KSDE Weekly

Feature Story

Posted: Feb 13, 2025
Comments: 0

Two bills were passed out of their committees during week five of the Kansas legislative session and three education-related bills were introduced. The last day for non-exempt committees to introduce bills in their originating chamber was Friday, Feb. 7. 

Read more
Posted: Feb 13, 2025
Comments: 0

Making schools more safe and secure and reducing risks starts with connections, according to Philip Lofflin, president of the Kansas Juvenile Officers Association (KSJOA). 

“Making positive relationships with students, staff and families makes a big impact,” Lofflin said. “This impact minimizes students’ exposure to the criminal justice system and helps keep school a safe place to teach and learn. I don’t believe there are many assignments a law enforcement officer could do that are more challenging and rewarding.” 

Lofflin has been a district resource officer in Shawnee Mission USD 512 for the past 26 years where he oversees police technology, special projects, and the district’s elementary schools. He said the intentional relationships DROs and SROs develop daily “help the officer and school administration prevent crime, intervene in situations that may lead to more serious problems, and provide awareness to help students make good choices.” 

Read more
Posted: Feb 13, 2025
Comments: 0

Members of the Kansas State Board of Education approved an updated at-risk program list during their February meeting in Topeka this week. The board met only on Tuesday, Feb. 11, not the traditional two days of meetings due to the inclement weather declared on Wednesday. 

Kansas Education Commissioner Dr. Randy Watson emphasized that while programs on the at-risk list are vetted by Kansas State Department of Education staff, the list doesn’t constitute an endorsement of the peer-reviewed, evidence-based programs by the state’s education agency. 

Read more
Posted: Feb 6, 2025
Comments: 0

February is national Career and Technical Education month, a public awareness campaign hosted by the Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) and sponsored by the National Association of Home Builders. The celebration shines a light on the accomplishments of CTE programs across the U.S., including Kansas. 

Some attendees of the annual CTE conference in Manhattan this week got the chance to tour Manhattan High School’s CTE program that includes courses in business, welding, journalism, architectural drafting and agriculture, to name a few.  

“We’re a big school with more than 2,000 students in the building,” said Chris Holborn, CTE coordinator at Manhattan High School for the past five years. “Some kids are really diving deep into areas but we’re also in an exploratory phase with some of our students. We try to give them options to find that field they want to go into or go to college for. We also have students who dabble in trying to figure out what they want to do. We try to serve all of those populations.” 

Read more
Posted: Feb 6, 2025
Comments: 0

The updated list of evidence-based programs aimed at addressing the needs of at-risk students will be presented to the Kansas State Board of Education during its monthly meeting, Feb. 11-12, in Topeka. 

The at-risk program list presented to the State Board for approval includes programs and practices that have peer-reviewed evidence to support at-risk students. These programs may be used to provide students with additional educational opportunities, interventions, and services above and beyond regular educational services.                 

Read more
Copyright 2025 by Kansas State Department of Education | 900 SW Jackson St. | Topeka, KS 66612 Privacy Statement  |  Terms Of Use  |  System Maintenance Notices  |  Open Records (PDF)

The Kansas State Department of Education does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability, or age in its programs and activities. (more information...)


To accommodate people with disabilities, on request, auxiliary aides and services will be provided and reasonable modifications to policies and programs will be made. To request accommodations or for more information please contact the Office of General Counsel at gc@ksde.gov or by 785-296-3201.