Latest new posts from ALL categories of The Lawrence Times:
Lawrence news, state news, Community Voices, Lawrence Life, obituaries and more.
(Please note that opinion pieces are included in this list, marked as columns or letters to the Times. Not all posts linked on this page were written or produced by the Lawrence Times staff.)
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Free State takes home hardware at state debate tournament; Lawrence High seniors cap off historic season
In a weekend featuring more than a dozen high school debaters from Lawrence, Free State took home second place in the 4-speaker division and sent a team to the semifinals in the 2-speaker division of the state tournament. Meanwhile, two Lawrence High seniors have earned the school’s first bid to the national Tournament of Champions.
Chili feed to bring community together in celebration of Martin Luther King Jr.
Lawrence community members are invited to join together for a comfort-food meal to celebrate the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Kansas’ four-year universities, colleges request greater state support of need-based scholarships
The president of the Kansas Board of Regents believes greater investment of state tax dollars in need-based scholarships could play a key role in placing a university education within reach of more students.
Kansas has millions of dollars to spend on youth crisis centers. But no one’s using it
Kansas has set aside $6 million for juvenile crisis centers — places that would spare kids from getting locked up by helping them through mental health crises — but has yet to spend a dime.
Carter Gaskins/Lawrence Times
Retirees, alumni ‘come home’ for MLK celebration at Billy Mills Middle School
Betty Norwood’s smile radiated Friday at the school where she taught for 24 years. She watched as staff, middle schoolers and parents assembled for a schoolwide celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. — an annual event Norwood is credited with starting more than three decades ago.
August Rudisell/Lawrence Times
Lawrence Arts Center purchases former Salvation Army building, eyeing expansion of preschool
A deal more than 10 years in the making is finally coming to fruition: the Lawrence Arts Center is purchasing the former Salvation Army building right next door, with the goal of transforming it into an arts-based early childhood center.
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Library and B.L.A.C.K. Lawrence to host Martin Luther King Jr. Day stories, screening and poetry workshop
The Lawrence Public Library has a series of free activities and community service opportunities — including storytelling and crafts, lunch and a documentary screening, a poetry workshop and more — slated for Monday in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
August Rudisell/Lawrence Times
Workshop to help high schoolers navigate financial aid process
A workshop coming soon to Lawrence High School will help area students and families learn the basics of financial aid.
New bill would ban gender-affirming medication and surgery for Kansans under age 21
Transgender youth will once again be at the forefront of debate in the Kansas Legislature, with lawmakers pushing a bill that would criminalize gender reassignment surgery and hormone therapy, allowing few exceptions.
Chloe Anderson/Lawrence Times
Lawrence Parks & Rec staff reverses course on admission fees for rec centers, Prairie Park Nature Center
The Lawrence Parks & Recreation Department has decided not to implement admission fees for the city’s recreation centers and Prairie Park Nature Center this year, according to a news release Friday.
Lawrence Kansas Juneteenth Organization: Thank you for your support! (Sponsored post)
”This year’s celebration of Juneteenth, we hosted the largest gathering of community members and vendors than ever before. None of that would have been possible without the help and support given to us by these special community partners,” the Lawrence, Kansas Juneteenth Organization writes.
Survivors of sexual abuse plead for changes in Kansas law that protects pedophiles
Four survivors of childhood sexual abuse revealed details about the worst moments of their lives in a public rebuke of state law that protects pedophiles from criminal prosecution or civil lawsuits.
The Keystone operator must repay some — not all — of the tax dollars spent on its Kansas oil spill
When the Keystone pipeline burst in rural Kansas last month, county workers rushed to build an emergency dam on Mill Creek. Federal agencies dispatched pipeline and environmental experts, and the state set about sampling water and searching for injured animals. All of this costs taxpayers.
Gov. Laura Kelly announces plan to fully fund Kansas special education for the first time in years
After years of school districts shouldering the burden for special education costs, the governor announced a five-year plan to fully fund special education across the state.
Lawrence library partners with Love Garden Sounds in sale offering music equipment, rare donated CDs
Those who dig through the music selection at the Lawrence Public Library’s Massive Music Sale can expect a different vibe than the typical clearance bins. The finds are “serious,” according to Angela Hyde, program coordinator for the library’s Friends and Foundation.
Community invited to annual Martin Luther King Jr. breakfast, celebration
An annual community breakfast will celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day with food, live music and guest speaker Col. Gary Steele.
August Rudisell/Lawrence Times
Skyrocketing egg prices leave Lawrence restaurant and bakery owners in a bind
When Javier Angeles opened his bakery, Angeles Panadería, in November, he didn’t anticipate raising his prices a few months later, yet he and his wife are agonizing about the prospect. The reason: Eggs. Rising prices have left many Lawrence eateries struggling.
Here are 6 ways Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly wants to spend a $2 billion budget surplus
Kansas Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly is urging lawmakers to spend more on special education in public schools and expand Medicaid as lawmakers prepare to use a $2 billion state surplus.
Watkins Museum’s Kramer Family Research Room now open for appointments
Following a major renovation process, the Kramer Family Research Room at the Watkins Museum of History is open to the public by appointment.
How Kansas lawmakers could try to restrict abortion this year
A landslide vote last year kept abortion legal in Kansas, but now the fight continues in the Statehouse — where abortion opponents have already introduced legislation that would further restrict access.
Maya Hodison/Lawrence Times
Lawrence school district’s Futures Planning Committee favors 4-day weeks, closing 3 buildings
The Lawrence school district’s Futures Planning Committee on Wednesday in a preliminary vote advanced a budget scenario suggesting a four-day school week, closing two elementary schools and a middle school, and cutting a district administration position.
Lawrence’s police review board, work group anxious to move forward; 3 members have resigned
Frustration abounds as a community board created to advise the Lawrence Police Department and oversee complaints has made little progress in more than a year, and a new work group has yet to meet. Also, three board members have resigned.
Kansas Supreme Court chief justice points to attorney shortage, specialty courts, behavioral health
Kansas Supreme Court Chief Justice Marla Luckert in her State of the Judiciary speech Wednesday asked lawmakers for support of specialty courts, behavioral health services, and pay raises for judges and court employees.
With Medicaid ‘continuous coverage’ ending soon, many Kansans may lose access to care
With federal “continuous coverage” Medicaid protections ending, thousands of Kansans are expected to be dropped from medical programs in the coming months.
