NW Kansas Learns

During his life, Dane G. Hansen was an advocate for education. Perhaps it was because his mother, Alpha, and sister, Kate, were teachers. His father, Peter, was a self-taught entrepreneur. Peter and Alpha made sure each of the four Hansen children had lots of educational experiences in the classroom and beyond. Thus, education has always been a part of the work of the Dane G. Hansen Foundation.

With limited budgets and increased demands on time in the classroom, field trips have become more difficult to include in the curriculum. As a result, students might have fewer opportunities to experience hands-on activities. Yet, many of us learn best through doing and recall lessons where we got dirty or built something. 

Many of Kansas’ excellent educational sites are a long way from our Northwest Kansas schools. Even if cost is removed from the equation, the time it takes to transport students to communities such as Topeka, Hutchinson, Salina or Abilene makes field trips to these places difficult to justify. 

The Dane G. Hansen Foundation is pleased to offer a variety of enrichment options, engaging learning opportunities and “reverse field trips” to Northwest Kansas students and teachers. This outreach initiative, NWKansas LEARNS, combined with other Hansen initiatives, NWKansas ARTS and NWKansas READS, helps to fulfill the Hansen Foundation’s mission to improve the quality of life and provide opportunities to the people of Northwest Kansas. 

All of these opportunities are offered at NO COST to Northwest Kansas schools in the 26-county Hansen service area. The Hansen Foundation has partnered with the organizations in this booklet to cover the program and travel costs for Northwest Kansas students.