Preparing students for a future career starts well before high school. The classes students take as early as eighth grade give them an opportunity to explore various paths that match their interests, skills and abilities.…

Plans to convert former elementary schools to housing are still moving forward. BNIM, a Kansas City, Mo.-based architect and design firm, is seeking Kansas Low-Income Housing Tax Credits to help pay for the first phase…

Three Iola High School students took the stage at the Bowlus Fine Arts Center Monday evening to model the latest in marching band fashion. Their audience — the USD 257 Board of Education — ultimately…

Friday’s school day continued as normal at Iola Middle School despite increased security measures after a student made a threatening statement related to a school shooting.  A text message was sent to parents on Thursday…

“You’ll get a sticker,” a student at Iola Elementary School whispered to a friend who wasn’t feeling well. Sara Clift overheard the conversation and smiled. It makes her job a lot easier when children feel…

It’s time to fight for public education, USD 257 Superintendent Stacey Fager told board members at Monday’s meeting. He asked the board to set aside time at the next meeting at 6 p.m. on Feb.…

Driving a school bus can be a lot of fun, longtime drivers Mark Whitney and Warren Johnson agree.  The kids make it fun. The drivers listen to their stories and watch them grow.  But the…

Students in SAFE BASE, the after-school program in USD 257, learned all about whale sharks as part of the annual Shark Week program. A school bus was decorated as a whale shark, the world’s largest…

Set goals and you’ll get results. That was the message to USD 257 board members from Steve Parsons, a former superintendent and education consultant at the Southeast Kansas Education Service Center in Greenbush. Parsons and…

Iola Elementary School is under a shark advisory. A bus in front of the school was turned into a shark last week to recognize the return of Shark Week for SAFE BASE students. That’s because some…