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Category: Local

Two new northwest Kan. troopers among KHP academy grads

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Twenty-four new troopers to begin field training across Kansas

Today at the Kansas Highway Patrol Training Academy in Salina, the 24 newest Kansas state troopers graduated from their 23 weeks of classroom training. They will now move on to their counties of residence and begin training with their field training officers.

Class #58 and their family members spent much of the morning together at the training academy, going through family programs and a program for the spouses. At 1:00 graduation began as the class entered the auditorium with a cadence.

“We are proud of the accomplishments of our new troopers so far,” said Colonel Mark Bruce, Superintendent of the Patrol. “They still have much to learn as they apply their academy knowledge to working the road with a field training officer. Today we gladly welcome them and their families into the Kansas Highway Patrol.”

Throughout their time at the training academy, recruits have gone through classroom and practical training. They have learned accident investigation techniques; testing of impaired drivers; Kansas laws and statutes; among many other things. They have practiced car stops; at the firing range; defensive tactics; testing for DUI; and other critical training components that they will need to incorporate as they are on their own out on the road.

One milestone for KHP Class #58 is that this class has the largest number of female graduates of any of the KHP’s recruit classes. Included in the class are Troopers Kayley Gaiser (Johnson/Wyandotte counties), Alexandra Morris (Woodson County), Kirstin Parynik (Sedgwick County), and Samantha Rohlman (Johnson/Wyandotte counties).

In northwest Kansas, Trooper Kenton Ubelaker will be assigned to Thomas County, and Trooper Jaron Kellerman will be assigned to Norton County.

Plainville Police: Porch pirates stealing mail, packages

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PLAINVILLE — Law enforcement is warning residents to be wary of porch pirates this holiday season.

In a social media post Sunday, the Plainville Police Department said it has received several reports of mail and packages being stolen.

The department urged residents to contact police if they have missing mail or packages or witness suspicious activity.

USD 489 school board set to approve financing for Oak Park project

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By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post

The USD 489 school board is set to take the next steps in the Oak Park Complex project at its meeting Monday night.

The board will meet at 6:30 p.m. at the Rockwell Administration Center.

The petition period for the financing on the project ended without a protest petition being filed. The board is set to sign the lease agreement on the project Monday.

The school district will purchase the complex on 13th Street for about $2 million to be paid off $217,000 per year for 10 years. The school district has received a $1.47 million federal grant to renovate the complex for use by the Early Childhood Education program.

The aging Washington school and Munjor building, where ECC is now housed, will be closed.

HaysMed, the owner of the largest portion of complex, has agreed to donate $500,000 of the purchase price of the complex back to the school district for use in the renovations.

The board is also set to sign contracts with DLR Group and Nabholz Construction for the work on the renovation project.

The board will also discuss the possible sale of the Washington school property on Monday.

The federal grant requires the renovation work on the project be complete by June 30. The renovated center is set to open to students in the fall.

The school board has been split on its support of the project, with board members Greg Schwartz, Lance Bickle and Mandy Fox, consistently voting against the project.

Superintendent search
The school board will meet with a representative from the Kansas Association of School Boards to discuss the superintendent search.

Superintendent John Thissen gave his letter of resignation to the board on Oct. 19. He will finish out his current contract, which runs through June 30.

The board is set to interview candidates in late January or early February.

The board is also set to hear an audit report and a report from Hays High Principal Martin Straub on HHS curriculum guide revisions.

SPONSORED: Sternberg seeking Museum Program Specialist

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Museum Program Specialist

POSITION DESCRIPTION: Full-time non-tenure track naturalist oversees the care and management of its animal collection and nature trail. The museum cares for a variety of animals including snakes, frogs, fish, turtles, lizards, arthropods, and mammals. These animals are a part of the exhibits and discovery room and are used for a number of in- house and outreach programs. The museum also operates a 23-acre nature area with trails. This area includes a stream, pond and prairie area. The trails are open to the public and are used for museum programs as well as university research projects.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

  • Bachelor’s degree in zoology, botany or related area or related experience in these areas
  • Experience with herpetological care and husbandry

    PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

  • Field experience in collection of plants and animals
  • Demonstrated skills in public speaking, writing, interpersonal and communication skills
  • Knowledge of museum practices and standards.

    APPLICATION DEADLINE: Review of applications will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled. Priority Deadline is January 5, 2019.

    SALARY: $15.75 per hour
    BENEFITS: Competitive benefit package https://www.fhsu.edu/humanresourceoffice/Prospective-Employees/

    RESPONSIBILITIES:

  • Supervise care, handling, health and access to all museum live animals
  • Work with zoology collections manager on IACUC issues
  • Acquisition and development of museum live animal collection
  • Museum operational service
  • Maintain external partnerships with collaborative institutions
  • Supervision of students and volunteers
  • Nature trail care and development
  • Work collaboratively with museum Education and Exhibits Managers on museum programs and exhibits
  • Develop and run educational programs centered around animals, plants and nature.
  • Participate in guiding school tours
  • Oversee the museum birthday party programs
  • Participate in outreach activities
  • Develop and run animal/nature programs for preschoolers and parents
  • Other duties as assigned by the Director

    APPLICATION PROCESS: To apply for this position, please visit https://fhsu.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/CAREERS. Only electronic applications submitted through the webpage will be accepted.

    REQUIRED APPLICATION DOCUMENTS: Applicants should submit a cover letter, resume, and names and contact information for three professional references. Applicant documents should be submitted in one PDF.

    If you have questions regarding the position, please contact: Reese Barrick
    785-628-5664
    [email protected]

    MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

    • Bachelor’s degree in zoology, botany or related area or related experience in these areas

    Experience with herpetological care and husbandry

     

ABOUT FORT HAYS STATE UNIVERSITY:

Founded in 1902, FHSU is a leading, forward-thinking university of the Midwest, with student enrollment of more than 15,000 (including 4,600+ on the Hays campus, a unique China partnership program with enrollment of 3,500+ students, and Virtual College enrollment at over 6,800+). Over 400 faculty and more than 500 professional and staff support and guide degree and certificate programs for the associate’s, bachelor’s, and master’s programs, and for the Doctorate of Nursing Practice, representing 31 departments within these academic divisions:

  • College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
  • W.R. and Yvonne Robbins College of Business and Entrepreneurship
  • College of Education
  • College of Health and Behavioral Sciences
  • Peter Werth College of Science, Technology, and Mathematics
  • Graduate School

    Fort Hays State University provides exceptional opportunities for students from Kansas, the region, and the world, and the University attracts goal-oriented students who want premier learning experiences both inside and outside the classroom combined with one-to-one attention and support. FHSU students graduate with the knowledge, professional skills, and confidence to have a competitive edge in their chosen careers. Upon graduation, 95% of FHSU students find a job or placement in graduate school.

    ABOUT THE COLLEGE OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND MATHEMATICS:

    The college was formed in 2015 by aggregating the departments of Agriculture, Applied Technology, Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Geosciences, Mathematics, and Physics, as well as the Sternberg Museum of Natural History and the Kansas Wetlands Education Center. The academic units consist of approximately 70 full-time faculty, 1400 undergraduate majors, and 50 graduate students. STM departments also make significant contributions to the university’s General Education program, coursework support for the other four colleges, and to the Kansas Academy of Mathematics and Science, which is an early-college program for high-achieving high school students. A new 58,000 sq. ft. Applied Technology and Sculpture building houses new technology student learning spaces, and will complement existing state of the art facilities. Undergraduate students participate in technical, classroom, field, and lab experiences that many universities would reserve for graduate students. The wide range of academic programs are innovative, and college faculty embrace a one-on-one teaching and mentoring philosophy, while providing robust scholarship opportunities for our students.

    ABOUT HAYS, KS:

    Candidates will discover a locale where professional satisfaction and career achievement are paired with an optimal quality of life. Fort Hays State University is located in Hays, Kansas, a vibrant, growing community of over 20,000 that takes great pride in the University’s presence. Hays is a celebration of historic and contemporary contrasts, evidenced in its frontier roots highlighted throughout the city and local museums and in its redeveloped downtown area where residents enjoy one-of-a-kind restaurants, unique shopping, and a vibrant arts scene. This community’s commitment to the future inspires Hays businesses to reinvest locally.

    A welcoming and family-centered community, Hays offers premier healthcare services, a growing high-tech and retail business community, and excellent Pre-K and K–12 schools in both the private and public sectors. The City of Hays has long been known as a safe community, and the FHSU campus is recognized by the National Council for Home Safety and Security in 2018 as one of the Top 100 Safest College Campuses in America. For entertainment, recreation, education, employment, or simply for a comfortable place to live, residents of all ages will find in Hays the elements that contribute to a safe, enjoyable, and fulfilling lifestyle.

    Notice of Non-discrimination – Fort Hays State University is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of gender, race, religion, national origin, color, age, marital status, sexual orientation, genetic information, disability or veteran status.

    Background Check: Final candidate will have consented to and successfully completed a criminal background check.

    Notice to KPERS retirees applying for a position: Recent legislation changes working-after-retirement rules for both you and your employer if you go back to work for a KPERS employer. Please contact your KPERS representative
    or www.kpers.org for further information on how this might affect you.

Ellis campground expansion project engineering bids to be reviewed

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ELLIS – City officials hope to expand the Ellis Lakeside Campground.

The city council will hear an update on the project and review engineering bids during their meeting tonight.

Discussion will also continue with possible revisions to a new retail business sales tax rebate program.

In new business, information will presented for an ordinance regarding small cell antennas.

The complete Dec. 17 agenda is below.

 

 

AGENDA

December 17, 2018

REGULAR MEETING OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF ELLIS

City Hall – Council Meeting Room

 

BILLS ORDINANCE REVIEW WORK SESSION BEGINS AT 7:00 P.M.

ROLL CALL AND MEETING CALL TO ORDER AT 7:30 P.M.

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

AMENDMENTS TO AGENDA (if needed)

  • CONSENT AGENDA
    1. Minutes from Regular Meeting on December 3, 2018
    2. Bills Ordinance #2059
    3. Manual Journal Entries for October

(Council will review for approval under one motion under the consent agenda.  By majority vote of the governing body, any item may be removed from the consent agenda and considered separately)

PUBLIC COMMENTS 

(Each speaker will be limited to five minutes.  If several people from the group wish to speak on same subject, the group must appoint a spokesperson.  ALL comments from public on agenda items must be during Public Comment.  Once council begins their business meeting, no more comments from public will be allowed.)

  • PRESENTATIONS OF AWARDS, PROCLAMATIONS, REQUESTS & PETITIONS (HEARINGS)
  • SPECIAL ORDER
    1. Fire Department Monthly Report – Chief Dustin Vine
  • UNFINISHED BUSINESS
    1. Update and Review Bids for Engineering for Campground Expansion Project
    2. Consider Revisions to New Retail Business Sales Tax Rebate Program
  • NEW BUSINESS
    1. Consider Ordinance Increasing Petty Cash Fund
    2. Discuss Information for Ordinance for Small Cell Antennas
    3. Consider Approval to Write-Off Utility Bad Debts
    4. Consider Authorizing City Clerk to Pay Vendor Invoices at Year-End
    5. Consider Transfer of General Fund Department’s Excess Budget Authority to Special Machinery Fund
    6. Consider Approval of Application to Sell Cereal Malt Beverages
    7. Review Quotes for Tile at Campground Bathhouse
  • REPORTS FROM CITY OFFICIALS
    1. Administrative
      • Public Works
        • Comparative Water Report
        • Hydrant Flush/Pressure Test Log
        • Department Update
      • Police
        • Department Update
      • City Clerk
        • Health Insurance Savings Report for November
        • Monthly Financial Statements for October
        • Draft Minutes from Campground Committee Meeting
        • 2019 MTI Training Schedule
        • Department Update
      • Attorney
        • Update on Status of Code Violation Cases
      • Mayor Update and Announcements

EXECUTIVE SESSIONS

  • ADJOURNMENT

Longest Night candlelight service set for Dec. 20

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The Center for life Experience invites the community to “The Longest Night: Awaiting the Hope of a New Day” candlelight service at 7 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 20 at the First Presbyterian Church, 2900 Hall St.

The service helps us remember those who have died as we celebrate the holiday season.

Refreshments will follow. Child care will be provided.

Rezoning request at 22nd and Wheatland to be heard Monday

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(Click to enlarge)

By BECKY KISER
Hays Post

A Hays resident has asked for rezoning of property at 22nd and Wheatland from Neighborhood Conservation District (NC-3) to Commercial General District (C-2).

Darrell Dreher owns four of six vacant residential lots on the southeast side of the intersection along Wheatland Ave. Dreher wants to rezone Lot 1 and a portion of Lot 2.

A public hearing will be held by the Hays Area Planning Commission Mon., Dec. 17 at 6:30 p.m. in Hays City Hall, 1507 Main.

In a memo to planning commission members, Hays P.I.E. Superintendent Curtis Deines noted that city staff recommends approval of the rezoning request.

C-2 zoning allows the following uses by under the city’s Unified Development Code:

o Alcoholic Beverage Sales
o Animal Grooming Facilities
o Animal Boarding or Vet Services
o Assisted Living Facility
o Drinking establishment
o Drive-In/Drive Through Facility
o Farmers’ Market
o Grocery Store
o Heavy Retail
o Hotel/Motel
o Mixed Use
o Nursery/Greenhouse, Retail
o Office, General
o Parking Lot, Parking Structures
o Group Day Care Center
o Medical Office/Clinic
o Non-Profit Institution
o Nursing or Convalescent Home
o Place of Assembly
o Pawn Shop
o Personal Services
o Recreational and Fitness, Indoor and Outdoor
o Restaurant
o Retail Sales and Service
o Showrooms
o Schools, Private
o Schools, Public
o Vehicle gas and fuel station

 

 

SHPTV receives grant from South Central Kansas Community Foundation

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BUNKER HILL – The South Central Community Foundation has awarded Smoky Hills Public Television with a grant for $1,000.

The Foundation’s grant will support books for the Head Start programs in Rice and Stafford Counties, as well as support for children’s television programming.

“We are thankful for the continued generosity of the South Central Kansas Community Foundation” said Larry Calvery, Smoky Hills Public Television General Manager. “Nothing makes us more proud than seeing smiles on children’s faces and that is exactly what this grant will do. Educating these young kids is an important part of what we do here at Smoky Hills Public Television.”

Smoky Hills Public Television serves 71 counties in central and western Kansas and has been named the Kansas Association of Broadcasters Non-Metro Station of the Year.

The South Central Kansas Community Foundation was founded on September 26 1994, to work toward the mission of “Assuring a Bright Future for South Central Kansas.” The Foundation is a permanent source of charitable assets to meet both emerging and existing needs of the local communities in Barber, Comanche, Kingman, Kiowa, Pratt, Rice, and Stafford counties.

— Submitted

Hays student graduates from Emporia State

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ESU

EMPORIA – Hats off to the nearly 600 candidates for December graduation at Emporia State University.

Layne Merle Downing of Hays graduated with a B.S. in Business degree in Management.

Students earning bachelor’s degrees were honored Saturday.

Mark Hutton of the Kansas Board of Regents gave the remarks. Hutton, of Andover, is the founder of Hutton Construction Corporation in Wichita and worked as CEO until 2010. Hutton also served as a State Representative in the Kansas Legislature from 2013 to 2017. Dr. Kevin Rabas, chair of the Department of English, Modern Languages, and Journalism and Kansas Poet Laureate, addressed the graduates as ESU’s 2018 Roe R. Cross Distinguished Professor.

First Amendment: Time to stand up for journalists, pursuit of truth

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Gene Policinski
Unlike most of Time magazine’s “Person of the Year” designees since 1927, we can be certain none of those featured this year on that iconic, red-framed cover wanted to be there.

This year, Time has four cover images, all recognizing journalists who are imprisoned, facing charges or who died in the pursuit of news on behalf of the rest of us — collectively titled, “The Guardians and the War on Truth.”

The selectees: Jamal Khashoggi, The Washington Post contributor believed killed in Turkey by a Saudi Arabian “hit squad;” the staff of the Capital Gazette newspaper in Annapolis, Md., which saw five staffers killed by a deranged gunman; Reuters news service reporters Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, who have been jailed in Myanmar for a year; and Philippine journalist Maria Ressa, whose news site Rappler, a frequent government critic, faces dubious tax-related charges.

Time said it selected the group “for taking great risks in pursuit of greater truths, for the imperfect but essential quest for facts that are central to civil discourse, for speaking up and speaking out.”

Those words, and that task, are as good a definition of journalism as we might want. The description also puts a lie to the core untruths of those critics who find any excuse to bray — mostly for political gain — about “fake news,” or who claim “alternative facts” when faced with a reality they find uncomfortable or incompatible with pre-conditioned views.

Yes, journalists — as all of us — can at times do an imperfect job. But the vast majority set out each day on that “essential quest for facts.” And in doing so, they act on our behalf, bringing us the information we need for both the decisions we make in our private lives and for the votes we cast as part of the greatest experiment ever seen in self-governance.

These “Guardians” also stand for thousands of men and women in nations around the world who put themselves in harm’s way each day to stand up to tyrants and tyranny. As the magazine noted, at least 52 journalists have been murdered this year for simply doing their jobs. Hundreds more are imprisoned and threatened. The Committee to Protect Journalists notes 262 are now being held and 60 are “missing.”

Journalists killed in the previous year, and more than 2,300 others since the early 1800s are recognized each June in a rededication of the Newseum’s Journalist Memorial, in Washington, D.C. For those who question the motives of all journalists under misleading and inaccurate references to “the Media,” — visit and learn the stories of the men and women noted on that memorial. If your view of journalism and those who practice it doesn’t shift as a result, you’re not really thinking.

The journalists’ stories were intertwined with the second part of Time’s recognition as the most “influential” in 2018 — the ongoing effort to manipulate what is true and “the many ways information is being used and abused across the globe.” In an essay, the magazine’s editor-in-chief said it was “the common thread in so many of this year’s major stories, from Russia to Riyadh to Silicon Valley.”

In the name of those who died, who are wrongly imprisoned or threatened, and in the name of “truth,” the rest of us have an obligation to step away from partisan bickering and disgraceful sloganeering — including that bogus claim by President Trump and repressive regimes worldwide that journalists are “enemies of the people.”

Call for better reporting, but also be willing to support better journalism. Continue to call for investigations and prosecutions whenever a journalist is attacked or killed; don’t settle for a politically expedient decision to excuse or ignore such criminal conduct. Defend journalism and commit to the pursuit of truth, even when it means extra effort to separate it out from misleading and false information.

In the name of those recently recognized for their courage and sacrifice, it’s Time we all did that.

Gene Policinski is president and chief operating officer of the Freedom Forum Institute. He can be reached at [email protected], or follow him on Twitter at @genefac.

Mild, windy Monday

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Today Sunny, with a high near 56. South wind 6 to 11 mph increasing to 12 to 17 mph in the afternoon.

Tonight Partly cloudy, with a low around 32. South wind 6 to 13 mph.

Tuesday Mostly cloudy, with a high near 53. South wind 6 to 10 mph becoming northwest in the afternoon.

Tuesday NightMostly cloudy, with a low around 29. East southeast wind around 6 mph becoming west northwest in the evening.

WednesdayA 20 percent chance of rain after noon. Partly sunny, with a high near 53. Windy, with a west wind 6 to 11 mph becoming north northwest 16 to 26 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 37 mph.

Wednesday NightPartly cloudy, with a low around 33. Breezy.

ThursdaySunny, with a high near 51. Breezy.

NW Kansas man gets second chance at outer space

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WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas astronaut says he’s ready for his next mission after a failed space launch in October.

Hague -NASA image

Hoxie native Nick Hague will embark on a six-month stay with two other crew members at the International Space Station. The scheduled launch aboard a Soyuz MS12 spacecraft is set for Feb. 28.

Russian cosmonaut Alexey Ovchinin and NASA astronaut Christina Hammock Koch will join Hague in the launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

On board the station, they will participate in about 250 research experiments and technology demonstrations made possible by micro-gravity conditions inside the station.

Ovchinin was also aboard the initial failed rocket set to launch on Oct. 11, 2018. Shortly after launch that day, the rocket’s booster malfunctioned in a rare failure for the Soyuz rocket. Hague and Ovchinin successfully aborted the mission and made a “ballistic descent” back to Earth in a capsule.

“Essentially the rocket came apart underneath us,” Hague said at a news conference Wednesday.

Hague said he’s looking forward to the new mission even more than his previous one, in part because of the addition of Koch to the crew. She and Hague were part of the same astronaut class at NASA.

“What we’re doing is making advancements for all of humanity,” Hague said.

Hague, Ovchinin and Koch will return to Earth in October 2019.

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