Author: KMAN Staff

BALDWIN CITY, Kan. (AP) Renovation and expansion of the science and math building at Baker University is getting a large boost from two donors. At a recent groundbreaking for the $10.3 million project, Baker president Pat Long announced a donation of $3.5 million from a couple who want to remain anonymous. The Lawrence Journal-World reports the gift is the largest in the history of the northeastern Kansas university. Baker was founded in 1858 and ranks as the oldest university in Kansas. Mulvane Hall is undergoing a complete renovation and will also get a 9,000-square-foot addition. Long says at the request…

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LIBERAL, Kan. (AP) A southwest Kansas school district is hiring a translator to help its 35 students from the southeast Asian nation of Myanmar. The High Plains Daily Leader reports the board of Liberal USD 480 has voted to create a new paraprofessional position in teaching English as a second language. Several families from the country formerly known as Burma have arrived recently in Liberal. District official Laura Cano says communication can be difficult, and not just because of the language barrier. Cano says there are also cultural issues. For example, she says, some students don’t understand that they must…

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IOLA, Kan. (AP) An eastern Kansas county is making an investment in teaching its youngest citizens to make 911 emergency calls. For a third year, dispatchers from the Allen County Emergency Response Center are going into kindergarten through three-grade classrooms to give programs on emergency calls. The Iola Register reports that (http://bit.ly/rmvp2q ) that this time, they’ll have a new piece of equipment for staging mock 911 calls. The county commission voted recently to spend slightly more than $900 for a 911 TeleTrainer. The kit has phones and a connector that lets children and their trainers practice calling 911. Allen…

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KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) Owners of the new casino at the Kansas Speedway are looking for nearly 1,000 employees. A job fair for the Hollywood Casino is planned for this Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Overland Park Convention Center. KSHB-TV reports that the casino complex will eventually include seven restaurants and lounges and more than 2,000 gaming machines. Casino executive Dean Doria says open jobs include such things as food and beverage workers, environmental services and security officers.

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HUTCHINSON, Kan. (AP) A trip to the Kansas State Fair might have been a lifesaver for 371 men. The Wichita Eagle reports that’s the number of potential prostate cancer cases found during screening by the Hutchinson Clinic at last month’s fair. Lynn Harris, spokeswoman for the clinic, says 2,569 men got the free blood test at the fair. Of those, 160 had a level of 4 or higher for prostate-specific antigen, or PSA. That is the protein that can indicate the presence of cancer in the prostate. Another 211 men tested between 2.5 and 4. A reading of less than…

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TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) The largest electric company in Kansas has a new program to encourage customers to test the energy efficiency of their homes. Westar Energy says for $100, residential customers can obtain a professional energy audit that normally costs $300. The audit will result in a plan for making a home more energy- efficient. The company says customers will be eligible for a $100 rebate if they provide receipts showing they spent at least that amount on making improvements recommended after the audit. The program is available to customers whose homes are at least 10 years old. Also, Westar…

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) Police are offering few details about an investigation into the disappearance of a 10-month-old baby from her Kansas City home, as the hunt for Lisa Irwin enters its seventh day. Kansas City police spokesman Steve Young said Monday that detectives are pursuing leads but are “at the mercy of the next good idea.” Lisa’s parents reported her missing Tuesday morning after the father returned home from work. They say someone crept into their home when the mother and their two sons were sleeping and snatched the baby girl. Lisa’s parents said a window was tampered with…

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TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) The Kansas Arts Commission is facing an Oct. 31 deadline to submit new partnership documents to the National Endowment for the Arts in effort to secure federal funding. The Lawrence Journal-World reports Monday that the commission is trying to satisfy NEA concerns about how the new state system functions. Kansas abolished the commission as a state agency beginning July 1. In its place Gov. Sam Brownback created the Kansas Arts Foundation to raise private funds to support statewide programs. The NEA asked Kansas to submit a new proposal that could make the state eligible for federal funding…

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LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) It’s a made-up game in which players are supposed to fly on brooms. But that hasn’t stopped about 50 University of Kansas students from starting an official sports club that plays Quidditch, the game made famous in the Harry Potter series. 6lawrence.com reports that the club was started by students Cassie Slocum and Doug Whiston. The club practices twice a week. It also participates in official International Quidditch Association tournaments, and has already had a “Border War” match with a Quidditch team from Missouri. The game is played just like it is in the Harry Potter series,…

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(Courtesy K-State Sports Information) LUBBOCK, Texas – The Kansas State volleyball team put on a block part on the road against Texas Tech on Saturday as the Wildcats got the sweep with a team total of 15 blocks. The front line of the Wildcats kept the Red Raiders at bay hitting just .115 while K-State rolled to the sweep 25-22, 25-16, 25-19. K-State (14-5, 3-2) was led by sophomore middle blocker Kaitlynn Pelger as she rebounded from an off night against Iowa State with 13 kills, eight digs and eight blocks. Lilla Porubek continued her hot hitting with nine kills…

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