The Kansas State Board of Education is pushing ahead with drafting recommendations for public school districts on use of technology in classrooms and crafting a potential mandate that local school boards implement policies controlling student access to computers.
Gov. Laura Kelly vetoed a bill mandating public schools administer fitness tests to students and require 30 minutes of unstructured recess for elementary students. The Kansas Legislature had flexed its political muscle to approve it.
Kansas public schools will soon have a new chief administrator. The Kansas State Board of Education has named Jake Steel as the state’s next education commissioner.
Lack of a Kansas-based bachelor’s degree program to prepare specialists in teaching of deaf or hard of hearing students complicates the challenge of hiring fully qualified staff at the Kansas School for the Deaf.
A new law requires human development videos in classrooms, but leaves it up to local school districts to decide what materials students will see and at what ages.
State assessments have shown increasing numbers of Kansas students scoring lower on math, science and English language arts tests since 2016, while achieving marks of post-secondary success, such as higher education degrees and military careers.
The Kansas State Board of Education and AG Kris Kobach have been fighting about whether Kansas should drop a ban on discrimination against persons based on sexual orientation or gender identity from public school district contracts tied to federally funded nutrition programs.
Kansas AG Kris Kobach encouraged the State Board of Education to remove sex discrimination language from the state’s lunch contracts, the latest in his offensive against gender and identity politics.
Kansas Education Commissioner Randy Watson urged districts to cancel breaks or extend the school year to make up for snow days. He is also proposing half-day summer school for young students who are struggling in reading and math.
School districts across Kansas will receive a 20-page report containing guidance on cell phones that recommends daytime cell phone bans, mental health awareness and bolstered parental oversight.
