Top 5 Kansas news stories
June 16 2026
Kids Count Report Finds 51,000 Kansas Children Uninsured
Wichita State Adds Middle-School STEM Teacher Pathways
Galena Residents Sue Over Smoldering Landfill on Superfund Site
Argentina-Algeria Match Opens Kansas City's World Cup Slate Tuesday
Three Teens Arrested Near Newton After Fatal Shooting
Kids Count Report Finds 51,000 Kansas Children Uninsured
TOPEKA, Kan. — The Annie E. Casey Foundation's annual Kids Count Data Book found that child poverty in Kansas has improved compared with pre-pandemic years, but tens of thousands of Kansas children still lack health insurance. On health coverage, the state lost ground: the number of uninsured Kansas children rose to 51,000 in 2024, about 7%, the highest total since 2012 and up from 43,000 in 2019. Kansas held steady at 14th overall in child well-being, unchanged from the prior year, while Missouri slipped to 28th. The state ranked fifth nationally in economic well-being but lagged in health. Analysts at Kansas Action for Children linked the insurance losses to Medicaid eligibility checks that resumed after the pandemic. This year's edition introduced a 0-to-1,000 scoring system across 16 indicators in four domains, and Kansas posted a 636, above the national average of 547.
KCUR
Wichita State Adds Middle-School STEM Teacher Pathways
WICHITA, Kan. — Wichita State University announced June 11 it is expanding its Teacher Apprentice Program to help paraprofessionals become licensed teachers in middle-school math and science, covering grades 5 through 8, to address teacher shortages across Kansas. The first cohort, capped at 30 math and 30 science candidates, begins in August and lets them keep working in their districts while completing online coursework. The university cited 119 secondary science and 108 secondary math vacancies statewide in fall 2025. The program is built for working classroom aides and grew out of the state's registered teacher apprenticeship model, which Wichita State piloted before Kansas adopted it more broadly. Such grow-your-own pipelines have expanded nationwide as districts struggle to recruit and retain qualified candidates, particularly in rural and underserved communities. University officials said the new pathways target areas where too few teachers are being recruited.
WSU News
Galena Residents Sue Over Smoldering Landfill on Superfund Site
GALENA, Kan. — A proposed class-action lawsuit filed May 26 in U.S. District Court alleges that Jordan Disposal's Galena Landfill in Cherokee County fails to properly manage hydrogen sulfide gas and liquid leachate, according to a report this week from Kansas Reflector. Residents near the site say the odors and emissions are making them sick, and the suit seeks damages and remediation. The company has not resolved the residents' complaints. Galena sits in the far southeastern corner of Kansas and had about 2,800 residents as of the 2020 census. The landfill lies within the Cherokee County Superfund site, part of the Tri-State Mining District, a former lead-and-zinc mining area that the federal government added to its priority cleanup list in 1983. Decades of mining left the region with contaminated groundwater and thousands of abandoned mine shafts.
Kansas Reflector
Argentina-Algeria Match Opens Kansas City's World Cup Slate Tuesday
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Defending champion Argentina faces Algeria at 8 p.m. Tuesday at Kansas City Stadium, the first of six FIFA World Cup matches the region will host through July 11. On the Kansas side, Algeria is training at the University of Kansas' Rock Chalk Park in Lawrence and staying at a Lawrence hotel. Officials urged fans to arrive early and use transit, citing an expected crush of visitors during the tournament. An estimated 650,000 people are projected to travel to the metro area for the matches.
KCUR
Three Teens Arrested Near Newton After Fatal Shooting
NEWTON, Kan. — Three 18-year-old men from Kansas City, Kansas, face first-degree murder charges after a highway pursuit ended in their capture hours after the fatal shooting of James Dodds, a 64-year-old Kansas City media personality. Aaron Johnson, Mark Elliott Nash Jr. and Marquel McGee were taken into custody late Sunday, June 7, after Newton police blocked city exit ramps and deployed spike strips to disable their vehicle near the 36th Street exit on Interstate 135. Dodds was shot outside his home Sunday evening and died from his injuries the following day. The chase began after an automatic license plate reader in Chase County flagged the suspects' vehicle heading west on U.S. 50 at 11:08 p.m., prompting a Harvey County sheriff's deputy to attempt a traffic stop. Investigators searched the interstate shoulder Monday, June 8, and recovered firearms and ammunition they believe the teens threw from the moving car and used in the killing. All three men remain held at the Harvey County Detention Center pending transfer to Wyandotte County.
Citizen Journal
Sources
Found a mistake? Have a news tip or feedback to share? Contact our newsroom using the button below:
citizen journal offers three flagship products: a daily national news summary, a daily Kansas news summary, and local news and school board summaries from 20 cities across Kansas. Each issue contains 5 paragraph-length stories that are made to be read in 5 minutes. Use the links in the header to navigate to national, kansas, and local coverage. Subscribe to each, some, or all to get an email when new issues are published for FREE!
Brought to you by (click me!)
