By JAMES BELL
Hays Post

Big Creek Crossing is once again gearing up for “Football and Fashion,” set for 3 p.m. Saturday.

The event features autographs with Fort Hays State University football players to be followed by a showcase of back to school fashion.

“Football and Fashion started last year,” said Katie Dorzweiler, BCC property manager. “We’ve always done the football signing, and we wanted to make it more involved for the customer and the families, so we decided to do the fashion show.”

“It’s a good way to get the football team out to the public,” said Matt Cook, assistant athletic director. “See the players without their helmets on, so they can get to see them a little bit and get to know who they are.”

FHSU football coaches will accompany the players along with representatives of the FHSU cheerleading squad.

Visitors will also have the opportunity to register for a drawing for FHSU football season tickets, according to Cook.

The fashion show will showcase clothes for everyone from kindergarten through college, along with professional attire for teachers as well with every BCC tenant will be involved in some way during the event, according to Dorzweiler.

“Most of the stores will either showcase their fashion, offer a sale or have a coupon for something,” she said.

Major retailer JCPenney will offer an exclusive coupon for the event and some of the newest tenets will be involved, as well, with incoming boutique Glik’s offering coupons for their expected opening on Oct. 20.

Kathy Schupman – who recently took over as owner of Tandy’s Gifts – will provide decorations for the event.

Victor E. Tiger, the FHSU mascot, is also expected to make an appearance at during the event and a live radio remote is planned featuring Eagle’s Gerard Wellbrock — the Voice of the FHSU Tigers. The remote is sponsored by Nex-Tech Wireless.

“We had such a great turnout last year, so we are hoping for the same this year,” Dorzweiler said.

Video courtesy USD 489

By James Bell
Hays Post

During Monday night’s USD 489 Board of Education meeting the board approved the purchase of 80 iPads after finding the district short due to increased enrollment.

Going into the meeting, however, the  proposed number was a bit higher, with an initial recommend purchase of 100 iPad Airs and 20 iPad Minis proposed to the board, as an effort to ensure the district’s one-to-one technology would be available to every student as soon as possible.

“I know it looks like a rather large number, 100 Airs 20 Minis,” said Scott Summers, technology director, during his proposal.

A technical glitch caused around 40 of the district’s iPad Airs to be unusable immediately this year, and so with an eye towards expected increased enrollment again next year, Summers pitched the idea of purchasing 100 Airs now, giving the district time to clear the currently locked systems.

They would then be put back into rotation next year, potentially stopping  the need to purchase more devices to cover higher enrollment in the fall of 2018.

“We need 96, with that 96 about 40 of them are sitting in the office right now and they have an activation lock from Apple on them,” Summers said.

“More or less they are a glorified paperweight to us for the time being.”

The lock occurred when the Apple IDs were not cleared from the devices at the end of last year. The district’s management server was expected to clear the IDs, but it only worked on some of the devices.

After finding units were unable to be unlocked Summer said he spoke with Apple to determine what steps needed to be completed, finding the district would need to furnish Apple with proof of ownership before the devices could be unlocked.

That process could occur in two to three weeks he said, but the timeframe is dependent on Apple and there was little the district could do to speed up the process.

During his initial presentation, he also told the board the after discovering the problem this year steps would be taken to ensure the problem would not reoccur.

But even counting the approximately 40 units currently locked up the district is still short to supply each student with a device, with three tiers of devices utilized district-wide.

Kindergarten through first grade use the Minis, second through eighth utilize the Airs and high school students are on a different platform altogether.

This year increased enrollment in kindergarten and more students moving into second grade than moving past eighth caused the shortage of the Airs and increased kindergarten enrollment caused the need for the Minis.

The decision to purchase the 20 Minis posed no challenge for the board, but the approval of 100 additional Airs was a bit more problematic.

“Unfortunately, the iPad Air we bought last year was discontinued,” Summers said.

The biggest change in the Air as compared to the new model – the Air 2 –  is the amount of storage available. The current district devices have 32 GB, but the new model has only two options, 16 GB or 64 GB.

The larger memory capacity would cost the district an additional $10,000 over the smaller amount.

Summers recommended the lower memory capacity and told the board it does not change the “dynamic” of the systems for students.

He also noted a higher repair cost is associated with the Air 2 because of the way the screen is manufactured. With the new model, the ability to replace only the outside glass screen – in cases of minor breakage – is no longer available as it is fused with other interior components.

“My concern is that we are already having the issue with the iPad Air being discontinued so now were having to buy the iPad Air 2, so why would we buy 40 and have them set there for a year potentially, when we could have waited and bought an iPad 3,” said Sarah Rankin, board member.

Summers responded the next expected release from Apple would likely bring the iPad Air into a more professional line and could cause significant changes to the platform.

Future price changes were also a concern to the board.

“My thought with that is the cost of (the Air 2) might drop…when you are buying a lot of them that can add up in a hurry,” said Luke Oborny, board member.

“I almost think I would approve a smaller amount tonight and then approve them again if you need them in May or June.”

Board president Lance Bickle agreed and asked Summers what the number would be to get every student a device this year, counting the number of currently locked devices.

Summers said an exact number would be known this week, as the technology rollout continues, but the shortage is in the range of 56-60 if the additional 40 that are currently locked out are utilized this year.

Superintendent John Thissen told the board he felt purchasing the 60 Airs and 20 Minis now would be better than waiting two weeks to get the final total, potentially causing further delays for some students to be issued devices.

The board agreed and unanimously approved the purchase for 60 iPad Airs and 20 Minis for $22,740 and $5,180, respectively.

During the meeting the board also approved:

• The FY 2017 budget.
• A 1.05 percent classified percent staff wage increase.
• The purchase of a vehicle for Early Childhood Connections fully funded thorough a Kansas Head Start Home visitation grant.

By JAMES BELL
Hays Post

Following a review Aug. 8 of the 2107 fiscal year budget at the Hays USD 489 Board of Education meeting, a public hearing and vote are scheduled at 6:30 p.m. Monday, Aug. 22, in the Toepfer Board Room, 323 W. 12th Street.

During the review the administration the board heard the district plans on increasing funds that go to instruction by 18 percent over last year.

The district sought that increase, despite continued cuts in state funding.

“Our state revenues are up this year, that does include an increase in KPERS payments. Our federal revenue is up slightly, and our local revenue is down a little bit,” said Tracy Kaiser, executive director of finance and support services. “The main thing is we have $283 per student less revenue than we did last year.”

During tonight’s meeting the board is also set to hear recommendations for the approval of a bid for roofing above the library at Hays High School, the installation of security software and hardware throughout the schools with funds provided by a grant awarded to the USD 489 Foundation for Educational Excellence, and iPad purchases to keep up with increased enrollment.

The board will also discuss approving a 1.05 percent raise for staff not covered under the SEIU or the HNEA negotiated agreements last year.

Live video of the meeting will be available on Hays Post, courtesy USD 489.

(Video by Cooper Slough)

By JAMES BELL
Hays Post

For many residents in Hays there has been a glaring omission in the local retail sector – a dedicated pet supply store. With the opening of Petsense in the Centennial Plaza, 2520 Vine St., pet owners will now be able to pick up all their necessary supplies in one location.

The location’s grand opening is Saturday, Aug. 20,  at 9 a.m. with a Hays Area Chamber of Commerce ribbon cutting.

Hays native Ashley Taylor is the general manager.

The relatively new chain focuses on being a part of the communities they serve and is pleased with the location in the center of Hays.

“It’s very much going to be a part of the community,” Taylor said. “They will see us being involved.”

After spending four weeks training in Ponca City, Okla., Taylor has been busy the last few weeks getting the store ready, building shelving and hiring staff. A corporate crew is helping prepare for the Saturday opening.

The Petsense chain is currently undergoing a rapid expansion under the leadership of industry insiders, according to Taylor.

“There have been corporate people on the Petco side and corporate people on the PetSmart side that have left and joined forces. So this is kind of like a mix of the two. I always say its the best of both worlds,” she added.

One of the most notable differences in the store is the procurement of animals. The chain focuses on adoption instead of breeding or sales.

“Unlike Petco and PetSmart, we are all about adoption and not breeding,” Taylor said. Petsense will have a few options for folks looking for a pet – or pet supplies unavailable elsewhere in Hays.

“We will actually have cats 24/7 in our store, in these nice large kennels as you walk in,” Taylor said.

Those cats can be adopted through a partnership with the Humane Society of the High Plains in Hays through the Petsense sav-a-pet program and arrived at the store on Friday afternoon. Even though dogs will not be housed in the store for adoption all the time, Taylor said local agencies are planning times for adoption to be available at the store.

“That is our unique program that we do with local humane societies,” she said. “We will also work with Western Plains Animal Refuge of Hays and we will let them come on weekends, normally Saturdays, to bring adoptable animals as well.”

Pets, of course, are welcome to be in the store with their owners.

The store will also be home to a grooming department, even as Taylor continues to search for a full-time groomer, noting the location will provide employment benefits to an experienced groomer.

Shoppers will find a large variety of pet supplies including bird, reptile, small animal, aquatics, dog and cat accessories, bedding and premium dog and cat food.

Taylor said live crickets will be sold at the store, a service found nowhere else in Hays.

Dog and cat food available at the location are also sold in a discount program.

“With our premium dog and cat food–select brands–you buy 10 bags, you get one free,” Taylor said. “Your dogs are going to keep eating so you might as well get a free bag out of it.”

Breed specific and specialty food for pets is available as well as best-selling brands.

Even with her limited time with the company, Taylor said her experiences have been entirely positive.

“The company is wonderful to work for,” Taylor said. “They are true animal lovers and advocates–all the way from part-time associates to the president of the company. Everyone puts their heart and soul into the treatment of animals.”

Taylor said she is both humbled and grateful they choose Hays as the second location in Kansas for the chain and is happy with the location. The other Kansas Petsense store is in Pittsburg.

“We’re very excited to bring business to the Plaza and be a part of the Centennial Plaza, but we are separated,” she pointed out.

Since the new store is pet-friendly, for safety concerns the door leading to the inside of the shopping plaza will not be open. It is a measure to keep animals from being able to enter the plaza’s interior.

Petsense is open 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sundays.

For more on the location visit their facebook page here.

By COOPER SLOUGH
Hays Post

At around 2 p.m. Friday a traffic accident was blocking northbound traffic on the 2500 block of Vine in Hays.

Traffic at the time was backed up for several blocks.

Evidence at the scene suggests a late-model gray Pontiac passenger vehicle braked suddenly, causing a red mini van to collide with the rear of the Pontiac. A late-model white suburban then collided with the rear of the mini van.

There were no injuries at the scene, and traffic flow resumed around 2:2o p.m.

The cause of the accident is unknown.

Video by Cooper Slough

By JAMES BELL
Hays Post

It might not be a stop during your routine shopping, but anyone that has planned a party or sought that unique gift has found Tandy’s and Kollections invaluable.

Now, the two stores have merged and those exclusive Hallmark gifts that bring people from throughout the area to Hays and those hard to find party supplies can be found in Tandy’s Gifts, located in Big Creek Crossing, 2918 Vine.

“It worked out so perfectly when we met Kathy and John (Schupman), it just seemed like a perfect match for us,” said Tandy Kornechuk, previous owner of Tandy’s.

Kornechuk owned the Hays Hallmark for over ten years and another location in Dodge City for over 43 years.

After her husband had sold his business, Kornechuk decided it would be a good time for her to sell as well, but was happy someone was able to continue the Hallmark brand in Hays and enjoys the changes made so far.

“She’s done such a great job. It just looks so pretty and the thing that is so perfect is the match of the party balloons to what we had with the Hallmark product. It just ties in so well,” Kornechuk said of new owner, Kathy Schupman, who previously owned and operated Kollections.

But while Kornechuk has officially given over the reins to Schupman, she said she’s offered to give a little assistance.

“Tandy has offered to talk to me now and then if I need help or guidance,” Schupman said.

“That will be fun,” Kornechuk said. “So I’m still in it a little bit.”

With the merger, the location lost its Gold Crown status, but customers may not see any loss in the availability of their exclusive items.

“With the purchase of the business from the Kornechuk’s, Gold Crown does not transfer, that is a long process and you have to maintain exact products,” Schupman said.

Through a little leg work, however, she worked out a deal that will still allow the same items to be sold that would be found in a Gold Crown location, knowing how important those items are to people in the area.

“We want to continue to facilitate our customers with the products that they have grown accustomed to and are collecting because Hallmark has a lot of collectible items and we will continue to provide that,” Schupman said. That’s very important to us.”

“That’s very important to us.”

Another change to the business following the sale includes the loss of the ability to use the Crown Rewards program in the location but Schupman worked out a plan to address that as well, creating a loyalty program that she said is on-par or better than the Crown Rewards program and a new point-of-sale system transferred Crown Rewards members into the new system after the merger.

“That’s good because it was limited to just the Hallmark product before,” Kornechuk said.

The Kollections connection

The merger of Tandy’s and Kollections is not Schupman’s first, just last year she took over Paper Mart Party Center, with products from that business now being incorporated into Tandy’s.

“When I bought the Paper Mart Party Center in 2015 and when this whole thing happened, it just seemed like the perfect opportunity to marry two turnkey businesses that each of them has provided over 20 years of customer service to this area and put them together,” Schupman said.

Now Tandy’s will feature over 40 paper color products and a balloon selection unique to Hays.

The business features balloon designing, with employees having attended balloon school, including Schupman. One small feature of the new location is a direct exit from Big Creek Crossing that allows customers to take balloon assortments straight from the store to the parking lot.

Balloon delivery for large parties is also available.

With a Hallmark customer base reaching as far as Oklahoma, Schupman is hopeful the new additions to the previous ones will create a one-stop party supply location and will help keep Hays a regional shopping hub.

“We have pre-orders for (Hallmark) ornaments from Oklahoma, Dodge City, Goodland, Great Bend, Garden City and that is bringing revenue into this community and that’s a plus for this area,” she said.

Thoughts on a new home

Having been in Big Creek Crossing for over five weeks, Schupman is upbeat about being inside a high traffic shopping center.

“The Mall has been very good in working with me to facilitate this move. They have exhibited nothing but enthusiasm about welcoming me here,” she said.

And being in a location with significantly higher foot traffic has allowed her to lower prices, offsetting the slight customer cost increase created by the CID in Big Creek Crossing.

Big Creek Crossing Property Manager Katie Dorzweiler is enthusiastic about the move as well.

“We’re really excited to have Kathy. She’s already been a pillar of the community,” she said.

In addition to being a business owner in Hays, Schupman is the Quartermaster of the VFW post 9076 and is only one of two women in Ellis County to serve on the honor guard. In that role, she is currently working to get more women involved in the VFW.

While not originally from Kansas, she moved here in 2008 and her husband and co-owner of Tandy’s, John, is from Hays and the couple have no plans to leave the area.

“I think it’s going to be a great fit, everybody already loved her for the party aspect she brought and her roots to Kansas and Kansas made items,” Dorzweiler said.

“We’re all about neighbors and family feel and she is truly that,” she said.

By JAMES BELL
Hays Post

CLARIFICATION: Friday morning, Lt. Brandon Wright gave a clarification of the incident. Initially, damage to the vehicle indicated the pedestrian had impacted the side of the car, but after further review, it was found the vehicle had struck the pedestrian after he was walking in the roadway. The mistake in wording was due to the nature of the damage to the vehicle as listed in the police report.

——————-

It’s a story that has repeated itself across the country in recent weeks — and now Hays can add itself to the list after a man was injured playing Pokemon Go.

At 10:51 p.m. Tuesday, a 38-year-old Hays man was struck by a vehicle while playing the popular mobile game in the 700 block of East Sixth.

The unidentified man was walking in the area and entered the street. While entering the roadway, he failed to see a Chevy crossover driven by another Hays resident and was hit by the vehicle as it was traveling east, according to Lt. Brandon Wright of the Hays Police Department.

The pedestrian suffered non-life-threatening injuries, but suffered abrasions and an injured arm, with officers on scene believing it was broken, Wright said.

He was transported to Hays Medical Center.

Wright said the driver of the vehicle reported driving 20 mph at the time of the accident and was not cited, but was arrested on suspicion of driving with a suspended license.

The vehicle suffered minor damage.

Prior to the accident, Wright said the HPD has not had a lot of problems with the game’s players, but now “it has happened here as well.”

UPDATED: 15-year-old dies in ATV accident Thursday.

By JAMES BELL
Hays Post

At around 10:35 a.m. Thursday, Ellis County Fire, Emergency Medical Services and Ellis County Sherriff’s Office, with the assistance of the Kansas Highway Patrol, were called to the scene of a rollover of an ATV southeast of Hays in the 1800 block of Munjor Road.

Early reports indicated the victim was a juvenile and was unresponsive as emergency responders arrived around 10:42 a.m.

The victim was transported from the scene shortly after 11 a.m.

Officers on scene said an announcement would be released at a later time.

Hays Post has a reporter on scene and will update as information becomes available.

Video Courtesy USD 489

By JAMES BELL
Hays Post

During Monday’s meeting, the Hays USD 489 Board of Education reviewed the proposed 2017 budget, hearing that despite the continued downward trend in state aid per pupil, the percent of funding to be used for instruction has increased.

“We have increased our budget for the money that goes into instruction,” said Tracy Kaiser, executive director of finance and support services.

“Sixty-six percent of all of our budget is going to instruction,” she said, noting the amount used for instruction is up 18 percent from last year.

Superintendent John Thissen said the percentage of the budget USD 489 spends on instruction is in line with other districts.

“Comparative-wise, one of the complaints we heard from the Legislature this year was that there was not enough money spent on instruction,” said Paul Adams, board member, asking what percentage is desired by the Legislature.

“My memory is that they’ve usually identified two-thirds,” Thissen said.

Adams then asked if there was any budget area where USD 489 is significantly different that other districts.

“Definitely, there’s one thing that’s very, very strange on this chart. It’s the zero. Most districts don’t have that,” Thissen said about the district’s debt payments.

“For us, I don’t know how many years you can go back, but its a number of years that there haven’t been payments for that,” he said. “I can tell you right off that zero is definitely out of ordinary for the majority of districts in the state.”

“By debt, you mean bond?” asked Sarah Rankin, board member.

“Exactly,” Thissen said.

Generally, however, the budget review found no major changes over last year, in part due to block grant funding from the state that remained the same, but state revenue was up slightly for the district.

However, state aid per pupil continued its downward decline.

“Our state revenues are up this year, that does include an increase in KPERS payments. Our federal revenue is up slightly, and our local revenue is down a little bit also,” Kaiser said. “The main thing is we have $283 per student less revenue than we did last year.”

In a brief history of state aid per pupil, Kaiser told the board it has been dropping since 2009.

“In 2008, our base state aid per pupil was $4,483 and that is oftentimes the number you hear when they’re talking about ‘Is the state adequately funding education?’ ” she said.

Starting in 2009, there have been four cuts to state aid per pupil, along with a 2 percent reduction in special aid, she further told the board, and again cut twice in 2011.

The Legislature increased that amount by $58 in 2013 and $14 in 2014, but other changes caused a reduction in funding.

“When they excluded virtual and new facilities weighting that year, USD 489 actually lost $99,000,” Kaiser said.  “The total of all of those changes since 2008 is over $2.7 million that have affected USD 489 each and every year. So our total losses in the last eight years are over $20 million.”

During the meeting, Thissen explained to the board money in the contingency fund that has been another point of contention in the state Legislature is well in line with previous state recommendations.

“I want to make sure that everybody here is well aware that that contingency fund number of $331,000. There are a lot of people that can look numbers and say that’s a lot of money,” Thissen said. “I want people to understand that there was a time not so many years ago that the state ended up recommending 6 percent of your general fund would end up being contingency. Then they changed it to 10 percent, and now in the last couple of years there has been great criticism by legislators saying there is way too much money in there, although that was the direction that was given by the state for years.”

Having money in the reserve in case of a catastrophe is good fiscal policy he said, noting the size of the fund for the Hays district is “quite low.”

The budget also contained a raise for district staff members, which must be separately approved by the board.

“The budget does include a wage increase for all staff that are not covered under the SEIU or the HNEA-negotiated agreements,” Kaiser said. “This is really kind of a raise for those staff that we really wanted to happen last year, to go along with the HNEA-negotiated agreement.”

A public hearing on the budget will occur at the next board meeting, at 6:30 p.m. Monday, Aug. 22, at the Rockwell Administration Center, 323 W. 12th.

Budget documents can be viewed here.

By JAMES BELL
Hays Post

The Hays USD 489 Board of Education is set to review the 2017 budget at 6:30 p.m. Monday at Rockwell Administration Center, 323 W. 12th.

Tracy Kaiser, executive director of finance and support services, will present the proposed budget.

The board will also vote to approve a public hearing to allow community members to ask budget-related questions at 6:30 p.m. Monday, Aug. 22, in the same location.

According to the district profile within the documents that will be reviewed by the board, the district has faced $2.3 million cuts each year since 2009.

“The teacher shortage in Kansas also continues to grow significantly. If the Kansas Legislature continues down this path of cutting education funding, the harm to the children of Hays and Kansas will be irreparable,” according to the documents.

In that same time frame, the district has made staff and program changes.

“District reductions since FY09 include: Elimination of 70.9 positions – 55 certified, 5 administrative, 18 classified, through attrition and non-renewal – and an additional 14 summer school teaching positions from the elimination of summer school, reduction of numerous supplemental duties, elimination of out-of-district field trips, reduction of the 4 Year Old At-Risk program, increased or initiated gate fees for all activities (including middle school), increased textbook and activity fees, additional kindergarten fee and increased building use fees.”

This year’s budget, however, shows a slight increase in total expenditures across all funds, up 13 percent from last year, totaling $40,888,418.

That’s up from $36,220,518 last year, but still lower than 2009 spending levels.

Two budget areas account for the majority of increase — instruction, and operations and maintenance.

The instruction budget is up 18 percent from slightly over $25.8 million last year to almost $30.5 million this year. The operations and maintenance budget is up 123 percent from nearly $3 million to over $6.6 million this year.

Budget totals bring the spending per pupil up from $12,434 last year to $13,765.

But while total expenditures are expected to increase over last year, total expenditures are expected to remain lower than 2009 levels.

Total expenditures in 2009 were slightly above $41.7 million and amount per pupil spending was $13,434, according to state documents.

Monday’s meeting will stream live on Hays Post, courtesy USD 489.

For a full look at the budget, documents click here.