The City of Hays is looking for our next Dispatcher. Dispatchers are the lifeline for citizens of Ellis County and Law Enforcement, Fire, & EMS personnel. They are responsible for making sure citizens get quick responses for the help they need by answering both emergency & non-emergency calls.
Typical work schedule includes seven 12-hour shifts every two weeks which provides, on average, 3.5 days off each week. Holidays and every other weekend required.
REQUIREMENTS
High School diploma or GED and valid driver’s license required. This position is required to work in a fast-paced environment where quick decisions are vital. The ability to multitask, enter data into the computer system, keep confidentiality & communicate effectively is essential.
Paid on-the-job training for the right candidate. All Dispatchers are required to live within a 40-minute response time of the City of Hays within 180 days of employment. Job offers contingent on pre-employment tests.
COMPENSATION & BENEFITS
2018 Base Pay Range: $31,099 annually plus additional overtime and holiday pay compensation. Additional pay may be given for previous experience. The City of Hays offers great benefits. Visit www.haysusa.com for a full list of the benefits provided.
HOW TO APPLY
Applications will be accepted online at www.haysusa.com until position is filled. Questions about the position may be sent to Human Resources at [email protected] or by calling 785-628-7320.
Ron Mellick, seen here during a March 2015 Hays city commission meeting, has been appointed to fill an unexpired term on the city commission.
By BECKY KISER Hays Post
A former Hays city commissioner has been called back into public service.
Ron Mellick was unanimously appointed by the city commission Thursday night to fill the seat recently vacated by Chris Dinkel, who will be moving to New York City.
Mellick last served as a Hays city commissioner in April, 2015, after serving two terms.
That experience is why Vice-Mayor Henry Schwaller made the nomination to appoint Mellick for the unexpired term.
“In the next 18 months, we will complete and begin $100 million in infrastructure projects,” Schwaller pointed out and then noted “we don’t have to borrow the money. We have the money.
“When I first served with Ron Mellick in 2009, I didn’t know him very well. … He’s an amazing commissioner. He asks the right questions. You know where he’s going to stand on an issue, although he’s very flexible. He listens to others. He certainly has a strong opinion from time to to time.
“Given the enormity of these decisions we’re going to be making – the four of us – we need a fifth who’s been here,” Schwaller concluded. “It’s good to have someone join us who’s been here for awhile, not that the other candidates aren’t great. But given the scope and the learning curve, that’s why I made that motion.”
The current commissioners thanked those who contacted them about filling the vacancy and encouraged them to run during the next city election.
“We need good people to run. I believe we need new blood,” said Commissioner Shaun Musil, who also served with Mellick. “But I also think with what we’re going into with the budget season and with water, I think the person we’re picking is the right one.”
According to Hays City Clerk Brenda Kitchen, Dinkel’s unexpired term ends in 2020.
Today Sunny and hot, with a high near 100. Windy, with a south wind 16 to 21 mph increasing to 23 to 28 mph in the afternoon.
There is a chance of thunderstorms Saturday afternoon into Saturday night. Temperatures will be cooler Sunday behind a cold front. pic.twitter.com/bYwxx2PP9j
Tonight A slight chance of showers and thunderstorms between midnight and 2am. Partly cloudy, with a low around 74. Breezy, with a south wind 19 to 24 mph decreasing to 13 to 18 mph after midnight. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
Saturday A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after 1pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 94. South wind 11 to 16 mph.
Saturday Night A 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 64. South southwest wind 11 to 15 mph becoming north northwest after midnight.
Sunday Mostly sunny, with a high near 87. North wind 8 to 11 mph.
TREGO COUNTY — Two people were injured in an accident just before 6p.m. Thursday in Trego County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 1997 Volvo Semi driven by Tyler James Windholz, 25, Ogallah, was westbound on J Road.
A 2013 International Prostar Semi driven by Jeffrey Scott McDermott, 40, WaKeeney, was northbound on 370th Avenue.
Both trucks entered the uncontrolled intersection at approximately the same time. The Volvo struck the Prostar’s trailer. The collision caused the Prostar to overturn. The Volvo came to a rest in the intersection.
Windholz was transported to Hays Medical Center. McDermott was transported to the hospital in WaKeeney. They were not wearing seat belts, according to the KHP.
SHERMAN COUNTY — Two people were injured in an accident just after 12:30p.m. Thursday in Sherman County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2011 Honda Pilot driven by Laurie Votrain, 61, St. Louis, MO., was eastbound on Interstate 70 fifteen miles east of Goodland.
The vehicle drove off to the right side of the roadway. The driver overcorrected and lost control of the vehicle. It rolled and came to rest on its roof in the passing lane. The trailer came to rest in the driving lane. The wind may have been a contributing factor, according to the KHP.
Votrain and a passenger Thomas Votrain, 61, St. Louis, were transported to the hospital in Goodland. Both were properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the KHP.
Fort Hays State University-Energy Division Seeking Position – Skilled Trades Technician, Plant Operations
The FHSU Energy Division/Power Plant is looking for a dependable individual to hire in the Power Plant Department.This is a full time position with benefits.
TASKS
Operation, maintenance and repair of industrial equipment such as boilers, generators, pumps and valves.Work involves all aspects of boiler operation to include general maintenance and repair of related Energy Division/Power Plant equipment.Follow written and oral procedures, reading and recording gauges and water testing.Able to lift 30-50 lbs.
Working hours during the heating season require 24/7 operation during the months of October to April, requiring shift work for continuous operation.Working hours from May through September are usually Monday – Friday 7:00 AM to 3:30 PM.This position may be required to work a flexible work schedule as needed.
*More than one position may be available*
REQUIREMENTS
High school diploma or GED, valid driver’s license.Three years’ experience in some skilled trades area.Prefer experience in electrical or mechanical trades, but this is not required.Must be able to lift 30-50 lbs.
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 resume and names and contact information for three professional references.Applicant documents should be submitted in one PDF.
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.
Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach has been on vivid display in federal courtrooms over the past year, and his performance there tells Kansas Republicans all they need to know about his capacity to be the next governor of Kansas. He clearly lacks the competence and character to be elected to higher office.
Last week Kobach’s signature “proof-of-citizenship” law was set aside. Federal Judge Julie Robinson, an appointee of Republican President George W. Bush, ruled that the law infringed on the National Voter Registration Act and the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. According to the Court, that law blocked tens of thousands of eligible citizens from registering to vote and constituted an undue burden on their right to vote. The Judge also gave Kobach detailed instructions for informing eligible voters of their right to vote and complying with her orders.
H. Edward Flentje is professor emeritus at Wichita State University.
The case had been Kobach’s opportunity to showcase his 2010 campaign claims that “the illegal registration of alien voters has become pervasive.” Instead, courtroom proceedings stripped bare Kobach’s public bloviating on illegal voting and revealed his lack of preparation, inadequacies in assembling evidence, ignorance of judicial procedure, and willful violation of elementary courtroom rules.
In an extraordinary action the Judge also ordered Kobach to undergo remedial education as a result of his courtroom ineptitude.
Kobach represented himself in the case and appeared to be heading a band of Keystone Cops that included “expert” witnesses lacking credentials, presenters of flawed research, and ill-prepared election officials. Their testimony was shredded by well-prepared and highly-competent plaintiffs’ attorneys.
The case revealed that over nearly twenty years not one non-citizen had been charged with trying to register to vote in Kansas. Only one had been convicted of illegally voting in that time period. That compares to over 30,000 eligible voters placed in suspension by Kobach and his prized legislation.
Last April, before the current case was decided, Judge Robinson found Kobach in contempt of court and fined him over $50,000 in court costs for violating her earlier court order. In that instance Kobach had failed to inform suspended voters that they were eligible to vote. The Kansas House passed a bill requiring Kobach to pay that bill personally but later backed off.
Last year in federal court Kobach was reprimanded and fined $1,000 for “patently misleading representations” in defending his convoluted two-tier voting scheme. He appealed only to have another federal judge uphold the fine based on Kobach’s pattern of deception in statements to the court.
Lawsuits cling to Kobach like flypaper. President Trump established a voter integrity commission as an opportunity for Kobach to document claims of illegal voting but within months disbanded the commission as legal challenges piled up. Last week Kobach was sued again over his negligent disclosure of private information on a thousand Kansas voters.
Some Republicans may admire zealotry in prosecuting voting fraud by non-citizens. But after seven years in office Kobach appeared in court ill-prepared and lacking in evidence. In his reckless quest he has been cited in contempt of court for repeated misleading representations, defiance of court orders, and violations of judicial procedure.
Kansas Republicans should expect their nominee for governor to demonstrate competence in office and integrity with respect to the rule of law. Kobach’s courtroom antics show him to be utterly deficient on both counts.
Flentje is professor emeritus and Wichita State University and served with Kansas Governors Bennett and Hayden.
Habitat for Humanity of Ellis County received a $30,000 grant from the Dane G. Hansen Foundation in Logan, Kansas, to cover repair costs for a home recycle project in Ellis.
A home recycle is a home rehabilitation on a residence that a former Habitat partner family resided in and a new Habitat partner family will move into after work is completed.
HFHEC works with qualified, low-income families to help them realize the dream of owning a home.
The grant was written by Leslie Wyatt, executive director, and edited by Roberta Martine, board president.
To find more details on how to qualify for the home, visit hfhec.org, click on Own a Home.
Most of Hays and large swaths of Ellis County were without power for a short time late Wednesday night after a major power outage.
The outage began just before 11 p.m. Wednesday. According to Midwest Energy spokesman Mike Morley, the outage occurred after a snake in the Knoll substation blew out an insulator and several fuses, leaving much of western Hays and Ellis without power.
The outage, which affected several thousand customers, lasted about 45 minutes.
TOPEKA—The Kansas Supreme Court appointed five judges to the Judicial Education Advisory Committee and reappointed a sixth judge.
Appointed to three-year terms beginning July 1 and ending June 30, 2021 were:
District Magistrate Judge Julie Cowell, serving in Pawnee County of the 24th Judicial District
District Judge Steven Hornbaker, serving in Geary County of the 8th Judicial District
District Magistrate Judge Paula Keller, serving in Cheyenne County of the 15th Judicial District
District Judge John Weingart, serving in Brown County of the 22nd Judicial District
District Judge Robert Wonnell, serving in Johnson County of the 10th Judicial District.
The court reappointed District Magistrate Judge Douglas Jones to a three-year term. He serves in Chase County of the 5th Judicial District.
The Judicial Education Advisory Committee recommends and organizes education and training programs for Kansas appellate judges, district judges, and district magistrate judges. Members include judges from each of the six judicial departments in the state, a representative from the Office of Judicial Administration, and a Supreme Court justice.
DISPATCHER
