Kansas State Board of Education

Salary, benefits and administrative support key to retention decisions.

As commissioner, Jake Steel will lead the Kansas State Department of Education in overseeing the state’s K-12 public schools.

The State Board of Education plans to announce the next commissioner during its April 14 meeting.

As education commissioner, Randy Watson urged Kansas schools to increase their graduation rates and raise the percentage of students pursuing a post-secondary degree or workplace credential.

This is the first time the Kansas assessment scale has changed in nearly a decade. The State Board of Education also approved new descriptors for test levels that highlight proficiency.

A new law requires human development videos in classrooms, but leaves it up to local school districts to decide what materials students will see and at what ages.

Kansas schools now have $10 million in state funding to use AI to detect guns. But ZeroEyes, one of the few companies offering this service, has sent police false alerts before — and it won't say how often.

Kansas Education Commissioner Randy Watson urged districts to cancel breaks or extend the school year to make up for snow days. He is also proposing half-day summer school for young students who are struggling in reading and math.

Board member Danny Zeck, a Republican from Leavenworth, alternately cursed, waved books he objected to, and raised concerns about the “Marxist lesbian” in charge of the American Library Association during a Kansas State Board of Education meeting this week, as other board members tried to redirect the conversation.

While the Kansas legislature and local school districts may be at odds over school funding, there may be common ground in a proposal to fund full-day…