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The student-run news site of Lawrence Free State High School

Free Press Online

The student-run news site of Lawrence Free State High School

Free Press Online

The student-run news site of Lawrence Free State High School

Free Press Online

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With the option of an open lunch many students choose to visit surrounding establishments. Neighboring businesses have expressed concerns about shoplifting, fighting, vandalism and drug use.

NEWS: Reports of Vandalism of Local Businesses

Tommy Taylor March 20, 2023

During every lunch period, a number of students leave the school and get lunch and return without issue. However, administration has reported that students have caused harm to surrounding businesses during...

Chief Operations Officer Larry Englebrick shares a presentation slide talking about the impact of school closures.

NEWS BRIEF: School Board Makes Decisions Regarding School Closures

Cici Hunter February 28, 2023

On Monday, Feb. 27, the USD 497 Board of Education hosted a board meeting to hear administration and community input, in addition to the Future Planning Committee’s final proposal.  “We have cut,...

NEWS: School Closure Proposal Nears Final Decision

NEWS: School Closure Proposal Nears Final Decision

Cici Hunter and Natasha Torkzaban February 25, 2023

One year after the USD 497 Board of Education reached a consensus that no schools would shut down in light of budget cuts, a newly drafted proposal will put three schools on the chopping block. "Closing...

Senior Ashanti Riccardo draws on an iPad using a pen. Next year, students will be given a pen along with their iPad to allow similar functionality.

NEWS: Trading MacBooks for iPads

February 23, 2023

For six years, USD 497 high school students have been provided with MacBooks for school; however, the school board has opted to transition to iPads next year. The board made the decision on Jan. 23,...

Sophomore Merrit Hale was frustrated with the problems surrounding Ticketmaster when trying to buy tickets for her favorite artist. "Its super frustrating because of how fast they sold out and how expensive they are, and Ticketmaster didn't help with that," Hale said.

NEWS: Ticketmaster? More Like Ticket Disaster.

Emi Stone February 20, 2023

On Nov. 15, tickets for Taylor Swift's "The Eras Tour" went on sale on the website “Ticketmaster” which allows users to purchase tickets for concerts. Fans who bought tickets noticed that the process...

USD 497 Board of Education president Shannon Kimball, speaks at last nights board meeting.

NEWS: District Votes to Transition to iPads

Allison Mayhew and Lilly Wall January 24, 2023

Last night, the USD 497 Board of Education voted to transition high school student devices from MacBooks to iPads in the fall. The vote passed six-to-one.  The USD 497 news release from last night's...

Senior Lily Otter smiles while performing on stage at an improvisation show. Otter and her fellow teammates prepared for the festival by using their shows in the black box theatre as a learning experience

NEWS: Kansas Thespian Festival

Lilly Wall January 19, 2023

The competitive improvisation [improv] team traveled to Wichita and took first place at the Kansas Thespian Festival Jan. 5-7. Additionally, the theatre department extended their success, receiving a Gold...

News Brief:  Futures Planning Committee Proposes Budget Cuts

News Brief: Futures Planning Committee Proposes Budget Cuts

Natasha Torkzaban, Lilly Wall, and Cici Hunter January 18, 2023

In an attempt to bridge the budget gap of $9.6 million, the USD 497 Futures Planning Committee (FPC) is deciding on a series of proposed cuts. The main objectives are to achieve competitive wages for...

The halls are often full of students who use the hallway as a way to avoid class. Students do use these flex spaces for educational purposes these spaces are also a prime spot to hangout when avoiding class.

NEWS: Attendance Issues Plague School

Alicia Narum December 12, 2022

While many students realize that skipping class isn’t always in their best interest, a poll from @fsjournalism’s Instagram s tory displayed 61% of 492 students have skipped. Skipping school can...

NEWS BRIEF: Midterm Elections

NEWS BRIEF: Midterm Elections

Natasha Torkzaban and Lilly Wall November 9, 2022

Yesterday, the Kansas midterms and Douglas County city commissioner election took place, with two constitutional amendments also on the ballot. .  For the City Commissioner election, all in-person...

Senior Captain, Ming Da Zhang, steps onto the bus for the team’s trip to Gardner-Edgerton. Although the Varsity Boys Soccer team did not play until 7pm, they had to conform to the difficult agenda of bus routes, leaving at 1pm. With over five hours of downtime before playing, student-athletes have to find productive ways to spend their time.

NEWS: Bus Schedule Forces Teams to Leave Early

Ember Klein October 31, 2022

During the fall sports season, buses have been forced to leave early due to the Lawrence Public  Schools bus driver shortage, leading teams to leave up to five hours prior to competition time and miss...

NEWS: Coaches "Blindsided" By Increasing Facility Rental Fees

NEWS: Coaches “Blindsided” By Increasing Facility Rental Fees

Natasha Torkzaban and Allison Mayhew October 28, 2022

As the district reviews facility rental fees, sports teams may now have to pay the district the same fees charged to outside groups for their summer workouts and camps, in accordance with a new fee...

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