WRITER: Chad Lawhorn

Lawmakers begin to work on bill that would place new limits on DEI at Kansas universities; KU estimates $1.8M cost to comply with bill

A bill that would prohibit most students from being required to take diversity, equity and inclusion-related classes in order to get a degree at a Kansas university began to make its way through the Statehouse Tuesday. It also got some dollar signs attached to it as it begins its journey. The University of Kansas has estimated it will cost $1.8 million next year to implement House Bill 2428, which has become ...

'Forfeited the right to look the other way'; lessons from a class teaching the next generation of police officers

The students had just watched a video of a man getting beaten over the head with a baton, tased five times, and paramedics ultimately retrieving his unconscious body from a pool of his own blood. Police officers had delivered the beating, and the classroom was full of young adults hoping to soon become police officers. Those watching the video inside the classroom of the Kansas Law Enforcement Training ...

A look at what Kansas law says about police and the use of deadly force

When it comes to being a law enforcement officer in Kansas, you better have done some reading before you ever pull your weapon. The Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center — the University of Kansas-run center near Hutchinson that trains the vast majority of police officers in the state — has extensive classes full of legal definitions and standards related to when police officers can use force as part of ...

Leader of Kansas' law enforcement training center trusts juries to deliver justice in Minnesota shootings

The shooting of Alex Pretti moved quickly. It started with a law enforcement officer shoving a seemingly unarmed female protestor to the ground. About 30 seconds later, it ended with — video evidence shows — two law enforcement officers firing multiple rounds into Pretti, who already had been shot and was lying disabled on the street. But in the days that have followed the Jan. 24 actions by U.S. Border ...

Leader of the state's higher education system to retire in June after serving a decade as CEO of Kansas Board of Regents

The leader who oversees the University of Kansas chancellor and the presidents of the other state universities is retiring later this year. Blake Flanders, president and CEO of the Kansas Board of Regents, announced Thursday afternoon that he will retire from the position on June 30. Flanders, who has served in the role since 2015, is responsible for overseeing the activities of the state’s public ...

KU's education and business schools both have online degrees in U.S. News & World report's top 10 national rankings

The University of Kansas has the best online program in the nation for educators who want to receive a master’s degree in special education programs, according to new rankings from U.S. News and World Report. The publication also found that three other online graduate programs at KU are among the top 10 nationally in their fields. The School of Education garnered the most 10 rankings among all KU schools ...