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Year: 2019
Fire-damaged SW Kan. Tyson plant to resume operations soon
HOLCOMB, Kan. (AP) — A fire-damaged Tyson meat processing plant in Kansas is expected to resume operations in December.
Tyson announced Monday in a news release that reconstruction of the Holcomb plant is nearing completion. The company says it will begin processing beef again in the first week of December and be fully operational by the first week of January.
The fire started in August in an area of the plant near where animals are killed, causing part of the roof to collapse. Reconstruction included replacing support beams and the roof, as well as installing more than 50,000 feet of new wiring.
The plant employees about 1,200 people. The company says it continued to pay full-time workers during the shutdown.
Holcomb is located less than 10 miles west of Garden City.
🎥 Eagle TV Forum: Ron Wilson
Eagle’s Gary Shorman interviews USD 489 Superintendent Ron Wilson
KZ Country Cheesy Joke of the Day 11/18/19
Q. What do you call a cow that eats grass?
A. lawn moo-er.
Join fans of 99 KZ Country on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/99KZCountry
2020 could bring more serious flooding to Kansas
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — More than six months after floodwaters overwhelmed Lakeside Village’s well system, the roughly 150 residents of the northeast Kansas community drink, cook and bathe with water hauled in by the Kansas National Guard – up to 40,000 gallons daily.
It’s one example of the lingering damage from floodwaters that rose across Kansas and the region earlier this year. Lawmakers at the Capitol last week heard from state and federal officials who told them to be ready for more.
Kansas Adjutant General Lee Tafanelli said excess water that hasn’t evaporated, heavier snowfalls and early storms could set the conditions for a 2020 with more flooding.
This year’s floods damaged at least $15 million worth of infrastructure and generated $3.8 million in federal flood insurance claims.
National Weather Service meteorologist Chad Omitt said it’s hard to be sure whether Kansas can expect similar flooding in the coming years, but it’s important for the state to be ready.
“This is a land of extremes,” he said.
Earlier this year a March “bomb cyclone,” or a storm that grows quickly, rapidly melted snow and led to the wettest May in recorded Kansas history.
Areas that typically receive 4 or 5 inches of rain got 20 inches or more that month, driving more than 90 percent of the state’s monitored rivers above flood stage.
Floodwaters damaged 11 dams, mostly in eastern Kansas. Wastewater treatment facilities struggled to keep up, with some 1.3 billion gallons of sewage flowing into Kansas rivers and streams in May, according to the state Department of Health and Environment. Line breaks, water pressure loss and inundated wells prompted officials to issue 14 boil-water advisories.
Lakeside Village was one of three communities that had to find alternative water sources.
Village board President Jerry White said residents have been encouraged to conserve as much as possible. Water still comes out of the tap, but only because the National Guard brings in a fresh supply daily. It’s possible the community will get its well water back by the end of the year.
Annual average precipitation in the United States has increased by 4 percent since 1901, according to the congressionally mandated Fourth National Climate Assessment. The frequency and intensity of heavy rain is projected to continue increasing over the next century. Extreme rainstorms once expected every 25 years may occur every five or 10 years.
“It’s not just that, ‘Oh, it’s going to be wetter, or it’s going to be dryer.’ But it’s that the rain that does arrive is going to be arriving at different times in the year and at different intensities,” said Anna Weber, a senior policy analyst at the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental group.
Weber says governments need to examine whether infrastructure is built to handle a more punishing weather.
Senate Vice President Jeff Longbine, an Emporia Republican, chaired special committee last week that examined the Kansas floods. He said research shows more frequent flooding and flooding of longer duration.
Longbine said “I don’t think we know” when asked whether the floods are a consequence of climate change.
“We can often go from extremely rainy seasons to extreme drought very quickly. So it’s a matter of determining if there is anything we can do,” Longbine said. “We can’t legislate Mother Nature, but what we can do is be better prepared for the extremes.”
Profs: Kan. college students will lose broad knowledge with fewer gen-ed rules
By STEPHAN BISHA
Kansas News Service
For decades, a university education meant students had to load up on math, history and English courses. Now, Kansas universities are slashing those general education requirements so more students can graduate on time and have more room for classes in their major.
This week, Wichita State University became the latest school to reduce how many gen ed classes their undergraduates need to take.
By cutting back on gen ed credits or ditching philosophy and history requirements in favor of specific goals, schools are hoping students can learn skills like ethical reasoning from an engineering course. But liberal arts professors warn the change will take away a core aspect of what a university education provides — a broad knowledge of the world that goes beyond what’s taught in their major.
“Our students will be less competitive, less prepared for the world that they enter when they leave here,” Wichita State University associate sociology professor Chase Billingham said at the faculty vote.
Cutting class
The main driver of Wichita State’s general education cuts is a requirement by the Kansas Board of Regents to reduce credit hours.
In 2017, the board made it their goal to cap most bachelor’s degree program requirements at 120 credits, the minimum needed for a degree. The majority of students fail to earn their degree in four years, forcing them to pay for an extra semester or more of school, so the regents think fewer classes will make it easier for students to graduate on time.
But an across-the-board general education wasn’t the target of the regents’ cap.
Fine arts and engineering faculty at Wichita State complained they already cut as many classes as they could and were still coming in above the credit limit. That’s why they believed general ed cuts should make up the rest.
“We have already cut to the bone our core course,” Wichita State voice professor Pina Mozzani said during the faculty vote. “Our students are going out impoverished in their own area.”
The regents have exempted engineering programs at state universities from requiring more classes, though engineering professors want gen ed cuts so they can put back in more of the major’s core classes.
Faculty pushing for the cuts also argued that Wichita State required 14 gen ed classes, which is more than other competing schools. But some liberal arts professors said their classes shouldn’t be viewed as a burden. Instead, they said, the classes should be celebrated as better preparing students for the post-college world by developing wide-ranging skills.
“I don’t want to get engaged in a race to the bottom,” said John Dreifort, a history professor at Wichita State. “We should still maintain that there are courses in a university that are important for an educated person to have access to.”
Some professors also expressed concern that fewer gen ed requirements would mean fewer students taking their classes. But they also worried that without general education, you end up with state vocational schools.
“This is Wichita State University,” associate history professor George Dehner said. “It’s not Wichita State Tech.”
Ultimately, many liberal arts professors at Wichita State supported the gen ed reduction, swayed by the argument that losing two classes was better than a proposal for four classes.
Professors also went into the vote expecting this to be the last time gen ed was touched for years, though some suggested this was just a patch job and a hard look at reshaping general education was still needed in the years ahead.
“It’s just a Band-Aid on what is a much bigger question about what general education should be in 2019 for our students,” said Aleksander Sternfeld-Dunn, the director of Wichita State’s school of music.
Rethinking requirements
One possibility for WSU’s future is taking a page from Kansas State: ditch the classic university model in which students take specific subjects offered by specialized departments, and instead have them focus on concepts.
In 2012, K-State overhauled its gen ed program (and the University of Kansas made a similar change in 2013). Students in Manhattan still have to take some liberal arts classes. But now a taxation class offered by the accounting department can count toward social science requirements. An animal behavior class from the agriculture department satisfies the empirical and quantitative reasoning goal.
K-State is still evaluating how effective the change has been, but the university said it has seen positive early results.
“It’s not impinging upon any one or two departments to teach all these classes,” said Brian Kovar, a member of the university’s general education council. “It really allows a lot of people to be involved in this.”
Elsewhere, Fort Hays State University is considering allowing some major classes to count toward gen ed, though its main focus is cutting down credits. Pittsburg State University cut gen ed credit this year, while Emporia State University is also looking to do the same.
Stephan Bisaha reports on education and young adult life for the Kansas News Service. You can follow him on Twitter @SteveBisaha or email him at bisaha@kmuw. org. The Kansas News Service is a collaboration of KCUR, Kansas Public Radio, KMUW and High Plains Public Radio focused on the health and well-being of Kansans, their communities and civic life.
‘Young at Art: A Selection of Caldecott Book Illustrations’ coming to HPL
HPL
Through picture books, readers embark on visual journeys that engage all of the senses and encourage curious, imaginative, and thoughtful interactions with the world around them. Since 1938, the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association, has recognized the significant impact of art on early reading experiences, awarding the Caldecott Medal for excellence in this area. Named in honor of nineteenth-century English illustrator Randolph Caldecott, the prestigious and highly coveted medal is awarded annually to the illustrator of the most distinguished American picture book for children.
The exhibition Young at Art: A Selection of Caldecott Book Illustrations includes original illustrations from Caldecott Medal recipients and from “runner-up” Honor books, as well as other illustrations by award-winning artists. It opens at the Hays Public Library on Dec. 14 and will be on display through Jan. 19.
This exhibition of works from Wichita Falls Museum of Art’s permanent collection celebrates the vision and talent of twenty-eight award-winning artists, including the first Caldecott Award recipient Dorothy P. Lathrop (1938), two-time winner Chris Van Allsburg (1982, 1986), and Maurice Sendak (1964), whose work Where the Wild Things Are, like Van Allsburg’s Jumanji and The Polar Express, was adapted for the big screen. Curated by Danny Bills, curator of collections and exhibitions at Wichita Falls Museum of Art and organized by Wichita Falls Museum of Art at Midwestern State University, Young at Art is part of ExhibitsUSA, a program of Mid-America Arts Alliance.
In connection with the exhibit, the Hays Public Library will sponsor a Young Illustrator Contest for 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders in Hays area schools. Chosen entries will be displayed in the Youth Services Department during the Winter Art Walk on December 6, and winners will receive prizes for their classrooms.
About ExhibitsUSA
This exhibition is toured by ExhibitsUSA, a national program of Mid-America Arts Alliance. ExhibitsUSA sends more than twenty-five exhibitions on tour to over 100 small- and mid-sized communities every year. These exhibitions create access to an array of arts and humanities experiences, nurture the understanding of diverse cultures and art forms, and encourage the expanding depth and breadth of cultural life in local communities. For more about ExhibitsUSA, email [email protected] or visit www.eusa.org.
About Mid-America Arts Alliance
Mid-America Arts Alliance (M-AAA) strengthens and supports artists, cultural organizations, and communities throughout our region and beyond. We achieve this primarily through our national traveling exhibition programs, innovative leadership development, and strategic grant making. We are especially committed to enriching the cultural life of historically underserved communities by providing high quality, meaningful, and accessible arts and culture programs and services. We believe in more art for more people. Additional information about M-AAA is available at www.maaa.org.
FHSU taking applications for new master of social work program
11/12/19 td/kb local, Western Kansas
HAYS, Kan. – Applications opened this fall for the new Master of Social Work program at Fort Hays State University, the latest initiative by the university to serve rural Kansas.
Fort Hays State’s program will carry a specialty in clinical social work.
Dr. Tim Davis, a professor in and chair of the Department of Social Work, said the FHSU Master of Social Work program takes advantage of the flexibility and outreach aspects of online education while maintaining a strong, hands-on clinical training emphasis. He said the department will accept up to 45 students this first year.
“The MSW program at FHSU will provide high quality and affordable solution to the demand for clinical social workers in Kansas, and improve access to health and mental health care for residents in the underserved rural areas of the state,” said Davis.
Three aspects of FHSU’s program are innovations designed to create opportunity in rural areas:
• Hands-on clinical skills training will be provided near where students live, thanks to creative use of online technology, the completion of face to face clinical intensives, and partnerships with agency field instructors.
• In addition to the standard requirement of 16 to 24 hours a week of clinical practicums, students will complete several short clinical rotations at health clinics, mental health clinics or other clinical sites at the start of the clinical practicum period.
• After graduation, the department will provide the program’s alumni with ongoing help in finding and providing the clinical supervision and training during the two-and-a-half to three-year residency-type training required to gain licensure as independent clinical social workers.
“This is particularly important for Western Kansas as FHSU is the only university located in the western half of the state,” he said. “There is an acute, unmet need for social workers at the master’s level and higher across Kansas, and particularly in the FHSU service area.”
As the program continues to grow, the department will expand its long-standing partnerships with communities and agencies in order to provide students with a broad foundation of knowledge through clinical experience in health and behavioral health as well as classroom training. Davis said clinical training partnerships will extend into post-MSW partnerships to provide the credentials that MSW alumni will need to gain independent licensure.
This is particularly important in the supervised clinical training required for independent licensure. Agencies in rural areas often do not have the personnel with the required credentials to supervise the post-graduate clinical training for licensure. Department faculty, who have the appropriate credentials, will use HIPAA compliant video conferencing systems to provide group supervision to the graduates at work in the clinical settings. In addition, the department will work with agencies to ensure robust ongoing training through the clinical training plan.
“We understand the challenges and rewards of living and working in rural Kansas,” said Davis. “We are committed, through education, scholarship and service, to training exceptional clinical social workers as well as supporting the agencies and communities in which they serve.”
The program offers two pathways to an MSW degree. The Regular MSW Program consists of academic coursework for four standard semesters, one summer term, and field practicum experiences across four regular semesters.
The Advanced Standing MSW Program is only available to students with a bachelor’s degree in social work from a Council of Social Work Education accredited social work program. This program can be completed in one calendar year of academic coursework and two semesters of field practicum experience.
Both degree paths will provide students the clinical training and educational requirements necessary to obtain licensure as a clinical social worker. Both began accepting applications in October. The advanced program will start in June 2020 and the regular program will start in August 2020.
Similar to the FHSU Bachelors of Social Work Program, FHSU will seek and secure CSWE accreditation for the MSW Program. As is the case with all new programs, said Davis, the MSW Program will launch in candidacy status and become eligible for full CSWE accreditation after two years.
Students who graduate from the program while it is in candidacy will retain a fully accredited degree upon the program’s approval of accreditation following the two-year candidacy period. The MSW Program’s candidacy status will neither delay nor prevent graduates from obtaining licensure, he said.
FHSU’s Bachelor of Social Work program is CSWE accredited.
As a primarily online program, all knowledge and theory components of the courses, as well as some practice skill development, will be delivered through online technology, while the hands-on clinical skills training will be completed in face-to-face clinical intensives, clinical rotations, and clinical field placements, said Davis.
Clinical intensive requirements in the advanced clinical year involve attendance at one session per semester, which consists of two and a half days of hands-on clinical training. To make the program more accessible to students, these sessions will be organized around the regions where the MSW students are concentrated. Clinical rotations and clinical practicums can be set up near where individual students reside.
Tuition and fee information for both programs, and comparisons with other MSW programs in the region are available on the departmental Facebook and Instagram pages and on the department’s webpage, www.fhsu.edu/socialwork. For more information, contact Dr. Tim Davis by email, [email protected], or by phone, 785-628-5395.
Hays woman named to governor’s council on early childhood development
Gov. Laura Kelly on Wednesday appointed Glenda Susan Bowles, Laura Smith-Everett, Melissa Rooker and Liz Long to the Coordinating Council on Early Childhood Development Services.
The mission of the council is to solicit information and opinions from concerned agencies, groups and individuals on proposed policies and recommendations for the delivery of health, education and social services to families of young children—from birth through age five—who have or are at risk of having disabling conditions.
“Early childhood development is a major focus of our administration,” Kelly said. “The four Kansans appointed all have strong backgrounds in caring for our children, and I know they will be effective participants on this council.”
Bowles, Hays, is the former executive director of the Hays Area Children’s Center for USD 489. She completed her undergraduate degree at Kansas State University and graduate degree at Fort Hays State University. Bowles works as a speech pathologist and as an educational administrator.
Smith-Everett, Shawnee, is an ELL teacher for the Shawnee Mission School District and the parent of a special-needs child. She received her undergraduate degree from William Jewell College and attended the University of Kansas for graduate school.
Rooker, Fairway, is the executive director of the Kansas Children’s Cabinet. She was appointed as a designee of the governor on the Kansas Interagency Coordinating Council.
Long, Mayetta, is the MCO reporting manager at KDHE Division of Healthcare Finance and has relevant Medicaid program experience.
The governor’s appointments are not subject to confirmation by the Kansas Senate.
— Office of the Governor
FHSU men’s soccer falls in penalty kicks in GAC Tournament finals
HAYS, Kan. – The Fort Hays State men’s soccer team battled No. 22 Rogers State to a 2-2 draw Sunday afternoon (Nov. 17) inside FHSU Soccer Stadium. But with the GAC/MIAA Championship on the line, the match didn’t end after two overtimes and 110 minutes. The Hillcats of Rogers State prevailed in a penalty kick shootout, besting the Tigers 4-3.
To get to the title match, FHSU handled the Harding University Bisons in a 3-1 victory, while Rogers State commanded a 2-0 victory over Northeastern State University.
The two advancing sides featured the top two seeds in the tournament field. Fort Hays State, the regular season conference champions, entered the match ranked eighth in the latest NCAA Super Region 3 rankings, while the second-seeded Hillcats are listed at No. 11 in the region rankings.
Fort Hays State was able to strike first in the opening half. A cross sent into the middle of the six-yard box provided heaps of trouble for GAC first team goalkeeper Dillon Dean. As the ball bounced through a mixed group of Tigers and Hillcats, junior Arsenio Chamorro was taken down by Dean. After a slight pause, central referee Brian Bauer allotted for a Fort Hays State penalty.
Perfect from the spot this season, junior captain Moritz Walther began his routine. On the blow of the whistle, Walther began his run up and hit a driven ground ball to the center of the goal, sending Dean diving to his left.
Just nine minutes later, Rogers State retaliated with a goal of their own from the foot of Chris Sowder. Callum Hubble sent a ball into the box from the right wing. FHSU goalkeeper Cullen Fisch attempted to make a diving stop to send the ball out of the danger zone, but the ball just grazed off the keeper’s fingertips. Sowder extended his leg and tapped the ball just inside the far post to even the match score up at one in the 19th minute.
The two sides carried a draw into the locker room, featuring a very even matchup with the Tigers leading the Hillcats by two in shots and corners taken over the first 45 minutes.
The second half of regulation featured another back and forth battle, ending with four corners taken and Rogers State leading by just one shot.
Tournament MVP Noah Robson resumed the scoring in the 56th minute when winger Jordan Watson fought off a challenge and relinquished possession to Robson, who was playing just beyond the edge of the 18-yard box. The senior forward took one touch and then ripped a shot through a window of Tiger defenders.
With the ball soaring towards the net, Fisch took two steps and leapt in an attempt to make a save, but was unable to reach the ball that had nestled into the upper most right corner of the goal—putting Rogers State out in front, 2-1.
However, only four minutes later, Fort Hays State junior forward Mauricio Etcheverry equalized the match on a breakaway. With Agudelo to his right and Rogers State freshman defender Manuel Camarena at his tail, the Asuncion, Paraguay native took his shot on goal.
Slipping just in front of the stretched leg of defender Michael Turner, the shot proceeded to one-hop and slide under Dean as it bounced into the back of the net.
There would be six registered shots in the second half, only one requiring a save from Fisch until the horn blew to signal the end of regulation.
A pair of shots were attempted in the first overtime periods. Both sides remained poised and attempted runs in the behind the defense from the wings, but neither team was able to clock in the game-winning goal.
With under two minutes remaining in the second overtime period, a foul was called on Tigers senior Sergio Villalba, who was giving chase to a Hillcats attacker making his move on the Fort Hays State back line. The senior midfielder was ultimately called for a foul, being handed a red card and reducing FHSU to ten men.
The Black and Gold managed to defend the Hillcats free kick and see out the remaining time on the clock.
With regulation and both overtime periods coming to a close, the two sides geared up for penalty kicks.
Both head coaches, Gerry Cleary and Derek Larkin, would enter in two more names on the team sheet for penalty kicks. FHSU’s Kieran Brown and RSU’s Austin Wormell would see their first action of the day and be tasked in goal.
Chamorro was the first player to step up for the Tigers and would miss the target on his attempt. Robson followed with his attempt and beat Brown at the center of the goal. Each penalty kick taker in rounds two, three and four would hit the back of the net, giving the Hillcats a 4-3 advantage heading into the final round.
Junior Ross Boyd stepped up to the spot and rifled a shot to the left of the goal. Wormell jumped off of his line at the moment of impact and created a save that crowned the Hillcats as GAC/MIAA Champions.
The final result of the match snapped the longest home winning streak in the nation at 25 games. But with the official result going in as a draw, the Tigers kept a 27-match unbeaten streak alive in the record books.
Fort Hays State sports a 13-5-2 record on the 2019 campaign. The Black and Gold will now await the NCAA Selection Show, hoping to be selected as a team in a field of 40 to continue their postseason.
Ranked No. 8 in the Super Region Rankings, the Tigers avoided a loss in the conference tournament and remained unbeaten against No. 11 ranked Rogers State this year, officially posting a 2-0-1 record in the head-to-head even though penalty kicks decided which team hoisted the GAC trophy on Sunday in Hays. Rogers State was on the outside of the top 10 of the super region rankings going into conference tournament week, but a tie with the Tigers may not be enough to get into the NCAA field. The GAC does not receive an automatic qualifier for its tournament champion.
No. 9 ranked Indianapolis sat idle all week after a loss in the early rounds of the GLVC Tournament. No. 12 ranked Wisconsin-Parkside topped No. 10 ranked Saginaw Valley State in the GLIAC title match, so Wisconsin-Parkside will claim one of the three automatic qualifying spots for the NCAA Tournament from Super Region 3. Fort Hays State will have to see if its name is called as one of the seven from the super region to get an at-large selection. The Tigers are hoping to make their eighth-straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
That selection process is slated for a 5:30 p.m. CST announcement on Monday, Nov. 18 on NCAA.com.
K-State professor co-author of national report on challenges of rural schools
MANHATTAN — A report detailing a 50-state comparison of rural schools reveals that many rural students face numerous inequities, and Kansas, like many other states, has both areas to celebrate and preserve as well as serious issues to address.
“Why Rural Matters 2018-19: The Time is Now” was published by the Rural School Community Trust in Washington, D.C. Jerry Johnson, chair of the educational leadership department and Lydia E. Skeen endowed professor in education at the Kansas State University College of Education, is one of the report’s authors. The full report can be viewed at http://www.ruraledu.org/.
Nearly one-quarter — 111,000 — of Kansas’ half-million K-12 students are in rural schools, and 46 percent of the school districts in the state are deemed rural by the U.S. Census Bureau. Nearly two-thirds of these districts — 66% — are considered small rural districts with enrollments below the national median for rural school districts. Nationally, there are 50.8 million students in public schools and about 20 percent are in rural schools.
“It should not be necessary to state the importance of the schools serving 1 in 5 U.S. public school students and argue that these schools and their communities matter — but it is,” Johnson said. “Meeting the needs of 9 million children is a challenge and a responsibility that deserves the attention of the nation, and this report points to key issues of policy and practice with the potential to make things better or make things worse.”
Overall, Kansas ranked in the top third in the nation and was in the top five of the percent of rural students enrolled in dual credit courses. However, the report revealed several areas for policymakers and education leaders to address.
Kansas — even when adjusted for comparable local wages — ranked last in rural teacher salaries and had the 11th highest rate of rural students with individualized education programs. In other metrics, Kansas had the nation’s fourth-lowest rate of rural students passing an AP exam, and slightly less than half of Kansas’ high school juniors and seniors — 47.8 percent — took the ACT or SAT.
J. Spencer Clark, associate professor of curriculum and instruction and director of the Rural Education Center at Kansas State University, said the report provides clarity.
“The Rural Education Center is strategically positioned to address many of the needs outlined in this report with our rural partners,” Clark said. “We’re heartened by the fact that we’re already focusing on college and career readiness for our rural Kansas students and are looking forward to meaningful discussions on ways to better prepare our students in light of the report.”
Rural schools are so vital to the success of their communities, the College of Education hosted the inaugural Rural Summit in 2019. Response was so favorable, Clark said the summit will be expanded to a regional event in 2020. Details will be forthcoming.
Three-day weather outlook
Police: Kan. gunshot wound victim accidentally shot himself
SHAWNEE COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating what was initially believed to be an aggravated battery.
Just after 7 p.m. Saturday, officers responded to a residence in the 300 block of SW Harrison in Topeka on the report of an aggravated battery, according to Lt. John Trimble.
Upon arrival, officers located one victim who suffered what appears to be a non-life threatening gunshot wound.
The victim was taken by ambulance to a local hospital for treatment. Late Saturday, investigators determine the shooting was an accidental, self-inflicted discharge of a firearm by the victim, according to Major Scott Gilchrist with Topeka Police. Name of the victim has not been released.