heartland - October 22 2024

1. Kansas Task Force Recommends Cellphone Ban in Schools
2. Kansas Economic Report Highlights Growth, Warns of Aging Demographics
3. Upcoming Kansas Board of Education Election Could Shift Power to Conservatives
4. Record Corn, Soybean Harvests Push Farmers to Storage Limits
5. U.S. Farmers Gradually Moving Away from Paper Checks to Digital Payments

1. Kansas Task Force Recommends Cellphone Ban in Schools

An advisory group created by Kansas education leaders is recommending that schools ban cellphones for students at every grade level. A majority of the 36-member Blue Ribbon Task Force on Student Screen Time voted to recommend that districts prohibit students from using cellphones for the entire school day, including during lunch and passing periods. They also voted to recommend that students store personal devices “in a secure location that is not accessible to them during the school day.” State school board members directed the task force to study and discuss issues related to electronic devices and the effect of social media on students’ mental health. The group includes students, teachers, parents and school leaders. As part of their research, task force members read and discussed “The Anxious Generation,” a book by social psychologist Jonathan Haidt that looks at connections between increased screen time and the epidemic of adolescent mental illness. Ava Gustin, a student at Mission Valley High School, southwest of Topeka, voted in favor of bell-to-bell phone bans because she said students need time away from screens. State school board members said they want to offer guidelines to local districts but don’t plan to impose statewide restrictions. Cellphone policies, like budget or curriculum decisions, are ultimately up to local school boards.  

My book review: The Anxious Generation

Article Source: KAKE

2. Kansas Economic Report Highlights Growth, Warns of Aging Demographics

Armed with a new economic report, Kansas officials touted jobs data while warning that the workforce continues to face a challenge of not enough laborers. "It's simple: we need more humans in Kansas to keep up with the phenomenal economic growth our state is experiencing," said Lt. Gov. David Toland, who is also the Commerce secretary. The 2024 Kansas Economic Report, released last Thursday by the Kansas Department of Labor's labor market information services division, showed improvements in several measures of the state economy in 2023. The labor force grew, the private sector led job growth, exports hit a record and the unemployment rate remained low despite a modest increase. But the report is not all good news, as an aging population and fewer younger workers may affect future workforce sustainability. "The state faces significant challenges in sustaining future labor force growth due to demographic trends, particularly among younger populations," Shultz said. 

REPORT

Article Source: Topeka Capitol-Journal

3. Upcoming Kansas Board of Education Election Could Shift Power to Conservatives

Turnover on the Kansas Board of Education after the November election could tip the board’s balance of power in favor of conservative members. Half of the board’s 10 seats are up for election. Republicans currently outnumber Democrats seven to three, but some moderate board members aren’t running for reelection, positioning the board for a potential ideological shake-up. All five races are contested, and the 12 candidates are differentiating themselves on such central issues as parental rights, public school funding and school safety ahead of Nov. 5. The board is tasked with oversight of the Kansas Department of Education and supervision of public schools, but it has little control over funding, a responsibility of the legislative branch.

Article Source: KS Reflector

4. Record Corn, Soybean Harvests Push Farmers to Storage Limits

U.S. farmers are harvesting two of the largest corn and soybean crops in history at the fastest pace in years, straining their physical capabilities and their grain storage capacity. The massive influx of crops is testing growers who are already grappling with grain prices near four-year lows, stiff competition for global export sales and farm incomes that are down 23% from a record high just two years ago. Many Midwestern farmers still have grain left in storage from 2023, after they refused to sell a record corn crop due to low prices. Now, dry weather is accelerating this year's harvests and forcing grain handlers in some areas to store corn outside, rather than in storage bins.

Article Source: Reuters

5. U.S. Farmers Gradually Moving Away from Paper Checks to Digital Payments

The only thing bigger than the agriculture sector’s contribution to daily sustenance could be its reliance on paper payments. In 2023, agriculture, food and related industries contributed a staggering $1.5 trillion to the U.S. GDP, representing about 5.6% of the total economy. Despite this major economic role, farmers — who contributed $203 billion to that figure — are still primarily relying on an outdated method of handling their finances: paper checks. “One big paper check at a time is what we’re still doing in agriculture,” Jake Joraanstad, CEO at Bushel, told PYMNTS’ Karen Webster. These checks, representing the last bastions of traditional financial processes in a digital world, are a hallmark of how farmers manage their financial transactions. Farmers, as Joraanstad explained, have a unique relationship with paper checks. They don’t rely on a regular paycheck. Instead, they draw from lines of credit throughout the year to cover expenses, and when they do get paid — often with one massive check for millions of dollars — it’s primarily to repay these loans. Because of this setup, many farmers fail to see the need to switch to a faster, digital payment method. But slowly yet surely, digital payments are helping to thaw the inertia of the long-standing practices and generational resistance to change that characterize the agricultural industry.

Article Source: PYMNTS

Sources

1. https://www.kake.com/home/task-force-kansas-schools-should-ban-cellphones-for-all-students/article_ae991494-9092-11ef-8f26-7b89ded45e73.html

2. https://www.cjonline.com/story/news/politics/government/2024/10/22/kansas-saw-economic-growth-in-2023-jobs-gdp-personal-income/75716755007/

3. https://kansasreflector.com/2024/10/22/kansas-board-of-education-races-could-shift-power-to-conservative-bloc/

4. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/speedy-us-corn-soy-harvests-strain-farmers-storage-capacity-2024-10-21/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Issue:%202024-10-21%20Agriculture%20Dive%20%5Bissue:67024%5D&utm_term=Agriculture%20Dive

5. https://www.pymnts.com/news/b2b-payments/2024/farmers-are-finally-ready-to-put-the-paper-check-out-to-pasture/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Issue:%202024-10-22%20Agriculture%20Dive%20%5Bissue:67071%5D&utm_term=Agriculture%20Dive