Education in Kansas
Encyclopedia
Education in Kansas is governed at the primary
and secondary
school level by the Kansas State Board of Education
. The state's public colleges and universities are supervised by the Kansas Board of Regents
.
governs or supervises thirty-seven public institutions. It also authorizes numerous private and out-of-state institutions to operate in the state. In Fall 2009 the state's six public universities reported a combined enrollment of 93,307 students, of which more than a quarter were non-resident students and more than a seventh were off-campus enrollments.
Among the state-funded universities, the University of Kansas
(KU) is the largest in terms of enrollment, with 26,826 at its Lawrence campus, KU Edwards Campus in Overland Park
, and Public Management Center (formerly the Capitol Complex) in Topeka
. The total university enrollment, which includes KU Medical Center, was 30,004. About 31% were non-resident students.
Kansas State University
(KSU) has the second largest enrollment, with 23,581 students at its Manhattan and Salina campuses and Veterinary Medical Center. About 19% were non-resident students. Wichita State University
(WSU) ranks third largest with 14,823 students; about 14% were non-resident students. WSU has lost nearly 3,000 students since the school dropped football
following the 1986 season. Fort Hays State University
(FHSU), Pittsburg State University
(PSU), and Emporia State University
(ESU) are smaller public universities with total enrollments of 11,308, 7277, and 6314, respectively. FHSU has the fastest growing enrollment in Kansas with most of it coming from non-resident and off-campus enrollment. The composition of FHSU's enrollment includes 35% non-resident students and 44% off-campus enrollments. PSU also has almost a quarter of enrollment from non-residents.
For more on the universities and colleges in Kansas, see the complete list.
, on February 9–12, 1858. Among the ten institutes of higher learning chartered at that time, three survive in some form. Among those chartered on February 9 were Highland University (precursor to Highland Community College) and Blue Mont Central College
(precursor to Kansas State University
). Baker University
, chartered on February 12, 1858, has been operating continuously since that time and is now recognized as the oldest continuously-operating college in Kansas.
All of the colleges founded in 1858 were private institutions. The first public
institute of higher learning in the state was Kansas State University (originally named Kansas State Agricultural College), which was established by the state legislature on February 16, 1863.
The state's universities were among the first public universities
in the country to be coeducational. Kansas State became the second coeducational public institution of higher education when it opened in 1863; enrollment for the first session was 52 students: 26 men and 26 women. The University of Kansas was also among the earliest to offer mixed-sex education, in 1869.
, and the origin of the universe was permitted, but not mandatory, and that those topics would not appear on state standardized tests. However, two years later, following a change in its elected membership, the Board reversed this decision on February 14, 2001, ruling that instruction of all those topics was mandatory and that they would appear on standardized tests.
Following another change in membership, on August 9, 2005, the Board of Education approved a draft of science curriculum
standards that mandated equal time for evolution
and intelligent design
.
On November 8, 2005 the Board of Education voted 6-4 to allow science students in public schools to hear materials critical of evolution in biology classes, allowing teaching of Intelligent design
to be taught in classes. The board, in order to accommodate the teaching of Intelligent Design
in biology class, went so far as to redefine the meaning of science
to 'no longer limited to the search for natural
explanations of phenomena.'
In response, USD 383 (Manhattan
-Ogden
) decided to reject the November 2005 standards in a unanimous decision on February 2006, and continues to use the March 9, 2005 standards. http://kstatecollegian.com/article.php?a=8960
On August 1, 2006, the creationism
majority on the Board of Education was voted out of office and evolution candidates were given the majority once again.http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,206679,00.html
On February 13, 2007, the Board voted 6 to 4 to reject the amended science standards enacted in 2005. The definition of science
was once again limited to "the search for natural explanations for what is observed in the universe." http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/02/13/america/NA-GEN-US-Kansas-Evolution-History.php
Primary education
A primary school is an institution in which children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as primary or elementary education. Primary school is the preferred term in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth Nations, and in most publications of the United Nations Educational,...
and secondary
Secondary education
Secondary education is the stage of education following primary education. Secondary education includes the final stage of compulsory education and in many countries it is entirely compulsory. The next stage of education is usually college or university...
school level by the Kansas State Board of Education
Kansas State Board of Education
Kansas State Department Board of Education is Kansas's Board of Education, headquartered in Topeka. The board of education that controls the department is a constitutional body established in Article 6 of the Kansas Constitution. The ten members of the Board of Education are each elected to...
. The state's public colleges and universities are supervised by the Kansas Board of Regents
Kansas Board of Regents
The Kansas Board of Regents is a body consisting of nine members which governs six state universities in the U.S. state of Kansas. In addition to these six universities, it also supervises and coordinates nineteen community colleges, five technical colleges, six technical schools and a municipal...
.
Colleges and universities
The Kansas Board of RegentsKansas Board of Regents
The Kansas Board of Regents is a body consisting of nine members which governs six state universities in the U.S. state of Kansas. In addition to these six universities, it also supervises and coordinates nineteen community colleges, five technical colleges, six technical schools and a municipal...
governs or supervises thirty-seven public institutions. It also authorizes numerous private and out-of-state institutions to operate in the state. In Fall 2009 the state's six public universities reported a combined enrollment of 93,307 students, of which more than a quarter were non-resident students and more than a seventh were off-campus enrollments.
Among the state-funded universities, the University of Kansas
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...
(KU) is the largest in terms of enrollment, with 26,826 at its Lawrence campus, KU Edwards Campus in Overland Park
Overland Park, Kansas
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 149,080 people, 59,703 households, and 39,702 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,627.0 people per square mile . There were 62,586 housing units at an average density of 1,102.9 per square mile...
, and Public Management Center (formerly the Capitol Complex) in Topeka
Topeka, Kansas
Topeka |Kansa]]: Tó Pee Kuh) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Shawnee County. It is situated along the Kansas River in the central part of Shawnee County, located in northeast Kansas, in the Central United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was...
. The total university enrollment, which includes KU Medical Center, was 30,004. About 31% were non-resident students.
Kansas State University
Kansas State University
Kansas State University, commonly shortened to K-State, is an institution of higher learning located in Manhattan, Kansas, in the United States...
(KSU) has the second largest enrollment, with 23,581 students at its Manhattan and Salina campuses and Veterinary Medical Center. About 19% were non-resident students. Wichita State University
Wichita State University
Wichita State University is a NCAA Division I public university in Wichita, Kansas with selective admissions. WSU is one of six state universities governed by the Kansas Board of Regents. The current president is Dr. Donald Beggs....
(WSU) ranks third largest with 14,823 students; about 14% were non-resident students. WSU has lost nearly 3,000 students since the school dropped football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
following the 1986 season. Fort Hays State University
Fort Hays State University
Fort Hays State University is a public, co-educational university located in Hays, Kansas, United States. It is the fourth-largest of the six state universities governed by the Kansas Board of Regents, with an enrollment of approximately 11,200 students .- History :FHSU was founded in 1902 as the...
(FHSU), Pittsburg State University
Pittsburg State University
Pittsburg State University, also called Pitt State or PSU, is a public university with approximately 7,100 students located in Pittsburg, Kansas, United States. A large percentage of the student population consists of residents within the Pittsburg region; the gender proportion is relatively equal...
(PSU), and Emporia State University
Emporia State University
Emporia State University is a university in the city of Emporia in Lyon County, Kansas, just east of the Flint Hills.- History :...
(ESU) are smaller public universities with total enrollments of 11,308, 7277, and 6314, respectively. FHSU has the fastest growing enrollment in Kansas with most of it coming from non-resident and off-campus enrollment. The composition of FHSU's enrollment includes 35% non-resident students and 44% off-campus enrollments. PSU also has almost a quarter of enrollment from non-residents.
For more on the universities and colleges in Kansas, see the complete list.
History
The first colleges in Kansas were chartered by acts of the Kansas Territorial legislature, signed by Territorial Governor James W. DenverJames W. Denver
James William Denver was an American politician, soldier, lawyer, and esteemed actor. He served in the California state government, as an officer in the United States Army in two wars, and as a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives from California, as well as playing lead...
, on February 9–12, 1858. Among the ten institutes of higher learning chartered at that time, three survive in some form. Among those chartered on February 9 were Highland University (precursor to Highland Community College) and Blue Mont Central College
Blue Mont Central College
Blue Mont Central College was a private, Methodist institute of higher learning located in Manhattan, Kansas, in the United States. The college was incorporated in February 1858, and was the forerunner of Kansas State University.After Kansas became a U.S...
(precursor to Kansas State University
Kansas State University
Kansas State University, commonly shortened to K-State, is an institution of higher learning located in Manhattan, Kansas, in the United States...
). Baker University
Baker University
Baker University is a private, residential university located in Baldwin City, Kansas, United States. Founded in 1858, it is the oldest university in Kansas and is affiliated with the United Methodist Church. Baker University is made up of four schools...
, chartered on February 12, 1858, has been operating continuously since that time and is now recognized as the oldest continuously-operating college in Kansas.
All of the colleges founded in 1858 were private institutions. The first public
Public university
A public university is a university that is predominantly funded by public means through a national or subnational government, as opposed to private universities. A national university may or may not be considered a public university, depending on regions...
institute of higher learning in the state was Kansas State University (originally named Kansas State Agricultural College), which was established by the state legislature on February 16, 1863.
The state's universities were among the first public universities
Public university
A public university is a university that is predominantly funded by public means through a national or subnational government, as opposed to private universities. A national university may or may not be considered a public university, depending on regions...
in the country to be coeducational. Kansas State became the second coeducational public institution of higher education when it opened in 1863; enrollment for the first session was 52 students: 26 men and 26 women. The University of Kansas was also among the earliest to offer mixed-sex education, in 1869.
Primary and secondary schools
Statewide elections for the Kansas Board of Education are held every four years.Evolution controversy
In 1999, the Kansas Board of Education ruled that instruction at the primary and secondary levels about evolution, the age of the earthAge of the Earth
The age of the Earth is 4.54 billion years This age is based on evidence from radiometric age dating of meteorite material and is consistent with the ages of the oldest-known terrestrial and lunar samples...
, and the origin of the universe was permitted, but not mandatory, and that those topics would not appear on state standardized tests. However, two years later, following a change in its elected membership, the Board reversed this decision on February 14, 2001, ruling that instruction of all those topics was mandatory and that they would appear on standardized tests.
Following another change in membership, on August 9, 2005, the Board of Education approved a draft of science curriculum
Curriculum
See also Syllabus.In formal education, a curriculum is the set of courses, and their content, offered at a school or university. As an idea, curriculum stems from the Latin word for race course, referring to the course of deeds and experiences through which children grow to become mature adults...
standards that mandated equal time for evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
and intelligent design
Intelligent design
Intelligent design is the proposition that "certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an intelligent cause, not an undirected process such as natural selection." It is a form of creationism and a contemporary adaptation of the traditional teleological argument for...
.
On November 8, 2005 the Board of Education voted 6-4 to allow science students in public schools to hear materials critical of evolution in biology classes, allowing teaching of Intelligent design
Intelligent design
Intelligent design is the proposition that "certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an intelligent cause, not an undirected process such as natural selection." It is a form of creationism and a contemporary adaptation of the traditional teleological argument for...
to be taught in classes. The board, in order to accommodate the teaching of Intelligent Design
Intelligent design
Intelligent design is the proposition that "certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an intelligent cause, not an undirected process such as natural selection." It is a form of creationism and a contemporary adaptation of the traditional teleological argument for...
in biology class, went so far as to redefine the meaning of science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
to 'no longer limited to the search for natural
Naturalism (philosophy)
Naturalism commonly refers to the philosophical viewpoint that the natural universe and its natural laws and forces operate in the universe, and that nothing exists beyond the natural universe or, if it does, it does not affect the natural universe that we know...
explanations of phenomena.'
In response, USD 383 (Manhattan
Manhattan, Kansas
Manhattan is a city located in the northeastern part of the state of Kansas in the United States, at the junction of the Kansas River and Big Blue River. It is the county seat of Riley County and the city extends into Pottawatomie County. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 52,281...
-Ogden
Ogden, Kansas
Ogden is a city in Riley County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 2,087. It is part of the Manhattan, Kansas Metropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
) decided to reject the November 2005 standards in a unanimous decision on February 2006, and continues to use the March 9, 2005 standards. http://kstatecollegian.com/article.php?a=8960
On August 1, 2006, the creationism
Creationism
Creationism is the religious beliefthat humanity, life, the Earth, and the universe are the creation of a supernatural being, most often referring to the Abrahamic god. As science developed from the 18th century onwards, various views developed which aimed to reconcile science with the Genesis...
majority on the Board of Education was voted out of office and evolution candidates were given the majority once again.http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,206679,00.html
On February 13, 2007, the Board voted 6 to 4 to reject the amended science standards enacted in 2005. The definition of science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
was once again limited to "the search for natural explanations for what is observed in the universe." http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/02/13/america/NA-GEN-US-Kansas-Evolution-History.php
See also
- List of colleges and universities in Kansas
- List of defunct colleges and universities in Kansas
- List of unified school districts in Kansas
- Kansas evolution hearingsKansas evolution hearingsThe Kansas evolution hearings were a series of hearings held in Topeka, Kansas, United States May 5 to May 12, 2005 by the Kansas State Board of Education and its State Board Science Hearing Committee to change how evolution and the origin of life would be taught in the state's public high school...