Since the Kansas Legislature’s session wrapped up last month, the state has more than a dozen new education laws. 

Notable new education laws include a ban on students having cellphones and other personal electronic communication devices during the school day, additional requirements aimed at strengthening literacy in the state and allowing home-schooled students to participate in public school activities. 

Most of the laws were signed by Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly, but at least one — opting the state into a federal tax credit program — was enacted only after legislators overrode Kelly’s vetoes.

Here are some of the key changes to Kansas education laws. 

Cellphones and social media

About a year after Missouri banned cellphones in public schools, Kansas followed suit with a similar new law. 

House Bill 2299 requires public and accredited private schools to prohibit students from using any “personal electronic communication devices” — such as cellphones, tablets, computers or other wireless communication devices not owned by the school — during the school day. 

The devices must be turned off and stored somewhere students can’t access — not only during class but also during recess, lunch and passing periods. 

The law makes exceptions for medical and special education needs if there are no reasonable alternatives. Students can use a school telephone or other designated device to contact their parents during the school day and can have their phones while traveling to off-campus learning experiences such as college classes or internships. 

The same law also prohibits school employees from using social media to directly or privately communicate with students or requiring students to use social media for assignments or activities. 

The school board can approve certain uses of social media for official school purposes, such as posting public announcements. 

Students in foster care

House Bill 2320 makes it easier for students in foster care to have a stable education after reports that some students were missing school or having trouble transferring schools promptly.  

The new law requires schools to transfer student records within two days of a request and says foster children can’t be kept out of school because their records are missing. 

Foster children also can continue at their original school, even if they move somewhere else within the school district or the state, or attend any school district that’s determined to be in their best interest. 

In cases where a student attends their original school despite living outside the school’s attendance zone, the school and the state’s Department for Children and Families collaborate on a transportation plan. 

School meals 

House Bill 2402 requires school districts to consider participating in a federal school meals program if eligible. The federal Community Eligibility Provision allows for all students in a low-income-area school to receive free meals. The school is reimbursed based on the percentage of students who qualify for certain public benefits such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.   

School boards could still opt not to participate for financial reasons if they explain that decision in a public meeting. 

In a post on the website of Aligned, a nonprofit that advocates for education and workforce development in Kansas and Missouri, manager of policy and outreach Claudia Fury-Aguirre wrote that some school districts are concerned that participating in the federal program could affect the collection of data used to determine part of their state funding.  

Innovation districts

House Bill 2402 aims to streamline decisions if a school district wants to become a “public innovation district.” Innovation districts are exempt from some of the laws, rules and regulations that normally apply to school districts. 

To apply, districts submit a plan including their programs, goals, public support and assessment plans. Under the new law, the applications are due May 1 rather than Dec. 1 and the Kansas State Board of Education has 45 days, rather than the previous 90, to respond. 

If the board doesn’t approve or deny the application within the time period, it’s automatically approved. Previously, it would be automatically rejected if the board doesn’t respond. 

Fentanyl abuse prevention 

House Bill 2534 requires school districts to provide education programs that combat fentanyl abuse and addiction. Each school is also required to stock naloxone, which a nurse or other designated person can administer in case of an opioid overdose. 

Active shooter drills

House Bill 2534 also requires the state board to establish best practices for active shooter drills in schools. There are tighter restrictions for an active shooter simulation — which uses sounds or other elements to mimic a real-life shooting — than for a drill, which doesn’t use those sensory elements. 

Parents can also opt their students out of drills or simulations without penalty. 

The department’s guidelines will be related to making safety training age-appropriate, trauma-informed, accessible for students with disabilities and informed by the latest research. School boards will have to make policies in accordance with those guidelines every year. 

Responding to new federal programs: Tax credits and Workforce Pell Grants

Kansas opted into a federal program that offers tax credits to donors — up to $1,700 for individuals or $3,400 for couples — who contribute to organizations that grant scholarships. The scholarships can go to families who make less than 300% of the local median income. 

Though the scholarships are technically available to both public and private K-12 students, critics say they will be difficult for public school students to use because they only cover services for which schools bill students. The program was created as part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

Lawmakers overrode Kelly’s veto to make Senate Bill 361 law. 

House Bill 2485 also responds to a new federal policy by establishing a process for approving programs for Workforce Pell Grants. These grants can be used for short-term programs that prepare students for jobs. 

Home-schoolers participating in public school activities 

Senate Bill 382 allows students from nonaccredited private schools to participate in public school activities that are governed by the activities association. In Kansas, home schools are classified as nonaccredited private schools. 

Home-schooled students who wish to participate in activities can be required to meet conditions such as participating in tryouts, paying fees or attending specific classes as long as public school students are subject to those requirements as well. 

The bill also clarifies that foreign exchange students living with a host family can attend that host family’s home school. 

Higher education

Two higher education bills this year encourage professionals to work in underserved areas. They include: 

• House Bill 2595, which establishes a stipend for some University of Kansas and Washburn University law students and a loan repayment program for attorneys who practice in rural areas of the state. They are required to work in a rural area one year for each year that they receive a stipend or help with loan repayment. 
• House Bill 2374, which amends a medical student loan program offering loan forgiveness for doctors who work in certain facilities or areas of the state in primary care or in specific specialties. The law allows the university chancellor to modify the specialties and areas on the approved list based on workforce needs and shortages.  

Literacy

House Bill 2485 adds to the Kansas Every Child Can Read Act by adding guidelines for student assessments and requirements for reporting on outcomes for struggling readers. 

It requires school districts to have a licensed reading specialist available at each elementary school beginning in the 2029-30 school year. All pre-K through eighth grade teachers and special education teachers applying for licenses will have increased requirements for literacy-related training. 

The Kansas Board of Regents is responsible for ensuring that teacher training programs at state universities can demonstrate that they are only using practices based in evidence and in the science of reading — a term for research and evidence about how children learn to read and write well. 

By the 2027-28 school year, each school district must have individual literacy plans for all students who score “high risk” on screenings. The plans have to include at least 90 minutes of targeted instruction per week and must support the student until they reach grade level. 

Childcare

Senate Bill 82 incentivizes employers to help their employees with childcare by increasing the tax credit for activities such as starting or expanding employers’ own childcare programs, helping employees search for childcare or paying for employees’ childcare.