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SUNDAY • APRIL 6 • 2014
POWERING the PRAIRIE
LJWorld.com
SCHOOLS
Finance, package in works
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By Peter Hancock
While interest groups and lawmakers debate the value of the state’s renewable energy mandate, landowners throughout Kansas have embraced wind energy as a way to supplement their incomes
phancock@ljworld.com
Kansas lawmakers continued working late into the night Saturday on a compromise school finance package that drew hundreds of teachers to the Statehouse in protest. The teachers, who were already in Topeka for a meeting of the Kansas National Education Association, said they were spurred to action by a provision of the bill that would eliminate teacher tenure in Kansas — a law that
EARL SMITH’S FARM near Marienthal in Western Kansas sits between two lines of wind turbines to the north and south. Smith’s farm receives no energy directly from the site, but Smith does receive significant royalty payments monthly.
Please see SCHOOLS, page 6A
Lawhorn’s Lawrence
Chad Lawhorn clawhorn@ljworld.com
Exposing beauty of math
Photos by Travis Young/Special to the Journal-World
Kansas’ new cash crop is harvested high in the sky By Trevor Graff
Marienthal —Earl Smith lives with the wind. Smith, 56, grew up on his western Kansas farm, northeast of tiny Marienthal, population 71. Like his John Deere cap, the wind is a constant companion. “From soil erosion to the dust storms, you just have to plan your day around the wind,” Smith says. “You know you’re going to have it and we don’t have the trees or hardly any-
Mostly cloudy
Editor’s note: These stories were produced by students in the William Allen White School of Journalism at Kansas University who have been brought together to explore significant but underreported statewide issues. Funding for the project was provided by the Clay Blair Family Foundation, which supports educational opportunities throughout Kansas. thing to stop it out here.” Since 1892, Marienthal farmers have nurtured a love-hate relationship with the wind. They watched the topsoil of their wheat fields blow into neighboring states during the Dust Bowl and used the same wind to
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Today’s forecast, page 6B
l The politics of mandates: Economically savvy or anti-capitalist tinkering? Page 9A. l From Western Kansas to the eastern seaboard: The mechanics of moving wind power, Page 11A. l Building turbines: Jobs for central Kansas, Page 12A.
2B, 6C Puzzles 5D Sports 2C Television 13A
5C 1B-6B 2B, 6C
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Bank robbery Lawrence police are trying to identify a man who robbed a credit union Saturday and left in a taxi. Page 3A
Knowing Breast Cancer Thursday, April 10, LMH Auditorium Reception 5-6 p.m. (West Lobby) Program 6-8 p.m. featuring Megan Hill, Breast Cancer Survivor Dr. Cheryl Rice and Dr. Paul Kolkman, Lawrence General Surgery Dr. Sherri Soule, LMH Oncology Center Dr. Scott Thellman, Lawrence Plastic Surgery Dr. Ajay Tejwani, Lawrence Cancer Center Dr. Michael Sanders, Radiologic Professional Services
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Please see LAWHORN, page 7A
Please see FARMERS, page 8A
INSIDE Arts&Entertainment 1C-6C Events listings Books 4C Horoscope Classified 1D-6D Movies Deaths 2A Opinion
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pump groundwater from the parched earth with wooden windmills. Since 2009, the old-fashioned, postcard-perfect windmill has given way to its modern day counterpart: the wind turbine. These
INSIDE
he beauty of math: At some point, all of us — assuming we weren’t asleep or curled up in a ball beneath our desks — have heard a math teacher utter that phrase. Unlike many of you, I understood it very early on in my college career. The beauty of math was the wildflowers of spring, the deep blue sky of summer, the whirling leaves of fall. I saw all those things and more when I did math.
Join Lawrence Memorial Hospital for one woman’s moving story of her journey through recent breast cancer treatment. Physicians and other healthcare providers will share their expertise about diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer at each step along her journey. There will be a pre-program reception with refreshments and exhibits featuring LMH and other community partners who specialize in caring for the patient with cancer. Advance registration is requested. Free.
For more information or to enroll,
Call ConnectCare at (785) 749-5800 or visit us at lmh.org/knowingbreastcancer
Vol.156/No.95 36 pages