When a Wichita School District Denied Special Education Services, This Family Fought Back — and Won
Wichita, KS- (Editor’s note: This story refers to a 2021 due process case filed against the Wichita school district by Josh Dutcher and Sara Zafar on behalf of their child, Kaien, or “K.D.” The student now identifies as Lexi and uses the pronouns she/her.) Josh Dutcher and Sara Zafar say their oldest child’s problems in school started early. […]
Army Ceases Operating Tax Centers, Including at Fort Riley
Fort Riley, KS- The Fort Riley Legal Assistance Office will no longer operate a Tax Center. The Army Office of The Judge Advocate General announced last October that Staff Judge Advocate offices Army wide will no longer provide tax preparation services. The Office of the Staff Judge Advocate at Fort Riley had operated a Tax […]
A $1.8 Billion Semiconductor Plant is Planned for Wichita Through Another Kansas Megaproject Deal
Topeka, KS — Kansas has struck a deal with a Wichita company to build a $1.8 billion semiconductor manufacturing plant, but it hinges on the company securing federal money by later this year. Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly announced on Thursday a deal with Integra Technologies to build the plant in the Wichita area and create 2,000 […]
Governor Kelly Announces 9-8-8 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline Has Helped Nearly 27% More Callers in First 6 Months
Topeka, KS– Governor Laura Kelly today announced that since its launch in July 2022, the 9-8-8 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline has handled a nearly 27% increase in call volume compared to the six months before its launch. Based on national projections, Kansas is estimated to reach 120,000 Kansans in the hotline’s first full year of […]
30 Years Ago, These Kansas Farmers Were Told to use Less Water. Here’s How They Did It
Hays, KS— Trying to cut back on irrigation in western Kansas isn’t a new idea. More than three decades ago, the state came to farmers in the Walnut Creek basin south of Hays with a mandate. Farmers had to drastically change how much water they used on their crops. Some had to cut irrigation by nearly […]
Kansas Might tighten Criminal Penalties for Kids, After Loosening them 6 Years Ago
Topeka, KS — Christina Smith says her son has threatened to kill her. Smith was recovering from knee surgery when her child threw her against a wall because he didn’t want to go back to a psychiatric ward. She tried to call 911, but her son took her phone. Police have been to her house […]
Governor Kelly Announces Nearly $1.8 Million in Funding for 10 Family Resource Centers
Topeka, KS– Governor Laura Kelly today announced that 10 Kansas communities are receiving grants to assist with the creation of Family Resource Centers. These funds, granted by the Kansas Department for Children and Families, are part of its ongoing efforts to decrease the need for families to have formal contact with the agency. “The centers receiving […]
How Bad was the 2022 Drought? For these 7 Kansas Communities, it was the Driest on Record
It might not rain much in Healy. But if it does, it’s Steve Fenster’s job to know about it. Every morning for more than 40 years as a volunteer with the National Weather Service, he’s peered out the window of his west-central Kansas home scouring his patio for any signs of moisture. If it’s the […]
Kansas is a Rare State Without a Long-COVID Clinic, Leaving Some Patients Far from Specialists
It’s been over two years since Barry Guyer came down with COVID-19. “(I) was just out in the harvest field. I just got feeling terrible,” said Guyer, who farms near Goodland in northwest Kansas. “I got home that one night I said, ‘I think I’ve got this stuff.’” Guyer was admitted into the hospital for […]
Kansas Profile – Now That’s Rural: Alex Parker, Circle P Processing
By Ron Wilson, director of the Huck Boyd National Institute for Rural Development at Kansas State University Manhattan, KS- “Full circle.” That’s one way of describing the creation of one Kansas rural business, which is located in what was once one of the first state-inspected meat plants and is again serving the processing needs […]