SALINA- Law enforcement authorities in Salina are investigating a case of shoplifting at Central Mall.
Police Captain Chris Trocheck said Challas Wysocki, 30, Salina, was stopped when she tried to leave Dillard’s on Wednesday evening.
Merchandise from Dillard’s, Victoria Secret’s, Bath and Body, J.C. Penny’s, and Maurice’s were found in her large purse.
The value of the stolen items totaled $611.
Wysocki was arrested on requested charges of felony theft.
WASHINGTON – Travis Rickford, MPA, has been hired as the State Director for a new Community Engagement Initiative funded by the Kansas Health Foundation.
Launching this year, the Community Engagement Initiative will support residents in communities with elevated concentrations of health risks in their efforts to create policy, systems, and environmental change strategies to build healthier communities.
“We’re thrilled to have Travis on board to lead our efforts in Kansas,” says Ashley Brown, Senior Program Manager for the initiative. “His experience will be invaluable to our work moving forward.”
Travis Rickford is a public health professional who has been working on community health issues for over eight years. He previously served as a Community Health Specialist for the Kansas Department of Health and Environment where he worked with communities to build their infrastructure to address chronic diseases through grant management, community health assessment, and building cross-sector partnerships.
“As a lifelong Kansan, I know the challenges that our communities face when it comes to living long, healthy lives,” says Rickford. “Too many in our state still lack access to affordable, nutritious food and safe places to play and exercise. I’m looking forward to hearing from residents across Kansas about how they would improve the health of their community and working with them to implement changes that will help ensure all families thrive for generations to come.”
Rickford received his Masters of Public Administration (MPA) from the University of Missouri (Mizzou) and his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Fort Hays State University. He resides in Hays with his wife Melissa, son Ashton, and daughter Olivia.
The Center for Global Policy Solutions, a social change nonprofit based in Washington is the national program partner for the Community Engagement Initiative.
JOHN HANNA, AP Political Writer
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Republican leaders in the GOP-dominated Kansas Senate have cancelled a debate over raising taxes to close a state budget shortfall.
Senate Majority Leader Terry Bruce confirmed the decision shortly before the debate was to begin Thursday.
He and other top Republicans said they did not expected any bill to pass Thursday.
But Bruce said GOP leaders were canceling the debate because proposed amendments to the bill weren’t ready.
The bill would increase the state’s sales, cigarette and gasoline taxes to help fill a projected $406 million deficit for the fiscal year beginning July 1.
The measure also would suspend an income tax exemption for more than 330,000 business owners and farmers for two years. The exemption would be replaced with a less lucrative tax credit against businesses’ payrolls.
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JOHN HANNA, AP Political Writer
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) â Republican leaders aren’t expecting the GOP-dominated Kansas Senate to pass any plan ahead of a debate on proposals for raising taxes to fix a budget shortfall.
The Senate was taking up a bill Thursday to increase the state’s sales, cigarette and gasoline taxes to help fill a projected $406 million deficit for the fiscal year beginning July 1.
The bill also would suspend an income tax exemption for more than 330,000 business owners and farmers for two years. The exemption was enacted in 2012 and would be replaced with a less lucrative tax credit against businesses’ payrolls.
The proposal backtracks on one of Republican Gov. Sam Brownback’s key economic policies.
Republican leaders said before the debate that they doubted any version of the bill would pass.
MANHATTAN – According to Kansas Missing & Unsolved, Kyle Nevels went missing from Manhattan, Kansas on March 15.
Kyle is 16 years old. He is 6′ tall and weights 170 lbs. He has black hair and hazel eyes.
If you have any information regarding Kyle’s disappearance or you know of his whereabouts, please call the Riley County Kansas Police Department at 785-537-2112 or the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 800-834-5678.
He was added to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children’s website within the last 24 hours.
FHSU University Relations
A doctoral program in nursing practice was approved yesterday for Fort Hays State University by the Kansas Board of Regents. It will be the university’s first doctoral program.
The degree, the Doctor of Nursing Practice, will be offered within the Department of Nursing in FHSU’s College of Health and Life Sciences.
“It will be a tremendous benefit to the state of Kansas and especially western Kansas in providing skilled health care providers,” said Dr. Jeff Briggs, dean of the college.
“It is a clinical doctorate rather than a research doctorate,” said Briggs. “It is designed to expand clinical skills rather than build off of a research base, as in a Ph.D. program.”
The Doctor of Nursing Practice (D.N.P.) will replace the family nurse practitioner program currently offered as a track for the Master of Science in Nursing degree. Recipients will work the same kinds of positions where family nurse practitioners and physician assistants work.
“Their skills and leadership will be enhanced through this additional education,” said Briggs.
The current M.S.N. program will continue to offer the master’s degrees in administration and education tracks.
“I am really excited about it,” said Dr. Christine Hober, chair of the Department of Nursing. “FHSU now joins other Kansas Board of Regents institutions in preparing doctoral level nurse practitioners.”
“Our nurses will be able to provide higher quality care, since they will have more opportunity to learn in residency programs and practicum experiences,” she said. “Equally important, students will be translating evidence-based practice to under-served areas in western Kansas as the level of scholarship rises to the doctoral level.”
Briggs said the degree has been in process for several years, but “started to take real shape last spring,” and then took off when President Mirta M. Martin, currently en route to China for three weeks of events at FHSU’s partner institutions there, took an active role in advancing the process.
“We had been waiting in the wings for presidential approval,” said Briggs. “When President Martin arrived, she wanted us to push for it in this Regents cycle. We launched the process aggressively beginning in September, when we requested approval to submit a proposal.”
The Kansas Board of Regents approved the request, and “we started working at breakneck speed to get a proposal ready to submit for this year,” said Briggs. That proposal, outlining the actual degree and associated processes, was ready by late fall. Review teams, including one by an external review team, which visited campus in February, produced reports that were “very positive and supportive,” said Briggs.
The culmination came Wednesday, May 20, when the full Board of Regents conducted its final review of the proposed degree and coursework and approved it by an 8-1 vote.
“Now the real work starts,” said Briggs.
Over the next year, the components of the program will be assembled and aligned to get ready for the first cohort in the summer of 2016. Eventually, he said, the department will have to add graduate faculty.
Space will be available for a total of 30 students — up to 15 in each of the program’s two tracks. One track is for registered nurses with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing and the other is for family nurse practitioners.
“It took a tremendous amount of effort from faculty and staff in the Department of Nursing to get this program mounted and ready to launch,” said Briggs. “We could not have done it without their hard work.”
The move from family nurse practitioner to Doctor of Nursing Practice has been driven by at least two forces. One is the profession itself. Briggs said that the American Association of Colleges of Nursing for some time has recommended that colleges and schools of nursing move all family nurse practitioner programs to the Doctor of Nursing Practice.
Another, for FHSU, has been geographical. The primary Kansas service area of Fort Hays State is rural western Kansas, in which 44 counties west of U.S. Highway 281 qualified in 2014 for the Healthcare Professional Shortage Area designation from the Kansas Department of Health and Environment.
By BECKY KISER
Hays Post
Paid time off (PTO) and accumulated sick time were the focus of discussion between the Hays USD 489 Board of Education and the Hays Kansas National Educators Association (H-NEA) bargaining team Wednesday night.
Zach Butte, H-NEA team member and a Hays High School teacher, presented a proposal from the Leave Committee, including a three-tier system for paying staff for unused accumulated sick leave.
Licensed professional employees who began contributing to the KPERS program prior to July 1, 1993, would be able to “use their severance pay as a part of their last three years of average salary upon retirement in that lump sum payment,” Butte explained.
Those who quality would receive $65 a day for all accumulated sick leave in excess of 20 days. These employees would be in Tier One.
Butte also explained the proposal for the remaining two tiers.
The Second Tier qualifiers who entered KPERS after July 1, 1993, would have a 100-day cap–minus the first 20 days–paid at $65 a day. There would be a limit of 50 days for the first year. Year two would be the 15 remaining days plus a new year of leave–11 days–for a total of 26 days at $65 a day.
Tier Three employees would receive $55 a day for unused days after reaching a 100-day cap.
Although both sides agreed to the idea of paid time off, there was considerable discussion about what situations and how many days would qualify.
The H-NEA union supported a separate leave pool or additional PTO for bereavement as well as serious illness leave to attend to relatives.
Board member Greg Schwarz said it would be “an accounting nightmare” for the school district to have more than one leave pool.
Lance Bickle started the meeting with a list of updated proposals from the USD 489 board, although H-NEA co-chairperson Kim Schneweis said the list included items not in the board’s notice letter to the union. “There’s no obligation to address things if they weren’t in the notice letter,” Schneweis added.
“I guess I’m looking at it, we’re trying to work this as a team,” Bickle replied. “They’re just proposals…not set in stone.”
The negotiating teams will meet again next Tuesday, May 26, at 5 p.m. in the Rockwell Administration Center Toepfer Board Room, 323 W. 12th.
HUTCHINSON — A case management hearing was held Thursday in Reno County District court for two former Hutchinson Police Officers who were fired for withholding evidence during an internal investigation.
The local Fraternal Order of Police filed civil action against the city on behalf of Lance Boringer and Charles Malvo, claiming the city erred in going against an arbitrators ruling that the two should be reinstated.
The Hutchinson City Council voted to go with City Manager John Deardoff’s refusal to place the two officers back on the force.
Boringer and Malvo were dismissed from the force in December for lying during an internal investigation into a complaint against fellow officer Jamin Raigoza.
Raigoza was at the center of the complaint in which a woman accused him of making advances toward her, following an arrest for a DUI.
According to Reno County Judge Trish Rose the FOP will have until August 3 to submit their arguments in writing for Boringer, and until September 15 for Malvo.
The City will also file their response. Judge Rose will then issue a ruling in the case.
Manhattan, Kansas (May 20, 2015) – Kicker Country Stampede is delighted to announce that all camping is officially sold out for the second year in a row. Once again, festival organizers are surveying the grounds, in anticipation of additional campsites becoming available. To be placed on the waiting list for camping, please sign up here.
This year’s attendees will see the biggest names and brightest stars in Country music take the main stage throughout the weekend (June 25-28) in Manhattan, Kansas, including megastar and judge on NBC’s The Voice Blake Shelton, superstar duo Florida Georgia Line, Country music’s sweetheart Sara Evans, Country legend Travis Tritt, Thomas Rhett, Jerrod Niemann, Craig Morgan and many more. See the full line-up here.
Due to high demand, Kicker Country Stampede has released a limited number of single-day tickets—available for $80 while supplies last—to THE event of the summer. For fans wanting the full 20th anniversary experience, complete with music, camping, fireworks, food, shopping, exhibits and more, four-day passes are available for $150. Festival organizers are also giving tickets holders the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see their favorite country stars up-close-and-personal with the Party Pit. Located directly in front of the main stage, the Party Pit puts fans steps away from their favorite artists during their performances! There are avery limited number of passes in this standing-room-only area. Complete ticket, Party Pit and camping information can be found online at countrystampede.com or by calling 800-795-8091.
Follow Kicker Country Stampede on Twitter at: twitter.com/countrystampede and like them on Facebook at:facebook.com/countrystampede.
Join fans of 99 KZ Country on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/99KZCountry
MANHATTAN – A Kansas man is back in jail after a probation violation.
Riley County Police reported Robert Labarbera, 28, Manhattan was arrested just before 12:30 p.m. on Wednesday.
He was wanted in connection with a forgery, theft by deception, and violation of a protective order.
Labarbera is being held on a bond of $11,000.00
NCK Tech
North Central Kansas Technical College, with campuses in Beloit and Hays, is pleased to announce the recipients of Departmental Scholarships for the 2015-2016 academic year.
Scholarships are awarded to new NCK Tech students and range from $250 to $500 per academic year. The scholarship is renewable for a second year if the student is working towards an Associate of Applied Science degree and maintains scholarship eligibility and a 2.5 GPA each semester.
Scholarship recipients and their high school, hometown, NCK Tech program of study (campus) and scholarship award level are as follows:
Abigail Buchholz Trego (KS) Wakeeney, KS Culinary $250
Alex Budreau Concordia Concordia, KS Ag Technology $500
Alexa Brull Hays High Hays, KS Business Tech (Hays) $500
Breiton Pfanenstiel Hays High Hays, KS Heavy Equipment $500
Brooke Rayburn Maridian (NE) Daykin, NE Business Mgt. (Beloit) $500
Chase Green Louisburg Louisburg, KS Diesel Technology (Beloit) $250
Dakotah Brown Red Cloud (NE) Red Cloud, NE Diesel Technology (Beloit) $250
Dalton Kelley Rossville Rossville, KS Welding (Beloit) $500
Derek Rowh Norton Norton, KS Telecommunications (Beloit) $500
Grady Luke So. Nodaway (MO) Barnard, MO Bricklaying (Beloit) $500
Jadon Truxell Lincoln High Lincoln, KS Carpentry (Beloit) $200
Kyle Charles Oakley High Oakley, KS Auto Technology (Hays) $500
Michaela Odle Stockton Stockton, KS Auto Technology (Beloit) $500
Noah Dreiling Victoria High Victoria, KS Carpentry (Beloit) $400
Randall Landwehr Holy Family Sharon, KS Carpentry (Beloit) $400
Roxanne Korbe Hays High Hays, KS Nursing (Hays) $500
Sara Anschutz Sylvan-Lucas Sylvan Grove, KS Culinary (Hays) $250
Tyler (Ty) O’Neill Larned High Larned, KS Electricity (Hays) $500
BY AMY BALTODANO
Hays Post
The Hays Public Library’s Young Adult Department had its Summer Reading Kickoff Party on Tuesday afternoon. Students attending middle school and high school were eligible to participate.
Due to the weather, it was moved into the HPL and provided students with hamburgers, hot dogs, chips and cupcakes.
“It was convenient that both USD 489 and TMP schools ended today so that allowed more students to attend,” said Young Adult Librarian Scott Rader.
A long list of donors will allow prizes to be handed out through the entire summer. Some prizes include Qdoba entrees and free pizzas from Papa Murphy’s. The main item up for grabs is a Blu-Ray player.
To keep the students entertained, they were divided into small groups to play a variety of one-minute games. Some of those games included Pink Elephants, Penny Hose and Chocolate Unicorns, where kids were challenged to stack six cookies on their foreheads.
HPL has been doing the CAKE Summer Reading Program for seven years. All the students need to do is read one mystery or complete an activity at the library.
Rader said he likes “to really push reading, because in the summer they tend to go backwards. Just being involved in any activity such as going to the museum a few times or even just reading one book will help with that.”
Even those who prefer not to devour books can take part. For example, if you enjoy playing video games, then you can write a review for the video game.
Rader hoped the kids “just have fun and learn info on the program and how to win prizes. Reading is the biggest way to win prizes.”
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The House has approved a bill that would give Kansas’ secretary of state the power to prosecute election fraud.
The chamber’s 67-55 vote Thursday sends the measure to Republican Gov. Sam Brownback.
Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach has sought prosecutorial authority on election fraud cases since taking office in 2011. He has also authored state laws requiring voters to present photo ID.
The bill would also stiffen penalties for election fraud crimes and allow organizations to reward voters with gifts worth less than $3.
Several lawmakers have questioned the necessity of the bill, saying there are relatively few recorded instances of election fraud. Others expressed concern that Kobach might bring charges when prosecutors believed people did not intentionally break the law.
This past weekend, Van Halen’s current lineup gave its first ever performance at an awards show when it played a rocking rendition of “Panama” to kick off the 2015 Billboard Music Awards.
Speaking with ABC Radio after the band’s appearance, frontman David Lee Roth revealed that Van Halen also has been tapped to open another awards ceremony, the CMT Music Awards, which the CMT network will air live from Nashville on June 10.
While a show that celebrates the top artists in country music may seem like an odd forum for the hard-rocking Van Halen, Roth said he believed that his band’s passionate approach to rehearsing and creating music has made it a group that appeals to fans of various musical genres.
“Van Halen, as opposed to many of our colleagues, has a whole different approach to how we pursue our art,” explained the flamboyant frontman. “First off, we don’t pursue it…it’s an obsession. It’s not something we decided. It’s not something we thought would make us famous. It has destroyed us variously in terms of health, finance, family. It’s a trail that extends about four decades and a million years back, okay? But it’s an obsession.”
Van Halen fans may remember that Roth made a foray into the country world when he contributed vocals to a few tracks on the 2006 bluegrass-flavored tribute album Strummin’ with the Devil: The Southern Side of Van Halen.
CMT has yet to make an official announcement about the band’s participation in the awards show.
Meanwhile, ABC Radio also asked Roth how he feels when younger artists or fans come up to him and tell him that he’s a legend or that his music has inspired them.
“Whenever somebody approaches and they say, ‘Oh, you’re a legend,’ I say, ‘Well, that’s as misused as the word ‘genius,'” he noted, adding that his first reaction to such praise is that “it makes my night.”
Diamond Dave then joked that he also had a second, more suspicious reaction, saying, “I’m always concerned that they’re gonna blame me for their bad habits and then tell me one of their children is mine.”
Van Halen kicks off a North American tour on July 5 in Auburn, Washington, and the trek runs through an October 4 show at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles.
Copyright © 2015, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
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