The Kansas State Board of Education will meet next week in Topeka. However, please note the time and date changes. 

The State Board will meet beginning at 1 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 9. State Board members are scheduled to listen to a report from Kansas Commissioner of Education Dr. Randy Watson, act on consent agenda items, receive information on parent engagement in schools and act on new appointments to the Professional Practices Commission. The Board is scheduled to recess at 5:20 p.m. 

On Thursday, State Board members will reconvene at 9 a.m. to act on the Kansas Advisory Council for Indigenous Education Working Group’s recommendation that schools with American Indian-themed mascots and branding “retire these practices as soon as possible." They also recommended that when more in-depth community engagement and long-term planning is necessary, that these institutions develop plans to retire these practices within the next three to five years. 

State Board members also will act on: 

• Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) II change requests and ESSER III expenditure plans for use of federal COVID-19 relief funds. 

• The Accreditation Review Council’s Kansas Education Systems Accreditation (KESA) recommendations. 

• Recommendations of the Professional Standards Board/Teacher Vacancy and Supply Committee Working Group. 

State Board members also will recognize Schools of Excellence; receive a presentation by Jackson Bevan, a fourth grade student at Northern Hills Elementary School, Seaman Unified School District 345, and discuss graduation requirements (with possible action). 

The State Board meetings are live streamed and can be viewed online at Streaming-Media (ksde.org).