25 years ago: School board postpones ninth-grade decision

At their recent meeting, Lawrence school board members postponed deciding whether ninth-graders would remain in junior high or move to the high school. They also established a middle school study committee made up of parents, teachers and administrators. In another issue related to school reorganization, the board had agreed in June to allow several grade schools to expand.

Lawrence Memorial Hospital was seeking new bids on the construction of an addition to the west side of their building. The board of trustees had failed in their attempts to negotiate a lower price with a local contractor.

A Lecompton man who had been operating the crane that had buckled atop a 38-story building in Kansas City (see OHT for Aug. 10, 1985) blamed his employer, the American Bridge company, for the accident. He claimed that the company had incorrectly painted safety marks on the crane’s cables. The company said they would have no comment until the investigation into the fatal accident was complete.