One Olathe shooting victim: Administrator who is set to move to a bigger job in Wichita

Kaleb Stoppel, the incoming athletic director for Wichita Public Schools, was among those injured in a school shooting at Olathe East High School on Friday, according to a post from Kansas state Sen. Cindy Holscher, whose son attends the school.

Stoppel, an Olathe East athletic director and assistant principal, was chosen in January as the successor to J. Means, longtime district athletic director for USD 259’s athletic programs.

Olathe police said the shooting occurred when the student displayed a gun in the school’s main office, and shots were exchanged between him and the school resource officer.

Officials at Overland Park Regional Medical Center said in a written statement Friday afternoon that the two victims were discharged from the hospital. The student remained there in critical condition.

Stoppel was scheduled to start in Wichita this July. He has been at Olathe East since 2018.

The Wichita district’s January announcement celebrated Stoppel’s background in coaching multiple sports, including track and field, football, cross country, swimming and diving.

He previously taught at Winnetonka High School in North Kansas City. He also taught and coached at Olathe South High School and was assistant principal and athletic director at Santa Fe Trail Middle School. Dr. Stoppel began his teaching career in the North Kansas City School District at Winnetonka High School, according to the USD 259 announcement.

Stoppel grew up in western Kansas and attended college at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, where he competed in multiple track and field events at the NCAA Division 1 level, including high jump, long jump, triple jump, shot put and distance medley relays.

Multiple Wichita public school officials did not return phone calls and emails on Friday afternoon. Means declined to comment for this story.

“If it is about the shooting I have no comment and refer you to our media relations,” Means said in a text message.

In the January announcement, he said he was “eager to begin working with Kaleb (Stoppel)“ during the transition.

“And I know he is excited to get started,” Means said in the announcement. “Having grown up in western Kansas and then working in the Olathe area, Kaleb brings a unique perspective of how athletics works throughout the state. He’s very active in both our state and national organizations and will bring a wealth of knowledge to this position.”

Contributing: Aarón Torres and Sarah Ritter of The Kansas City Star

This story was originally published March 4, 2022 at 9:29 PM.