CAMDEN COUNTY — Two people died in an accident just after 11:30p.m. Friday in Camden County.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported a 1999 Pontiac Firebird driven by Cheryl L. Riegerix, 51, Osage Beach, was westbound on Route KK just west of Oak Creek Drive.
The vehicle traveled across the center line, down an embankment and hit a tree. Riegerix was transported to Lake Regional Hospital where she died. A passenger Cary L. Whitworth, 45, Osage Beach, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Riegerix was not wearing a seat belt, according to the MSHP.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas says its unemployment rate dropped to 3.6 percent in October, but the state continued to see a decline in the number of non-farm jobs over the previous year.
The state Department of Labor reports that the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate last month was lower than September’s 3.8 percent and 4.3 percent for October 2016. Monthly unemployment rates have stayed below 4 percent since March.
But the number of private-sector, non-farm jobs was 4,700 lower in October than in October 2016, a drop of four-tenths of a percentage point.
It was the seventh straight month with lower private-sector job numbers than in 2016.
Kansas also lost 1,700 private-sector jobs from September to October, a decline of one-tenth of a point. Labor Department officials said Friday that retailers hired fewer seasonal workers than anticipated.
NEW YORK (AP) — Honda is recalling about 900,000 of its Odyssey minivans because the second-row seats may tip forward if not properly latched.
The recall announced Saturday covers vehicles from the 2011-17 model years. About 800,000 of the affected minivans were sold in the United States.
Honda says it has received 46 reports of minor injuries related to the issue.
It says the Odyssey’s second-row seat may tip forward during moderate to heavy braking if it isn’t properly latched after adjusting it side-to-side or reinstalling a removed seat.
The company is working on a way to repair the issue and says it will notify owners when one is available. It will be free. Until then, Honda has put instructions for properly latching the seat on its website for owners.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Christmas holiday begins this weekend at Union Station in Kansas City.
The station will offer a day full of family activities Saturday, ending with a holiday lighting ceremony.
The program will include activities such as arts activities and music, while Aerialists, silk dancers, 8-feet tall reindeer and huge inflatable ornaments decorate the hall.
The holiday kickoff will culminate at 6:30 p.m., when the station will be illuminated with colorful lights. And a holiday favorite, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, will be running in the Regnier Extreme Screen Theatre throughout the day.
For the first time, the station will provide an Astro Botanical Garden, an inflatable sculpture garden in the Haverty Family Yards. It will include eight inflatable sculptures between 8 and 15 feet tall that will “grow” as they inflate.
A banner displayed in the middle of the Kansas State University campus. K-State has been rated among the 25 campuses for LGBT students in the country. SAM ZEFF / KANSAS NEWS SERVICE
In the ongoing struggle on college campuses for LGBT equality and acceptance, Kansas State University is an unexpected leader.
K-State is best known for agriculture and football.
On a gorgeous fall day in Manhattan, with the K-State marching band entertaining tailgaters, many fans were surprised to learn that their school was ranked in the 25 campuses for LGBT friendliness by CampusPride.org.
“That’s not the stereotype of Kansas State,” says Aaron Reed from Tonganoxie, who received his undergraduate degree from K-State in 1995 and his doctorate in 2004. Reed says he has not been on campus much in the past decade but calls the rating “great.”
Mike Clark, a 1993 graduate from Mission, says K-State certainly had a conservative feel when he was in school but he always thought of Manhattan as a melting pot.
“You had folks from urban communities, farming communities,” says Clark. “The thing that I always loved about K-State, I still love about K-State, is that everyone always comes together and always has a good time.”
If this was a story about the University of Kansas, few would bat an eyelash.
But it’s about a university on the edge of western Kansas and generally perceived as conservative.
So how did K-State get here?
By most accounts, much of the credit goes to Brandon Haddock, the coordinator in the LGBT Resource Center in the Office of Student Life.
Brandon Haddock runs the K-State LGBT Resource Center and is credited with much of the diversity progress made on campus.-photo by Sam Zeff
Haddock didn’t start out at K-State to transform LGBT life on campus. He came in 2007 for his doctorate at a time when he says there was “no LGBT community in town.”
In 2009, K-State was given 1.5 stars out of five by Campus Pride. The school now rates five out of five stars. Haddock says when he took the job running the LGBT Resource Center he started making friends and allies in all departments.
“What we’ve been able to do at K-State is make sure that colleges like the College of Ag and the College of Engineering that they recognize we have those relationships built, and we have people who are open and affirming about their identity,” he says.
The other person who changed the climate for LGBT students was former president Kirk Schulz who made it a priority. In 2009, K-State was the only university in Kansas with an LGBT resource center.
“People aren’t going to want to come to a school that has biases and prejudices and isn’t a friendly atmosphere. And parents aren’t going to want to send their sons or daughters to those kind of schools,” Myers says.
In fact, Myers says he wants to strengthen K-State’s diversity in other areas. Right now, the university is searching for a chief diversity and inclusion officer. “He or she will report to me directly and be on the president’s cabinet, which is our senior body that does, deliberates university policies and so forth,” Myers says.
If there’s a place where K-State’s friendly atmosphere towards LGBT students is most evident, it’s at the annual drag show that now sells out the 1,500 seat McCain Auditorium.
Theater major Drew George from tiny Uniontown, Kansas is in his fourth year in Manhattan and says he’s seen a lot of change.
“It’s grown so much since I’ve been here,” he says. “It is such a big presence on campus. Like, they did the drag show last year, and they sell out McCain almost every year and that’s just an amazing thing to see.”
It is a much different experience than his hometown or in Fort Scott where he attended community college before coming to Manhattan.
Drew George from Uniontown, Kansas, is a theater major at K-State and a regular visitor to the LGBT Resource Center. photo by SAM ZEFF
“Back home it wasn’t something that anyone even discussed,” he says. “Once I got here and began to see the opportunities that were available, that was an eye opening experience.”
Most of this has happened quietly, but that is changing.
We got a hint of how K-State has changed when Scott Frantz, who starts at left tackle for the Wildcats, came out as gay in July during an ESPN interview.
“I’ve never felt so loved and so accepted ever in my life then when I did that,” he told the network about coming out at a team meeting. “Ever since then it’s been great. I’ve grown so much closer to my teammates since then so it’s been an amazing experience.”
Before Frantz came out, KCUR reported on how K-State is actively recruiting DACA students.
Haddock says the university’s has to prepare students for a life outside of K-State.
“I don’t want a student to go out in the world and have problems in the work place because they are suddenly presented with somebody, working side-by-side with somebody that is a lesbian,” Haddock says.
Emily Stark downtown Maryville mural Nov. 14, 2017 (Photo by Todd Weddle | Northwest Missouri University)
Maryville, Mo. – A Northwest Missouri State University student was inspired to create a mural this fall in downtown Maryville after a summer internship that exposed her to public artwork.
Emily Stark, a senior graphic design major from Holt, Missouri, painted the mural on the exterior wall of Northwest Audio Visual, on Market Street near the downtown square.
“I tend to gravitate toward drawing women a lot, and I just sort of wanted to have something that looked hopeful,” Stark said, adding the title of her mural is “Nurture and Grow.” “I want to plant a seed in Maryville that will nurture and grow the artistic community within the city.”
The mural is Stark’s senior show, a requirement of art majors to display a final piece of artwork prior to graduating.
Stark decided to create the mural after she interned during the summer with InterUrban ArtHouse in Overland Park, Kansas, and saw a need in Maryville for more murals and public artwork. She interned with muralist Nicole Emanuel and mosaic artist Julie Forsyth, and the internship provided her with experiences in design, website management and social media. She assisted on three public art collaborations, including a 16-foot mosaic mural installation.
The mural was Stark’s first experience working with a mosaic, and Forsyth taught her how to work with the materials.
“Throughout the duration of these projects I just I fell in love with public art,” Stark said. “I was incredibly inspired and motivated by the talent and passion of both Nicole and Julie, which led me to want to create a public art piece of my own. If I had not done the internship, the thought to paint this mural in Maryville probably never would have occurred to me.
To create the mural, Stark completed a series of approval processes. She contacted Joyce Cronin, president of the Maryville Public Arts Committee (MPAC), who helped Stark push to get the project approved and find a location. They met with Maryville City Manager Greg McDanel, who viewed Stark’s sketches and ideas and approved the project. Cronin and MPAC contacted several local businesses, and Northwest Audio Visual agreed to provide an exterior space for the mural.
Stark says she has gained experience beyond displaying her artistic talents and developed more confidence as an artist.
“The process of gaining approval taught me a lot about being able to advocate for myself as an artist and the ability to demonstrate the confidence and pride that I have my work,” Stark said.
Emily will host her senior show from 2 to 4 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 18 at the completed mural at 202 E. Third St. in Maryville.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — One of five people accused of strangling or smothering to death three others in a Topeka home over a rape allegation has been sentenced to three life terms.
The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that 34-year-old Joseph Krahn won’t be eligible for release for 150 years under the sentence imposed Friday. He pleaded no contest last month to three first-degree murder charges in the March slayings of 19-year-old Matthew Leavitt, 38-year-old Nicole Fisher and 20-year-old Luke Davis. Prosecutors had considered pursuing the death penalty.
A witness testified during an earlier hearing that one of the other suspects, 19-year-old Shane Mays, was forced to participate to save his life. The witness said Krahn told Mays, “You’re one of the few who gets to see me kill and live.” Mays has pleaded not guilty.
COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) – Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens and a state commission have voted against low-income housing tax credits.
The Columbia Daily Tribune reports the Missouri Housing Development Commission on Friday voted 6-2 against the state awarding $140 million in low-income housing credits this fiscal year. A final vote is still needed.
The Republican governor lauded the move as a way to save money.
The tax credits have been criticized as being inefficient, but backers say cutting them could hurt the availability of low-income housing.
Republican Lt. Gov. Mike Parson says Friday’s vote was drastic and could have a dramatic effect. He had urged his colleagues on the Missouri Housing Development Commission to wait for lawmakers to return to the Capitol next year before weighing in.
TOPEKA – A new rule adopted Thursday by the Federal Communications Commission will allow telephone providers to block calls originating from certain fake phone numbers, a move aimed at reducing the amount of robocalls consumers receive, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said.
Schmidt, along with a bipartisan coalition of 29 other state attorneys general, submitted a comment letter in July in support of the new rules, which will allow providers to block several types of “spoofed” calls, in which a call appears to be coming from one number, but is actually coming from a different number. Scammers frequently use spoofed calls to hide their identity and to trick consumers into believing that their calls are legitimate. The use of these spoofed numbers is particularly prevalent in scams where the caller pretends to be calling from the Internal Revenue Service, law enforcement agencies or utility companies.
Under the new rules, providers would be allowed to block calls coming from invalid numbers, unallocated numbers, and numbers whose owners have requested they be blocked. For example, phone providers would be able to block a scammer that is using a telephone number that clearly can’t exist because it hasn’t been assigned.
“Combating the plague of robocall scams requires technological solutions,” Schmidt said. “The adoption of this rule by the FCC will allow telephone providers to block calls that are clearly fraudulent and protect consumers from these scam artists. This won’t solve the robocall problem entirely, but it should help.”
In its release announcing approval of the new rule, the FCC states that U.S. consumers received approximately 2.4 billion robocalls per month in 2016. In a pilot project using the new system that now is approved nationwide, the amount of IRS scam calls was reduced by about 90 percent, the FCC said
