One would think Kansas Arts commission Chair Linda Browning Weis of Manhattan would be disappointed after word the National Endowment for the Arts would not accept the group’s proposal to match federal funding with privately raised money. But she’s been asked that question, and her response? “Quite honestly we haven’t lost anything because until you have it, you haven’t lost it.” She says she learned a long time ago not to count on anything until you have it in hand. Meanwhile, Browning Weis says commissioners remain united and focused on how to expand and support the arts in Kansas by…
Author: KMAN Staff
ST. LOUIS (AP) The Big 12 appears to be resigned to losing Missouri in announcing West Virginia as the newest member of the Big 12. The league issued a statement Friday announcing unanimous approval to accept West Virginia effective July 1. The Mountaineers become the second program to join the Big 12 this month, following TCU. The Big 12 then listed its expected membership for next season 10 teams, with Missouri not among them. Missouri is weighing a move to the Southeastern Conference. Earlier this month, Missouri curators gave Chancellor Brady Deaton authority to strike a deal with another conference…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Attorneys for three doctors say they’ll challenge revised regulations for abortion providers in Kansas. The attorneys said Thursday that a legal challenge in federal court is coming despite recent changes meant to placate the physicians, who’ve already persuaded a federal judge to block the earlier version of the rules. The New York-based Center for Reproductive Rights says it will sue. It represents Dr. Herbert Hodes and his daughter, Dr. Traci Nauser, who perform abortions at their medical office in the Kansas City suburb of Overland Park. Later, Cheryl Pilate, an attorney representing Dr. Ronald Yeomans, said he’d…
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) Health officials in a northeast Kansas county are dealing with an outbreak of whooping cough. Station 6News Lawrence reports that Douglas County officials have recorded a half-dozen cases of the illness in Lawrence during the past month. Four of the cases involved children who had not been vaccinated for whooping cough, also known as pertussis. The bacterial illness is contagious and spreads by coughing or sneezing in close contact with others. A pertussis outbreak in March affected seven Lawrence children, most of them unvaccinated. Symptoms of whooping cough include a runny nose or congestion, sneezing and possibly…
EL DORADO, Kan. (AP) One of the nation’s top community college football teams will be moving into a new stadium next year. Groundbreaking was scheduled Friday on the 6,500-seat stadium for Butler Community College in El Dorado. KSNW-TV reports the facility will also be used for high school and Little League games. Construction of the $11 million stadium is a joint project of the college, El Dorado public schools and the city. Businessman Bob Lane has been leading the effort to raise $5 million for the project. The rest will come from public funds. The Butler Grizzlies are ranked fourth…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback and officials of the state’s public pension system aren’t saying publicly whether they favor issuing bonds to help close a close a long-term funding gap. A study commission is considering whether the state should issue up to $5 billion in bonds. The panel expects to make a recommendation by the end of the year. The Kansas Public Employees Retirement System projects an $8.3 billion gap between anticipated revenues and benefits promised to retirees, teachers and government employees through 2033. Brownback hasn’t been shy about pushing to move toward a 401(k)-style plan for new…
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) A newly formed Kansas advocacy group is planning a protest march and rally Saturday in Wichita. Kansans United in Voice and Spirit plans to march outside the headquarters of Koch Industries. The private company is led by brothers Charles and David Koch, who are active in supporting conservative causes. Organizers will lead a two-mile march to Koch Industries for a rally. The march is set to begin at 3 p.m. with a mobilization meeting afterwards. The group says it opposes what it calls secrecy in government, citing Gov. Sam Brownback’s elimination of public arts funding and the…
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) The Kansas Department of Agriculture and Kansas State University are holding four meetings next month to educate water rights holders about their options during drought. The department’s Division of Water Resources says the meetings will also include information about managing next year’s water supply. The meetings are planned for Nov. 15 in Larned and Pratt, and Nov. 16 in Garden City and Hugoton. Sections of Kansas have been experiencing severe drought lately. The dry conditions prompted the state to let water rights holders borrow from their 2012 allocation this year or spread out their allocations across a…
EMPORIA, Kan. (AP) Two Emporia State University students from China who died in a fire were remembered as kind and generous people with a thirst for education. Nearly 400 people attended a memorial Thursday night for 23-year-old Yawei Fan and 22-year-old Zheng Lin. They died Oct. 20 when items on the grate of a floor furnace ignited in their duplex. Fan was a sophomore studying chemistry. Lin was working toward a master’s degree in English. The university’s physics and chemistry student organizations plan a memorial project that will train student volunteers to inspect student housing for fire safety. They also…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Former Topeka Deputy Fire Chief Kathy Petty has filed a complaint accusing the city of sexual discrimination and retaliating against her when she complained. Petty is seeking $1.3 million in damages, who was the department’s first female deputy chief. After being a target of criticism from the firefighters’ union, she was fired in February 2010. She was also an unsuccessful applicant for a training officer’s job earlier this year. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that the city attorney’s office is recommending that the city council deny the claim at its meeting next Tuesday. The city argues that Petty’s…