Month: February 2019

KCKCC campuses to celebrate Valentine’s Day with Fitness Challenge

by Kelly Rogge, KCKCC

Kansas City Kansas Community College’s Wellness and Fitness Center is holding a “Have a Heart Healthy Valentine’s Day event – and all three campuses will have the opportunity to participate.

“Have a Heart Healthy Valentine’s Day” will be Thursday, Feb. 14, at all three locations – the main campus at 7250 State Ave., the Dr. Thomas R. Burke Technical Education Center, 6565 State Ave., and the Pioneer Career Center in Leavenworth.

For the main campus, the event will be from 5:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Wellness and Fitness Center. There will be two Technogym recumbent bicycles reserved for the event – one for employees and one for students and community members. Both bicycles will be open throughout the day for whoever wants to participate in the Heart Healthy Challenge.

People who would like to participate on Main Campus are asked to sign-up at the Wellness Center for a pre-determined, 30-minute time slot to ride that day. The goal is to complete 15 hours of cardiovascular exercise during the event as well as to encourage KCKCC employees, students and community members to team up in an attempt to ride the most miles and expend the most calories on Valentine’s Day.

Participants are asked to ride for their entire 30-minute time slot and cannot go over into a second 30-minute slot. If they complete the full 30 minutes, they are entered into a prize drawing. For more information or to register for the “Have a Heart Healthy Valentine’s Day” on Main Campus, call the Wellness and Fitness Center at 913- 288-7610.

At the Dr. Thomas R. Burke Technical Education Center and the Pioneer Career Center in Leavenworth, participants will be able to sign up to walk a mile as part of the event.

At KCKCC-TEC, participants will sign up for a 30-minute time slot between 7 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. to walk one mile – six and a half times around the inside of the TEC. The goal is for participants to complete a combined 23 miles of cardiovascular exercise. To register, contact Kristen Povilonis at [email protected].

For those at the Pioneer Career Center in Leavenworth, participants will be asked to register for a 30-minute time slot between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. During this time, they must walk one mile, which is eight times around the inside of PCC. The goal is for participants to complete a combined 26 miles of cardiovascular exercise. Those who complete one mile at KCKCC-TEC or PCC will be entered into a prize drawing. To register, contact Shelly Thompson at 913-288-7750 or by email at [email protected].

Pam Hall, wellness specialist at the KCKCC Wellness and Fitness Center, said the purpose of “Have a Heart Healthy Valentine’s Day” is to encourage cardiovascular exercise as a way to promote a healthier way to celebrate Valentine’s Day. She said she would like to see every 30-minute time slot filled.

“I started the ‘Have a Heart Healthy Valentine’s Day’ event to encourage KCKCC employees to celebrate Valentine’s Day with heart healthy activities,” she said. “The event was a great success, and it evolved into what it is today with students, staff, faculty and the community participating in the ‘Have a Heart Healthy Valentine’s Day’ event.”

KCATA announces end of free fares for furloughed workers

The Kansas City Area Transportation Authority has announced it will end free fares for furloughed federal government workers on Feb. 15.

Federal workers were furloughed without pay from Dec. 22 to Jan. 25, and received back pay after the furlough ended. While federal workers will receive back pay, some of them had a need for services until they received their back pay.

The program of free fares for furloughed workers started on Jan. 14. The federal workers went back to work two weeks ago, but the three-week temporary deal for the workers to go back to work ends on Feb. 15. There was hope from some this week that another shutdown might be avoided.

“The shutdown is over and we were waiting to confirm that they got their paychecks,” said KCATA spokeswoman Petrina Parker.

If there is another shutdown, KCATA will “cross that bridge when we get there,” reevaluate the program at that time and make a decision, Parker said.

According to KCATA, about 1,300 free rides were taken by furloughed government employees who were affected by the shutdown.

Former Johnson County lawmaker Rooker will head Kansas panel on children’s issues

by Jim McLean, Kansas News Service

Kansas Democratic Governor Laura Kelly named former Republican Rep. Melissa Rooker on Thursday to help lead one of her signature initiatives.

Kelly chose Rooker to head the Kansas Children’s Cabinet, a 15-member group created in the late 1990s to guide state investments in early childhood programs.

Rooker, a moderate Republican, represented a Johnson County district in the Kansas House for six years before narrowly losing last year to Democrat Rui Xu. While in the Legislature, Rooker played a leadership role on education issues.

“I worked closely with Rep. Rooker for many years and know her to be a steadfast advocate for Kansas children and families,” Kelly said in a statement.

Kelly has said that expanding and improving programs that help prepare children to succeed is one of her top priorities as governor.

As the paid executive director of the Children’s Cabinet, Rooker will play a key role in helping the governor implement her vision.

“I have always focused my policy work on children’s issues,” she said. “So, for me … this could not be a more perfect fit.”

The cabinet advises the governor and Legislature on how to spend approximately $50 million in annual dedicated funding for early childhood programs. It also works with researchers at the University of Kansas to evaluate the effectiveness of the programs it funds.

Kelly also appointed Kim Moore to chair the Cabinet and the Children’s Trust Fund. Moore retired last year after 30 years as president of the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund.

“I’ve seen first-hand the positive impact that high-quality early intervention and support can have on children and families across the state of Kansas,” Moore said. “I look forward to (making) sure all children in Kansas are safe, healthy and have the opportunity to succeed.”

In a related development, Senate President Susan Wagle on Wednesday reinstated Sen. Dinah Sykes to the cabinet after removing her in December for switching parties.

Sykes, a former moderate Republican who became a Democrat just before the start of the 2019 legislative session, had challenged her removal from the cabinet. She argued that Wagle didn’t have the authority to replace her before the end of her term.

Research done by legislative staff proved her correct.

Skyes said she’s excited to again be working with Rooker.

“Her passion is Kansas kids and I think she’ll do an incredible job,” Sykes said.

Rooker succeeds Janice Suzanne Smith, who resigned in December.

Jim McLean is the senior correspondent for the Kansas News Service, a collaboration of KCUR, Kansas Public Radio, KMUW and High Plains Public Radio covering health, education and politics. You can reach him on Twitter @jmcleanks.
Kansas News Service stories and photos may be republished at no cost with proper attribution and a link to ksnewsservice.org.
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