Fundraising Campaign Launched to Help Kansas Trooper Injured in Shooting
UNDATED (KPR) — A fundraising campaign has been started for a Kansas state trooper who was shot and wounded responding to a domestic disturbance in Osage County. Trooper Adam Ellis was one of four law enforcement officers wounded when a suspect opened fire on them Saturday morning. The suspect, 22-year-old Stephen McMillan, was killed when officers returned fire. The Kansas State Troopers Association says Trooper Ellis will require surgery and is asking the public for help in supporting the trooper’s family. Anyone interested in donating can click here for more information. The three other officers who were shot suffered non-life-threatening injuries.
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Topeka Standoff Ends Peacefully
TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW-TV) — A domestic disturbance in Topeka on Sunday ended peacefully after a standoff that lasted several hours. Officers responded to the call in the 500 block of SW Fillmore Street early Sunday morning. They negotiated with a suspect who had barricaded himself inside a building for several hours. In the end the suspect was arrested without shots being fired. Topeka police identified the man as 33-year-old Tevin Roberts. WIBW-TV reports he faces several charges, including aggravated assault and domestic battery.
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Police: Missing Emporia Teen Has Been Located
EMPORIA, Kan. (Emporia Gazette) — Police have located an Emporia teen who had been reported missing. Bella Black, 17, had last been seen on November 13. On Monday morning, police said she had been found. No further details were immediately available. The Emporia Gazette reports the teen might have been suffering a mental health crisis.
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Last Month Was One of Kansas’s Ten Warmest Octobers Ever
UNDATED (KNS) — Last month appears to rank in the top 10 warmest Octobers on record for Kansas. Based on sources such as weather stations and airports across the state, Kansas averaged five degrees warmer than usual in October. The Kansas News Service reports that would make last month the ninth warmest October on record. The statistic isn’t official because the federal government shutdown held back key reports from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. But the assistant state climatologist says the average temperature across Kansas topped 80 degrees for a full third of October. The hottest reading was 96 degrees in southwest Kansas on October 3.
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Some Farm Bill Programs Get One-Year Extension in New Federal Funding Package
UNDATED (HPM) — The federal funding package that reopened the government also included a one-year extension for certain Farm Bill programs. Harvest Public Media reports that this brings some temporary relief to farmers. The extension of the 2018 farm bill reauthorized many of the rural development and conservation programs expiring this fall and winter. Aaron Lehman, president of the Iowa Farmers Union, says the extension is a small step in the right direction. “We are long-overdue for a permanent farm bill, three years overdue,” he explained. The One Big Beautiful Bill passed earlier this year addressed some key farm bill policies, including boosting safety nets for farmers. But Lehman says it also did a lot of damage with massive cuts to nutrition programs and left out other parts of the farm bill.
Kalee Olson is a policy manager at the Center for Rural Affairs, which advocates for small business owners and family farms and ranches. “We're very happy to see a farm bill extension. While it might not be perfect, it's important that that farm bill is in place,” she said. The extension reauthorizes several rural development initiatives, like the Rural Microentrepreneur Assistance Program. It supports small business owners with 10 or fewer full-time employees. “It can help daycare providers, mechanics, small town gyms …the possibilities are really, really pretty endless,” Olson explained. She says this and other USDA programs are vital for rural communities.
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K-State Scientists Exploring New Strategies for Research on Herbicide-Resistant Weeds
LIBERAL, Kan. (KNS) — It’s been 50 years since scientists at Kansas State University documented the state’s first case of herbicide-resistant weeds. Now there are new strategies for fighting the plants in fields of Kansas crops. If you have ever driven down the road on a windy day in western Kansas, you have likely seen a gang of tumbleweeds. Those plants were the first documented that were able to resist chemical herbicide. And they still thrive across the state, choking out farmers’ soybeans, corn or sorghum. Patrick Geier is a weed scientist for K-State. He told the Kansas News Service that it’s getting especially hard for farmers practicing no-till farming, which is a conservation method that reduces soil erosion, but helps weeds spread. “It's becoming more and more challenging to control some of these weed species using chemicals,” Geier added. Scientists have developed new herbicides and different harvesting methods that can kill weed seeds.
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Kansas Department of Education: Graduation Rate at Highest Level Ever
WICHITA, Kan. (KNS) — Kansas education leaders reported Wednesday that the graduation rate for the class of 2025 is over 90% for the first time. Kansas high school students have until the end of October to earn the credits they need to graduate. The Kansas News Service reports that new numbers from the State Department of Education show that a record 90.5% of students earned a high school diploma. The overall graduation rate has increased by more than four percentage points since 2015. Education Commissioner Randy Watson told Kansas Board of Education members the rate for special-education students, children in poverty and English language learners is rising as well. “You should feel very proud that in all of those categories, including all students, we are at the highest ever in the history of Kansas,” Watson added. State education leaders set a goal of a 95% graduation rate by 2030.
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Report: 30 Kansas Schools Show Higher than Expected Reading Scores for 3rd-Graders
WICHITA, Kan. (KNS) — A new report highlights more than 30 Kansas schools where third-grade reading scores are much higher than expected, based on the schools’ poverty rates. The Kansas News Service reports that the national nonprofit news outlet “The 74” set out to find school districts that are doing the best job of teaching kids how to read. A new searchable database shows reading scores versus poverty levels for nearly 42,000 U.S. schools, and it highlights exceptional schools in the top 5% of their state in terms of outscoring their expected reading proficiency. Dighton Elementary School in western Kansas is the highest performing school in the state, with 95% of third graders reading proficiently. In Wichita, two schools made the exceptional list: Hyde Elementary and College Hill Elementary. The searchable database is at the74million.org.
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