Month: June 2019

Wyandotte County students graduate from KU

Several Wyandotte County students were candidates for degrees this spring at the University of Kansas, Lawrence.

Commencement ceremonies were May 19.

On the list of candidates for degrees from Wyandotte County:


From Bonner Springs:
• Camden Barker, Bonner Springs, Bachelor of Business Administration
• Chloe Samantha Bridge-Quigley, Bonner Springs, Master of Social Work
• Hunter Dean Buchholz, Bonner Springs, Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering
• Benjamin H May, Bonner Springs, Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry
• Emily Ann Miller, Bonner Springs, Bachelor of Science in Education
• Blair Slankard, Bonner Springs, Bachelor of Science in Education
• Kelli D Snow, Bonner Springs, Master of Science in Dietetics and Nutrition
• Emily Louise Vitt, Bonner Springs, Bachelor of Science in Pharmaceutical Studies
• Mario P. Vlasic, Bonner Springs, Bachelor of Science in Business in Business Administration and Bachelor of Arts in East Asian Languages and Cultures

From Edwardsville:
• Rachel Jean Johnson, Edwardsville, Bachelor of Science in Microbiology
• Jeremy Michael Zatar, Edwardsville, Bachelor of Science in Physics

From Kansas City, Kansas:
• Chancellor Lee Adams. Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Arts in African and African-American Studies
• Julliana Alvarado Vega, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Education
• Robert Preston Armstrong Jr., Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Education
• Jacob T. Asherman, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Atmospheric Science
• William S. Bailey, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of General Studies in Communication Studies
• Jacqueline Olivia Blair, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of General Studies in Communication Studies
• Carley Marie Blevins, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Arts in Applied Behavioral Science
• Cheyenne Miles Young Brown, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Biology
• Monica Anjelica Cabrera, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Social Work
• Daniel Carr, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Business in Marketing and in Business Analytics
• Robert Joseph Christian, Kansas City, Kansas, Doctor of Medicine
• Sarah Christoph, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Social Work
• Megan Anne-Marie Clayborn, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of General Studies in Psychology
• Franklin D. Conard, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology
• Lucy Elizabeth Cummings, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Social Work
• Andrea Danielle Davis, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Social Work
• Damon Lynn Downs Jr., Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Athletic Training
• Susan Christianson Dresser, Kansas City, Kansas, Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing
• Brittany LeAnn Dwyer, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Social Work
• Kimberly Dyer, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Health Information Management
• Aleah R. Estes, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Arts in Biology
• Nico Evarola, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Nursing
• Cameron Conrad Fox, Kansas City, Kansas, Doctor of Philosophy in Molecular and Integrative Physics
• Venessa Nichole Freeman, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Arts in Classical Languages and Bachelor of Arts in Classical Antiquity
• Tyson Mark Frost, Kansas City, Kansas, Doctor of Nurse Anesthesia Practice
• Erin Renee Gaines, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Music in Music Therapy
• Andros Ivan Garcia Saldivar, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Public Health
• Elizabeth Ruby Gilbert, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Social Work
• Carly Ann Gunnels, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Accounting
• Junelhy Gutierrez-Garcia, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Social Work
• Afua Adubea Gyamfi, Kansas City, Kansas, Doctor of Medicine
• Edward Joseph Hall, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Business Administration
• Sharita Monique Hayward, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Social Work
• Melody Marie Henning, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Public Administration
• Kristi Lynn Hill, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of General Studies in Liberal Arts and Sciences
• Amina Hobson, Kansas City, Kansas, Doctor of Nurse Anesthesia Practice
• Karen M. Holliday, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Social Work
• Meagan Deanne Howard, Kansas City. Kansas, Master of Social Work
• Nakita Marie Hubbel, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Clinical Laboratory Science
• Jacob Matthew Humphrey, Kansas City, Kansas, Professional Science Master’s in Applied Science
• Abigail Jacklyn Hutchcraft, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Nursing
• Zebulun T. Jackson, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Business in Accounting
• Mija Danielle Jones, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of General Studies in Theatre
• Abigail Rachelle Kaldahl, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Science in Education
• Kathleen Marie Kump, Kansas City, Kansas, Doctor of Nursing Practice
• Sarah E. Larson, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Music Education
• Sang Lau, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Pharmaceutical Studies
• Ilias Matrane, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Molecular Biosciences
• Auriana Larae McConnell, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Social Work
• Monica Janiel McGlory, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Social Work
• Austin Daniel Mecum, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of General Studies in Liberal Arts and Sciences
• Kimberly T. Merritt, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering
• Mallory Moon, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Public Health
• Clay A. Mulligan, Kansas City, Kansas, Doctor of Physical Therapy
• Lauren Elizabeth Murphy, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Fine Arts in Design
• Pooneh Nazaran, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Health Services Administration
• Kaitlyn Rose Pearson, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Nursing
• Alicia Peña, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology
• James Howard Pierce, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of General Studies in Liberal Arts and Sciences
• Jessica Marie Plake, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Social Work
• Hunter Brogan Pleshka, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Social Work
• Emily Reiersgaard Razavi, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Nursing
• Rachel Hannah Samara Reynolds, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Biology
• Randal John Riha, Kansas City, Kansas, Doctor of Medicine
• Daniel Everette Roberson, Kansas City, Kansas, Doctor of Nurse Anesthesia Practice

• Marcus Anthony Robinson II, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Arts in Linguistics
• Jonathan Emmanuel Ruiz, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Arts in Political Science
• Alejandro Saenz-Lara, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Arts in Architectural Studies
• Gina Nicole Schlecta, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Social Work
• Julianne Michelle Seaver, Kansas City, Kansas, Doctor of Pharmacy
• Amara Seng, Kansas City, Kansas, Doctor of Philosophy in Microbiology
• Ne’Kye Deoneise Sheppard, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Education
• Kayla D. Sloan, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Social Work
• Curtis Anthony Smart, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Public Health
• Lucas C. Smith, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering
• Carolina Sotelo, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Exercise Science
• Nicholas Aaron Stratton, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Sport Management
• Mei Yung Suen, Kansas City, Kansas, Doctor of Nursing Practice
• Debra A. Taylor, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Science in Nursing
• Lamanda Tessen, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Social Work
• Samantha Michelle Trujillo, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Social Work
• Mfon Eyibio Udoinyang, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Arts in African and African-American Studies
• Gregorio Valdovino, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Public Administration
• Kimberly Sue Van Dorn-Robinson, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Social Work
• Tania Yaritza Vega, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Journalism
• Viviana Vanessa Velez-Aguilera, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Education
• Susan Vongphrachanh, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Business in Marketing
• Courtney E. Wagner, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Education
• Jordan M. Wagner, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Science in Education
• Brooke Elizabeth Wietharn, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Arts in Human Biology
• Riley Marvin Wade Williams, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Business Administration and Doctor of Medicine
• Erik Elijah Wolf, Kansas City, Kansas, Professional Science Master’s in Applied Science
• Kelsey Marie Wolf, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Arts in Applied Behavioral Science
• Emily Ann Wolfe, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Social Work
• Abdalghani Ali M. Yahya, Kansas City, Kansas, Doctor of Philosophy in Rehabilitation Science
• Adora Yang, Kansas City, Kansas, Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology and Bachelor of Science in Business in Marketing
• Katelyn Jane Zimorino, Kansas City, Kansas, Master of Occupational Therapy

New county fair director plans to build on momentum

Bill Svoboda, executive director, Wyandotte County Fair (Submitted photo)

by Mary Rupert

Bill Svoboda, the new executive director of the Wyandotte County Fair, said he plans to build on the momentum and development taking place in Wyandotte County.

He also plans to build on the positive connections people remember from past county fairs here.

“People need to know the fair’s not too far away, and we have some wonderful things in the works,” Svoboda said.

Svoboda has been developing the lineup for this year’s Wyandotte County Fair, which will be July 9 to 13 at the fairgrounds at 13700 Polfer Road, in western Wyandotte County.

He said he believes that with the development at The Legends Outlets and Kansas Speedway, Wyandotte County has become more of an entertainment destination in the past several years. Regional tourists have regularly attended events at the Kansas Speedway, Children’s Mercy Park and T-Bones Stadium, and he hopes to build on those experiences.

This year, the fair will offer more entertainment, he added. It is introducing a main stage next to the red barn, bringing in regional talent, he said. Many of the acts that will perform are tribute bands, he added.

Material Girls, a group that plays some songs made famous by Lady Gaga and Madonna, and a Janet Jackson tribute band are planned. On Saturday, a Lynryd Skynryd tribute band will perform.

Traditional county fair activities will continue, include a petting zoo, carnival and 4-H exhibits and events, he said. There will be a mud run on Saturday night.

The small free stage will continue with local bands, he added.

Another new idea at the fair this year will be to decorate the fairgrounds with large kites, weather-permitting, and gigantic banners, he said.

Svoboda said this year’s fair also will be developing community partners.

In the community partnership program, Thursday night will be Donnelly College student and alumni night, and there will be a focus on the Latino culture of Wyandotte County, he said.

Friday night, the fair is planning Kansas City Kansas Community college student and alumni appreciation night, he said.

In the partnerships, a community organization will pay a fee and its members and students then can get in into the fair that day for free.

Svoboda said he is also working to try to get local high schools more involved in the fair. The fair was looking for more vendors, more entertainment and more community partners, he said.

This year, the fair board has decided to charge admission, with tickets available online at www.wycofair.com/, Svoboda said. Tickets will be $2.50 per person when purchased before July 9, and $5 per person from July 9 to 13. Ages 12 and younger will be admitted free. The fair also will continue to charge $5 per car for parking.

Svoboda said in the future he would like to work with youth organizations to help sell tickets to the fair and turn it into a fundraiser for them.

The fair also is planning an Original Dotte sponsorship, an opportunity for local residents and former residents to be sponsors at three levels, $100, $250 and $500, with names listed on the fair’s website.

Svoboda formerly was employed 12 years with the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce, where he was responsible for events, and has a business, EventPros, that was started about 18 years ago. He formerly ran the KCRiverFest event, as well as the Kansas City Blues and Jazz Festival.

He was encouraged by the long history of the Wyandotte County Fair, founded in 1863.

“There are not a lot of events that started in the late 1800s still around,” Svoboda said. “It needs to be preserved and to be grown.”

Svoboda said that he and the board are taking a conservative approach to growing the fair, starting with expanding entertainment with regional cover acts, and trying to gain corporate and organizational support. One year, with support, the fair may be able to bring in national acts, he added.

“Sponsorships are just really key,” he said. “That dictates the budget. That’s why we decided it was time to charge some kind of nominal fee for people to come out.”

He has started to work with the local business community to encourage them to support the fair.

“It’s just winning over the hearts and souls of the community and the business community,” Svoboda said. “The business community plays a more active role philanthropically to make things happen.”

Amid bullying and suicides, Kansas schools slowly promising to protect transgender students

by Stephan Bisaha, Kansas News Service

Wichita Public Schools is considering adding explicit protections for transgender students and staff this year.

Public speakers told the district’s school board on Monday that they want to see the nondiscrimination policy updated to include gender identity as a protected class. Some were activists; others were moms.

Transgender students shared their own stories of discrimination.

High school student Alec Strouse said being required to change in the women’s locker room had a severe impact on his mental health.

“I was severely bullied in there,” Strouse told the board. “Multiple times I did stay home because I was afraid of the comments that I got.”

If Wichita does add gender identity to its policy, it will join several school districts across the state that have done the same this year. Manhattan added the protections in May; Olathe made the changes in March.

De Soto did so three days earlier. Students from two of De Soto’s high schools asked the board to update its policy.

Transgender teens are three times more likely to attempt suicide, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. More than a third are bullied.

Topeka Public Schools board member Peg McCarthy thinks growing youth suicide numbers — and the increasing support for transgender rights — is causing districts to add more protections for those students.

“We know that transgender students in particular are one of our must vulnerable groups,” said McCarthy, who is also a psychologist working with transgender patients.

Topeka Public Schools has included transgender students in its nondiscrimination policy for about a decade.

Not all school districts have moved toward transgender rights. Derby Public Schools allowed transgender students to use the bathroom that fit their gender identity, but reversed that policy in 2017.

The Kansas Association of School Boards advises against districts updating their policy to include specific language protecting transgender students. It thinks those students are already included in federal Title IX protections, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex by education programs receiving federal funding.

Wichita Public Schools board member Ben Blankley said that updating the policy is needed to make a clear statement of support for transgender students and staff.

“To implement it at the local level seems to be the strongest statement we can make,” Blankley said. “These kids do exist. These kids do matter.”

Wichita’s superintendent Alicia Thompson will put together a report on the district’s nondiscrimination policy. The board will use that as a starting point for any discussion about adding new language.

District middle school teacher Kendall Hawkins said she’s been talking to the board for months about the issue. Hawkins said she hasn’t been discriminated against as a transgender employee working at Mead Middle School.

But she said students in her school’s gender and sexuality alliance organization told her they have been. One of the most common problems is staff referring to transgender students by the wrong names or pronoun.

Hawkins said the district is behind on supporting transgender students.

“Our students are the ones paying the price for it,” Hawkins said. “We’re seeing issues with attendance and academic progress those students are having.”

During Wichita’s board of education meeting, some speakers opposed changing the policy. Out of the 10 public commenters, three said they are afraid of students being indoctrinated.

“Jesus loves them,” Wichita resident Jeanne Garrelts told the board, referring to transgender students. “But he does have standards of right and wrong.”

Stephan Bisaha reports on education for KMUW in Wichita and the Kansas News Service, a collaboration of KMUW, Kansas Public Radio, KCUR and High Plains Public Radio covering health, education and politics. Follow him on @SteveBisaha or email bisaha (at) kmuw (dot) org.
Kansas News Service stories and photos may be republished at no cost with proper attribution and a link to ksnewsservice.org.
See more at https://www.kcur.org/post/amid-bullying-and-suicides-kansas-schools-slowly-promising-protect-transgender-students