School leaders adopt new scale for state tests
WICHITA — The Kansas State Board of Education has approved new score thresholds for state assessment tests that are expected to increase the number of students scoring in the top levels.
News
Read MoreSchool leaders adopt new scale for state tests
Police, fire & medical
Aug. 22 Police went to Casey’s for a report of a fake $100 bill. Aug. 23 Dispatch told police of a 911 hang-up call in… Login to continue reading Login…
IN BRIEF
Swedish Pavilion repaired, reopens After being closed for more than a year while its precarious lean was arrested, the 121-year-old Swedish Pavilion is open again at the Old Mill & Swedish Heritage Museum. The museum still seeks money to replace the pavilion roof.
POLICE, FIRE & MEDICAL
Aug. 15 Medics went to Bethany Home and took one person to Lindsborg Community Hospital.
County puts data centers, battery systems on hold
The McPherson County Commission put six-month moratoriums on building data centers, battery energy storage systems, and hydrogen energy facilities in unincorporated areas, but some of these sorts of operations went in before the government acted, and commissioners will let them continue while the new technologies are studied for possible regulation or prevention. The moratoriums don’t apply to incorporated areas, and commissioners said that if a municipality made an “island annexation” of unconnected land, such as by a power substation, that also would be exempt, even while the county works on a new comprehensive plan for the next 20 years.
Ex-prosecutor laments shaming immigration enforcement
LENEXA — Leon Patton, a retired assistant U.S. attorney who once prosecuted immigrants for violent crimes, is tired of feeling shamed for supporting immigration enforcement efforts and referring to people as “aliens.”
Bishops urge compassion for immigrants
TOPEKA — An open letter from Kansas Catholic bishops urges people to approach immigration with compassion and condemns portrayals of all immigrants as criminals — rhetoric that President Trump frequently uses.
House speaker wants to cut $200 million, target Medicaid
TOPEKA — Kansas House Speaker Dan Hawkins said the 2026 Legislature would strive to slash $200 million from the state government’s budget and seek to reduce expenditures on the Medicaid program delivering health care to low-income adults and children.
Critics say required fetus videos are politics
As students return from summer break, Kansas school districts are still figuring out how to comply with a new law that requires certain classes to show a three-minute video of human development in the womb.
Official defends refusal to turn over food program data
TOPEKA — Kansas officials refused persistent demands from the federal government for access to residents’ personal data solely based on the legal responsibility to protect that data, a state leader says.