info, Author at Ranson Financial Group LLC

Kansas’ smallest school district prepares to close in warning sign for rural communities

info2024-06-05T05:15:58-05:00June 5th, 2024|

Healy is an extreme example — one that caught lawmakers’ attention at the end of the legislation session — but it foreshadows the challenges that rural districts and state officials will have to confront in the near future as student populations dwindle. Eight other K-12 Kansas public school districts have fewer than 100 students. Another 28 districts have fewer than 200 students. The state has no blueprint for dealing with the declining student enrollment. Source: KAKE - News

Shawnee is now home to the largest renewable gas plant of its kind in the U.S.

info2024-06-05T05:09:15-05:00June 5th, 2024|

With a new modular plant in Shawnee, Johnson County is now home to a breakthrough in renewable energy solutions. In March, Archaea Energy launched its Archaea Modular Design renewable natural gas plant, a facility that turns landfill gas into renewable energy. Source: Prairie Village Post

Osawatomie USD 367 prepares for leadership overhaul

info2024-06-04T12:43:08-05:00June 4th, 2024|

There will be new faces in leadership roles at every school within Osawatomie USD 367 next school year. Superintendent Greg Clark confirmed that Swenson Early Childhood Education Center, Trojan Elementary, Osawatomie Middle School and Osawatomie High School will all have new principals next year. Clark said current Swenson principal Andrea Manes is retiring, Trojan principal Julie Samuels accepted a new position, Osawatomie Middle School principal Zachary Lopes accepted a new position, and Osawatomie High School principal Justin Young is exploring new opportunities. “I thank them for their exceptional service,” Clark said. Lopes and Young were just hired last year. Source: Local [...]

Mildred Store celebrates 10 years

info2024-06-04T12:39:51-05:00June 4th, 2024|

Charley Pogue of Blue Mound frequently drives the 10 miles to The Mildred Store. When family members from Lawrence were visiting this weekend, he brought them to the store’s 10th anniversary celebration. They walked around the car show, enjoyed food and grocery specials, and played Bingo. Later that evening, the crowd danced to music and entertainment provided by fiddle players from Oklahoma and a former American Idol contestant. “They’re not used to the small-town life,” Pogue said of his relatives. “They’re having a blast.” That’s the goal for store owners Loren and Regena Lance. When they bought the store in 2014, [...]

KSN Road Trip visits Ashland, Kansas

info2024-06-04T12:37:01-05:00June 4th, 2024|

ASHLAND, Kan. (KSNW) -- Ashland is the fourth stop on the 2024 KSN Summer Road Trip. We visited the Ashland Library. KSN News broadcasted from the location at 5 and 6 p.m. There were cookies, water, and coffee. Thank you to everyone who stopped by and said hi! If you took a picture with the team, be sure to enter it in the KSN Summer Road Trip photo contest. KSN visited Ashland in 2022 for the Summer Road Trip and decided to come back because of the welcoming community. According to the U.S. Census, Ashland has a population of 783 with a [...]

Near tragedy guides Kansas firefighter to make fire trucks

info2024-06-04T12:34:44-05:00June 4th, 2024|

Making things is a passion of Greg Blanchat. But instead of making art, he makes fire trucks. Blanchat turned a near tragedy into a passion to save lives. "When you suit up when you snap in, you really feel it. Like I say, 'Fire is a living, breathing thing,' and I really think it can think too," said Blanchat. Roaring flames and billowing smoke were seen from miles around. "We were up on a hill, most of us watching it and looking down on it, and we backed up because it was incredibly hot," said Stan May, a spectator and retired [...]

The ‘only architect in Liberal’ finds his entrepreneurial spirit

info2024-06-04T12:32:21-05:00June 4th, 2024|

Tucked into southwestern Kansas stands the city of Liberal, a majority-Latino community where more residents speak Spanish than English. Many work at the nearby National Beef Packing Co., a common job for rural Kansans – including immigrant workers. Manuel Ortuño moved to Liberal from Chicago in pursuit of a lower cost of living. He quickly found a job at National Beef, which provided a good living but was extremely labor intensive. His son, Edgar, says that his father started building cabinets in his garage and taking night classes outside of his factory shift. Eventually, he found a carpentry job building displays [...]

Peabody plans repertory theater

info2024-06-04T12:30:35-05:00June 4th, 2024|

Christopher King, co-owner of CK Vintage in downtown Peabody, has a long background in performance. He started as an actor, then gravitated to director. He has been working with other Sunflower Repertory organizers for months getting things ready for the magic of a dinner theater in Peabody. The first production will be “I Do! I Do!” The show is a comedic look at the ups and downs of marriage. Source: Marion County RECORD

Solar farming is taking land once used to grow food. Researchers are looking for ways to do both

info2024-06-04T12:28:11-05:00June 4th, 2024|

When Scott Thellman looks at the bottom land near the Kaw River, he sees productive farmland. This area north of Lawrence, Kansas, just across the river from an old coal-fired power plant has fantastic soil, according to Thellman, who lives nearby and grows organic vegetables and row crops. “It’s absolutely the best our county, and frankly our region, has in terms of the water accessibility, the mineral glacial components of the soil,” Thellman said. “Plants are really able to thrive here.” It also makes a good place to locate a solar farm. It’s flat, with easy access to roads and high [...]

Rural roads get millions for upgrades

info2024-06-04T12:20:37-05:00June 4th, 2024|

Ten Kansas counties stand to receive millions in federal funds to improve the safety and efficiency of local roads. Gov. Laura Kelly on Thursday announced the $6.65 million in federal funds for 10 projects, selected out of 46 applications. Haskell, Linn, Ottawa, Phillips, Sedgwick, Seward and Shawnee counties have all been granted federal dollars for these rural road improvement projects. “Our rural roads are important to the local and state economy,” Kelly said. “Programs like this enable commerce to flow smoothly and improve safety for Kansas families as they travel our state.” Project funding is managed through the Kansas Department of [...]

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