After Long Fight, CoreCivic May Finally Apply for Leavenworth Permit
LEAVENWORTH, Kan. (Kansas Reflector) — The private prison company CoreCivic may be ready to throw in the towel in its fight with the city of Leavenworth. The city says the company needs to get a special use permit before it can reopen its prison to house detained immigrants. CoreCivic has insisted it doesn’t need a permit from the city, but after a series of legal defeats, the company now says it may apply for one after all. CoreCivic tells the Kansas Reflector it’s “assessing all available avenues to find a successful conclusion to this matter … up to and including filing for the Special Use Permit.”
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Topeka Hospital, Blue Cross Struggle to Reach Agreement
TOPEKA, Kan. (Kansas Reflector) — Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas and Topeka’s St. Francis Hospital have until the end of the month to reach a new contract agreement. If they don’t, St. Francis will become out-of-network for people who are insured by Blue Cross. That means the cost of seeing their health care providers at St. Francis could go way up. The current contract expires December 31. A Blue Cross spokesperson tells the Kansas Reflector he’s still optimistic the two sides will reach a deal.
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Company Withdraws Plans for KCK Industrial Waste Plant
UNDATED (KNS) — A New Jersey-based company has withdrawn plans for an industrial waste plant in a low-income Kansas City, Kansas, neighborhood. The Kansas News Service reports that the move comes after residents raised safety and pollution concerns. The company, Reworld, says it withdrew plans for the Armourdale neighborhood because of quote “changing business circumstances.” The withdrawal comes after residents demanded more transparency. The facility would have taken in more than 1,000 trucks of industrial waste each weekday, and would have been located near homes and an elementary school. City officials repeatedly delayed approving permits for the plan and asked the company to hold public forums. Residents say the company failed to do so.
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Federal Law Change Could Affect Hemp Farmers in Kansas
UNDATED (KNS) — A federal law change could hamper the hemp industry in Kansas, which has grown to one of the largest in the country. The Kansas News Service reports that the law lowers the amount of THC allowed in hemp. THC is the psychoactive compound in cannabis. The change is meant to close a loophole that allowed stores to sell hemp-derived THC products that can get users high, similar to marijuana. But Kelly Rippel, a hemp advocate, says the change is so restrictive that it would affect Kansas farmers. They mostly produce nonconsumable hemp products like fiber. “And only certain producers or processors would be able to meet that and those would include pharmaceuticals and researchers,” Rippel explained. Federal data shows Kansas planted the fifth most hemp in the country in 2025. The law change is set to go into effect in November 2026.
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Four Arrested after “Brazen” Theft in Lawrence
LAWRENCE, Kan. (LJW) — Four people were arrested after what police are calling a “brazen” theft at Lawrence Best Buy Sunday night. The alleged thieves walked into the store, grabbed some $2,500 in gaming equipment, and ran back out. They left in a car that had been left running outside. The store’s asset manager contacted police, who pulled the car over just north of Emporia. Seven gaming consoles were found inside. The Lawrence Journal-World reports three men and a juvenile were arrested. They face felony theft charges.
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KC2026 Reveals Regional Transportation Plan for World Cup
UNDATED (KPR) — Kansas City is one of the World Cup soccer tournament host cities next summer. On Tuesday, the organizing committee unveiled its transportation plan. There are 15 sites around the Kansas City metropolitan area for fans to board buses, including six in Kansas. Mike Kelly, chairman of the Johnson County board of commissioners, says Lawrence is one of the six sites in Kansas because of the possibility that Rock Chalk Park will serve as a base camp for one of the teams. "Fans that will follow a team that hopefully will be based in Lawrence will want to experience all that the region has to offer. So we wanted to make sure we’re intentional about giving them the connection to do so," Kelly said. All the bus routes will lead to the World Cup FanFest at the Liberty Memorial site in Kansas City. The World Cup draw will be announced on Friday of this week to determine which countries will be represented at each site in the early rounds. (Read more.)
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Wichita Teachers Union Seeks Revision on Parent Contact Policy for Failing Students
WICHITA, Kan. (KNS) — A teachers union in Wichita wants the district to reconsider a policy that requires teachers to contact parents if a student is in danger of failing a class. United Teachers of Wichita president Katie Warren told the Kansas News Service that the district's Parent View program allows parents to check their child's grades online anytime. Despite that, she says, some principals are requiring teachers to call and e-mail parents, often multiple times, to alert them about failing grades. "If these phone calls are truly a priority, we would like you to provide designated time once a quarter for teachers to make those calls. That's definitely something we could take off the plates of our high school educators," she argues. Warren says a recent survey shows that nearly 70 percent of Wichita teachers think their workload has increased since last school year.
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Kansas Man Killed Fighting for Ukrainian Special Forces
GARDEN CITY, Kan. (KPR) — A Kansan has been killed in the war in Ukraine. Zach Sheiman of Garden City was serving with the Ukrainian Special Forces. His death was announced by the Garden City Regional Airport, where Sheiman worked as an air traffic controller. He had previously served in the U.S. Air Force. The airport says Sheiman also served on the local arts board.
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Kobach Sends More Letters to School Districts on LGBTQ Student Policies
UNDATED (KNS) — Republican Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach has sent school districts another round of threatening letters. The Kansas News Service reports that letters sent last month say Wichita, Lawrence and Cherryvale public schools could face lawsuits and lose federal funding because of their policies for LGBTQ students. In a recent interview, Kobach said he can challenge policies about honoring a transgender student’s pronouns or locker room use — even if no one has complained. “If the policy is written down and the policy is being enforced, that's enough for the federal government to say, ‘Well, there's a Title IX violation here," Kobach explained.
Earlier this year, Kobach supported a federal investigation into four other Kansas school districts for similar reasons.
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Kansas Hospitals Rank in Bottom Half of Nation for Patient Safety
UNDATED (KNS) — Kansas hospitals ranked 29th in the nation for patient safety, according to Leapfrog Group, a nonprofit, independent organization. The Kansas News Service reports that this year's 29th place is an improvement from 36th, which was the state's score earlier this year. Leapfrog assigns letter grades to hospitals based on the facilities' ability to avoid injuries, infections, accidents and medical errors. Alex Campione says 23% of the 30 Kansas hospitals they graded scored As. She says for hospitals with low grades, they provide guidance on how to improve. “We want to encourage hospitals to be transparent with their community and with their patients as well as their staff,” Campione explained. The Kansas Hospital Association didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
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Kansas Social Work Advocate Loses Job in National Restructuring
LAWRENCE, Kan. (LJW) — The restructuring of a national organization for social workers has left Kansas without a dedicated state representative. The National Association of Social Workers recently announced it was combining 14 state chapters into pairs overseen by a single director. The Lawrence Journal-World reports that Kansas is now paired with Iowa, and the group's executive director in Kansas has been laid off. The association says it is "undergoing a national, internal realignment to strengthen operational efficiency and support for social workers." The Kansas chapter, however, says the realignment was undertaken without its input.
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Small Business Owners Reporting Lower Confidence Levels for Holiday Season
UNDATED (HPM) — Business owners with fewer than three full-time employees reported lower confidence levels for this year’s holiday season, according to a Main Street America national survey. Harvest Public Media reports that tariffs, inflation and a downturn in consumer spending were big factors for many of the survey respondents. Melissa Fabian, owner of Simply Nourished Market & Mercantile in Mason City, Iowa, says she’s seen a drop in revenue this year with less foot traffic. Small Business Saturday after Thanksgiving is typically her biggest day of the year. “Believe me, we appreciate it, and we need people there to do that. But we really need the people there to come every week. People can't shop one day a year with us and be surprised six months later that we're gone,” she added. Fabian says supporting small businesses circulates dollars locally and helps downtowns thrive.
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KU, K-State Both Advance to NCAA Women’s Volleyball Tournament
UNDATED (KPR) — Both the Kansas Jayhawks and Kansas State Wildcats were selected as at-large teams in the NCAA women's volleyball tournament. KU will host first and second round matches on Thursday and Friday this week. The Jayhawks will open against High Point University of North Carolina. K-State, meanwhile, will travel to Lincoln, Nebraska, for a first-round match against the University of San Diego on Friday.
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This summary of area news is curated by KPR news staffers. Our headlines are generally published by 10 am weekdays and are updated through 7 pm. This ad-free news summary is made possible by KPR members. Become one today. And follow KPR News on X (formerly Twitter).