K-State announced a round of administrative furloughs amid COVID-19 fiscal hits during a virtual town hall Friday morning. Unlike emergency furloughs, administrative furloughs are planned reductions made in consultation with the Faculty Senate and University Support Staff Senate. They are one of the ways departments and units at the university are looking to fill budget gaps. K-State is estimating a $48 million hit so far due to lost revenue and increased cost of operations since March. Another $37 million hit is expected in fiscal year 2021, and declining enrollment and uncertainty in state funding could compound that. Seven colleges and…
Author: KMAN Staff
Friday’s program featured an update on coronavirus testing, research and the medical response. In segments one and two, Ascension Via Christi President and CEO Bob Copple was our guest. In segments three and four, Biosecurity Resesarch Institute (BRI) Director Dr. Stephen Higgs was our guest.
The Riley County 2021 budget was approved to be sent out to publication by the commission on Thursday. Budget and Finance Officer Tami Robison presented the final numbers for the budget before being sent out. The regular budget is set at $65,501,116, with levy dollars at $28,312,598. The total mill levy is set at 42.85 mills, which is a 0.79 decrease from last year. No changes have been made since the commission approved the budget to be sent out for review. The budget will now sit in publication for 10 days to give notice of a public hearing. The budget…
There’s a lot of uncertainty amid the COVID-19 pandemic for international students planning to attend U.S. colleges and universities this Fall. Numerous students already in the United States chose to forgo returning home for Summer break due to lack of flights and general questions surrounding their ability to return and start the Fall semester. New international students hoping to start in August face bureaucratic hurdles as well. The novel coronavirus pandemic and its impacts are leading many higher education associations to project a 25 percent drop in international student enrollment in Fall ’20. That compounds an over 10 percent national…
A local World War Two and Korean Conflict veteran who recently celebrated his 101st birthday received an American flag Thursday that was flown over the United States Capitol building in Washington D.C. in his honor. Lazone Grays was presented with the flag in front of his Manhattan home during a ceremony involving friends and family that also included the installation of a new flag pole. Dan Watkins, commander of VFW Post 1786, was present at the ceremony and says the process of getting the flag for Grays began when he made a phone call to Tyler Mason, Military Affairs Representative…
School officials remain hopeful With school starting back up in just over a month for many local school districts, the question of whether the fall semester will take place in classrooms remains unanswered. The fall semester for USD 320 Wamego is scheduled to begin on August 20 and USD 323 Rock Creek is looking to start up on August 14. Tim Winter, superintendent for USD 320 Wamego, says even though a lot can change between now and then, he is hopeful that classes will take place in an in-person setting. “I am still going to remain ever optimistic that we…
Thursday’s program featured outgoing Fort Riley Garrison Commander Colonel Stephen Shrader as he prepares for the change of command at Fort Riley July 16. Shrader’s next assignment is at Fort Campbell on the Kentucky-Tennessee border. Former NFL wide receiver, Super Bowl champion and K-State great Jordy Nelson joined the third segment of the program to highlight the 12th annual Nelson’s Landing family fundraiser, which is a virtual benefit this year. We also heard from Republican U.S. Senate candidate and Johnson County businessman Bob Hamilton, one of several vying for the Republican nomination in the Aug. 4 primary.
Ascension Via Christi has made additional changes to its visitation policy. During Wednesday’s COVID-19 public update, hospital president Bob Copple said the hospital has moved back to more restrictive visitor guidelines, including one person for beginning or end of life matters. “This is really in a response to not only seeing positives in the community but just concerns with staff or providers being exposed. We’re trying to minimize that as much as possible,” he said. Other than those instances, Copple says they have halted visitation again to all of their facilities. “We are continuing the pre-procedure screening if you are…
Manhattan Tuesday joined Wichita and a selection of other communities in passing an ordinance requiring residents wear face coverings in public spaces. City commissioners voted 3 to 2 to mandate wearing masks that cover the mouth and nose when in publicly accessible spaces indoors or outdoors where physical distancing of 6 feet is not possible. The ordinances comes amid a spike in COVID-19 cases in Riley County beginning in mid-June. Health officials say the county had hovered around an average percent positive rate among tested individuals below the state average around 5 to 6 percent until recent weeks. The rate…