TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) A proposal to remove gifted children from the special education realm in Kansas has been abandoned after push back from gifted education advocates. The Wichita Eagle reports that Republican state Rep. Sue Boldra said Tuesday that she planned to withdraw the proposal. Republican state Rep. Ron Highland, chairman of the House Committee on Education, said the bill wouldn’t have a hearing. The bill could’ve gutted funding for gifted education and done away with protections for gifted students and their families. Boldra said the idea wasn’t to eliminate gifted programs, but to separate them from special education. She…
Author: KMAN Staff
A former Fort Riley nurse has been indicted on federal charges, after stealing a powerful painkiller. Lana J. Pendergast, 56, of Clay Center, was charged with one count of unlawfully obtaining a controlled substance. The indictment alleges that Pendergast began taking fentanyl for her own use – replacing stolen vials of the painkiller with saline as a cover up while working as a nurse at Irwin Army Hospital. The fentanyl vials containing saline were disposed of. If convicted, Pendergast faces a maximum penalty of four years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
After getting experience in leading Kansas’ 64th district in the House of Representatives, Susie Swanson decided two years was just not enough time to accomplish her goals. Swanson was elected to congress in the 2014 elections; and just over halfway through her term, she decided one more go-round would be a good idea. “I certainly don’t have a desire to be a career politician, but I felt like another term just made sense,” Swanson said. “My desire, really, is influenced by being a grandmother and having seven grandkids who I hope will stay in Kansas.” Before running for the House,…
Police arrested an Ogden man on Tuesday afternoon for probation violation. David Lee Huffman, 34, was apprehended in the 100 block of North 4th St. in Manhattan. Huffman’s bond was set at $5,000. Kansas Department of Corrections indicates Huffman was sentenced for possession of narcotic or opium drugs in 2014.
Manhattan City Commissioners provided City Administrators with feedback on rental inspection program options, Tuesday night. Of the options, the commission chose to recommend the city move forward with exploring a hybrid option, that would allow exterior building inspections to influence the city to request interior inspections. Commissioners couldn’t seem to come to unanimous agreement on the subject, with commissioner Wynn Butler opposed to the idea of mandatory inspections. Nearly 20 landlords/property owners along with tenants and members of the K-State Student Governing Association came before the commission Tuesday night. The majority of the pleas came from landlords/property owners who are opposed to such…
A Malheur, Ore., National Wildlife Refuge protester was arrested Monday on a warrant from Riley County according to a report from The Oregonian. Brandon Dowd, 31, was being held in the Harney County Jail under a Riley County Police Department warrant in a theft case. Dowd wasn’t arrested for anything he might have done while on the refuge, according to a spokesman for federal and local law enforcement in Harney County. The article goes on to say Dowd was seen about three weeks ago carrying a rifle and guarding the main entrance to the refuge. He also spent time inside the…
TOPEKA — Republican Gov. Sam Brownback has signed legislation to keep Kansas’ courts open following a legal dispute involving their budget and the state Supreme Court’s power. Brownback signed the bill Monday, and it will take effect Thursday. The measure repeals a 2015 law threatening the court system’s budget. That law said the judiciary’s budget through June 2017 would be nullified if the courts struck down a 2014 law. The 2014 law stripped the Kansas Supreme Court of its power to appoint chief judges in the state’s 31 judicial districts and gave it to local judges instead. The high court…
WICHITA — Kansas is appealing a judge’s ruling that the state must release candidates’ applications for two county commission openings filled by Gov. Sam Brownback. The state has filed a notice of appeal in the lawsuit brought by The Salina Journal and The Associated Press seeking the disclosure of information on more than two dozen applicants for newly created Saline County Commission seats. Saline County residents voted in November 2014 to expand the commission from three to five members. The AP and the newspaper argued that applicants’ names and other details are public information. Brownback’s office argued they are personnel…
TOPEKA — University of Kansas officials face questions from two legislative committees about using $327 million in out-of-state bonds to finance campus construction projects. The House Appropriations Committee and Senate Ways and Means Committee were having separate hearings Tuesday on the financing for what the university is calling its central district project. The project includes the construction of new science buildings and student housing. Both committees have included spending restrictions for the university in legislation for keeping the state budget balanced through June 2017. Vice Chancellor for Public Affairs Tim Caboni said Monday that the university is looking forward to…
TOPEKA — A bill that would expand a new state tax-credit system that pays for scholarships for low-income students to attend private schools has passed a hurdle. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that a majority of the House Education Committee approved the expansion Monday. Next, it needs to pass a vote on the House floor. Currently, the program allows certain businesses to donate money for private school scholarships. In return, they can deduct part of the donation value from their tax bills. Proponents say it expands educational options. Opponents say it hurts state coffers and may be unconstitutional. Under the expansion,…