

            Individual #3:  She has been married once, and it has lasted for over 27 years.  She has three children.  “Being good friends and having a good sex life is essential.  There will always be troubles and money can be a big issue.  The important thing to remember is to talk about it and work together.”

            Individual #4:  She has been married to only one man, and the relationship has lasted for 26 years.  She has two children.  “Marriage is only happy part of the time…avoidance can help in times of strife.”

            Individual #5:  She has been married for 37 years to her only husband.  She has two children in the relationship.  “Non-communication…don’t talk to each other and you’ll have a long happy relationship.”  She feels she has been married her entire life.  She became engaged at the age of 18.  “The juicy stuff of the marriage involves credit cards, vacations, etc…”

            Individual #6:  She has been married only once and the relationship has lasted 22 years.  She has two children.  “Marriage isn’t based on just sex…both partners need to be understanding and talk about things.”

            Individual #7:  He is currently divorced.  The previous marriage lasted 13 years and produced two children.  “We fell out of love…no feelings for one another.  We decided to go our separate ways.  It is important to build and work together.”

            Individual #8:  She was in only one relationship that lasted two years and is currently divorced  She has two children.  “I wasn’t happy.  I now find it extremely important to spend one day a week as family day, where I spend time with my kids and current love interest.”

            Individual #9:  She has been married twice with the first one lasting 18 years and producing four children.  Her current marriage has lasted for seven months.  “My first hubby was domineering and not nice after 18 years.  It was a sad parting, but friendship and mutual respect are needed in a strong marriage.”

            Individual #10:  He has been married once to the same wife of 23 years.  He has two children.  “Try to listen and take the other’s views in account…caring for each other no matter what and accepting bad as well as good because certain aspects will not always be good.”

            In closing, I have found many methods of creating a longer and happier marriage from people who have experienced marriage themselves.

 

Question 3:  According to Richard Eckersley, what should our collective goal be?

According to Richard Eckersley’s article, “Is Life Really Getting Better?” our collective goal should be to determine what we truly want and need out of life and how we are going to achieve these goals.

            We must first determine what progress and the better life are.  Eckersley indicates that there is more to the quality of human life than material and economic growth.  We must look beyond these values to what really matters:  Our happiness and well being.  This involves the quality of our personal, social, and spiritual relationships that give us a sense of meaning, purpose, and belonging.  We need to move “beyond” growth by guiding our economy, business, and technological innovation by the values that matter.  It is important to examine our current situation to determine how to attack our goal.  The better life has many different elements to many different people.  Race and ethnic groups will need help to prevent discrimination and provide equal opportunity to everyone.   Our worst fear is leaving someone behind due to differences.

            In achieving these goals we need to be careful.  Our actions today can have a huge impact on our future outcome.  We live in a world with limited resources and a large amount of need.   A balance must exist in the economy, environment, and quality of life.  The overall quality of our social fabric will decide what is real.  We need to determine if our current and future social fabrics are sustainable.  They need to follow a pattern of renewal that cannot be broken due to a flexible nature. 

Eckersley stresses this point because our planet and society is constantly changing.  How we achieve our goals will determine our true quality of life.

 

Question 4:  Write a worthy goal for your local community.

            My community needs to have an active goal on increasing business.  This is important in keeping our community alive.  Adding and building upon the current business will increase the value of living within Kinsley.  More people will move to our area, money flow will increase, and more jobs will become available.

            Kinsley is currently working towards this goal.  In the past several years, we have concentrated on increasing business and tourism.  We have taken our carnival heritage and built several museums.  The Carnival Heritage Museum is our main attraction and specializes in carousels.  Several new businesses have entered the area as well.  Bootstrap Photo entered in the past few years and is doing well.  Midway Internet is the biggest business that has recently entered.  It is a local Internet provider that has customers out of Greensburg, Bucklin, and Stafford to name a few.  It is also technology advancement for our town.

            I can play an active role in achieving this goal.  One way is to play the part of an active consumer.  This involves buying locally.  I have demonstrated this by buying my senior pictures from Bootstrap, a local company.  I can also achieve this goal be becoming successful myself and giving to the community.  After completing college and gaining a strong financial foothold, I can invest in my community.  I could start my own business, providing jobs and growth.

 

Question 5:  Comment on the excerpts from “Tomorrow’s Child.”

The excerpts from “Tomorrow’s Child” focus on one issue:  Material growth’s effect on our population. 

The article illustrates this point with the replacement of human connections with objects and the growing influence of “haves and have-nots.”  When a company contemplates building a doll to replace a child’s mother, we must realize a problem exists.  Should lonely children have their motherly connection replaced or mimicked by a doll?  My answer is no.  In order to raise a healthy child a significant interaction must exist between parents and the child.  If we allow this type of doll to exist we will be giving up on children.  It will be easier to not spend time with them.  The “haves and have-nots” illustrate a growing gap in wealth and income.  This is especially harmful to minorities within America.  To fight this way of thinking, we need to come together as a people and shift the focus away from material wealth.  Our society needs to place a new emphasis on health and quality of living.  The gap in material wealth and income will not disappear, but can be made less damaging to the people it will affect if it is less important in making them happy.

 

Question 6:  How does the fact the USA is a democracy make lawyers particularly helpful, according to Kathleen Sullivan?  How does our diversity, wealth and size make lawyers particularly helpful?

 

            According to Kathleen Sullivan, lawyers are particularly helpful in our democratic government because they maintain its non-regulation standards.

            A democracy is built around the idea of limited government.  The people should have control in how the government conducts its business.  Democracy also means individualism and social fluidity, or freedom to become anything we want.  Lawyers are a central part of this government because people need a form of protection from harmful individual practices.  Lawyers bring the responsibility and accountability not provided by a total control form of government.  An increasing diversity of religion, race, and national origin adds to the importance of lawyers.  Differences in the way diverse people think and act bring conflict that is settled by mediation of law.  Lawyers are the enforcers of the law.  An increasing level of wealth will lead to an increase in lawyer activity.  Increased wealth leads to a stability that lets people look at different aspects of their lives.  Lawyers will help enforce and clarify changes they decide to make in their choices of living.  They will also help protect and ensure that personal wealth lasts.  The size of our country, or its expansiveness and its numbers of organizations, needs someone to check interactions.  Lawyers do this by helping to set up processes, procedures, and rules to simplify multiple transactions.  One or two rules can be used as guidelines for all future transactions, so individuals no longer have to take personal responsibility.  Lawyers clearly play an important role in democracy and its people.

 

Question 7:  Ms. Sullivan claims bad practices are changed either by regulations or punitive damages.  Which do you prefer and why?  Can you think of an alternative?

 

            Bad practices should be changed by punitive damages and not by regulation.  Our entire country is based on freedom, an opposite of regulation, but something must still be done to protect the people of our country from harmful business and individual actions.  Punitive damage is the solution to the problem.  Individuals have the choice to take action against companies that hurt them.  Lawyers act as the single voice of complaint and the silent majority that has been hurt or could be hurt.  Punitive damages are designed to make the company absorb the real cost of their actions and force the company to change those actions or be sued again.  Government regulation would not be as effective for many reasons.  The regulations are too specific and cannot cover the many different problems faced by individuals.  Government regulation is hard to change and open to corruption.  Officials can be bribed or convinced into passing a regulation that does not benefit the people.  Punitive damage is the obvious solution to all the drawbacks of regulation and is the only clear option to controlling bad business practices.

 

 

Question 8:  Briefly describe three ways society would benefit from the coming retirement of baby boomers, according to the required reading.

 

            Our society will benefit from the coming retirement of baby boomers in many ways.  “Gray” business, or businesses owned by and run by retired workers, has many positives.  Experienced workers and numerous business contracts will increase competition and the quality of services provided.  As Generation X begins to settle down and start a baby boom of their own, “Gray” business will offer many services to the new parents.  The added retirees will also provide business for younger generations.  Elderly care will increase and companies will have to make changes.  Some companies may offer “elder care” as well as “child care” during the workday to reduce distractions and increase productivity.  Young entrepreneurs will have the opportunity to start new businesses that provide elderly care.  Increases in volunteering will also be an important benefit to society.  As working becomes an important part of retirement, volunteering offers several elements not found in regular jobs.  It helps in the emotional transfer into retirement by providing a feeling of worthiness and the ability to still make a difference.  The older members of society feel needed and significant.  With the increased number of individuals retiring and living longer, it is important that society benefits through business, opportunity, and volunteer work that these individuals can and will provide.

 

Question 9:  Evaluate the likelihood of President Clinton’s anti-poverty program making a real impact.  Give at least three reasons to back up your conclusions.

 

Bill Clinton’s anti-poverty program will not make a real impact.

In his proposal, Clinton stresses three plans to fight poverty.  First, he wants a 25 percent tax credit that enables business to invest in poor areas.  The credit will last five years to allow the company to make a strong base.  Second, a variety of institutions, such as America’s Private Investment Companies (APIC), will provide public debt guarantees for private companies that invest in poor areas.  This is the first foray into equity investment instead of commercial loans.  Last, Community Development Financial Institutions (CDIF), nonprofit organizations partly financed by the government for the purpose of providing cheap loans to the poor, will be given more help.  These loans are important in starting business and allowing poor individuals to buy homes.  Clinton makes four claims to why this will succeed.  He says the time to act is now.  A large reduction in the number of families below the poverty line and in the numbers on welfare suggests that an anti-poverty program can work effectively now.  Second, our economy is at its highest point and will only continue to grow with the addition of people working and buying.  The poor are these new people.  Third, the markets represent a developing country within the United States.  We should invest more in them as we do in other nations such as Mexico.  Fourth, and most important, is that the present administration claims that the policies are better than those of the past.

Clinton’s four claims will not work in achieving his goals.  Acting now is not an option because the poor are uneducated.  If we try to bring them into the work force, there will be a low return for companies.  These “new workers” may have problems doing simple tasks that other more literate workers take for granted.  No business is going to want to take in second rate workers when their main goal is downsizing and becoming more efficient.  The comparison to foreign developing countries is misleading.  Investing in poor areas is not as profitable as investing in abroad or high-tech companies at home.  Last, the current design of the government’s program is not as good as it might be.  A current act requires banks to invest in poor areas.  Banks that are required to invest a certain portion of their loans into poor areas have not helped business in any way because their main focus has been home loans, where there is collateral.  Businesses are not attracted to poor areas by government proposals or actions.

In conclusion, Clinton’s plans are not effective and will not help reduce the current poverty situation.  

 

Question 10:  Name three things Truett Cathy and Tom Lewis have in common.

            Truett Cathy and Tom Lewis have many traits in common.  They are both men who have taken active responsibility in improving society.  They care deeply about children and what effects them.  Cathy and Lewis have overcome obstacles to achieve their goals.

            Cathy could have stopped with his successful Chick-fil-A fried chicken sandwich, but he went beyond and used its income to create the WinShape Foundation.  Lewis is the same in the way he was a police officer that took the extra steps after retirement to open The Fishing School.  Both programs show responsibility in improving the communities around them.  Both men saw opportunity and played active roles in reaching their goals.

            Both men have taken their responsibility on behalf of helping children.  Cathy believes that “education improves people and broadens their horizons” and that “unloved children is the number one problem in America today.”  He tries to solve the problem by providing quality foster homes and by creating the WinShape Center, a college designed to help kids get started.  Lewis is like Cathy in his view of children.  He often wept at the sight of underprivileged children and vowed to help them.  He started The Fishing School as a family and child support center that is concerned about the education and well being of children.

            Both men overcame challenges in their quests to help children.  Cathy went through a costly fire and rebuilt.  He also faced the tragic deaths of two of his brothers.  Lewis had to survive 20 years of police service.  He then had to overcome the drug and criminal gang activity in the neighborhood he started the center in.

            Cathy and Lewis are clearly similar in their responsibility, care for children, and triumph over obstacles.