WRITER: Chad Lawhorn

Construction work underway to reopen golf course, driving range between Lawrence and Eudora

Earth-moving equipment on a golf course isn’t a standard sight (although filling the pond in before you hit is wise due to the difficulty of getting a good swing with the scuba gear on). Regardless, there is a growing amount of equipment on a driving range and small golf course east of Lawrence. The owner of the Twin Oaks Golf Complex along Kansas Highway 10 between Lawrence and Eudora confirmed to me that ...

As part of budget process, county questions some funding levels for nonprofits; economic development funding scrutinized

Douglas County commissioners long have had significant amounts of money for local nonprofits and community organizations. Now, though, commissioners have a lot of questions for those groups too. Commissioners at their Monday meeting expressed interest in creating a new philosophy for how they fund about 40 social service, economic development, health care and other nonprofits that routinely receive county ...

Kansas' state government saw its revenue surge by 17% in the recently ended fiscal year; corporate income taxes soared by 86%

In this week that has felt like it has had two Mondays (Note to calendar makers: Never put July 4 on a Tuesday again,) I’ve got another dose of calendar confusion for you — a year-end report in July. The state’s fiscal year ended on June 30, which means the state has closed the books on some important and interesting numbers. Perhaps one of the more interesting is the tally of how much money it collected ...

Students at Pittsburg State may soon get a degree they didn't even know they were seeking; KU considering new two-year program

Imagine, if you will, you are a sophomore, or perhaps a young junior, at Pittsburg State University. In between rooting for the Gorillas and navigating the Oval — the university’s version of a quad-like courtyard — you get a phone call out of the blue from your academic adviser. In the history of college careers, this has not always been a positive omen. Some college students might even say it is why ...

Kansas higher ed leaders expect few local impacts from affirmative action ruling; issues of race remain, though

Story updated at 5:14 p.m. Thursday, June 29: In a state like Kansas — where university classroom space often exceeds student demand — affirmative action can have a different meaning than it does elsewhere. Higher education leaders in Kansas often are just hoping students will affirmatively decide to attend college. Neither the University of Kansas nor the other five Regents universities in the state ...

With no national championship party, Lawrence's economy shrank by $17 million, according to latest figures

There are plenty of individual reminders that we didn’t have a huge national championship party in April like we did a year ago. (Unopened bags of crimson and blue confetti, untapped drums of nacho cheese sauce, and unholy thoughts of how my annual pig party should feature a Razorback.) But that’s nothing compared to the Lawrence economy. It may have 17 million reminders. Lawrence recently received its ...