Four CCS staff members resign

    Advertising is underway to replace three teachers and Chase County Schools’ elementary guidance counselor.
    At Tuesday’s meeting, school board members accepted the resignation of K-6 guidance counselor Cathy Hanna and teachers Trent Herbert, Kara Hagan and Chelsey Sutton.
    All four resignations, effective the end of the 2022-23 school year, were approved unanimously.
    Hanna, who is completing her eighth year as K-6 guidance counselor, also taught family and consumer science classes at CCS for a number of years. After a break, she returned to CCS as guidance counselor.
    Supt. Adam Lambert said Hanna will be retiring.
    Trent Herbert, a former 7-12 guidance counselor, returned to CCS this school year to teach physical education.
    Lambert said Herbert’s intent coming back for the PE position was for one year only.        “We owe a huge thank-you to Trent. He threw us a lifeline and agreed to come back for one year,” Lambert said.
    Hagan and Sutton have taken teaching jobs elsewhere to be closer to family.
    Hagan has accepted a position at Perkins County Schools in Grant, where her husband farms. This is her third year at CCS, and is a 7th grade English/language arts teacher and also teaches a high school dual credit course with Mid-Plains Community College.
    Sutton, a CCS third grade teacher whose family lives in Alma, has accepted a job with Southern Valley Schools. This is her seventh year at CCS, beginning her tenure in August 2016.
Special ed. teacher added
    Board members voted to expand the teaching staff at CCS in the special education department, after information on student numbers was given by Lambert. He requested adding the full-time position.
    He said there is a real need for an additional middle school (grades 5-8) SPED teacher with an expected 34 students next year and five more being tested in those grades. One teacher is handling most of those students now.
    “The normal SPED teacher load is 15-20 students,” Lambert noted.
    After the 7-0 vote, Lambert said he would begin advertising the position right away.