Wichita Public Schools

High schools in Kansas are graduating a higher percentage of students than ever before. But some people worry that the growth of credit recovery could be lowering standards and allowing students to get a diploma without the skills they need.

In a meeting with Wichita Superintendent Kelly Bielefeld last fall, members of the Greater Wichita Ministerial League and the NAACP questioned how the district’s graduation rate is increasing while scores on state assessment tests remain low.

Members of the district's financial oversight committee rejected a proposal to recommend a new bond issue by March 2026. They said the state’s largest district has not made a clear case for why it needs a bond or how it would use the money to rebuild and repair schools.

Wichita school district leaders formed the financial oversight committee to gather community input after voters rejected a $450 million bond issue. Now they're asking the group to recommend another bond vote.

One Wichita school board member said she received "a wave of unsettling feedback" from retired educators that several high schools could be manipulating grades or artificially inflating course credits so that more students graduate.

Wichita district officials say "some anomalies" at Southeast High were corrected and reported to state officials. Teachers worry the school may be inflating graduation rates.

Wichita Public Schools will serve meals to children 18 and under at 33 sites in the area.

As kindergarten becomes more academically intense, some schools in Wichita are incorporating self-directed free play — known among educators as purposeful play — into the daily schedule as a way to enhance learning and teach social skills.

A final tally of votes in the Feb. 25 special election show opponents edging bond supporters by only 319 votes. Wichita school district leaders say they plan to regroup and consider next steps.

Unofficial results updated Wednesday by the Sedgwick County election office show bond issue opponents leading by just less than 300 votes, with potentially up to 4,000 mail and provisional ballots still to be counted.