City goal session
The Emporia City Commission will hold its second goal-setting session at 6:30 p.m. today at the Emporia Water Treatment Plant, 2910 W. 24th Ave. The purpose of the session is for commissioners to review the past year and discuss priorities and goals for the year ahead.
The public is welcome to attend the meeting.
Candidate forum tonight
A public forum for Emporia school board candidates is scheduled at 6:30 p.m. today in the conference room at Flint Hills Technical College, 3301 W. 18th Ave. Four candidates — Mike Crouch, Danny Giefer, Amy Scheller and Brent Windsor — are competing for the three open seats on the Emporia Board of Education.
The forum is sponsored by the Emporia Area Chamber of Commerce and the League of Women Voters.
Birds disappearing
TOPEKA — Kansas State University researchers say three grassland birds are disappearing from the Flint Hills.
Research by ecologist Kimberly With and her colleagues finds that the dickcissel, eastern meadowlark and grasshopper sparrow are experiencing severe population declines.
They say that’s because extensive land management techniques, such as annual burning and widespread grazing, reduces cover for nests and makes them more vulnerable to predators.
The Flint Hills is home to a half-billion-dollar cattle industry and is heavily managed for grazing and other land uses.