If Kansas wants to keep and attract young adults to its rural communities, state residents should figure out how to better support access to child care, affordable housing and broadband, or risk continued population loss of those young people, according to a new report. The report, Power Up and Go, was produced by the state Office of Rural Prosperity and the Kansas Sampler Foundation, a nonprofit that advocates for preservation of rural culture. It aimed to gain a better understanding of the obstacles that keep young adults and their families from staying in rural Kansas, as well as the opportunities that [...]

Children returning to Wichita Public Schools are strongly encouraged to wear masks indoors whether or not they have been vaccinated, although the Wichita Board of Education will not require masks for students or staff despite the increased threat posed by the COVID-19 delta variant. The school board voted 4-3 Monday evening to “strongly recommend” mask-wearing, overriding concerns that not implementing a mask mandate puts children who are too young to be vaccinated as well as immunocompromised family members at risk of contracting the virus. The board approved Superintendent Alicia Thompson’s recommendation to require masks for visitors to Wichita schools while only [...]