Feature Story

Several new education-related bills were introduced during the third week of the Kansas legislative session, including a bill that would require school districts to verify the gross household income of each student who qualifies for free meals under the National School Lunch Program.

The 2026 Kansas Teacher of the Year team gathered in Topeka this week to advocate for the state’s school children and the teaching profession. 

School funding can feel complicated and disconnected from the classroom, but it plays a major role in the opportunities students experience every day. 

In January’s episode of the KSDE Insight Podcast, we break down how school funding works in Kansas, where the money comes from, and how funding decisions affect class sizes, programs, and student supports.

The Kansas Legislature meets once a year, but it plans, budgets and tracks legislation across a two-year cycle. Because of this, 68 education-related bills were carried over from last session. Several new education-related bills have also been introduced so far, starting Monday, Jan. 12, the first day of the legislative session.

Hailey Burke wasn’t confident in her reading skills. So much so, she often withdrew from her teachers and couldn’t articulate that she was struggling to read. 

“The one thing that I regret not doing is not asking my teachers for help,” said the eighth-grader at Spearville Middle School, Spearville USD 381. “I got really scared to ask them for help. I just needed to overcome it and just ask them.” 

That was until Hailey opened up to her mother, Dawn Burke, an instructional coach at Dodge City Middle School, Dodge City USD 443. The two began working on phonics and Hailey’s self-advocacy skills.