hcj

Top 5 Kansas news stories

August 18 2025

Greg Loving

18 Aug 2025 • 4 min read

Wichita School District Launches Microschool to Retain Students

Wichita Independent Cancels Football Season Due to Low Turnout

Woman Kidnapped From Oklahoma Casino, Assaulted by Kansas Men

Chiefs Starters to Play in Final Preseason Game Friday

Scattered Storms Expected Across Kansas This Week

1. Wichita School District Launches Microschool to Retain Students

Last summer, Wichita Public Schools reached out to families planning to leave the district for private schools or homeschooling, convincing them to enroll instead at Creative Minds Academy, a new microschool. The innovative approach recognizes that traditional classrooms don't work for every student, said Rob Dickson, the district's chief information officer who helped launch the program. This fall, Creative Minds will more than double its enrollment with two full-time teachers in two classrooms, drawing national attention from microschool advocates. The district has announced plans for a new K-6 microschool at the Learning Lab in downtown Wichita, recruiting about 20 students primarily from homeschool families.

Kansas.com

2. Wichita Independent Cancels Football Season Due to Low Turnout

For the first time in program history, Wichita Independent High School will not field a football team this fall due to low participation, with only two or three students expressing interest in playing. Athletic Director Tyler Keim said the decision was difficult but necessary, as the Panthers join Burrton High School in sitting out the season statewide. Instead of traditional football, the school will host alternative competitions including kickball, dodgeball, powderpuff games, and softball matches between students and faculty to maintain school spirit and athletic participation.

KAKE

3. Woman Kidnapped From Oklahoma Casino, Assaulted by Kansas Men

Arkansas City police arrested two men, ages 35 and 24, after responding to a kidnapping report early Sunday morning in the 1600 block of South 6th Street. A woman told officers she had been taken against her will from the First Council Casino in Newkirk, Oklahoma, and sexually assaulted by both suspects during transport to Kansas. The men face charges including aggravated kidnapping, rape, and aggravated criminal sodomy, with one suspect also subject to an immigration detainer from the Department of Homeland Security. Both were booked into Cowley County Jail.

KSN

4. Chiefs Starters to Play in Final Preseason Game Friday

The Kansas City Chiefs will break from tradition and start their first-team players, including Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, and Chris Jones, in Friday's final preseason game against the Chicago Bears at Arrowhead Stadium. Head coach Andy Reid confirmed the starters will begin the game, marking a departure from previous years when backups typically played the entire final preseason contest. Last season, the Chiefs rested all their key players including Mahomes, Kelce, Jones, and the starting offensive line in the third preseason game, making this year's approach notably different.

Kansas.com

5. Scattered Storms Expected Across Kansas This Week

Rain and storms will return to Kansas with northwest areas seeing overnight precipitation that will shift to central and southern regions Tuesday afternoon and evening, though severe weather risk remains low. Temperatures will stay in the upper 80s and low 90s Tuesday before cooling slightly Wednesday. A cold front approaching late in the week will bring widespread 90s Friday followed by weekend storms and cooler weather, with Saturday and Sunday temperatures dropping into the 80s and more rain expected by Sunday.

KWCH

Sources

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