by BECKY GOFF Little Apple Post

RILEY COUNTY - The Riley County Police Department has arrested four people in connection with three suspected fentanyl-related overdose cases.

Riley County District Court warrants were issued for Ronald Ince, Nathan Reeves, Caziah Self and Daron Jones, all of Manhattan.

Fifty-nine year old, Ronald Ince, was arrested for requested charges of distribution of a controlled substance causing death, conspiracy to possess a controlled substance with the intent to distribute, and use of a communication facility for a drug transaction. He remains confined in the Riley County Jail with a total bond of $500,000.

Thirty-seven year old, Nathan Reeves, was arrested for requested charges of&nbsp;distribution of a controlled substance causing death, conspiracy to possess a controlled substance with the intent to distribute, and use of a communication facility for a drug transaction. Reeves remains confined in the Riley County Jail with a total bond of $500,000. Reeves’s and Ince’s arrests stem from an investigation into the death of a 36-year-old woman in August 2021.

Twenty-one year old, Caziah Self was arrested for requested charges of&nbsp;distribution of a controlled substance causing great bodily harm, aggravated battery, and use of a communication facility for a drug transaction stemming from an investigation into the overdose of a 31-year-old man in August of 2022. Self was issued a total bond of $250,000 for this charge.&nbsp;

Self was also arrested on two&nbsp;arrested on two Manhattan Municipal Court warrants for failure to appear and theft.&nbsp;

Self was also found to be in possession of two guns and a large number of pills suspected to contain fentanyl at the time of his arrest adding additional charges of drug possession with the intent to distribute, drug possession, possession of drug paraphernalia, and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon by a felon. These additional charges hold a bond of $500,000. Self remains confined in the Riley County Jail with a total bond of $751,750.

Twenty-one year old, Daron Jones was arrested on requested charges two counts each of distribution of a controlled substance causing great bodily harm, aggravated battery, and use of a communication facility for a drug transaction stemming from an investigation into two separate overdoses of the same 21-year-old man in August and October of 2022. Jones remains confined in the Riley County Jail with a total bond of $250,000.

“We will continue to work to identify the source of these drugs in our community through ongoing investigations with our state and federal partners,” Director Brian Peete said. “I commend our Special Investigations Unit (SIU) on these arrests that are the culmination of years of investigation in conjunction with the Kansas Highway Patrol (KHP), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).”

The main function of the RCPD Special Investigations Unit(SIU) is to initiate and investigate narcotic activities related to cases the affect the community.&nbsp;

The SIU partners with local, state and federal agents for joint operations to identify and arrest individuals who use, sell and manufacture illegal narcotics. The unit also handles high-risk searches and serves arrest warrants on locations and suspects, as well as, assisting with interviews and follow-up investigations.

If you have any information about the distribution of fentanyl you can submit a tip anonymously through Crime Stoppers at (785) 539-7777 or contact RCPD at (785) 537-2112 and ask to speak with the SIU.

by BECKY GOFF Little Apple Post<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1687989115219.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>RILEY COUNTY - The Riley County Police Department has arrested four people in connection with three suspected fentanyl-related overdose cases.Riley County District Court warrants were issued for Ronald Ince, Nathan Reeves, Caziah Self and Daron Jones, all of Manhattan.<div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=314&href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FRileyCountyPD%2Fvideos%2F969835354344866%2F&show_text=true&width=560&t=0" width="560" height="429" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowFullScreen="true"></iframe></div>Fifty-nine year old, Ronald Ince, was arrested for requested charges of distribution of a controlled substance causing death, conspiracy to possess a controlled substance with the intent to distribute, and use of a communication facility for a drug transaction. He remains confined in the Riley County Jail with a total bond of $500,000.Thirty-seven year old, Nathan Reeves, was arrested for requested charges of&nbsp;distribution of a controlled substance causing death, conspiracy to possess a controlled substance with the intent to distribute, and use of a communication facility for a drug transaction. Reeves remains confined in the Riley County Jail with a total bond of $500,000. Reeves’s and Ince’s arrests stem from an investigation into the death of a 36-year-old woman in August 2021.Twenty-one year old, Caziah Self was arrested for requested charges of&nbsp;distribution of a controlled substance causing great bodily harm, aggravated battery, and use of a communication facility for a drug transaction stemming from an investigation into the overdose of a 31-year-old man in August of 2022. Self was issued a total bond of $250,000 for this charge.&nbsp;Self was also arrested on two&nbsp;arrested on two Manhattan Municipal Court warrants for failure to appear and theft.&nbsp;Self was also found to be in possession of two guns and a large number of pills suspected to contain fentanyl at the time of his arrest adding additional charges of drug possession with the intent to distribute, drug possession, possession of drug paraphernalia, and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon by a felon. These additional charges hold a bond of $500,000. Self remains confined in the Riley County Jail with a total bond of $751,750.Twenty-one year old, Daron Jones was arrested on requested charges two counts each of distribution of a controlled substance causing great bodily harm, aggravated battery, and use of a communication facility for a drug transaction stemming from an investigation into two separate overdoses of the same 21-year-old man in August and October of 2022. Jones remains confined in the Riley County Jail with a total bond of $250,000.“We will continue to work to identify the source of these drugs in our community through ongoing investigations with our state and federal partners,” Director Brian Peete said. “I commend our Special Investigations Unit (SIU) on these arrests that are the culmination of years of investigation in conjunction with the Kansas Highway Patrol (KHP), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).”The main function of the RCPD Special Investigations Unit(SIU) is to initiate and investigate narcotic activities related to cases the affect the community.&nbsp;The SIU partners with local, state and federal agents for joint operations to identify and arrest individuals who use, sell and manufacture illegal narcotics. The unit also handles high-risk searches and serves arrest warrants on locations and suspects, as well as, assisting with interviews and follow-up investigations.If you have any information about the distribution of fentanyl you can submit a tip anonymously through Crime Stoppers at (785) 539-7777 or contact RCPD at (785) 537-2112 and ask to speak with the SIU.

🎥: Four arrested in connection with fentanyl related overdose cases

Recent Booking Activity for the Geary County Detention Center. All persons included in this post are innocent of crimes until proven guilty in a court of law.

Recent Booking Activity for the Geary County Detention Center. All persons included in this post are innocent of crimes until proven guilty in a court of law.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Recent Booking Activity for the Geary County Detention Center. All persons included in this post are innocent of crimes until proven guilty in a court of law.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1687987914450.jpeg" alt="Randall James Williams, Probation Violation, Arrested 06/27/2023" />
 <figcaption>Randall James Williams, Probation Violation, Arrested 06/27/2023</figcaption>
 </figure><figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1687987990651.jpeg" alt="Adriane Clarice Young, Violation of a protective order; Arrested 06/28/2023" />
 <figcaption>Adriane Clarice Young, Violation of a protective order; Arrested 06/28/2023</figcaption>
 </figure>Recent Booking Activity for the Geary County Detention Center. All persons included in this post are innocent of crimes until proven guilty in a court of law.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Geary County Booking Photos June 28

RILEY COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating an alleged altercation that included a gun.

Just before 10p.m. Tuesday, officers filed a report for aggravated assault, battery, and disorderly conduct in the 1400 block of Chase Pl. in Manhattan, according to the Riley County Police Department activity report.

&nbsp;A 22-year-old man and a 21-year-old woman were listed as both the victims and suspects when it was reported the man threw the woman in a pool and the woman punched him after getting out of the pool.

 It was also reported after this altercation, a separate 22-year-old man pulled out a handgun and threatened the woman with it.

Police reported no additional details and have not reported an arrest.

RILEY COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating an alleged altercation that included a gun.Just before 10p.m. Tuesday, officers filed a report for aggravated assault, battery, and disorderly conduct in the 1400 block of Chase Pl. in Manhattan, according to the Riley County Police Department activity report.&nbsp;A 22-year-old man and a 21-year-old woman were listed as both the victims and suspects when it was reported the man threw the woman in a pool and the woman punched him after getting out of the pool. It was also reported after this altercation, a separate 22-year-old man pulled out a handgun and threatened the woman with it.Police reported no additional details and have not reported an arrest.

RCPD: Man threatened woman with gun after fight at pool

<a href="https://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?lat=39.0252&amp;lon=-96.833#.WkYrVt-nHIU">The National Weather Service </a>has issued a Heat Advisory is in effect today across much of the area, where
heat indices will peak around 105 this afternoon.



A few strong to severe storms will be possible this evening and
tonight, mainly north of Interstate 70. Large hail and damaging
winds would be possible with any storm that can develop.

.

Heat indices above 100 are likely again Thursday and Friday.


Another Heat Advisory is in effect across east-central Kansas
Thursday where heat indices are most likely to peak around 105.

A few strong to severe thunderstorms will also be possible
Thursday through Friday night, most likely along and north of
Interstate 70. Large hail and damaging winds would again be the
main hazards.&nbsp;&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/6/1592752482558.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure><a href="https://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?lat=39.0252&amp;lon=-96.833#.WkYrVt-nHIU">The National Weather Service </a>has issued a Heat Advisory is in effect today across much of the area, where
heat indices will peak around 105 this afternoon.

A few strong to severe storms will be possible this evening and
tonight, mainly north of Interstate 70. Large hail and damaging
winds would be possible with any storm that can develop.

.Heat indices above 100 are likely again Thursday and Friday.
Another Heat Advisory is in effect across east-central Kansas
Thursday where heat indices are most likely to peak around 105.

A few strong to severe thunderstorms will also be possible
Thursday through Friday night, most likely along and north of
Interstate 70. Large hail and damaging winds would again be the
main hazards.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Heat advisory posted for our region

This&nbsp;Soft Red Winter Special Edition of the Kansas Wheat Harvest Reports is brought to you by the Kansas Wheat Commission, Kansas Association of Wheat Growers, Kansas Grain and Feed Association and the Kansas Cooperative Council.

Soft red winter (SRW) wheat has been a bright spot in Kansas’ otherwise challenging wheat harvest this year. According to USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service in the 2023 Wheat Varieties Report, SRW makes up only about 4% of the state’s wheat acreage, with hard red winter making up the majority of the balance.

In pockets of far southeastern Kansas and parts of northeast Kansas, wheat farmers plant soft red winter wheat, as those areas have climate conditions annually more suitable for SRW than HRW.&nbsp;

SRW typically yields higher than HRW but has lower protein content (8.5% to 10.5%), soft endosperm and weak gluten, making it targeted for different end products than HRW, universally known as the bread wheat.&nbsp;SRW is commonly used for specialty products such as sponge cakes, cookies, crackers and other confectionary products.&nbsp;

CoMark Equity Alliance (CEA), headquartered in Cheney, Kansas, and Enid, Oklahoma, has several locations in the southeastern part of Kansas, extreme south central Kansas and north central Oklahoma, that handle both soft red winter and hard red winter wheat.&nbsp;

Troy Presley of CEA discussed the importance of keeping the two classes of wheat segregated.

“I feel it’s especially important this year for all segments of the industry to work together to protect the integrity of both the hard red winter and soft red winter markets,” he said. “End users rely on us to provide wheat with the characteristics they need, and we don’t want to jeopardize that. It’s important to know your customers and work with your FSA office to get an idea on the percentage of each class of wheat grown in the area.”

Presley said they’ve been sending some samples to Kansas Grain Inspection Service for hardness tests, so “wheat can be labeled correctly, and we can tell our domestic and international markets, ‘this is as advertised.’”

Jay Armstrong is one of those eastern Kansas wheat farmers who plants SRW. He has finished his wheat harvest near Muscotah in Atchison County, where it’s normally too wet for high wheat yields, but this year was the exception.&nbsp;

Armstrong put on 160 pounds of nitrogen, fungicide and seed treatments on his SRW crop. Combined with a near-perfect growing season — he’s one of the few producers in the state that would call it so this year — Armstrong said this was “the best wheat we have ever planted.” His Pioneer 25R74 averaged 94 bushels per acre for a farm-wide yield with test weights between 60 and 61 pounds per bushel.&nbsp;

Armstrong binned the bumper crop for later delivery to mills near Kansas City that are looking for SRW this year. Despite the successful wheat crop, no moisture is now to be found and the soybeans going in behind the combine are being planted into dust.&nbsp;

In Montgomery County, where Richard Felts farms with his brother Larry, the SRW wheat — which makes up 80 percent of their operation — looked good all winter long. But, the area also suffered from a long stretch without rain.&nbsp;

“When it quit raining this time last year, that was the end of it until this spring,” Larry Felts said. “That’s why we needed a decent wheat crop — because we didn’t have anything for fall crops. From here you don’t have to go very far before you run into some bad stuff.”&nbsp;

Richard has farmed in partnership with Larry since they came back from college to partner with their father. Now, Rich’s son and son-in-law are involved in the operation and Larry’s grandson is running the grain cart — the fourth generation on the family operation.&nbsp;

The beginning of wheat harvest was delayed for the Felts family due to rain, finally starting around June 15. The SRW is averaging 85 bushels per acre with test weights averaging right at 60 pounds per bushel. That wheat is being delivered to the elevator in Coffeyville, which has to switch between hard and soft wheat deliveries, a tricky undertaking when both classes look similar but have very different quality characteristics… and different prices on the board.&nbsp;

“We’re trusting that all our neighbors are being honest, and elevators are pulling a sample on every load,” Richard Felts said. “We all want to protect the integrity of hard red winter wheat.”&nbsp;

The last wheat they will cut will be their HRW, but attention is already shifting to the next crop that could use some moisture as the son-in-law has started planting soybeans.&nbsp;

Harvest should wrap up by the end of this week in Franklin County, according to Clark Wenger, general manager/CEO of Ottawa Coop. The area planted twice as many wheat acres this year and combined with an uncommon set of great growing conditions, the harvest is better than expected.

Both HRW and SRW are planted in this area, about 30 percent soft to 70 percent hard. Ottawa Coop has taken in both classes of wheat for several years without issue because their elevator crew could visually distinguish between HRW and SRW. This year, however, certain HRW varieties started to look more like SRW. As a result, Wenger said they submitted samples to the state for grading and talked with farmers to make sure they were segregating the two classes.&nbsp;

Segregation between HRW and SRW is important for elevators as they market that wheat to different end-users.&nbsp;

“They either want soft wheat or hard wheat, they don’t want a mix,” Wenger said. “If it is a mix, then it causes problems and we’re left to market that mix into a feed market that isn’t as profitable. So, we have to make sure that what we take in is what it’s supposed to be.”

The 2023 Harvest Report is brought to you by the Kansas Wheat Commission, Kansas Association of Wheat Growers, Kansas Grain and Feed Association and the Kansas Cooperative Council. To follow along with harvest updates on Twitter, use #wheatharvest23. Tag us at @kansaswheat on&nbsp;<a href="https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001GadJqjVbWXSRuAbAppJw3raax9NGtkfAV37LTxo6aHQtf3PTBZPeudOqfga_ibJNnXM4g2qH_BD_NZvtRyjhTIWwzf36SePd67M9-DW2Z0TM-Ix6kTW-PJI_Z3Ebz61L4tq0tKC4N0z2N_TFj0VtAnWa-_egoh8U&amp;c=KmW2EW-6qu2VLsFdrfcVEObrLuscGqa3Zmy8umJE4PutHKywHusBoA==&amp;ch=dHU4LKc1WYejgvnfYGvpJ7bRwOLbE5Ko-B_tiSGIMEtKk70gXQxAEg==" target="_blank">Facebook</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001GadJqjVbWXSRuAbAppJw3raax9NGtkfAV37LTxo6aHQtf3PTBZPeuTSY9Kk5uwtEFQBxDwwwjiZZdUNufgb8GBQPaVe6xe55fky8hdgL9SLM3AbHUzll3tJs0mK-M-cM7Xzv3CI-ZlwtsDiayvRNaJJM-ECLicLn&amp;c=KmW2EW-6qu2VLsFdrfcVEObrLuscGqa3Zmy8umJE4PutHKywHusBoA==&amp;ch=dHU4LKc1WYejgvnfYGvpJ7bRwOLbE5Ko-B_tiSGIMEtKk70gXQxAEg==" target="_blank">Instagram</a>and&nbsp;<a href="https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001GadJqjVbWXSRuAbAppJw3raax9NGtkfAV37LTxo6aHQtf3PTBZPeufDED4w9HJxw2JyS6kGXw2IkUIUHOgdhy4oZAhAaYeSOrRCGg7gZi998pSeFIcD8SYCCP_1LFpua6r4xnXEcibMfkqNEe3XFqeTORd5Z655e&amp;c=KmW2EW-6qu2VLsFdrfcVEObrLuscGqa3Zmy8umJE4PutHKywHusBoA==&amp;ch=dHU4LKc1WYejgvnfYGvpJ7bRwOLbE5Ko-B_tiSGIMEtKk70gXQxAEg==" target="_blank">Twitter</a>&nbsp;to share your harvest story and photos.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1687917118375.png" alt="2023 Soft Red Winter Wheat Harvest Report. Image Courtesy Kansas Wheat" />
 <figcaption>2023 Soft Red Winter Wheat Harvest Report. Image Courtesy Kansas Wheat</figcaption>
 </figure> Kansas Wheat This&nbsp;Soft Red Winter Special Edition of the Kansas Wheat Harvest Reports is brought to you by the Kansas Wheat Commission, Kansas Association of Wheat Growers, Kansas Grain and Feed Association and the Kansas Cooperative Council.Soft red winter (SRW) wheat has been a bright spot in Kansas’ otherwise challenging wheat harvest this year. According to USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service in the 2023 Wheat Varieties Report, SRW makes up only about 4% of the state’s wheat acreage, with hard red winter making up the majority of the balance.In pockets of far southeastern Kansas and parts of northeast Kansas, wheat farmers plant soft red winter wheat, as those areas have climate conditions annually more suitable for SRW than HRW.&nbsp;SRW typically yields higher than HRW but has lower protein content (8.5% to 10.5%), soft endosperm and weak gluten, making it targeted for different end products than HRW, universally known as the bread wheat.&nbsp;SRW is commonly used for specialty products such as sponge cakes, cookies, crackers and other confectionary products.&nbsp;CoMark Equity Alliance (CEA), headquartered in Cheney, Kansas, and Enid, Oklahoma, has several locations in the southeastern part of Kansas, extreme south central Kansas and north central Oklahoma, that handle both soft red winter and hard red winter wheat.&nbsp;Troy Presley of CEA discussed the importance of keeping the two classes of wheat segregated.“I feel it’s especially important this year for all segments of the industry to work together to protect the integrity of both the hard red winter and soft red winter markets,” he said. “End users rely on us to provide wheat with the characteristics they need, and we don’t want to jeopardize that. It’s important to know your customers and work with your FSA office to get an idea on the percentage of each class of wheat grown in the area.”Presley said they’ve been sending some samples to Kansas Grain Inspection Service for hardness tests, so “wheat can be labeled correctly, and we can tell our domestic and international markets, ‘this is as advertised.’”Jay Armstrong is one of those eastern Kansas wheat farmers who plants SRW. He has finished his wheat harvest near Muscotah in Atchison County, where it’s normally too wet for high wheat yields, but this year was the exception.&nbsp;Armstrong put on 160 pounds of nitrogen, fungicide and seed treatments on his SRW crop. Combined with a near-perfect growing season — he’s one of the few producers in the state that would call it so this year — Armstrong said this was “the best wheat we have ever planted.” His Pioneer 25R74 averaged 94 bushels per acre for a farm-wide yield with test weights between 60 and 61 pounds per bushel.&nbsp;Armstrong binned the bumper crop for later delivery to mills near Kansas City that are looking for SRW this year. Despite the successful wheat crop, no moisture is now to be found and the soybeans going in behind the combine are being planted into dust.&nbsp;In Montgomery County, where Richard Felts farms with his brother Larry, the SRW wheat — which makes up 80 percent of their operation — looked good all winter long. But, the area also suffered from a long stretch without rain.&nbsp;“When it quit raining this time last year, that was the end of it until this spring,” Larry Felts said. “That’s why we needed a decent wheat crop — because we didn’t have anything for fall crops. From here you don’t have to go very far before you run into some bad stuff.”&nbsp;Richard has farmed in partnership with Larry since they came back from college to partner with their father. Now, Rich’s son and son-in-law are involved in the operation and Larry’s grandson is running the grain cart — the fourth generation on the family operation.&nbsp;The beginning of wheat harvest was delayed for the Felts family due to rain, finally starting around June 15. The SRW is averaging 85 bushels per acre with test weights averaging right at 60 pounds per bushel. That wheat is being delivered to the elevator in Coffeyville, which has to switch between hard and soft wheat deliveries, a tricky undertaking when both classes look similar but have very different quality characteristics… and different prices on the board.&nbsp;“We’re trusting that all our neighbors are being honest, and elevators are pulling a sample on every load,” Richard Felts said. “We all want to protect the integrity of hard red winter wheat.”&nbsp;The last wheat they will cut will be their HRW, but attention is already shifting to the next crop that could use some moisture as the son-in-law has started planting soybeans.&nbsp;Harvest should wrap up by the end of this week in Franklin County, according to Clark Wenger, general manager/CEO of Ottawa Coop. The area planted twice as many wheat acres this year and combined with an uncommon set of great growing conditions, the harvest is better than expected.Both HRW and SRW are planted in this area, about 30 percent soft to 70 percent hard. Ottawa Coop has taken in both classes of wheat for several years without issue because their elevator crew could visually distinguish between HRW and SRW. This year, however, certain HRW varieties started to look more like SRW. As a result, Wenger said they submitted samples to the state for grading and talked with farmers to make sure they were segregating the two classes.&nbsp;Segregation between HRW and SRW is important for elevators as they market that wheat to different end-users.&nbsp;“They either want soft wheat or hard wheat, they don’t want a mix,” Wenger said. “If it is a mix, then it causes problems and we’re left to market that mix into a feed market that isn’t as profitable. So, we have to make sure that what we take in is what it’s supposed to be.”The 2023 Harvest Report is brought to you by the Kansas Wheat Commission, Kansas Association of Wheat Growers, Kansas Grain and Feed Association and the Kansas Cooperative Council. To follow along with harvest updates on Twitter, use #wheatharvest23. Tag us at @kansaswheat on&nbsp;<a href="https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001GadJqjVbWXSRuAbAppJw3raax9NGtkfAV37LTxo6aHQtf3PTBZPeudOqfga_ibJNnXM4g2qH_BD_NZvtRyjhTIWwzf36SePd67M9-DW2Z0TM-Ix6kTW-PJI_Z3Ebz61L4tq0tKC4N0z2N_TFj0VtAnWa-_egoh8U&amp;c=KmW2EW-6qu2VLsFdrfcVEObrLuscGqa3Zmy8umJE4PutHKywHusBoA==&amp;ch=dHU4LKc1WYejgvnfYGvpJ7bRwOLbE5Ko-B_tiSGIMEtKk70gXQxAEg==" target="_blank">Facebook</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001GadJqjVbWXSRuAbAppJw3raax9NGtkfAV37LTxo6aHQtf3PTBZPeuTSY9Kk5uwtEFQBxDwwwjiZZdUNufgb8GBQPaVe6xe55fky8hdgL9SLM3AbHUzll3tJs0mK-M-cM7Xzv3CI-ZlwtsDiayvRNaJJM-ECLicLn&amp;c=KmW2EW-6qu2VLsFdrfcVEObrLuscGqa3Zmy8umJE4PutHKywHusBoA==&amp;ch=dHU4LKc1WYejgvnfYGvpJ7bRwOLbE5Ko-B_tiSGIMEtKk70gXQxAEg==" target="_blank">Instagram</a>and&nbsp;<a href="https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001GadJqjVbWXSRuAbAppJw3raax9NGtkfAV37LTxo6aHQtf3PTBZPeufDED4w9HJxw2JyS6kGXw2IkUIUHOgdhy4oZAhAaYeSOrRCGg7gZi998pSeFIcD8SYCCP_1LFpua6r4xnXEcibMfkqNEe3XFqeTORd5Z655e&amp;c=KmW2EW-6qu2VLsFdrfcVEObrLuscGqa3Zmy8umJE4PutHKywHusBoA==&amp;ch=dHU4LKc1WYejgvnfYGvpJ7bRwOLbE5Ko-B_tiSGIMEtKk70gXQxAEg==" target="_blank">Twitter</a>&nbsp;to share your harvest story and photos.

Soft Red Winter Special Edition Harvest Report 2023

GEARY COUNTY - The Kansas Department of Transportation plans to begin the first of three phases for a pavement replacement project on I-70 in Geary County on Monday, July 10th.

Pavement will be replaced in a four mile stretch of I-70 between Exit 296 at Washington Street and Exit 300 at K-57 Highway.

Eastbound traffic on I-70 will be reduced to one lane at a reduced speed as the roadway receives a temporary overlay as part of the first phase of the project.

During the second part of phase one of the project, eastbound traffic will be reduced to one lane for about one mile to allow for median crossovers which will carry westbound traffic through the construction in a head-to-head configuration in the eastbound lanes.

Ramp closures will occur to allow for ramp reconstruction. Local traffic will be directed to find alternate routes.

Wildcat Construction Co. Inc. and Subsidiaries, of Wichita, is the prime contractor and has scheduled phase one of this $30 million project to be completed by December 2023. All three phases of the project to be completed by December 2025, weather permitting.

by BECKY GOFF JC Post<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1687894827541.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>GEARY COUNTY - The Kansas Department of Transportation plans to begin the first of three phases for a pavement replacement project on I-70 in Geary County on Monday, July 10th.Pavement will be replaced in a four mile stretch of I-70 between Exit 296 at Washington Street and Exit 300 at K-57 Highway.Eastbound traffic on I-70 will be reduced to one lane at a reduced speed as the roadway receives a temporary overlay as part of the first phase of the project.During the second part of phase one of the project, eastbound traffic will be reduced to one lane for about one mile to allow for median crossovers which will carry westbound traffic through the construction in a head-to-head configuration in the eastbound lanes.Ramp closures will occur to allow for ramp reconstruction. Local traffic will be directed to find alternate routes.Wildcat Construction Co. Inc. and Subsidiaries, of Wichita, is the prime contractor and has scheduled phase one of this $30 million project to be completed by December 2023. All three phases of the project to be completed by December 2025, weather permitting.

KDOT: I-70 pavement replacement project to begin July 10

By NATE KING&nbsp; JC Post

Freedom Fest JC is back and bigger than ever before. Earlier this month I spoke with Junction City City Commissioner, Bob Story and State Representative Nate Butler to hear what makes this year's five day Fourth of July celebration a must attend event, the whole family will enjoy.&nbsp;

The festival will take place at Heritage Park, 101-199 W. 6th Street,&nbsp; in Junction City. Butler said WEEE Entertainment Carnival will set up their rides and attractions on Thursday.

"The carnival will line up on Jefferson Street and on Sixth Street, all of that area for about two, maybe three blocks," Butler said. "They have a large carnival this year. They've told us they're going to increase the number of rides by one. So we're excited about that."

The Freedom Fest event started two years ago replacing the Sundown Salute that had been held in the city for a number of years. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic the event had to moved out of town.

"The downtown businesses and Junction City Main Street, wanted something back in downtown Junction City like we've had in the past. So we brought it back to life," Story said. "This is our second year for Freedom Fest JC and it's just a huge five day festival, carnival downtown crafters, vendors, great food and something new this year, there's going to be trapeze performers on Washington Street."

In addition to the carnival rides, trapeze performers, and craft vendors, Freedom Fest organizers told JC Post that the line up of musicians and bands will provide all event attendees with a wide variety of music to listen to, dance to and enjoy.

Friday, June 30 8:00 p.m.- The Flying Pages trapeze Act 8:30 p.m.-Paramount (80’s rock tribute band)

Saturday, July 1 6:30 p.m.- The Shaky Ground Band (Classic Rock) 7:30 p.m.- The Flying Pages trapeze Act 8:30 p.m.- The Frontmen (Country)

Sunday, July 2 8:00 p.m.-Consumed by Fire (Christian)

Monday, July 3 5:30 p.m.-Platinum Express (Motown, Soul, Funk, and Classic Rock) 7:30 p.m.-Foreigner Experience (Double Vision) Foreigner Tribute Band 9:00 p.m.-The Flying Pages trapeze Act 9:30 PM-Shooting Star&nbsp;(Nationally recognized Rock Band)

Tuesday, July 4 5:00 PM- Jay Hill Road Band (local musician) 6:30 PM-Burning Pianos&nbsp;(A Tribute to Keyboard Legends) 7:30 PM-The Flying Pages trapeze Act 8:30 PM-Hotel California&nbsp;(Eagles Tribute Band)

Butler said there will be many returning food trucks and vendors, with one notable new food option.&nbsp;

"We have a new vendor who's going to bring alligator on the stick to Freedom Fest 2023, which we are really excited about," Butler said. "We've got some of the them [food vendors] coming back from last year. The boba tea guy, the slushy guy, we've got the chicken and rice guy, we've got the lemon lady. So we've got a large variety of food vendors that they can come through and enjoy."

How can you have a Fourth of July celebration without fireworks? The Freedom Fest Fireworks Extravaganza will take place on Tuesday evening at 10 p.m. Story said due to the construction on the E. Sixth Street viaduct, the fireworks will be set off from near where the bridge is missing.&nbsp;

"We're gonna have to move that back a little bit. A little bit off of East Sixth Street, just where the bridge is missing from," Story said. "But we're going to shoot a little bit bigger shells. So they should go higher and be bigger."

Story, former Junction City Police Chief, said event organizers have been, and continue to work with local law enforcement to ensure a safe environment for the approximately 50,ooo+ event attendees.&nbsp;

"We coordinate with the police department, sheriff's office and we have spoken to the Kansas Highway Patrol and the fire department, all these people we deal with, they know everything that we're doing," Story said. "We block off the streets the best we can to where you don't have something accidentally happen, let alone on purpose. As always we keep a close eye on who's in the park, what's going on. In today's world, you got to do that."&nbsp;

<div><iframe title="Freedom Fest 2023: Bob Story and Nate Butler" allowtransparency="true" height="300" width="100%" style="border: none; min-width: min(100%, 430px);" scrolling="no" data-name="pb-iframe-player" src="https://www.podbean.com/player-v2/?i=ktg56-141f711-pb&from=pb6admin&square=1&share=1&download=1&rtl=0&fonts=Arial&skin=60a0c8&font-color=auto&logo_link=episode_page&btn-skin=1b1b1b&size=300" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div>By NATE KING&nbsp; JC PostFreedom Fest JC is back and bigger than ever before. Earlier this month I spoke with Junction City City Commissioner, Bob Story and State Representative Nate Butler to hear what makes this year's five day Fourth of July celebration a must attend event, the whole family will enjoy.&nbsp;The festival will take place at Heritage Park, 101-199 W. 6th Street,&nbsp; in Junction City. Butler said WEEE Entertainment Carnival will set up their rides and attractions on Thursday.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/5/1685456059291.png" alt="Freedom Fest 2023 Event Schedule" />
 <figcaption>Freedom Fest 2023 Event Schedule</figcaption>
 </figure>"The carnival will line up on Jefferson Street and on Sixth Street, all of that area for about two, maybe three blocks," Butler said. "They have a large carnival this year. They've told us they're going to increase the number of rides by one. So we're excited about that."The Freedom Fest event started two years ago replacing the Sundown Salute that had been held in the city for a number of years. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic the event had to moved out of town."The downtown businesses and Junction City Main Street, wanted something back in downtown Junction City like we've had in the past. So we brought it back to life," Story said. "This is our second year for Freedom Fest JC and it's just a huge five day festival, carnival downtown crafters, vendors, great food and something new this year, there's going to be trapeze performers on Washington Street."<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/7/1656872509906.jpeg" alt="Photo from last year's Freedom Fest.&nbsp;" />
 <figcaption>Photo from last year's Freedom Fest.&nbsp;</figcaption>
 </figure>In addition to the carnival rides, trapeze performers, and craft vendors, Freedom Fest organizers told JC Post that the line up of musicians and bands will provide all event attendees with a wide variety of music to listen to, dance to and enjoy.<h2>Music entertainment lineup</h2>Friday, June 30 8:00 p.m.- The Flying Pages trapeze Act 8:30 p.m.-Paramount (80’s rock tribute band)Saturday, July 1 6:30 p.m.- The Shaky Ground Band (Classic Rock) 7:30 p.m.- The Flying Pages trapeze Act 8:30 p.m.- The Frontmen (Country)Sunday, July 2 8:00 p.m.-Consumed by Fire (Christian)Monday, July 3 5:30 p.m.-Platinum Express (Motown, Soul, Funk, and Classic Rock) 7:30 p.m.-Foreigner Experience (Double Vision) Foreigner Tribute Band 9:00 p.m.-The Flying Pages trapeze Act 9:30 PM-Shooting Star&nbsp;(Nationally recognized Rock Band)Tuesday, July 4 5:00 PM- Jay Hill Road Band (local musician) 6:30 PM-Burning Pianos&nbsp;(A Tribute to Keyboard Legends) 7:30 PM-The Flying Pages trapeze Act 8:30 PM-Hotel California&nbsp;(Eagles Tribute Band)<h2>Food trucks</h2>Butler said there will be many returning food trucks and vendors, with one notable new food option.&nbsp;"We have a new vendor who's going to bring alligator on the stick to Freedom Fest 2023, which we are really excited about," Butler said. "We've got some of the them [food vendors] coming back from last year. The boba tea guy, the slushy guy, we've got the chicken and rice guy, we've got the lemon lady. So we've got a large variety of food vendors that they can come through and enjoy."<h2>Fireworks</h2>How can you have a Fourth of July celebration without fireworks? The Freedom Fest Fireworks Extravaganza will take place on Tuesday evening at 10 p.m. Story said due to the construction on the E. Sixth Street viaduct, the fireworks will be set off from near where the bridge is missing.&nbsp;"We're gonna have to move that back a little bit. A little bit off of East Sixth Street, just where the bridge is missing from," Story said. "But we're going to shoot a little bit bigger shells. So they should go higher and be bigger."Story, former Junction City Police Chief, said event organizers have been, and continue to work with local law enforcement to ensure a safe environment for the approximately 50,ooo+ event attendees.&nbsp;"We coordinate with the police department, sheriff's office and we have spoken to the Kansas Highway Patrol and the fire department, all these people we deal with, they know everything that we're doing," Story said. "We block off the streets the best we can to where you don't have something accidentally happen, let alone on purpose. As always we keep a close eye on who's in the park, what's going on. In today's world, you got to do that."&nbsp;

🎙King in the Community: 2023 Freedom Fest JC

RILEY COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating an alleged accidental shooting.

Just after 10p.m. Monday, officers responded to a report of an accidental shooting in the 7100 block of Anderson Avenue, according to the Riley County Police Department activity report.

First responders found a 36-year-old woman suffering from ricochet shrapnel wounds to the head and face that occurred while a 39-year-old man she was with was shooting at raccoons. 

The woman was transported to Via Christi for treatment of her non-life-threatening injuries.&nbsp; The RCPD released no additional details.

RILEY COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating an alleged accidental shooting.Just after 10p.m. Monday, officers responded to a report of an accidental shooting in the 7100 block of Anderson Avenue, according to the Riley County Police Department activity report.First responders found a 36-year-old woman suffering from ricochet shrapnel wounds to the head and face that occurred while a 39-year-old man she was with was shooting at raccoons. The woman was transported to Via Christi for treatment of her non-life-threatening injuries.&nbsp; The RCPD released no additional details.

RCPD: Woman injured during shooting at raccoons

Recent Booking Activity for the Geary County Detention Center. All persons included in this post are innocent of crimes until proven guilty in a court of law.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1687882987003.jpeg" alt="Herbert Brown Junior, Failure to appear x2; Arrested 06/26/2023" />
 <figcaption>Herbert Brown Junior, Failure to appear x2; Arrested 06/26/2023</figcaption>
 </figure><figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1687883028875.jpeg" alt="Bryce Lynn Gamache, Failure to appear; Arrested 06/26/2023" />
 <figcaption>Bryce Lynn Gamache, Failure to appear; Arrested 06/26/2023</figcaption>
 </figure><figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1687883135850.jpeg" alt="Joshua Shane Linville, Forgery; making or altering a written instrument, unknown conviction; Giving a worthless check; Value &lt; $1,000; Make false statement to defraud offer/sale/purchase of security; Loss &lt;$25K; Possession of controlled substance; unknown substance; Arrested 06/26/2023" />
 <figcaption>Joshua Shane Linville, Forgery; making or altering a written instrument, unknown conviction; Giving a worthless check; Value &lt; $1,000; Make false statement to defraud offer/sale/purchase of security; Loss &lt;$25K; Possession of controlled substance; unknown substance; Arrested 06/26/2023</figcaption>
 </figure><figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1687882603149.jpeg" alt="Kelsie Birdie Spees, Failure to appear; Arrested 06/26/2023" />
 <figcaption>Kelsie Birdie Spees, Failure to appear; Arrested 06/26/2023</figcaption>
 </figure>Recent Booking Activity for the Geary County Detention Center. All persons included in this post are innocent of crimes until proven guilty in a court of law.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Geary County Booking Photos June 27

By BECKY GOFF Little Apple Post

MANHATTAN —One person was injured in an accident just before 11a.m. Monday in Riley County.

The Riley County Police Department reported a United States Postal Service vehicle driven by Tina Kufahl, 51, Manhattan, was northbound on Tuttle Creek Blvd. A vehicle making a right turn off McCall Road struck the USPS vehicle.&nbsp;&nbsp;

The impact caused the USPS vehicle to flip over and hit a third vehicle. EMS transported Kufahl to Via Christi for treatment. Police cited the driver of the vehicle that hit the USPS vehicle.&nbsp; The RCPD released no additional details.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1687800907420.jpeg" alt="Monday crash at Tuttle Creek and McCall" />
 <figcaption>Monday crash at Tuttle Creek and McCall</figcaption>
 </figure>By BECKY GOFF Little Apple PostMANHATTAN —One person was injured in an accident just before 11a.m. Monday in Riley County.The Riley County Police Department reported a United States Postal Service vehicle driven by Tina Kufahl, 51, Manhattan, was northbound on Tuttle Creek Blvd. A vehicle making a right turn off McCall Road struck the USPS vehicle.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1687884449682.jpeg" alt="US Postal Service vehicle on its side following crash" />
 <figcaption>US Postal Service vehicle on its side following crash</figcaption>
 </figure>The impact caused the USPS vehicle to flip over and hit a third vehicle. EMS transported Kufahl to Via Christi for treatment. Police cited the driver of the vehicle that hit the USPS vehicle.&nbsp; The RCPD released no additional details.

One injured after crash into Postal Service vehicle

BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/rmipro/">RACHEL MIPRO</a> <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Relefctor</a> TOPEKA — A western Kansas conservation deal in the works that earmarks thousands of acres for the lesser prairie chicken could pave the way for future conservation.

The lesser prairie chicken, known for its colorful spring mating dance, has been embroiled in a tug-of-war between environmental advocates and oil and gas industry opponents for years.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://kansasreflector.com/2022/11/17/federal-wildlife-officials-list-lesser-prairie-chicken-as-threatened-in-kansas/">listed the lesser prairie chicken as threatened</a>&nbsp;in Kansas in late 2022, saying the agency would determine areas of critical habitat for the bird. At the time of the listing, the organization estimated 90 percent of the bird’s habitat — unbroken tracts of native grasses — had vanished, leaving an estimated 32,000 lesser prairie chickens left.

Since the listing, multiple efforts have been made by Republicans on a local and national level to overturn protections. Lawmakers and public officials say ranchers, as well as the oil and gas industry, would be hurt.

Others have tried to walk a middle ground, compensating ranchers for sharing their land with the birds.

Wayne Walker, principal of Common Ground Capital, has put forward conservation banking as a solution to the feud between ranchers and birds. Conservation banking functions as an agreement among USFWS, landowners and developers. Landowners who preserve their land are given mitigation credits to sell to developers and businesses.

Common Ground Capital pays landowners who preserve their land through a system of conservation banking, selling mitigation credits to mainly energy industries. CGC partnered with Gardiner Angus Ranch last year and is currently finalizing a deal for almost 3,000 acres of preservation in Scott City with the Hoeme family. The deal is likely to be the&nbsp;largest conservation bank easement in Kansas.

“This is the last of the last of the great prairie ecosystem and Western legacy heritage that we have,” Walker said. “And the reason the prairie chickens are there is because they are still in a native state, and they’ve been well taken care of by generations and landowners.”

Walker said political rhetoric sometimes got in the way of reaching agreements, especially with politicians ramping up campaigns against bird protections in recent months.

“The playbook of these associations is that federal overreach is bad, ESA is bad and there’s just not enough people around that have seen a win-win sort of thing like we offer because it wasn’t even there until a few years ago,” Walker said.

“It was a challenge before the chicken was super politically kryptonite,” Walker added.

In April, Kansas joined Texas and Oklahoma in a lawsuit to block the listing. Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach said the federal ruling would interfere with the rights of landowners in the state and make oil drilling almost impossible in the western part of the state. He is one of several Republicans to argue that rainfall affects the bird populations and that when the state’s current drought ends, lesser prairie chicken numbers will bounce back.

“It will have devastating impacts on Kansas ranchers, Kansas oil producers and even Kansas wind farms. And on top of that, it’s illegal,” Kobach said at the&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="http://administration/">time of the lawsuit announcement</a>.

Earlier this month, Congress began efforts to overturn the listing through a Congressional Review Act&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/senate-joint-resolution/9/text?s=1&amp;r=1&amp;q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22S.J.Res.9%22%5D%7D">resolution</a>, carried by Kansas Republican Sen. Roger Marshall. The Senate approved the resolution, but President Joe Biden’s administration has vowed to veto the resolution if it passes.

Walker said starting easement efforts for the prairie chicken could help open the door to wider preservation of Kansas’ prairie grasslands.

“You hear a lot of people talking about how we’re going to save the prairie grasslands in Kansas and southern plains, and this one thing alone won’t do it,” Walker said. “But what this will do is it will force the conversation outside of the prairie chicken so that people can see you’re gonna want to save this stuff.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/11/1668724822944.png" alt="&nbsp;A western Kansas conservation deal in the works earmarks thousands of acres for the lesser prairie chicken. (Greg Kramos/USFWS) " />
 <figcaption>&nbsp;A western Kansas conservation deal in the works earmarks thousands of acres for the lesser prairie chicken. (Greg Kramos/USFWS) </figcaption>
 </figure>BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/rmipro/">RACHEL MIPRO</a> <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Relefctor</a> TOPEKA — A western Kansas conservation deal in the works that earmarks thousands of acres for the lesser prairie chicken could pave the way for future conservation.The lesser prairie chicken, known for its colorful spring mating dance, has been embroiled in a tug-of-war between environmental advocates and oil and gas industry opponents for years.The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://kansasreflector.com/2022/11/17/federal-wildlife-officials-list-lesser-prairie-chicken-as-threatened-in-kansas/">listed the lesser prairie chicken as threatened</a>&nbsp;in Kansas in late 2022, saying the agency would determine areas of critical habitat for the bird. At the time of the listing, the organization estimated 90 percent of the bird’s habitat — unbroken tracts of native grasses — had vanished, leaving an estimated 32,000 lesser prairie chickens left.Since the listing, multiple efforts have been made by Republicans on a local and national level to overturn protections. Lawmakers and public officials say ranchers, as well as the oil and gas industry, would be hurt.Others have tried to walk a middle ground, compensating ranchers for sharing their land with the birds.Wayne Walker, principal of Common Ground Capital, has put forward conservation banking as a solution to the feud between ranchers and birds. Conservation banking functions as an agreement among USFWS, landowners and developers. Landowners who preserve their land are given mitigation credits to sell to developers and businesses.Common Ground Capital pays landowners who preserve their land through a system of conservation banking, selling mitigation credits to mainly energy industries. CGC partnered with Gardiner Angus Ranch last year and is currently finalizing a deal for almost 3,000 acres of preservation in Scott City with the Hoeme family. The deal is likely to be the&nbsp;largest conservation bank easement in Kansas.“This is the last of the last of the great prairie ecosystem and Western legacy heritage that we have,” Walker said. “And the reason the prairie chickens are there is because they are still in a native state, and they’ve been well taken care of by generations and landowners.”Walker said political rhetoric sometimes got in the way of reaching agreements, especially with politicians ramping up campaigns against bird protections in recent months.“The playbook of these associations is that federal overreach is bad, ESA is bad and there’s just not enough people around that have seen a win-win sort of thing like we offer because it wasn’t even there until a few years ago,” Walker said.“It was a challenge before the chicken was super politically kryptonite,” Walker added.In April, Kansas joined Texas and Oklahoma in a lawsuit to block the listing. Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach said the federal ruling would interfere with the rights of landowners in the state and make oil drilling almost impossible in the western part of the state. He is one of several Republicans to argue that rainfall affects the bird populations and that when the state’s current drought ends, lesser prairie chicken numbers will bounce back.“It will have devastating impacts on Kansas ranchers, Kansas oil producers and even Kansas wind farms. And on top of that, it’s illegal,” Kobach said at the&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="http://administration/">time of the lawsuit announcement</a>.Earlier this month, Congress began efforts to overturn the listing through a Congressional Review Act&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/senate-joint-resolution/9/text?s=1&amp;r=1&amp;q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22S.J.Res.9%22%5D%7D">resolution</a>, carried by Kansas Republican Sen. Roger Marshall. The Senate approved the resolution, but President Joe Biden’s administration has vowed to veto the resolution if it passes.Walker said starting easement efforts for the prairie chicken could help open the door to wider preservation of Kansas’ prairie grasslands.“You hear a lot of people talking about how we’re going to save the prairie grasslands in Kansas and southern plains, and this one thing alone won’t do it,” Walker said. “But what this will do is it will force the conversation outside of the prairie chicken so that people can see you’re gonna want to save this stuff.”

Conservation banking identified as potential solution to lesser prairie chicken debate in Kansas

BY JERRY BRECHEISEN JC POST

On this episode of Coffee Talk, Tiffany Naccarato and Tammy Melton join Jerry in the 107.9 FM/1420 KJCK studio to talk about the vision, design, construction phases and business plan for the Paradox Coffee Shop &amp; Bistro.&nbsp;

BY JERRY BRECHEISEN JC POST<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1687536355633.png" alt=" " />
 <figcaption> </figcaption>
 </figure><div><iframe title="Tiffany Naccarato and Tammy Melton, Paradox Coffee & Bistro" allowtransparency="true" height="300" width="100%" style="border: none; min-width: min(100%, 430px);" scrolling="no" data-name="pb-iframe-player" src="https://www.podbean.com/player-v2/?i=p54gk-143d176-pb&from=pb6admin&square=1&share=1&download=1&rtl=0&fonts=Arial&skin=1&font-color=auto&logo_link=episode_page&btn-skin=60a0c8&size=300" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div>On this episode of Coffee Talk, Tiffany Naccarato and Tammy Melton join Jerry in the 107.9 FM/1420 KJCK studio to talk about the vision, design, construction phases and business plan for the Paradox Coffee Shop &amp; Bistro.&nbsp;

🎙'Coffee Talk' podcast with Paradox Coffee

Written by Julia Debes for Kansas Wheat This is day 5 of the Kansas Wheat Harvest Reports, brought to you by the Kansas Wheat Commission, Kansas Association of Wheat Growers, Kansas Grain and Feed Association and the Kansas Cooperative Council.

The Kansas wheat harvest is 21 percent complete, well behind 54 percent last year and 38 percent for the five-year average, according to the official statistics provided by the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service crop progress report for the week ending June 25, 2023. Maturity was rated at 58 percent, also behind 84 percent last year and the 77 percent five-year average.&nbsp;

Winter wheat conditions were rated at 53 percent very poor to poor, 31 percent fair and 16 percent good to excellent.&nbsp;

After several delays, Kansas farmers are finally seeing harvest weather. With this week’s hot temperatures, harvest is ramping up.

In Rice County in south-central Kansas, Brian Sieker has been cutting a sparse wheat crop a few miles west of Chase.&nbsp;

“I am pretty fortunate we even have wheat to cut this year,” Sieker said.&nbsp;

In the fall, the wheat was off to what looked like a great start, but as the year progressed, snows and rain events seemed a thing of the past, and the wheat used up any residual moisture. Now, with harvest in full swing around the area, some neighbors did not even bother to bring out their combines, opting to abandon their wheat and move on to a different crop.&nbsp;

For Sieker, yields have ranged as high as mid-thirties down into the teens. Moisture was normal at 11 percent and the test weights in some of his nearby fields were doing fairly well at 60 pounds per bushel.&nbsp;

“You go further west, they have it worse,” Sieker said. “We are just thankful to have some fields worth cutting.”&nbsp;

On top of the usual hustle and bustle of wheat harvest, it has been extra busy with Sieker switching between a combine cab with a swather cab depending on the current state of dew points and humidity as he also produces alfalfa hay, corn, soybeans and sorghum.&nbsp;

Eastern Kansas farmers who escaped the extreme drought conditions are seeing different yield results. In Montgomery County, sixth-generation farmer Jesse Muller started cutting his hard red winter wheat on June 13 but also had delays due to rain. Farming the land that has been in his family for multiple generations makes farming significantly more meaningful for Muller. This year’s crop, unlike other parts of the state, has Muller needing to calibrate his combine more often.&nbsp;

Muller is seeing a wide variety of yields across his fields, ranging anywhere from 20 bushels per acre in some spots up above 70 to 80 bushels per acre in others. Test weights are averaging above 60 pounds per bushel in his fields, which were planted to a Kansas Wheat Alliance variety with excellent head scab tolerance.&nbsp;

“Yields are better than expected on most fields, especially following corn due to the excess nitrogen from last year,” Muller said, explaining that his family was lucky to be in the pocket that received rains when they needed them.&nbsp;

“We’re seeing a wide array of variability, with some bright spots and some expected frustrations of lower-than-average yields, and some disastrous yields,” said Kansas Wheat CEO Justin Gilpin. “Overall, reported yields range from ten to 70 bushels per acre, with the averages in the 30s from what I’ve seen. I’ve also heard a lot of reports of proteins above 12%.”

Keep track of the Kansas Wheat crew as they continue their harvest tour. Look for a special edition harvest report on the soft red winter wheat crop&nbsp;on June 27.

The 2023 Harvest Report is brought to you by the Kansas Wheat Commission, Kansas Association of Wheat Growers, Kansas Grain and Feed Association and the Kansas Cooperative Council. To follow along with harvest updates on Twitter, use #wheatharvest23. Tag us at @kansaswheat on&nbsp;<a href="https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001k13lpC8yUtcPydXfrXj1qrA_9JCbV6bdbcJu4FClWIQGsFyTdeX6CV8KAbPP415-j-9xfEYB7-gx8w2KHIELWz2baMQ9J2-WyZtfjdKB4QJu4rXfRr4aR7Rst_9c7TLBIUQCXZICQD7i9dQVTcse7z_3U5WvhnFz&amp;c=2jJJhjaRXmsaO2FK1y7BuyXB8-BZYLqjIPvKAxwhi-b0HYPddTaI1Q==&amp;ch=kRcP7-D0AjwaNu6LLMk0PlYWI4Y-ZbxQ55c99rlDgMhOZLSX1boMqA==" target="_blank">Facebook</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001k13lpC8yUtcPydXfrXj1qrA_9JCbV6bdbcJu4FClWIQGsFyTdeX6CVisq5f4wsRWuhmvxNNEXrhztg2z08V7rUlzy8m93KM7lbnPm17iKS8LC6DvqGSkY1Mdw6nkueojZjrPJm9ofAoJ3vF7MEoX_dDbDagEj1f1&amp;c=2jJJhjaRXmsaO2FK1y7BuyXB8-BZYLqjIPvKAxwhi-b0HYPddTaI1Q==&amp;ch=kRcP7-D0AjwaNu6LLMk0PlYWI4Y-ZbxQ55c99rlDgMhOZLSX1boMqA==" target="_blank">Instagram</a>and&nbsp;<a href="https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001k13lpC8yUtcPydXfrXj1qrA_9JCbV6bdbcJu4FClWIQGsFyTdeX6CfCB4W7w9VDr7E4SBeDPFeKewYjvjpnorUuYjNFPwc4jOva1X-SzvgEAlol910Xi_zEV3zI8Ct5fqJ_RpqODUZGpzoakeJIEEKzdBSVyO53E&amp;c=2jJJhjaRXmsaO2FK1y7BuyXB8-BZYLqjIPvKAxwhi-b0HYPddTaI1Q==&amp;ch=kRcP7-D0AjwaNu6LLMk0PlYWI4Y-ZbxQ55c99rlDgMhOZLSX1boMqA==" target="_blank">Twitter</a>&nbsp;to share your harvest story and photos.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1687828465419.png" alt="Kansas Wheat Report Day 5. Photo Courtesy Kansas Wheat&nbsp;" />
 <figcaption>Kansas Wheat Report Day 5. Photo Courtesy Kansas Wheat&nbsp;</figcaption>
 </figure> Written by Julia Debes for Kansas Wheat This is day 5 of the Kansas Wheat Harvest Reports, brought to you by the Kansas Wheat Commission, Kansas Association of Wheat Growers, Kansas Grain and Feed Association and the Kansas Cooperative Council.The Kansas wheat harvest is 21 percent complete, well behind 54 percent last year and 38 percent for the five-year average, according to the official statistics provided by the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service crop progress report for the week ending June 25, 2023. Maturity was rated at 58 percent, also behind 84 percent last year and the 77 percent five-year average.&nbsp;Winter wheat conditions were rated at 53 percent very poor to poor, 31 percent fair and 16 percent good to excellent.&nbsp;After several delays, Kansas farmers are finally seeing harvest weather. With this week’s hot temperatures, harvest is ramping up.In Rice County in south-central Kansas, Brian Sieker has been cutting a sparse wheat crop a few miles west of Chase.&nbsp;“I am pretty fortunate we even have wheat to cut this year,” Sieker said.&nbsp;In the fall, the wheat was off to what looked like a great start, but as the year progressed, snows and rain events seemed a thing of the past, and the wheat used up any residual moisture. Now, with harvest in full swing around the area, some neighbors did not even bother to bring out their combines, opting to abandon their wheat and move on to a different crop.&nbsp;For Sieker, yields have ranged as high as mid-thirties down into the teens. Moisture was normal at 11 percent and the test weights in some of his nearby fields were doing fairly well at 60 pounds per bushel.&nbsp;“You go further west, they have it worse,” Sieker said. “We are just thankful to have some fields worth cutting.”&nbsp;On top of the usual hustle and bustle of wheat harvest, it has been extra busy with Sieker switching between a combine cab with a swather cab depending on the current state of dew points and humidity as he also produces alfalfa hay, corn, soybeans and sorghum.&nbsp;Eastern Kansas farmers who escaped the extreme drought conditions are seeing different yield results. In Montgomery County, sixth-generation farmer Jesse Muller started cutting his hard red winter wheat on June 13 but also had delays due to rain. Farming the land that has been in his family for multiple generations makes farming significantly more meaningful for Muller. This year’s crop, unlike other parts of the state, has Muller needing to calibrate his combine more often.&nbsp;Muller is seeing a wide variety of yields across his fields, ranging anywhere from 20 bushels per acre in some spots up above 70 to 80 bushels per acre in others. Test weights are averaging above 60 pounds per bushel in his fields, which were planted to a Kansas Wheat Alliance variety with excellent head scab tolerance.&nbsp;“Yields are better than expected on most fields, especially following corn due to the excess nitrogen from last year,” Muller said, explaining that his family was lucky to be in the pocket that received rains when they needed them.&nbsp;“We’re seeing a wide array of variability, with some bright spots and some expected frustrations of lower-than-average yields, and some disastrous yields,” said Kansas Wheat CEO Justin Gilpin. “Overall, reported yields range from ten to 70 bushels per acre, with the averages in the 30s from what I’ve seen. I’ve also heard a lot of reports of proteins above 12%.”Keep track of the Kansas Wheat crew as they continue their harvest tour. Look for a special edition harvest report on the soft red winter wheat crop&nbsp;on June 27.The 2023 Harvest Report is brought to you by the Kansas Wheat Commission, Kansas Association of Wheat Growers, Kansas Grain and Feed Association and the Kansas Cooperative Council. To follow along with harvest updates on Twitter, use #wheatharvest23. Tag us at @kansaswheat on&nbsp;<a href="https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001k13lpC8yUtcPydXfrXj1qrA_9JCbV6bdbcJu4FClWIQGsFyTdeX6CV8KAbPP415-j-9xfEYB7-gx8w2KHIELWz2baMQ9J2-WyZtfjdKB4QJu4rXfRr4aR7Rst_9c7TLBIUQCXZICQD7i9dQVTcse7z_3U5WvhnFz&amp;c=2jJJhjaRXmsaO2FK1y7BuyXB8-BZYLqjIPvKAxwhi-b0HYPddTaI1Q==&amp;ch=kRcP7-D0AjwaNu6LLMk0PlYWI4Y-ZbxQ55c99rlDgMhOZLSX1boMqA==" target="_blank">Facebook</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001k13lpC8yUtcPydXfrXj1qrA_9JCbV6bdbcJu4FClWIQGsFyTdeX6CVisq5f4wsRWuhmvxNNEXrhztg2z08V7rUlzy8m93KM7lbnPm17iKS8LC6DvqGSkY1Mdw6nkueojZjrPJm9ofAoJ3vF7MEoX_dDbDagEj1f1&amp;c=2jJJhjaRXmsaO2FK1y7BuyXB8-BZYLqjIPvKAxwhi-b0HYPddTaI1Q==&amp;ch=kRcP7-D0AjwaNu6LLMk0PlYWI4Y-ZbxQ55c99rlDgMhOZLSX1boMqA==" target="_blank">Instagram</a>and&nbsp;<a href="https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001k13lpC8yUtcPydXfrXj1qrA_9JCbV6bdbcJu4FClWIQGsFyTdeX6CfCB4W7w9VDr7E4SBeDPFeKewYjvjpnorUuYjNFPwc4jOva1X-SzvgEAlol910Xi_zEV3zI8Ct5fqJ_RpqODUZGpzoakeJIEEKzdBSVyO53E&amp;c=2jJJhjaRXmsaO2FK1y7BuyXB8-BZYLqjIPvKAxwhi-b0HYPddTaI1Q==&amp;ch=kRcP7-D0AjwaNu6LLMk0PlYWI4Y-ZbxQ55c99rlDgMhOZLSX1boMqA==" target="_blank">Twitter</a>&nbsp;to share your harvest story and photos.

Day 5, Kansas Wheat Harvest Report

Recent Booking Activity for the Geary County Detention Center. All persons included in this post are innocent of crimes until proven guilty in a court of law.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1687790506499.jpeg" alt="Brandon Michael Hilliard, Unlawful damage to property; Failure to appear; Arrested 06/25/2023" />
 <figcaption>Brandon Michael Hilliard, Unlawful damage to property; Failure to appear; Arrested 06/25/2023</figcaption>
 </figure>Recent Booking Activity for the Geary County Detention Center. All persons included in this post are innocent of crimes until proven guilty in a court of law.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Geary County Booking Photos June 26

RILEY COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating alleged financial crimes in Manhattan.

On Friday, police arrested 36-year-old Kimberly Kilgore of Manhattan on a Riley County District Court warrant for failure to appear, according to the Riley County Police Department activity report.

This warrant stems from an original charge of forgery. Kilgore was issued a total bond of $20,000 for this warrant and remains confined in the Riley County Jail.

RILEY COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating alleged financial crimes in Manhattan.On Friday, police arrested 36-year-old Kimberly Kilgore of Manhattan on a Riley County District Court warrant for failure to appear, according to the Riley County Police Department activity report.This warrant stems from an original charge of forgery. Kilgore was issued a total bond of $20,000 for this warrant and remains confined in the Riley County Jail.

Manhattan woman accused of forgery jailed for skipping court

RILEY COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investing an alleged violent altercation in Manhattan.

Just after 1:30a.m. Sunday, officers filed a report for battery and criminal damage to property in the 500 block of N. Manhattan Ave. in Manhattan, according to the Riley County Police Department activity report.

 A 24-year-old man reported four unknown men punched and kicked him causing his eyeglasses to break before running away. The victim was transported to Via Christi for treatment of neck and head pain. 

Anyone with information can contact&nbsp;<a href="https://www.rileycountypolice.org/287/Crime-Stoppers">Crime Stoppers</a>. Using Crime Stoppers allows you to remain anonymous and could qualify you for a cash reward of up to $1,000.

RILEY COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investing an alleged violent altercation in Manhattan.Just after 1:30a.m. Sunday, officers filed a report for battery and criminal damage to property in the 500 block of N. Manhattan Ave. in Manhattan, according to the Riley County Police Department activity report. A 24-year-old man reported four unknown men punched and kicked him causing his eyeglasses to break before running away. The victim was transported to Via Christi for treatment of neck and head pain. Anyone with information can contact&nbsp;<a href="https://www.rileycountypolice.org/287/Crime-Stoppers">Crime Stoppers</a>. Using Crime Stoppers allows you to remain anonymous and could qualify you for a cash reward of up to $1,000.

RCPD: Man hospitalized after 4 suspects attacked him

Some officials have called Emporia State, reeling from layoffs and program upheaval, a test case for approach

BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/rmipro/">RACHEL MIPRO</a> <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a>

TOPEKA — The state Board of Regents unveiled a plan to identify and potentially chop academic programs they deem underperforming at all six of the state’s public universities, in what some warn could be a repeat of the contentious layoffs at Emporia State University.&nbsp;

Starting this summer, Regents staff will make a list of undergraduate academic programs that are more than five years old and fall short of two or more of the board’s chosen metrics for the University of Kansas, Kansas State University, Wichita State University, Emporia State University, Fort Hays State University and Pittsburg State University.&nbsp;

<a href="https://hayspost.com/posts/6490bbfa-d4d8-4d7b-b490-2ffad4c755ce">RELATED STORY: FHSU provost: No faculty cuts planned in light of college reorganization</a>

Daniel Archer, vice president of student affairs with KBOR, said the focus on undergraduate programs was partly due to declining enrollment in a June 14 presentation.

<a href="https://hayspost.com/posts/4d1305d2-d547-4286-b892-d233575130d9">RELATED STORY: FHSU enrollment down 8%; NCK-Tech enrollment at five-year high</a>

“We’re diving into really a deep dive here into the undergraduate programs here,” Archer said. “Part of that’s because that’s where we lost youth. If you look at our enrollment declines, there’s been a greater impact on the undergraduate population.”

But Michael DeCesare, a senior program officer for American Association of University Professors, said “it would be a travesty” for the process used at Emporia State “to spread across the entire system.”

Program performance standards will include having 25 or more students enrolled in the program, producing more than 10 graduates from the program, having 51 percent or more of graduates working in the region after graduation and student return on investment. That return will be evaluated by having a salary of $38,050 or higher, a number determined by the five-year post graduation median salary for 2022.&nbsp;

In September, the Board of Academic Affairs Standing Committee will review the list of programs before turning the program list over to universities. The schools will have three options: axing the underperforming program, merging the undergraduate program with another program in a cost-effective way or to making an action plan for the program, buying it three years.

By March of 2024, all state universities will give their decisions to the committee, which will make the final call on whether the undergraduate program in question should be phased out, merged or put on an action plan. Over the following years, the universities will give reviews on the program’s progress and effectiveness.&nbsp;

Regents spokesman Matt Keith said the board used input from academic affairs leaders across the state universities in making the revised process.&nbsp;

“The Regents and state university leaders recognized that the process needed strengthening and began a thorough academic portfolio review last year,” Keith said. “Following the completion of that review earlier this year, the Board Academic Affairs Standing Committee worked with the state university provosts to revise the academic program review process and better align it with the Board’s strategic plan.”&nbsp;

Tanya Gonzalez, interim associate provost for institutional effectiveness at Kansas State University, said the review process was aligned well with the university’s pre-existing internal review process.&nbsp;

“Some advantages to KBOR’s updated program review process is that it asks institutions to develop meaningful processes for their internal review; make data-driven decisions; share those processes and outcomes with the Regents; and use program review success stories to external stakeholders,” Gonzalez said.&nbsp;

But others point to Emporia State’s realignment plan as an example of what could happen when the Regents are involved with program decisions.&nbsp;The university fired nearly three dozen faculty members,&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://kansasreflector.com/2022/09/13/emporia-state-university-is-about-to-suspend-tenure-heres-why-you-should-care/">including those with tenure</a>, and eliminated English, journalism and other programs in 2022 due to programs not meeting certain metrics.&nbsp;

ESU also recently announced plans to merge several departments and programs, including merging the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences into their new School of Science &amp; Mathematics.&nbsp;

<a href="https://hayspost.com/posts/3998b4da-514c-41d4-8ae5-33aa6416fe49">Students and faculty raised concerns about consolidation at FHSU within the College of Art, Humanities and Social Sciences in spring 2022. However, that consolidation was completed as scheduled the following fall.</a>

The American Association of University Professors&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://kansasreflector.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/aaup_EmporiaState_Final.pdf">investigation</a>&nbsp;found&nbsp; the actions taken by ESU president Ken Hush with&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://kansasreflector.com/2022/09/14/emporia-state-receives-green-light-to-move-rapidly-with-faculty-program-realignment/">the KBOR support</a>&nbsp;were little more than an attack on academic freedom. The investigation concluded university administrators and Kansas Board of Regents members&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://kansasreflector.com/2023/05/01/emporia-state-university-kansas-board-of-regents-members-unfit-to-lead-investigation-finds/">are “unfit to lead.</a>”

Former ESU English professor Rachelle Smith, who worked at ESU for 28 years before her job was eliminated, said she and her colleagues saw the Regents’ actions at ESU as a test case.&nbsp;

“I’m not surprised that KBOR has come out with this decision,”&nbsp; Smith said. “We wondered and suspected that ESU was just the beginning of what would happen with the other regional schools in the state.”&nbsp;

Smith, who taught courses in indigenous literature and science fiction during her last semester at ESU, believed the firings and department dissolving were the result of political pressures due to a significant faction within the GOP-controlled state Legislature that disapproves of diversity and multicultural teaching.&nbsp;

She said the review process could be a convenient way for institutions to get rid of any curriculum they didn’t want taught.&nbsp;

“The individual institutions themselves can use that as an opportunity to get rid of people that they don’t want and to get rid of programs that they don’t want and to ensure that research goes in directions that they want,” Smith said.&nbsp;

DeCesare, who served as one of the ESU investigators for AAUPP, said it was difficult to trust the Regents’ intentions with other public universities. DeCesare said a board that had already “abused power in the recent past” shouldn’t be judging other academic programs.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“It was the board, as the report says, that initiated the process that assaulted tenure and imperiled academic freedom at ESU,” DeCesare said.

He warned that the bipartisan nine-person board, all of whom were appointed by Gov. Laura Kelly, could be prone to political pressures.&nbsp;

“When educators don’t make decisions anymore about what education looks like, and when those decisions are in the hands of presidents and provosts and governing board members instead, it just kind of begs for to create a system that is ripe for political interference, political pressure, ideological interference, and all kinds of things that have no place in an institution of higher education,” Decesare said.

For Smith, the timing of the review process is suspicious.&nbsp;

“I don’t think it is innocuous,” Smith said. “I think that the current board is working hand in hand with the state Legislature to enact political goals of a conservative nature.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1687538649089.jpeg" alt="&nbsp;The Kansas Board of Regents unveiled an academic review process in June for all the public universities in the state. Some worry this could lead to situations such as the Emporia State University firings, where tenured staff and long-standing programs were cut abruptly. (Mason Hart for Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption>&nbsp;The Kansas Board of Regents unveiled an academic review process in June for all the public universities in the state. Some worry this could lead to situations such as the Emporia State University firings, where tenured staff and long-standing programs were cut abruptly. (Mason Hart for Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure><h2>Some officials have called Emporia State, reeling from layoffs and program upheaval, a test case for approach</h2>BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/rmipro/">RACHEL MIPRO</a> <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a>TOPEKA — The state Board of Regents unveiled a plan to identify and potentially chop academic programs they deem underperforming at all six of the state’s public universities, in what some warn could be a repeat of the contentious layoffs at Emporia State University.&nbsp;Starting this summer, Regents staff will make a list of undergraduate academic programs that are more than five years old and fall short of two or more of the board’s chosen metrics for the University of Kansas, Kansas State University, Wichita State University, Emporia State University, Fort Hays State University and Pittsburg State University.&nbsp;<a href="https://hayspost.com/posts/6490bbfa-d4d8-4d7b-b490-2ffad4c755ce">RELATED STORY: FHSU provost: No faculty cuts planned in light of college reorganization</a>Daniel Archer, vice president of student affairs with KBOR, said the focus on undergraduate programs was partly due to declining enrollment in a June 14 presentation.<a href="https://hayspost.com/posts/4d1305d2-d547-4286-b892-d233575130d9">RELATED STORY: FHSU enrollment down 8%; NCK-Tech enrollment at five-year high</a>“We’re diving into really a deep dive here into the undergraduate programs here,” Archer said. “Part of that’s because that’s where we lost youth. If you look at our enrollment declines, there’s been a greater impact on the undergraduate population.”But Michael DeCesare, a senior program officer for American Association of University Professors, said “it would be a travesty” for the process used at Emporia State “to spread across the entire system.”Program performance standards will include having 25 or more students enrolled in the program, producing more than 10 graduates from the program, having 51 percent or more of graduates working in the region after graduation and student return on investment. That return will be evaluated by having a salary of $38,050 or higher, a number determined by the five-year post graduation median salary for 2022.&nbsp;In September, the Board of Academic Affairs Standing Committee will review the list of programs before turning the program list over to universities. The schools will have three options: axing the underperforming program, merging the undergraduate program with another program in a cost-effective way or to making an action plan for the program, buying it three years.By March of 2024, all state universities will give their decisions to the committee, which will make the final call on whether the undergraduate program in question should be phased out, merged or put on an action plan. Over the following years, the universities will give reviews on the program’s progress and effectiveness.&nbsp;Regents spokesman Matt Keith said the board used input from academic affairs leaders across the state universities in making the revised process.&nbsp;“The Regents and state university leaders recognized that the process needed strengthening and began a thorough academic portfolio review last year,” Keith said. “Following the completion of that review earlier this year, the Board Academic Affairs Standing Committee worked with the state university provosts to revise the academic program review process and better align it with the Board’s strategic plan.”&nbsp;Tanya Gonzalez, interim associate provost for institutional effectiveness at Kansas State University, said the review process was aligned well with the university’s pre-existing internal review process.&nbsp;“Some advantages to KBOR’s updated program review process is that it asks institutions to develop meaningful processes for their internal review; make data-driven decisions; share those processes and outcomes with the Regents; and use program review success stories to external stakeholders,” Gonzalez said.&nbsp;But others point to Emporia State’s realignment plan as an example of what could happen when the Regents are involved with program decisions.&nbsp;The university fired nearly three dozen faculty members,&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://kansasreflector.com/2022/09/13/emporia-state-university-is-about-to-suspend-tenure-heres-why-you-should-care/">including those with tenure</a>, and eliminated English, journalism and other programs in 2022 due to programs not meeting certain metrics.&nbsp;ESU also recently announced plans to merge several departments and programs, including merging the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences into their new School of Science &amp; Mathematics.&nbsp;<a href="https://hayspost.com/posts/3998b4da-514c-41d4-8ae5-33aa6416fe49">Students and faculty raised concerns about consolidation at FHSU within the College of Art, Humanities and Social Sciences in spring 2022. However, that consolidation was completed as scheduled the following fall.</a>The American Association of University Professors&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://kansasreflector.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/aaup_EmporiaState_Final.pdf">investigation</a>&nbsp;found&nbsp; the actions taken by ESU president Ken Hush with&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://kansasreflector.com/2022/09/14/emporia-state-receives-green-light-to-move-rapidly-with-faculty-program-realignment/">the KBOR support</a>&nbsp;were little more than an attack on academic freedom. The investigation concluded university administrators and Kansas Board of Regents members&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://kansasreflector.com/2023/05/01/emporia-state-university-kansas-board-of-regents-members-unfit-to-lead-investigation-finds/">are “unfit to lead.</a>”Former ESU English professor Rachelle Smith, who worked at ESU for 28 years before her job was eliminated, said she and her colleagues saw the Regents’ actions at ESU as a test case.&nbsp;“I’m not surprised that KBOR has come out with this decision,”&nbsp; Smith said. “We wondered and suspected that ESU was just the beginning of what would happen with the other regional schools in the state.”&nbsp;Smith, who taught courses in indigenous literature and science fiction during her last semester at ESU, believed the firings and department dissolving were the result of political pressures due to a significant faction within the GOP-controlled state Legislature that disapproves of diversity and multicultural teaching.&nbsp;She said the review process could be a convenient way for institutions to get rid of any curriculum they didn’t want taught.&nbsp;“The individual institutions themselves can use that as an opportunity to get rid of people that they don’t want and to get rid of programs that they don’t want and to ensure that research goes in directions that they want,” Smith said.&nbsp;DeCesare, who served as one of the ESU investigators for AAUPP, said it was difficult to trust the Regents’ intentions with other public universities. DeCesare said a board that had already “abused power in the recent past” shouldn’t be judging other academic programs.&nbsp;&nbsp;“It was the board, as the report says, that initiated the process that assaulted tenure and imperiled academic freedom at ESU,” DeCesare said.He warned that the bipartisan nine-person board, all of whom were appointed by Gov. Laura Kelly, could be prone to political pressures.&nbsp;“When educators don’t make decisions anymore about what education looks like, and when those decisions are in the hands of presidents and provosts and governing board members instead, it just kind of begs for to create a system that is ripe for political interference, political pressure, ideological interference, and all kinds of things that have no place in an institution of higher education,” Decesare said.For Smith, the timing of the review process is suspicious.&nbsp;“I don’t think it is innocuous,” Smith said. “I think that the current board is working hand in hand with the state Legislature to enact political goals of a conservative nature.”

‘I don’t think it’s innocuous’: Kansas Board of Regents’ process scrutinizes academic programs

Geary County Schools USD 475 will not be serving Public Lunch on July 3rd or 4th, according to&nbsp;Shelly Gunderson&nbsp;Director of Child Nutrition.

The Summer Lunch Program will restart on Wednesday,&nbsp; July 5th at Lincoln Elementary and Seitz Elementary 11:30 am to 12:30 p.m.&nbsp; The program is free to anyone ages 1 to 18 years old.&nbsp; There is no paperwork required.&nbsp; Meals must be consumed on site

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1686328272580.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Geary County Schools USD 475 will not be serving Public Lunch on July 3rd or 4th, according to&nbsp;Shelly Gunderson&nbsp;Director of Child Nutrition.The Summer Lunch Program will restart on Wednesday,&nbsp; July 5th at Lincoln Elementary and Seitz Elementary 11:30 am to 12:30 p.m.&nbsp; The program is free to anyone ages 1 to 18 years old.&nbsp; There is no paperwork required.&nbsp; Meals must be consumed on site

USD 475 summer lunch holiday schedule

This past week we began the first official day of Summer and each day until a little before Christmas we will have less and less daylight. Of course, we also have the warmer weather and many summer time activities and in a little over a week we can enjoy the five days of the Freedom Fest JC Celebration in Heritage Park. Before long you will hear the fireworks in our community as we celebrate the 247th Birthday of the United States. Or you can go to Rathert Field and watch the Junction City Brigade play in this Historic Ball Park. However, at the same time, local units of government are moving towards the “Finish Line” in preparing and completing their budget for the coming year.

City staff has worked on the budget for the past three or so months. Of course, I always say that the budget is a “year-round, 365 day” activity. How the City funds are spent daily affect the amount of cash carryover remaining at the end of the year. The amount of cash carry-over is a “big thing”, but that is truer here in Junction City. All you have to do is to go back about 13 years ago when the City’s financial crisis was at its peak. There were times, I have been told, when the City had less than $100,000 in the bank at any given time and even making payroll was a struggle. In some of the “tough” years, the year-end cash was extremely low. As the result of a great financial plan in the early years, coupled with the discipline over the past 10 or so years, the debt has been paid done substantially and at the same time the year-end cash amount has moved “North”. When General Obligation debt decreases, less money is needed for debt service and can be used elsewhere. Yes, we have more street issues to address.

So how much Cash carry-over or reserve should a City have? We hear the argument that it needs to be kept to a lower, because it is not fair to taxpayers to have a large reserve and taxes could be kept lower. Ok, I can buy that, but on a personal basis we all try to have that “Rainy Day” fund when everything does not go as planned. Same goes for the City. As we discussed earlier this spring, the City has the General Fund for expenses such as Police, Fire, Streets, and Parks and Recreation. The basic revenue for these funds is from property taxes, sales taxes, transfers from enterprise funds, and Cash Carryover. Naturally we don’t want to depend on the Cash Carryover to spend each year as if it drops too much, we have to make up for it in the future with increasing taxes. As the City has worked to improve its financial status, the amount of carryover is greatly considered by rating agencies such as Standard and Poore’s. This rating affects the City’s ability to borrow funds. We all know that everything does not always go as planned and we have to be in a financial position to deal with it.

You often hear the basis of the General Fund budget it the assessed valuation that we recently received from the County Clerk’s Office. As of June 9, the 2023 valuation for Junction City is $214.098,235. The valuation will change some by the time property taxes are levied in November, but that change is minor. This valuation is an increase of $20,208,692 over the final valuation in 2022 that was set in November. Yes, it is an increase of 10.4%. We all have seen our County Assessed values of our properties grow the last couple of years and new construction also helps this amount to get higher. Last year the valuation grew by a bit over $17.5 million from the previous year. On the other hand, for the 10 years previous to 2022, the valuation has stayed flat and even decreased in some years.

Ok, I can hear it now. “Junction City has the highest taxes of any places around”. What is interesting is that comment is probably made in any community. If you just look at the City property taxes, you will have to show me that Junction City is higher than other comparable cities. Remember the property tax bill you receive every November is not only for City property taxes, but for the County, the School District, and there is a small portion for the State. As the largest City in Geary County, the property tax owners in Junction City will pay over 72% of the property taxes for Geary County for the 2024 Budget. Likewise, a large part of the taxes for the School District are paid by property owners in Junction City.

As the City attempts to grow, everyone benefits. The tax base in the City does increase but does as well for the County and the School District. When there is an expense Geary County, regardless of if it is in the Junction City portion of the County or 20 miles out in the rural area, the lion’s share of the tax revenue to fund this is from City property tax payers. Yes, growth is important to the City, but equally as important to others as well.

I have often said that the “Perfect Tax” is one that someone else pays and I don’t have too. Unfortunately, it just does not work that way. Yes, I may complain when I get my property valuation notices or when the tax bill arrives each November, but it is all needed to take care of the place where I live, work, and play.

This past week we began the first official day of Summer and each day until a little before Christmas we will have less and less daylight. Of course, we also have the warmer weather and many summer time activities and in a little over a week we can enjoy the five days of the Freedom Fest JC Celebration in Heritage Park. Before long you will hear the fireworks in our community as we celebrate the 247th Birthday of the United States. Or you can go to Rathert Field and watch the Junction City Brigade play in this Historic Ball Park. However, at the same time, local units of government are moving towards the “Finish Line” in preparing and completing their budget for the coming year.City staff has worked on the budget for the past three or so months. Of course, I always say that the budget is a “year-round, 365 day” activity. How the City funds are spent daily affect the amount of cash carryover remaining at the end of the year. The amount of cash carry-over is a “big thing”, but that is truer here in Junction City. All you have to do is to go back about 13 years ago when the City’s financial crisis was at its peak. There were times, I have been told, when the City had less than $100,000 in the bank at any given time and even making payroll was a struggle. In some of the “tough” years, the year-end cash was extremely low. As the result of a great financial plan in the early years, coupled with the discipline over the past 10 or so years, the debt has been paid done substantially and at the same time the year-end cash amount has moved “North”. When General Obligation debt decreases, less money is needed for debt service and can be used elsewhere. Yes, we have more street issues to address.So how much Cash carry-over or reserve should a City have? We hear the argument that it needs to be kept to a lower, because it is not fair to taxpayers to have a large reserve and taxes could be kept lower. Ok, I can buy that, but on a personal basis we all try to have that “Rainy Day” fund when everything does not go as planned. Same goes for the City. As we discussed earlier this spring, the City has the General Fund for expenses such as Police, Fire, Streets, and Parks and Recreation. The basic revenue for these funds is from property taxes, sales taxes, transfers from enterprise funds, and Cash Carryover. Naturally we don’t want to depend on the Cash Carryover to spend each year as if it drops too much, we have to make up for it in the future with increasing taxes. As the City has worked to improve its financial status, the amount of carryover is greatly considered by rating agencies such as Standard and Poore’s. This rating affects the City’s ability to borrow funds. We all know that everything does not always go as planned and we have to be in a financial position to deal with it.You often hear the basis of the General Fund budget it the assessed valuation that we recently received from the County Clerk’s Office. As of June 9, the 2023 valuation for Junction City is $214.098,235. The valuation will change some by the time property taxes are levied in November, but that change is minor. This valuation is an increase of $20,208,692 over the final valuation in 2022 that was set in November. Yes, it is an increase of 10.4%. We all have seen our County Assessed values of our properties grow the last couple of years and new construction also helps this amount to get higher. Last year the valuation grew by a bit over $17.5 million from the previous year. On the other hand, for the 10 years previous to 2022, the valuation has stayed flat and even decreased in some years.Ok, I can hear it now. “Junction City has the highest taxes of any places around”. What is interesting is that comment is probably made in any community. If you just look at the City property taxes, you will have to show me that Junction City is higher than other comparable cities. Remember the property tax bill you receive every November is not only for City property taxes, but for the County, the School District, and there is a small portion for the State. As the largest City in Geary County, the property tax owners in Junction City will pay over 72% of the property taxes for Geary County for the 2024 Budget. Likewise, a large part of the taxes for the School District are paid by property owners in Junction City.As the City attempts to grow, everyone benefits. The tax base in the City does increase but does as well for the County and the School District. When there is an expense Geary County, regardless of if it is in the Junction City portion of the County or 20 miles out in the rural area, the lion’s share of the tax revenue to fund this is from City property tax payers. Yes, growth is important to the City, but equally as important to others as well.I have often said that the “Perfect Tax” is one that someone else pays and I don’t have too. Unfortunately, it just does not work that way. Yes, I may complain when I get my property valuation notices or when the tax bill arrives each November, but it is all needed to take care of the place where I live, work, and play.

Five Fifteen Report, Allen Dinkel

Recent Booking Activity for the Geary County Detention Center. All persons included in this post are innocent of crimes until proven guilty in a court of law.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1687709771768.jpeg" alt="Jasmine Jeannel Huezo, Failure to appear; Arrested 06/25/2023" />
 <figcaption>Jasmine Jeannel Huezo, Failure to appear; Arrested 06/25/2023</figcaption>
 </figure><figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1687709854088.jpeg" alt="Kevin Deshawn Seldon, Violation of a protection order; Arrested 06/25/2023" />
 <figcaption>Kevin Deshawn Seldon, Violation of a protection order; Arrested 06/25/2023</figcaption>
 </figure>Recent Booking Activity for the Geary County Detention Center. All persons included in this post are innocent of crimes until proven guilty in a court of law.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Geary County Booking Photos June 25

Recent Booking Activity for the Geary County Detention Center. All persons included in this post are innocent of crimes until proven guilty in a court of law.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1687707902276.jpeg" alt="Daniel Joseph Henry, Failure to appear x2; Arrested 06/24/2023" />
 <figcaption>Daniel Joseph Henry, Failure to appear x2; Arrested 06/24/2023</figcaption>
 </figure><figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1687708021325.jpeg" alt="Nolan Michael Stutler, Failure to appear; Arrested on 06/23/2023" />
 <figcaption>Nolan Michael Stutler, Failure to appear; Arrested on 06/23/2023</figcaption>
 </figure><figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1687708125651.jpeg" alt="William Kenneth Taylor, Burglary; Dwelling to commit felony; theft or sexually motivated crime; Criminal damage to property; Without consent value &lt; $1000; Criminal trespass; unknown circumstance; Theft &lt; $1,500 Pocket picking; Failure to appear; Probation violation x2; Arrested 06/23/2023" />
 <figcaption>William Kenneth Taylor, Burglary; Dwelling to commit felony; theft or sexually motivated crime; Criminal damage to property; Without consent value &lt; $1000; Criminal trespass; unknown circumstance; Theft &lt; $1,500 Pocket picking; Failure to appear; Probation violation x2; Arrested 06/23/2023</figcaption>
 </figure>Recent Booking Activity for the Geary County Detention Center. All persons included in this post are innocent of crimes until proven guilty in a court of law.&nbsp;&nbsp;