By JONATHAN ZWEYGARDT
Hays Post

The Ellis County Commission continued its discussion on a request to fill three open positions within the Emergency Medical Services department at Monday evening’s commission meeting.

Earlier this summer, EMS Director Kerry McCue asked the commission to allow him to fill three full-time positions after hiring three part-time employees.

The commission continues to question the amount of overtime paid to EMS employees. At issue for the commissioners is the cost and manpower used for out-of-county transfers.

“We’re constantly pulling other people in to drive them out of town,” Commissioner Barb Wasinger said “We’re putting miles on those ambulances and then you are having a problem with giving people PTO (paid time off) because then you are pulling more people in.”

McCue said over the past eight pay periods – 16 weeks – they have paid $25,000 in overtime they would not normally pay out if they were fully staffed. EMS, according to McCue, staffs four ambulances with two people for 24-hours per day.

“When we have an out-of-county transfer, we bring people in, mostly part-time, to do those hours,” McCue said. “Then if we need to pull staff, full-time staff, that are already there, then we do that.”

There are 24 full-time employees divided among three shifts.

In an earlier meeting, McCue presented the commission with a list of cost and expenses, but Commissioners Dean Haselhorst and Wasinger said they having trouble understanding the numbers McCue gave the commission and instructed him to meet with County Counselor Bill Jeter to further explain the transfers.

McCue estimated the transfers bring in about $250,000 in revenue for the department. But Wasinger asked, “But how much does it cost us?”

Haselhorst said he would be comfortable with allowing McCue to hire one person, and Wasinger said she would be OK with three people, although no clear consensus was reached.

In other news, Rural Fire Director Darin Myers told the commission the department plans to purchase 12 new sets of bunker gear for the department. Myers said he has budgeted to purchase 15 sets per year.

Myers called it a “great need” and said some of the gear is older than some of the current firefighters. He said the gear is supposed to be replaced every 10 to 15 years.

Myers was also working with Victoria and they have agreed to pay half the cost with the city, so if Rural Fire buys two for Company 4 in Victoria, the city will also buy two.

He also said he is working with a firefighter in Ellis to apply for a grant to replace 20 sets of gear in Ellis.

Myers estimated it would cost approximately $17,500.

HaysMed Psychiatric Associates Clinic has recently moved from their offices at the Hadley Center to the campus of HaysMed.

The new location is Suite 314 in the HaysMed Miller Medical Pavilion. Dr. Lynn Davidson-Stroh is now seeing patients at the new location.

Patients are asked to use Parking Lot and Entrance B at the southwest corner of the hospital.

MANHATTAN -After the announcement that Kansas State University has agreed to sanctions following Saturday’s controversial band performance, KSU Band director Dr. Frank Tracz is answering questions about the band’s performance and his one game suspension.

Click here to view the live chat  on the K-State Collegian’s website and go to the bottom of the page in the comments section.

The conversation is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. Wednesday.

By DIANE GASPER-O’BRIEN
FHSU University Relations

Past efforts to partner with institutions of higher learning hadn’t proven all that successful for Centriq Training, Kansas City’s leader in information technology education and training.

But there was something about Fort Hays State University that struck a chord with Kevin Grawe when he and Dennis King, director of FHSU’s Virtual College and Learning Technologies, met following a military fair in 2014.

That led to an articulation agreement between the two entities, and both think it can be a win-win situation as the partnership kicks off this fall.

Professionals who take Centriq classes to become certified in information technology now can direct those classes toward college credit through FHSU’s Virtual College.

“There are a lot of changes going on in education,” said Grawe, president of Centriq, which is located in the Kansas City suburb of Leawood. “We’re excited about this opportunity. It’s good of Fort Hays State to help solve issues with the job skills with companies like us.”

The plan includes multiple tracks, ranging from certificates all the way to a master’s degree. FHSU will offer college credit for online training that aligns with Fort Hays State coursework. This credit may fit into the information networking degree tracks at the associate level or for the Bachelor of General Studies, as well as the Bachelor of Business Administration in management information systems and the Master of Professional Studies in informatics.

This could help expand IT options for FHSU students and alumni by connecting them with discounted Centriq training and certification not offered by Fort Hays State.

One of the goals in the memorandum of understanding between FHSU and Centriq is to promote IT careers among potential students. “This will reinforce the importance of the IT industry,” King said.

King and Grawe ran across one another at an education fair at Fort Riley in 2014. “We just started talking and decided to pursue this,” King said. “That’s a great example of networking.”

FHSU has other partnerships with businesses, King said. “This is not new, but a new content area for us.”

Fort Hays State’s Virtual College has been ranked nationally as one of the top online education programs in the country. Grawe thinks joining one of the best in IT training organizations and one of the best in distance learning partnering through online training will be especially beneficial to professionals taking Centriq classes who never completed their college degrees.

“They can start with a class with us, and get college credit for it,” he said. “I’ve been very impressed with the way Fort Hays State has figured out a way to extend the learning to other areas. We’re very excited to work with Dennis and the team at Fort Hays State.”

“We will make the sure the outcomes align in such a way to go toward their degree,” said Melissa Hunsicker-Walburn, chair of the Informatics Department. “That’s a huge benefit to them, and that fits our demographic quite nicely. And with Centriq being in Kansas City, we still have a good deal of brand recognition.”

FHSU alumni also will be able to take Centriq’s corporate courses at a discount.