“I volunteer as tribute” is what Katniss Everdeen said in “The Hunger Games” when sacrificing herself in place of her sister. It was a heroic act out of love, and she left with much hope from the people of District 12. With time, the divide between the capitol and Everdeen’s district strengthens as attempts are made to overlook District 12. To further elucidate, this intense relationship from Suzanne Collins’ dystopian novel is reflected between our BV district and Kansas Legislature.
But this begs the questions of where are we in the district lineup, and who is our Katniss Everdeen? Allow me to explain.
Recently, our school district has seen budget cuts, a phone ban, multiple blocked educational websites and more frustrating issues that seem to be coming daily. This pressure on our district, however, is much like the pressure placed on Everdeen’s: our capitol, our Kansas State Legislature, appears to be relentless.
Because these policies run on money, it has led to a heavier reliance on wealth more than hope. People, on the other hand, can run on hope, and that is truly all we can manage as a common people while our district is scrambling for next school year’s funds.
Now, we may not be District 12, but we certainly aren’t first in the lineup. With the district’s current money troubles comes the loss of extras and focus on the necessities.
But it’s time to redefine the necessities.
On May 20, 2026, the Blue Valley, De Soto, Olathe, and Shawnee Mission districts formed the Kansas Public School Funding Coalition, representing over 83,000 students, and in a press release said the Kansas State Legislature has failed to adequately fund public education and meet its legal obligation for special education funding for more than 15 years.
“The Legislature and elected officials have consistently and deliberately chosen to shift those costs onto school districts and local taxpayers rather than fulfill their legal obligation,” the press release said.
This is in addition to further worries for families.
Will taxes be allocated to fund people to watch over our phones next year? How will taxes be used to keep our phones away? Will these policies be further enforced?
What I see in these questions and the newest claim from the districts is the consistent involvement of tax money. We can’t just sell technology like District 3 and build an economy like we’re playing a video game. We can’t just take more taxes. We are one district. And for this reason, we can’t fully blame the district — they are working with what they’ve got. And while many blame the capitol, I want to reference a common theme in Hunger Games: hope.
People can run on hope. And while that may be enough for most sitting in air-conditioned classrooms with teachers that care for them, it isn’t enough for the minority who are deeply affected by the state and subsequent district’s decisions. Every day, I feel the need to say, most does not mean all.
As a journalist, I am part of a large population of incredible people who work to tell the stories of the people. We, too, are directly affected by the district’s decisions — one of them being the phone ban.
We have lost the convenience of having a photo-taking, interview-storing, social-media-posting cellular device, and we are therefore slowly losing our connection with the student population. I understand it is hard to see the bottom of the pyramid when the peak is above the clouds. What we need now more than ever is a Katniss Everdeen.
We need someone or something to look forward to. We need something to build hope from, someone to believe in because it certainly isn’t the future.
I refuse to let this tunnel be a cave.
Voice your opinion:
Blue Valley School District Email: [email protected]
Kansas State Department of Education (KSDE): [email protected]
