ICE Agents Make Arrests in Western Kansas
LIBERAL, Kan. (KNS) – Federal immigration officers detained several people in western Kansas Monday. It comes as President Donald Trump's administration has promised to crack down on people in the country without legal status. The Kansas News Service reports that about 20% of residents in towns like Liberal do not have legal status. It’s common in this area to know someone who lives in a mixed-status household. Jose Lara, the mayor of Liberal, says he spoke with the federal agents and confirmed their activity in the area. “I tried to speak to as many families as we could get, confirmation. But at this time we can confirm at least five persons were arrested or detained from Liberal,” he said. Lara says he hasn’t seen this level of immigration enforcement in the area since 2020. Videos on social media appeared to show federal agents also in Dodge City and Garden City.
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Kansas Measles Outbreak Expands
UNDATED (KNS) – A measles outbreak in southwest and south central Kansas has grown significantly in the last week. The Kansas News Service reports that state health officials recorded 8 more cases of measles this week, bringing the total number this year to 32. Eight counties have recorded cases. Data from the Kansas Department of Health and Environment shows the majority of cases are among unvaccinated children, some of whom are too young to get vaccinated against measles. One patient has been hospitalized. Measles is highly contagious and in serious cases can lead to hospitalization or death. Other states, like Texas and New Mexico, have much larger outbreaks.
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Some Kansas Educational Programs to Pause After Cut to Pandemic Relief Funds
TOPEKA, Kan. (KNS) – Kansas schools will have less money to make up for learning gaps after the Trump administration cut pandemic relief funds. The Kansas News Service reports that Congress approved the funds in 2020 to help students catch up after the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted schools. Kansas was set to receive about $22 million through next March after the funds were extended. But now, the Trump administration has reversed course and ended the funding. Some Republicans argue federal COVID aid is wasteful and unregulated. But Democratic Representative Valdenia Winn says the funds are needed to support Kansas students. “One-third of the state’s children are reading below basic levels. This gap represents a major obstacle to workforce readiness and economic growth,” she argued. State education officials say they are pausing certain programs as they try to get the funds back.
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New Course in Reading Instruction Required for Elementary School Teaching License Renewal
WICHITA, Kan. (KNS) – Elementary school teachers in Kansas will soon have to take a course in reading instruction in order to renew their teaching license. The Kansas News Service reports that the graduate-level course is part of the state’s push to change the way educators teach reading. It’s being developed by literacy experts and will be offered free to licensed teachers. By July of 2028, most kindergarten through sixth-grade teachers and school leaders will be required to pass a test on reading strategies. Amy Bybee serves on a statewide reading task force. She says reading instruction is especially important for young students. “It is birth all the way up to third grade that we need to be addressing. How are we ensuring that our students are proficient readers by the end of third grade?” Bybee added. The new course is part of the Kansas Blueprint for Literacy, a bipartisan plan that lawmakers approved last year.
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650 Acres Burned in Riley County Wildfire
TOPEKA, Kan. (KPR/KSNT) - A massive wildfire broke out in Riley County this week, scorching an estimated 650 acres of land. More than 65 people, 40 vehicles, two planes and 11 fire stations helped fight the flames. Firefighters from Pottawatomie, Nemaha and Marshall Counties responded, alongside the Dickinson County Wildland Task Force. KSNT reports that the brush fire erupted Monday afternoon near the intersection of Harmony Road and Dial Road. The fire reportedly started as a controlled burn but began spreading out of control. No one was injured in the fire and no livestock were lost.
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Human Remains Found in 1973 Finally Identified
TOPEKA, Kan. (KPR) - Human remains discovered in Kansas 52 years ago have finally been identified. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation (KBI) and the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office have positively identified human remains that were found near Garnett in 1973, finally providing answers to a waiting family. On April 18, 1973, the decomposing remains of an unidentified male were located three miles southeast of Garnett (off 1550 Road).
He was found wearing a brown corduroy jacket, a green long-sleeved buttoned shirt, jeans, a black leather belt with a large belt buckle, brown hiking boots, and a navy blue stocking cap. He was also wearing two gold rings with crosses, a ring with the number “78” and a silver chain with a large cross.
During the autopsy in 1973, the coroner ruled the man’s manner of death a homicide due to signs of trauma. It was determined the man was around 20-years-old and believed to have brown hair and a slender build. Over the years, many attempts were made to identify the remains and learn what happened to the man.
Earlier this year, through DNA testing the unidentified person was positively identified as Jimmy Allen Dollison. He had been living in Kansas City, Kansas when he went missing in October or November of 1972, when he was just 16-years-old. According to family members, he was reported missing by his parents, but the family never learned what happened to Jimmy. The KBI and the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office continue to investigate the circumstances.
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Kansas Board of Education Rejects Federal Money to Promote Summer Meals Program
UNDATED (KNS) – The Kansas Board of Education on Tuesday rejected federal money to promote an annual summer meals program for children. The Kansas News Service reports that the board voted 5-5 on a plan to air public service announcements about the free-meals program. Without a majority, the proposal failed, so the state will not accept $20,000 in federal funding for the ads. Frank Harwood with the Kansas State Department of Education says radio and television messages help get the word out to needy families across the state. “Anybody 1 to 18 is eligible to participate. They don’t have to be enrolled. So if you have students that just stay for the summer, those kinds of things, (this) might be the only way they would find out about it," he added. The public service announcements have aired for 15 years. Opponents say the federal grant is not needed because schools can put up signs to promote the free meals.
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Kansas Lawmakers Could Override Veto of Bill Limiting Authority of Public Health Officials
UNDATED (KNS) – Kansas lawmakers may soon vote to override Democratic Governor Laura Kelly’s veto of a bill that blocks public health officials from prohibiting public gatherings. The Kansas News Service reports that Kelly had rejected the bill that critics say would prevent county and state health experts from controlling the spread of infectious diseases during a pandemic. Supporters of the bill say public gathering limitations violate the right to assemble. Ann Roberts says local health officials ordered her teenage daughter to quarantine for 21 days because she may have been in contact with chickenpox. Roberts says her daughter was not sick but missed school. “This needs to be addressed so that citizens like my daughter are not irreparably harmed by confusing and conflicting statutes and rules that violate citizens’ rights,” Roberts said.
But Randy Bowman with the Kansas Association of Local Health Departments says limiting a health department's authority to order sick kids to stay home from school would put everyone at risk. “That if my child was in the classroom next to another child who might’ve been in these circumstances, what’s my redress, in that circumstance?” Bowman asked. Lawmakers originally passed the bill with a veto-proof majority.
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Kansas Governor Vetoes Bill Aimed at Protecting Religious Liberty of Adoptive Parents
TOPEKA, Kan. (KPR/Kansas Reflector) - Kansas Governor Laura Kelly has vetoed legislation designed to protect the religious liberty of adoptive parents and faith-based adoption centers on issues related to gender identity and sexual orientation. The bill would have prohibited the state from enacting policies that require a prospective adoptive parent or foster parent to affirm support for gender ideology and homosexuality if they want to qualify to adopt or foster children.
The bill was intended to ensure that a person could not be denied a license to adopt or foster children and could not be refused selection for adopting or fostering children because he or she holds “sincerely held religious or moral beliefs” that conflict with the state ideology on those subjects.
The bill would have still allowed the state to consider an adoptive or foster parent’s beliefs on those subjects for the placement of a specific minor who identifies as transgender or has same-sex attraction, but it would have prevented a blanket ban on people with those beliefs from adopting or fostering children. Kelly, who is a Democrat, said in a statement that the bill would have interfered with children’s welfare. (Read more in the Kansas Reflector.)
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Wichita District Teachers Seek Better Protections for Injuries Caused by Students
WICHITA, Kan. (KNS) – Teachers in the state’s largest school district want better protections if they are injured by students. The Kansas News Service reports that the Wichita school district begins contract talks with its teachers union Wednesday. The union wants to allow teachers time off with pay if they are physically or verbally attacked. Mike Harris is vice president of United Teachers of Wichita, which represents about 4,000 teachers. He says they shouldn’t have to use sick days or vacation if they’re hurt on the job. “We’ve had some issues in the last couple of years with teachers that are injured by students, and then they get charged the leave. Even though they’ve missed work as a result of being injured on the job,” he explained. Recent studies indicate that teachers are suffering more work injuries than before the pandemic as a result of violent outbursts from students.
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New Archbishop Named for KCK
UNDATED (KCUR) – The Catholic Archdiocese in Kansas City, Kansas, will soon have a new leader. Pope Francis announced Tuesday that Bishop Shawn McKnight of Jefferson City, Missouri, will take over as Archbishop. McKnight succeeds Archbishop Joseph Naumann, who reached the mandatory retirement age of 75 last year. Chris White, of the National Catholic Reporter, said that Naumann spent his 20-year tenure speaking out against abortion. "Archbishop Naumann is more of a culture warrior-type figure, and he’s been replaced by Bishop McKnight who is much more of a pastoral-type leader," White explained. McKnight will be installed as the new Archbishop on May 27.
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