Author: Brandon Peoples

A deadline is fast approaching for K-12 educators interested in a grant initiative through Western Governors University to help those forced to adapt to new teaching styles throughout the pandemic. Up to $125,000 has been pledged by WGU to those teachers needing help funding their innovative classroom projects as part of the nonprofit university’s “Fund My Classroom” Initiative. Teachers can submit proposals online at wgu.edu/fundmyclassroom for full or partial funding. Funding can be requested for books, supplies, equipment and technology as well as classroom experiences and field trips. Applications are being accepted through Sunday, April 18. Selected classroom projects will…

The Wamego Health Foundation is celebrating after a successful Diamonds and Denim virtual fundraiser that saw over $74,000 raised to support the health center’s 3D mammography upgrade. In a news release Wednesday, Wamego Hospital Foundation Development Director Tina Rockhold noted that event participants and the community “demonstrated phenomenal support” for the life-saving technology. Many call the technology the gold standard when it comes to diagnosing breast cancer. Studies show that 3D technology improves detection by 27 to 50 percent and in many cases, 3D mammograms are better at finding more invasive types of cancer, leading to earlier and better treatment…

Wamego School Board members have approved a new English Language Arts (ELA) curriculum which is being implemented at the elementary and middle school levels. Assistant Superintendent and Director of Instructional Services Scott Meitler says the process has been ongoing for a few years as teachers have re-examined the way kids learn to read. “Over the years in the research, we came to a product called CKLA, which is Core Knowledge Language Arts, by Amplify. We are so excited to have this curriculum resource adopted by our board Monday night and will adopt it in the fall,” Meitler said. The middle…

Arraignment for an Abilene man charged in a 2019 fatal attempted robbery in Manhattan is coming later this month. Jaylon Hitsman will appear in front of Judge Grant Bannister at 4 p.m. April 29. The case was continued at a Monday hearing. Hitsman is charged with first-degree murder, aggravated robbery, aggravated battery, aggravated assault and criminal discharge of a firearm. Hitsman is one of four men charged in the Nov. 1, 2019 shooting death of 24-year-old Tanner Zamecnik, during a foiled attempted robbery guised as a marijuana sale outside an apartment complex. Hitsman’s brother Dylan was sentenced March 31 to…

U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) is applauding a new $24.4 million Department of Justice grant that will help replace Jefferson Elementary on Fort Riley. “When we brag about Fort Riley to the Department of Defense, to the Army, when we seek new opportunities for, for example, we continue to advocate for an additional brigade at Fort Riley, the infrastructure, schools, hospitals, housing, those things are hugely important in our ability to attract the Army to maintain and expand at Fort Riley,” he said. Moran spoke about the grant during an interview Tuesday on the KMAN Morning Show. USD 475 Geary…

The Centers for Disease Control and Food and Drug Administration have pumped the brakes on the Johnson & Johnson vaccine distribution. The agencies say they’re reviewing six reported cases of a rare type of blood clot in people who have received the vaccine. Riley County Health Department Director and Local Health Officer Julie Gibbs tells KMAN that 1,571 doses of the vaccine have been administered to date in Riley County between Lafene Health Center, home bound individuals and mobile clinics. “To the best of our knowledge, no one who received a Johnson & Johnson vaccine from Riley County has had…

The City of Manhattan is resuming discussions about possible future annexation of the Green Valley area. City Manager Ron Fehr informed Pottawatomie County Commissioners Monday that after putting off a discussion with its consultant last year due to the pandemic, the city has since re-engaged the conversation. “We’ve invested heavily in that particular area from an infrastructure standpoint. As you know, we have an inter-local agreement with you for the sewer district,” Fehr said. That coupled with agreements the city has with the rural water district help provide residents with services from the City of Manhattan. Fehr says he was…

USD 475 Geary County Schools have announced plans for a new elementary school. The news comes after the Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation approved a matching grant Monday to replace Jefferson Elementary on Fort Riley. The project will total $30 million with the office’s grant providing an 80 percent match. The district says the new building will accommodate 390 students from pre-kindergarten to fifth grade and will share similarities with Fort Riley Elementary. It will include six pre-kindergarten classrooms in the new 81,000 square foot facility. District officials say demolition of the existing Jefferson Elementary will begin as early…

A Manhattan man charged in an October double homicide is now set to be arraigned later this month in Riley County District Court. Montrell Vassar will appear at a 10:30 a.m. hearing April 26 in front of Judge John Bosch, after the case was continued Monday morning. Vassar faces two felony counts of first degree murder in the deaths of 19-year-old Skyler Havens and 23-year-old Javon Gray. Both were killed Oct. 9 at a residence in the Stagg Hill area. An amended complaint filed March 24, alleges Vassar acted with intent and premeditation in the killings of both men as…

As efforts to vaccinate more residents continues, local health experts are trying to ease concerns some may have with regard to side effects and potential complications. “A fair number of the folks that we have had who have had some sort of fairly immediate response to the vaccine, a lot of this has been anxiety provoked and not due to the vaccine,” he said. Ascension Via Christi President and CEO Bob Copple. He says issues with sore arms and low grade fevers after the vaccine is administered are typical, but not usually until hours or days after the shot is…