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Month: December 2013

Kansas State Overpowers Central Arkansas

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Kansas_State_Wildcats7-342x250MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) – Shane Southwell had 19 points and Thomas Gipson added 17 as Kansas State defeated Central Arkansas 87-54 in the first ever meetings between the schools.

DeShone McClure and Jalen Jackson both scored 12 points to pace the Bears (2-4), who are eligible for postseason play for the first time since their 2006 admission to the Division I ranks.

It was Kansas State’s (4-3) best offensive performance of the season, with a season-high in points and rebounds (52).

The performance on the glass was the best for the Wildcats since its Nov. 18, 2012 matchup against North Florida where they tallied 54 rebounds.

After opening on a 12-2 run, the Wildcats never saw their lead fall underneath double digits – and pushed it to as many as 23 points in the first half.

No. 12 Wichita State Holds off Saint Louis

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Wichita State LogoST. LOUIS (AP) – Ron Baker had 22 points, six rebounds and four steals and No. 12 Wichita State got a pair of key plays from Fred VanVleet in the closing seconds to edge Saint Louis 70-65 on Sunday.

Chadrack Lufile hit a layup off VanVleet’s pass for a 68-65 lead with 14 seconds to go, and VanVleet added a pair of free throws with 3.2 seconds left. Cleanthony Early missed eight of 12 shots but hit a pair of key 3-pointers late and had 12 points for the Shockers (8-0).

Saint Louis missed two 3-point attempts and Jake Barnett missed a second free throw with a chance to tie it at 66 with 30.1 seconds to go.

Dwayne Evans had 18 points and nine rebounds for Saint Louis (6-2). Tekele Cotton had 10 points and 10 rebounds for Wichita State.

St. Louis honored Rick Majerus during a halftime ceremony on the anniversary of his death.

Report: 7K new Kansas jobs if free trade pact OK’d

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jobs(AP) — A new report finds Kansas could see about 7,000 new jobs if the U.S. and the European Union reach a free trade agreement.

The report estimates Kansas’ exports to the E.U. would increase by 23.4 percent if a comprehensive agreement is reached.

Kansas Department of Commerce spokesman Matt Keith says Kansas had $1.8 billion worth of exports to the European Union in 2012. That makes the E.U. countries Kansas’ second-largest export destination, behind Canada.

The report projected Kansas exports to the E.U. would increase most in the chemicals sector, with $351 million more in sales. Other areas predicted to see substantial increases are transportation equipment, $278 million; machinery, $97 million; and processed foods, $76 million.

Report sponsors include the British embassy in Washington.

Org chart update on BOE work session agenda

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USD 489USD 489 BOARD OF EDUCATION
Work Session Monday, December 2, 2013
AGENDA
1. CONSENT AGENDA TOPICS:
a. Authorization of Clayton-Holdings to make payment to Paul-
Wertenberger in the amount of $
b. Surplus Items
2. DISCUSSIONTOPICS:
a. KASB Legislative Committee Report
Dean Katt and Marty Patterson will lead a discussion the current issues and talk about how Mr. Patterson should vote, while representing USD 489 at the Delegate Assembly.
b. Organizational Chart Update
Tracy Kaiser will present updates and lead a discussion on the reorganization of the USD 489 Organizational Chart.
c. SMART Goal Review
Dean Katt, Tracy Kaiser, and Shanna Dinkel will lead a review of the SMART Goals set during the Board Retreat (11/16/13) and discuss what items are currently in progress.
d. Update from Topeka: USD 489 Budget
e. District Insurance Options
Tracy Kaiser will give an update on our current insurance policies.
3. AGENDATOPICS:
a. Hays High School Curriculum adjustments for the 2014-2015 School
Year
Marty Straub, HHS Principal, will present revisions to the HHS Curriculum Guide for the 2014-15 school year.b. Approval of SMART Goals
The Administration recommends that the Board formally approve the SMART goals formed during the Board Retreat (11/16/13).
c. Second Reading – CE, DJEG, EG, EH, GAL, GALA
The Administration recommends that the Board approve the second reading of these policies, which remove references to ‘Deputy Superintendent’ and replace with ‘Superintendent or his/her designee’.
d. Board Policy BDA – Developing and Adopting Policy
The Administration recommends that the Board adopt the revised policy, removing the ‘second reading’ for modified or newly drafted policy.
e. Authorization of the Superintendent to sign the Ratified Hays NEA Master Collective Bargaining Agreement
The Administration recommends that the Board approve Superintendent Katt to sign the 2013-14 Hays NEA Master Collective Bargaining Agreement.
4. Other topics for discussion 5. ExecutiveSession
6. Adjournment

Busy County Commission Agenda

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Ellis County LogoCOUNTY COMMISSION
Monday, December 2, 2013 6:45 PM Ellis County Courthouse
Order of Business
Opening
A. Call to Order
B. Pledge of Allegiance
C. Clerk Calls the Roll
D. Approval of Order of Business
II. Approval of Prior Minutes
Regular Meeting November 12, 2013 Regular Meeting November 18, 2013
III. Consent Agenda
A. Approval of Employee Status Changes as presented
B. Approval of Refunding Warrants as presented
C. Approval of Tax Roll Adjustments as presented
D. Approval of Escape Tax Orders as presented
E. Approval of Accounts Payable and Payroll as presented
IV. Regular Agenda
A. Kansas Dept of Transportation Update
Asst. Secretary of Transportation Jerry Younger will appear before the Commission
B. Public Health
1. Monthly Report for October 2013
Report Enclosure
C. Emergency Management
1. County Emergency Operations Plan
Consideration of Promulgation Document Enclosure D. County Administrator
1. Resolution No. 2013-27 (Insurance Proceeds)
Presentation Enclosure
2. Northwest Kansas Planning & Development
Commission Annual Meeting
Invitation Enclosure
3. KNRC Meeting December 5, 2013
Report/Discussion Enclosure
4. Ellis County Historical Society Funding
Report/Discussion
5. 2014 Commission Reorganization
Discussion Enclosure
6. Budgeted Transfers
Consideration of Transfers
7. Monthly Financial Report – October 2013
Report Enclosure
8. Pre-Bid Meetings
Meetings for Ems/Rural and Administrative Center Projects
9. Buckeye Wind Escrow Agreement
Consideration of Agreement
10. KACM Fall Conference
Report
E. Cereal Malt Beverage License
1. Pro Motor Sports – Nic Baalman
Consideration of Application
F. County Commission
1. Commissioner Reports V. Adjournment

1 dead after altercation outside Arrowhead Stadium

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police crime
 (AP) — Police say a man has died and three people are in custody after an altercation that happened in the parking lot of Arrowhead Stadium as the Kansas City Chiefs played the Denver Broncos.Police spokesman Darin Snapp tells The Associated Press the death is being treated as a homicide but no arrests have been made. He says the man who died was found inside someone else’s vehicle and a struggle ensued.

The man, who was in his 20s, was found unconscious on the pavement. Snapp says paramedics began administering first aid before he was transported to a hospital, where he died. His name has not been released.

Chiefs spokesman Ted Crews says the team is aware of the incident but cannot comment further because of the police investigation.

9 p.m.  Sunday  Police in Kansas City are investigating a homicide in the parking lot of Arrowhead Stadium.
Kansas City Police Chief Darryl Forte tweeted about the incident. It read “Detectives investigating a homicide at Arrowhead Stadium. Two suspects in custody. Will update as info becomes available.” 
The death was reportedly discovered Sunday night following the Chiefs-Broncos game which saw the Broncos win 35 to 28.
Kansas City Chiefs spokesman Ted Crews says the team is aware of the incident but could not comment any further because of the ongoing police investigation
Stay tune to Eagle Radio and check Hays Post for more information as it becomes available.

Large oil companies pulling up stakes in Kansas

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oil (AP) — The future seemed so tantalizing just two years ago as the nation’s big oil firms rushed into Kansas.

They snapped up mineral leases from landowners for high prices and drilled horizontal wells to extract unknown riches from the same Mississippian Lime formation that had spawned an oil boom in neighboring Oklahoma.

Now most of those big players are gone. The biggest blow came when oil giant Shell Oil Co. halted its Kansas exploratory drilling program in May and has since put up for sale 625,000 acres of leases it owns in the state.

Exploration is ongoing and growing more modestly.

It’s now driven by the Kansas producers who for decades have drilled here and the few out-of-state die-hards like SandRidge Energy of Oklahoma City who stayed with scaled-down operations.

Last year, Ellis County was the top oil production county in Kansas with nearly 3.6 million barrels, an increase of about 5% over 2011. Following Ellis and Barber counties, the other top-ten oil-producing counties in 2012 were Barton, Russell, Ness, Rooks, Haskell, Finney, Graham, and Stafford, with Barton, Russell, Rooks, and Ness counties all produced between 2 and 2.21 million barrels.

 

Frog-killing fungus found in Kansas

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Screen Shot 2013-12-01 at 4.24.42 PM(AP) — An amphibian-killing fungus has turned up in streams and ponds in Kansas, raising concerns among biologists.

The  discovery was made by students working with biologist Mary Liz Jameson in her Wichita State University field ecology class. Called chytrid, the infectious disease has killed millions of frogs worldwide.

Jameson calls the discovery a “huge, big deal.” She says frogs aren’t becoming resistant to the fungus. And she worries that the die-off of amphibians from chytrid is a sort of canary-in-the-coal-mine warning, that humans using toxins, pesticides, herbicides and antibiotics might be creating unforeseen problems.

One of her graduate students, Timothy Eberl, said a news release that the discovery has implications beyond the death of frogs. He says there may be a “trickle-down effect.”

 

Kansas women make gift for Sandy Hook victims

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Screen Shot 2013-12-01 at 1.06.57 PM (AP) — Two Kansas women have memorialized each victim of the Newtown, Conn., school shooting in a custom-made Christmas tree skirt.

Patti Smith of Great Bend had grandchildren around the age some of the 20 children killed last December at Sandy Hook Elementary School and was glued to the news coverage. She had created personalized Christmas tree skirts for her three grown children, and decided to make one for Sandy Hook.

For personal touches, she read the biographies of the victims. There’s a baseball on the skirt for one victim and a Giants helmet for another.

Smith received help making the tree skirt from Sheila Smither, who owns and operates Roth Embroidery. Smith is now working on finding a place to send the tree skirt.

 

Plan to bring water to Western Kansas costly, controversial

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Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon
Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon

(AP) — Aside from the potentially billions of dollars it could cost to divert water from the Missouri River to western Kansas, the negotiations among interested parties would make such an infrastructure project a daunting task.

States along the river depend on water for agriculture, industry and navigation, beginning at the headwaters in Montana and extending to the confluence with the Mississippi at St. Louis. Officials say getting all those interests to sign off on a project to that would divert 4 million acre feet of water for western Kansas will take time.

John Grothaus, chief of plans formulation for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, says hurdles for a 360-mile aqueduct are high but worth exploring.

Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon has already let Kansas know he doesn’t like the idea.

 

Kanas outlasts UTEP

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KUBBPARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas — Freshman guard Wayne Selden, Jr., scored 14 points and sophomore forward Perry Ellis added a game-high 19, including three crucial free throws with under 30 seconds to play, to lead No. 2 Kansas past UTEP, 67-63, and a third-place finish in the Battle 4 Atlantis Saturday night.

After Kansas (6-1) pushed its way to a 13-point lead with 1:45 to play, the Miners (4-4) closed the gap to three with six seconds left in the game after McKenzie Moore knocked down three free throws, following a foul by freshman guard Frank Mason. On the ensuing possession, Ellis converted one-of-two free throws to put Kansas up for good.

The Miners were led in scoring by junior guard C.J. Cooper’s 15 points, while senior guard Justin Crosgile added 14 and freshman forward Vince Hunter contributed 10 points to round out the UTEP double-figure scorers.

For Kansas, junior guard Naadir Tharpe added 11 points and four assists to join Ellis and Selden, Jr., in double figures.

Freshman center Joel Embiid provided the spark in the second half that Kansas lacked for much of the first period, doing so mostly on the defensive end. The seven-footer controlled the paint, blocking seven shots, the most by a Jayhawk this season. Embiid also added nine points and six rebounds.

One day after suffering their first loss on the season, the Jayhawks struggled early to score. Neither team scored a basket in the first four minutes of the contest. UTEP, coming off of a lopsided loss to No. 23 Iowa, didn’t convert a basket until 12:48 was left to play in the first half.

Selden got the Jayhawks going early, scoring eight of Kansas’ first 10 points on the evening, behind two three-pointers and a strong drive to the basket. Ellis added two early free throws and Embiid fought off contact for a layup and converted the ensuing foul shot to give Kansas a commanding 15-2 lead.

Aside from the Jayhawks quick 13-point lead, neither team could put together a consistent string of baskets in the first half. After UTEP scored on back-to-back possessions, freshman guard Andrew Wiggins hit his first shot of the day, a three-pointer to push the Kansas lead back to nine, 29-20, with just over two minutes to play in the half. Wiggins followed that with a drive to the basket drawing a foul and making the free throw to push KU’s lead to 12. Those two buckets marked his only points in the contest, but the Canadian stand out contributed seven rebounds.

UTEP would answer with two-straight baskets before Selden slashed for a layup as halftime approached to extend the Kansas lead back to nine at the half. Selden led all first half scorers with 12 points and Wiggins added six for the Jayhawks.

Crosgile led UTEP’s first half scoring effort with six points. Matt Willms added five and Cooper, Moore and Julian Washburn each added four.

The Jayhawks grabbed their first win over UTEP in the teams’ series history. UTEP leads the series 3-1 overall with thee last meeting coming in 1992.

UP NEXT
Kansas will hit the road for tough back-to-back road tests when the Jayhawks go on the road to Colorado (Dec. 7) and then to Florida (Dec. 10).

Courtesy kuathletics.com

Kansas Day Photo Contest for you

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Hays Public LibraryThe Hays Public Library is now accepting submissions for the 2nd Annual Kansas Day Photo Contest.

Submissions are due January 17, 2014 at 5:00 p.m. A panel of four judges will review and rank the anonymous photographs. Top entries will be awarded at the closing ceremony January 29 at 6:00 p.m. in the Library’s Kansas Room. The photographs will be on display during the month of January.

Age Categories:
• 12 years and under
• 13 – 18 years
• 18 and older

Submission Categories:
• Kansas People: Candids, portraits, individuals, groups, etc.
• Natural Kansas: Landscapes, plants, animals, weather, and geology.
• Limestone Kansas: Buildings, statues, stone posts, etc.
• Kansicana: Events, objects or activities that connect Kansans to their history or cultural heritage.
Submission Guidelines:
• All participants will be limited to one photo entry per category (four photos total).
• Photos must be submitted as framed hard copies. Photos must be at least 5”x7” for submission. Digital copies of photos will not be accepted.
• Each photo submitted must be accompanied by a Photo Information Sheet.
• Participants are required to submit a Photo Consent Form. (www.hayspublib.org)
• Photos must be the original work of the person submitting the photographs!

Farmers and ranchers set for annual gathering

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Kansas Farm BureauMore than 1,000 Farm Bureau members in Kansas will gather in Manhattan Dec. 2-4 for their organization’s 95th Annual Meeting.

The meeting, at the Hilton Garden Inn and Manhattan Convention Center, will feature cutting-edge workshops, discussion of important public policy issues and a one-day meeting tailored to county Farm Bureaus.

On Mon., Dec. 2, county Farm Bureau leaders will gather to build strategic plans for 2014. Katie Pratt, U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance Faces of Farming finalist and Illinois farmer, will speak on the importance of a strong agriculture advocacy effort.

During the meeting, Ryan Flickner will be introduced as Kansas Farm Bureau’s Senior Director of Public Policy. Flickner comes to KFB from the staff of Senator Pat Roberts, where he was Deputy District Director, representing Roberts in the Wichita area and northwest and southeast Kansas. Prior to returning home to south central Kansas, Flickner served as Senior Agriculture Policy Advisor to Senator Roberts in Washington, DC. In this capacity, he covered the agriculture, nutrition, water and related environmental policy portfolio and served as the liaison between Roberts’ personal office and the professional staff on the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee. Flickner is a 2006 graduate of Kansas State University.

On Tue., Dec. 3, Annual Meeting workshops begin at 8 a.m. and continue throughout the day. Workshop topics include crop insurance, the Affordable Care Act, animal disease traceability and K-12 education funding. Ireland’s First Secretary for Food and Agriculture, John Dardis, will give the keynote speech on ag innovation, consumer relations and free trade. County Farm Bureaus will receive awards for their work and county coordinators will be recognized for years of service. Young Farmers & Ranchers contest winners will also be announced.

At the evening banquet, ten Kansas farm families will be recognized for their service to Farm Bureau and their communities. One family will be recognized with the annual Natural Resources Award for using environmental protection measures and conservation practices on its farm. Others will be recognized for distinguished service and as a Friend of Agriculture.

On Wednesday, more than 400 voting delegates will debate and adopt policy statements for 2014. Farmer and rancher leaders will discuss a range of topics including water, animal care, endangered species and energy development.

An agenda is available online at www.kfb.org/news/annualmeeting.

Highlights of the Kansas Farm Bureau 95th Annual Meeting:

Monday, December 2, Summit Leadership Conference for County Leaders

8:15 Registration opens

9:00 – 9:50 General Workshops

12:15-1:15 Keynote, Katie Pratt

Tuesday, December 3, Annual Meeting

7:30 a.m. Registration and tradeshow

8:00 Workshops

9:00 Workshops

10:30 Workshops

1:00 General Session

6:30 Annual Meeting Banquet and Awards

Wednesday, December 4, Voting Delegate Session

8:30 Business Session

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