Bek Shackelford-Nwanganga

1 month ago | johnsoncountypost.com | Bek Shackelford-Nwanganga |Leah Wankum

By Bek Shackelford-NwangangaBlack Kansans are dying from most major diseases at higher rates than Kansans of all other races. A recent study by the Urban Institute shows that racial disparities continue to exist in health outcomes among Kansas residents. Researchers say the results aren’t surprising, but they offer a glimpse into health data that has long been ignored. It also provides a roadmap for policymakers and advocates to address health disparities.

1 month ago | kcur.org | Bek Shackelford-Nwanganga

Black Kansans are dying from most major diseases at higher rates than Kansans of all other races. A recent study by the Urban Institute shows that racial disparities continue to exist in health outcomes among Kansas residents. Researchers say the results aren’t surprising, but they offer a glimpse into health data that has long been ignored. It also provides a roadmap for policymakers and advocates to address health disparities.

1 month ago | kcur.org | Bek Shackelford-Nwanganga

LAWRENCE, Kansas – Grace Pearson Scholarship Hall, a three-story dormitory at the University of Kansas, has a gender-neutral, communal bathroom on the first floor. But for the 2025-26 school year, that could disappear, along with an entire gender-inclusive community that many LGBTQ+ students say they love. Students said the changes planned by the university at Grace Pearson are damaging to transgender and nonbinary communities.

2 months ago | kcur.org | Bek Shackelford-Nwanganga

Emails obtained by the Kansas News Service show there was a lot of tension between Wyandotte County Public Health Department’s then director, Elisha Caldwell, and state health officials during the response to one of the largest tuberculosis outbreaks in recent U.S. history. When the outbreak reached a fever pitch last summer, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stepped in to assist the local health department.

2 months ago | klcjournal.com | Bek Shackelford-Nwanganga |Bek Shackelford-Nwanganga

Editor’s note: This story is being republished from the Kansas News Service. The director of the Wyandotte County Public Health Department is no longer with the agency, a spokesperson confirmed Tuesday. It comes after turmoil during the handling of the major tuberculosis outbreak, shown by emails obtained by the Kansas News Service. Elisha Caldwell had been head of the local health department while an outbreak of TB grew in the Kansas City area, becoming one of the largest in recent U.S. history.