Author: KMAN Staff
The Manhattan-Ogden USD 383 school board voted 6-1 to adopt the pandemic response plan, which includes a mask mandate for the first month of classes. The board held a special meeting Wednesday night to adopt the plan before the start of classes. Board Member Brandy Santos was the lone vote against adopting the plan. While she did cite the recommendation by medical professionals last week, Santos ultimately decided it should be up to the parents. Santos says a public health crisis does not supercede anyone’s rights and suggested only recommending masks. Board Member Curt Herrman says while he agrees with…
The USD 320 Wamego School Board has put a mask mandate in place for the school year that starts next week. Interim Superintendent Greg Mann tells KMAN the district board voted 4-3 to implement the mandate. The board did agree to allow exemptions to the mandate, similar to how exemptions are handled related to activities by the district. In a memo sent to staff this week, it’s classified as a “religious exemption” to mask mandates. The district sought advice from its legal counsel and are accepting the exemptions. Mann says school boards are being put into a no-win situation with…
Eighteen new coronavirus cases in Riley County since Monday have brought the total of people infected with one of the CDC-labeled variants of concern to 100 going back to December. There are currently 130 active cases of coronavirus according to the Riley County Health Department, which says nine people are currently hospitalized. Four of those patients are being treated in Ascension Via Christi’s intensive care unit. Capacity issues have resulted in some needing treatment for COVID-19 to be transferred from Riley County to other hospitals in the Midwest, according to the health department. According to one hospital official Wednesday, the…
WICHITA, Kan. — The largest school district in Kansas will not require students and staff to wear masks indoors despite the threat posed by COVID-19’s more contagious delta variant. The Wichita Eagle reports that the Wichita school board instead decided to strongly recommend that students and staff wear masks whether or not they’ve been vaccinated against COVID-19 but to require visitors to wear masks inside. The board’s vote for that policy Monday night was 4-3. The district’s students are returning to classes this week. Kansas has seen new COVID-19 cases rise steadily over the past seven weeks as the delta…
ARKANSAS CITY, Kan. — Sheriff’s officials along the southeastern border of Kansas say a 2-year-old there has died, likely from excessive heat. The Cowley County Sheriff’s Office says deputies and medics were called just after 6 p.m. Tuesday to a home in the southern part of the county for reports of an unresponsive child. First responders could not revive the child. Sheriff David Falletti says early indications show the toddler died due to heat. Officials have not released details of how the child or where the child was found, but Falletti says no foul play is suspected. Most of Kansas…
Officers filed a report for criminal use of a financial card in Manhattan on August 10, 2021, around 1:15 p.m. Officers listed a 70-year-old male as the victim when it was reported a 16-year-old male used a financial card to remove money from a bank account. The estimated total loss associated with this case is approximately $540.
On Wednesday’s edition of In Focus we spoke with Wamego Interim Superintendent Greg Mann, Rock Creek Superintendent Kevin Logan with Pottawatomie County Schools . We also spoke with Governor Laura Kelly.
Former Pottawatomie County commissioner Stan Hartwich died suddenly Aug. 6 at the age of 65. Hartwich served 12 years on the commission in District 3, winning his initial election to the board through a write-in campaign. The longtime businessman owned and operated his own construction company and farmed and ranched in the area for many years. Hartwich was a 1973 graduate of Onaga High School and was a member of the undefeated Onaga football team. He was later inducted into the Onaga High School athletics hall of fame. Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. Friday at Mt. Calvary…
Housing-study representation The Pottawatomie County Commission has requested representation on a Manhattan housing study steering committee. The discussion came up during Manhattan city manager Ron Fehr’s monthly update to the Pott County Commission. Fehr described during the discussion what exactly will be looked at during the study. The request for representation came after Commissioner Pat Weixelman commented about how Pott County has provided “medium-ranged houses” to local residents for a number of years, to which Fehr was in agreement. The Manhattan City Commission will further discuss the housing study at its next legislative session on August 17. Motor-grader fleet The Pottawatomie County…