First responders do and see a lot of things that most people don’t, and it impacts them, Paul Taylor told Douglas County commissioners at their Wednesday meeting. As a result, they need a different kind of help — and Taylor, first responder assistance coordinator for the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, thinks he’s found a solution. His position is relatively new — created within the past couple of ...
Douglas County commissioners on Wednesday will consider an agreement with United Way of the Plains that would allow residents to access an online database with a range of community resources, including help for food, housing, clothing, health care and more. Currently, any resident can dial 211, similar to 911, to reach a 24-hour United Way of the Plains hotline to get connected to resources. The web platform ...
The school finance bill that the Kansas Legislature passed and Gov. Laura Kelly signed on Saturday would add about $3.85 million to the Lawrence school district’s funding next year. However, Kathy Johnson, the district’s executive director of finance, told the school board Monday evening that while that may sound like a lot, the funds don’t always go that far. Deficit spending and staffing to meet ...
Superintendent Anthony Lewis said he was instrumental in bringing restorative practices to Kansas City (Mo.) Public Schools, where he was an assistant superintendent prior to coming to Lawrence in July. In the KCMO district, Lewis said, the superintendent and cabinet went through a two-day training prior to rolling out restorative practices in schools. That’s something he wants to do in Lawrence, too, but ...
The Kansas Legislature approved Gov. Laura Kelly’s school finance plan just in time for Kathy Johnson, the Lawrence school district’s executive director of finance, to provide a budget update to the school board on Monday. It’s still uncertain whether the plan, which the House approved 76-47 and Senate approved 31-8 last week, will hold up under the Kansas Supreme Court’s scrutiny, the Associated Press ...
Story updated at 4:45 p.m. Friday, April 5: Julitha Rials, a special education teacher at Liberty Memorial Central Middle School, said she was happy to have her students with her when she was named the Lawrence school district’s Secondary Teacher of the Year on Friday. Rials said she worked in “corporate America” for about 15 years, but when the company she worked for moved out of state, she saw the ...