September 2025
K-State in the news
Some of the top stories mentioning Kansas State University are posted below. Download an Excel file (xls) with all of this month's news stories.
Friday, Oct. 3, 2025
National/International
The power of breed diversity
10/2/25 Drovers
“Heterosis is a good thing,” says Phillip Lancaster, a cattle nutritionist at Kansas State University. “There are two things to keep in mind: if it gets too complicated and you backcross too much, you can lose the benefits. And it depends on which breeds you’re crossing. You get the most advantage when you cross Bos indicus with Bos taurus (cattle origins), for example.”
Struggling soybean farmers look to Washington for help on tariffs, but resources less available this time
10/2/25 Tribune Content Agency
"Everyone's talking about, ‘How do we get farmers through to October of '26,'" said Jennifer Ifft, an agriculture economist at Kansas State University. "They might have to go to Congress."
State/Regional
K-State offers degree path through Dodge City Community College
10/2/25 KSN
“We have to meet Kansans where they’re at and with what they need,” K-State Provost Jesse Perez Mendez said in a news release. “Community colleges like Dodge City Community College open doors, and land-grant universities like K-State help expand those opportunities. Together, we’re building brighter pathways for Kansas students.”
Beef and pork show slight drop in production
10/3/25 High Plains Journal
Production for 2025 was estimated at 25,826 million pounds compared to a month’s ago projection of 25,926 million pounds. Production in 2026 was estimated at 25,490 million pounds. Glynn Tonsor, a professor in the department of agricultural economics at Kansas State University, said the reduction in steer, heifer and cow processing was something he noted, too. “The herd size was already smaller, and any heifer retention efforts will further reduce near-term fed cattle slaughter volumes,” he said.
Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025
National/International
New research at K-State swats back at mosquito-borne virus threatening pork industry
10/2/25 Swine Web
Kansas State University researchers and collaborators are creating a buzz in the world of mosquito-borne virus research with a new study on Japanese encephalitis virus, or JEV, which can infect humans and animals and cause a range of illnesses, including reproductive abnormalities in swine.
State/Regional
Choral Director and Founder Joshua Oppenheim Answers Four Questions
10/1/25 In Kansas City
Starting this month, there’s a new sound in town. Joshua Oppenheim, Ph.D., with the help of former student Stacy Davis, has launched a community-wide group celebrating all aspects of choral music in Kansas City. “Re:Sound Ensembles is the result of a 30-year slow burn,” says Oppenheim. He has served as a professor of music and the director of choral studies at Kansas State University since 2008.
Local
Enrollment up at K-State for third year in a row
10/1/25 Manhattan Mercury
Officials said in a statement that K-State this semester welcomed its fourth-largest first-time freshman class in university history with 3,788 students. Enrollment is 16,929 for students attending courses at the Manhattan campus in person.