Coffeyville

Off to an 8-0 start, the Hutchinson Community College men’s basketball team has climbed to No. 2 in this week’s NJCAA Division I men’s basketball poll. With losses by defending national champion Howard College and preseason No. 1 Midland College, the Blue Dragons moved up two spots to No. 2. North Idaho College is the nation’s new No. 1 junior college men’s basketball team. Hutchinson comes off a pair of neutral court victories last weekend, defeating Independence 81-77 and Quakerdale Prep 84-64 last weekend in Great Bend.

People living in North East Kansas are keeping a close eye on the Missouri River. Residents are concerned about the amount of water making its way downstream, and how long it will stick around. The river typically rises in the spring.  But water levels are expected to remain high long into the summer, putting constant pressure on levees protecting farmland, roads, and towns along the Missouri river. If the predictions are true, when the Missouri River floods, Kansas will have more destruction to clean up.  It has already been a tough year for disaster in Kansas, and state disaster aid funds are running out. When a federal disaster declaration is issued, FEMA pays 75% of the aid money, local government pays 15%, and the state takes care for the remaining 10%. The state's portion adds up quickly.  Adjutant General's spokesperson, Sharon Watson, says money is still being distributed from the 2007 Kansas Disaster Fund.

Rion Rhoades knows he has something special this season, and his stats back him up.  in 2010 the Hutch Blue Dragons are absolutely destroying their opponent's defenses.  They're averaging close to 50 points a game but that's not the best part.  This season Hutch has been able to put up nearly 30 points, before halftime. "Our goal is to get the ball to guys that can make plays and with more of those guys you can expand a little bit of what you're doing," says coach Rhoades.  "We're finding ourselves doing a little bit more because there are guys that we need to find a way to get them the ball and that's been a lot of fun.  Our coaches have done a great job of getting our guys in position to make plays.

The Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services (SRS) is restructuring its offices statewide, a process which will include merging six regions into four, and a reduction of nine service centers: Coffeyville, Fort Scott, Garnett, Lawrence, Lyndon, Marysville, McPherson, Pratt, and Wellington. The legislature directed SRS to cut $42 million from its budget.  To meet that reduction in administration, the agency is also reducing cell phone use and other expenses, and looking for ways to find additional efficiencies.  There are no staff lay-offs associated with the office closures; staff will be reassigned to neighboring offices based upon service needs in the areas served.  As a result of these efforts, SRS will save taxpayers over $1 million every year.

Word was that the 2010-11 Hutchinson Community College men’s basketball team was pretty highly thought of in junior college basketball circles. Proof of that came out on Monday. The Blue Dragons were picked to win the Jayhawk West this season at Monday’s annual media day at the Wichita Boathouse. While the men’s press conference was going on, the NJCAA Preseason Men’s Division I national poll was released and the Blue Dragons were ranked No. 4. The No. 4 preseason ranking is the highest for the HCC men since the 2004-05 preseason poll when the Blue Dragons were ranked No. 13. This is the fourth time in the last five seasons that the Blue Dragons are ranked in the Division I preseason poll.

Dislcaimer: This press release is a statement provided by the elected official's office. WICHITA, KS - Congressman Mike Pompeo today officially announced his candidacy for re-election for the Kansas 4th District Congressional seat during a news conference at Colonel James Jabara Airport in Wichita. “Kansans across the 4th District sent me to Washington a year ago and delivered a message that was loud and clear: Get the federal government out of the way so Kansans can succeed.

The impact of this week's winter storm continues, even though the snow has moved east. Temperatures across Kansas remain in the single digits in most places. The Kansas Division of Emergency Management staffed the State Emergency Operations Center Tuesday night to monitor the weather and respond to calls for assistance. Staffing remains at partial activation running 24/7 with the help of other state agencies. KDEM reports Stormont-Vail Medical Center in Topeka requested help to transport blood from the Community Blood Bank in Kansas City, Mo. Kansas Highway Patrol troopers met officers from the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department at the Kansas-Missouri border and received three boxes of blood and blood products, which they transported to Stormont-Vail.

Bowing to public pressure and the work of community leaders, four of nine Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services offices schedule to close will instead stay open. The four offices that will remain open are: Lawrence, Fort Scott, McPherson and Pratt. The other five offices, Coffeyville, Garnett, Lyndon, Marysville and Wellington, will close by September 30. Under the arrangements, cities and counties have agreed to pay the state's costs to keep the offices running.

The Red Cross says seven more Kansas offices will close as part of a national restructuring, but the organization says the move will have little impact on services. Wednesday the Red Cross said offices in El Dorado, Pittsburg, Abilene, Dodge City, McPherson, Phillipsburg and Chanute will close. This comes about a week after the organization announced offices in Great Bend and Colby would also close. The changes come as the organization deals with both the struggling economy and an increase in health and retirement benefits.

The kids are from Hutchinson, Kansas, the men are from Bronx, New York. Thousands of miles apart, but brought together last year by a simple good will gesture. "Last year when they came off the court the guys who were waiting to get back on the court gave them a rousing applause and kind of took a liking to them," explains Gary Axelbank, Director of Public Relations for Monroe College. The kids were playing a halftime exhibition game at the Junior College National Championships.