Two high school students from Summerfield, who State Police say were not wearing seat belts, were killed in a two-vehicle wreck last night on Louisiana Highway two in Claiborne Parish. Trooper Brent Hardy says 17-year-old Tony Singleton of Haynesville was the driver.
Cut 9 (09) “…Chevrolet Suburban”
Singleton and his 15-year-old passenger Dequez Neal died, while the driver of the other vehicle, sustained minor injuries.

The state department of transportation has reopened the westbound lanes of Interstate 10 over the Atchafalaya Basin bridge after it was closed for a couple of days because of a fiery fatal chain-reaction crash that involved three chemical tanker trucks, two cargo trucks, and a passenger vehicle. DOTD spokesperson Rodney Mallett says the bridge underwent a thorough evaluation following the cleanup effort…
Cut 13 (09) “…cause any cracks.”

Money from a federal lawsuit against Volkswagen is being used in Louisiana to help school systems buy new, alternative fuel-powered school buses. Brooke Thorington has more.

Cut 2 (31) “…I’m Brooke Thorington” 

For the first time in three decades, participation in high school sports has dropped at the national level.  Among the possible reasons for the decline is the issue of players’ safety, something LHSAA Executive Director Bonine says his organization doesn’t take lightly.

Cut 5 (09) “…weather we’re having.”

Traffic is flowing normally on I-10 over the Atchafalaya Basin Bridge now that the clean-up is complete from Monday’s fiery multi-vehicle crash that killed one person. State department of transportation spokesperson Rodney Mallett says there are some spots on the concrete that are cracked or chipped, but it is nothing that renders the structure as unsafe…
cut 14 (09) “…a regular basis”
Monday’s chain-reaction pileup killed a trucker from Florida and injured five others.

For the first time in 30 years, the National Federation of State High School Associations has seen a decline in the number of students participating in high school sports. But L-H-S-A-A executive director Eddie Bonine says Louisiana has actually seen an increase of three-thousand more prep athletes and he credits proper sportsmanship…
cut 6 (09) “…our venues”

The Board of Regents has set a goal that by 2030, 60-percent of all adults between the ages of 25 and 64 will have either a college degree or some sort of post-secondary credential. Only 44-percent of Louisiana adults currently have reached that benchmark. Higher Ed Commissioner Kim Hunter Reed says the labor market is approaching a point where a high school diploma just won’t cut it…
cut 11 (11) “…at that”
A recent study showed Louisiana was one of the states most at risk of losing jobs to automation and robotics.

Louisiana schools are using money from a federal lawsuit against Volkswagen to replace old diesel school buses with new alternative fuel buses. The state received nearly 20-million dollars from the settlement, and Louisiana Clean Fuels co-coordinator Tyler Hermann says the money will subsidize half of the cost of alternative fuel buses for school districts….
Cut 7 (10)“…number”
The settlement money was disbursed to states based on the number of VWs sold in each state.

The Board of Regents sets an ambitious goal of making sure 60 percent of all working-age adults in Louisiana have post-secondary education by 2030. Higher Education Commissioner Kim Hunter Reed says that would mean more than doubling the number of credentials the state currently produces annually.
Cut 10 (07) “…an option.”
That comes out to increasing credentials from 40,000 a year to over 85,000 a year.

You can now get to the Lafayette area from the east by using I-10. The westbound lanes over the Atchafalaya Basin re-opened yesterday afternoon after they were shutdown for two days, because of clean-up and an inspection following a fiery mutli-vehicle wreck that killed an out of state truck driver. Still no exact cause, but DOTD spokesperson Rodney Mallett says..
cut 15 (10) “…we could avoid”

Two teenagers from Haynesville were killed last night in a two-vehicle wreck on Louisiana Highway Two in Clairborne Parish. State Police say the victims, 17-year-old Tony Singleton and 15-year-old Neal Dequez were not wearing seat belts. The driver of the other vehicle was buckled up and sustained moderate injuries.

New data shows nationally, participation in high school athletics has his dipped. Kevin Barnhart has the story.
Cut 1 (31) “I’m Kevin Barnhart”

The Board of Regents wants 60 percent of working-age adults to have a post-secondary education by 2030 in a state where less than half have one…
Cut 3 (30) “…Matt Doyle.”

State Police say two teenagers from Haynesville were killed in a two-vehicle crash last night on Highway two in Claiborne Parish. Investigators 17-year-old Tony Singleton and 15-year-old Neal Dequez were not wearing their seat belts. L-S-P say Singleton lost control of his Honda Accord and hit a Chevy Suburban. The driver of the Suburban was buckled up and suffered moderate injuries.

Louisiana schools are using money the state received from a federal lawsuit against Volkswagen to replace old diesel school buses with new alternative fuel buses. In 2017 VW pleaded guilty to installing software on their vehicles that hid their nitrogen oxide emission levels. Louisiana Clean Fuels Co-Coordinator Tyler Hermann says the settlement works towards addressing that environmental damage.
Cut 8 (11) “benefit”
Hermann says money from the settlement can only be used for a narrow range of projects, like purchasing cleaner buses or installing electric charging stations.

For the first time in 30 years, the National Federation of State High School Associations has found that participation in high school sports has declined nationally. LHSAA executive director Eddie Bonine says in Louisiana there’s been a slight increase, which is a credit to our coaches, who do a good job of preventing and diagnosing head injuries…
cut 5 (09) “…weather we’re having”

The state department of transportation has reopened the westbound lanes of Interstate 10 over the Atchafalaya Basin bridge after it was closed for a couple of days because of a fiery fatal chain-reaction crash that involved three chemical tanker trucks, two cargo trucks, and a passenger vehicle. DOTD spokesperson Rodney Mallett says the bridge underwent a thorough evaluation following the cleanup effort…
cut 13 (09) “…cause any cracks”

For the first time in three decades, participation in high school sports has dropped at the national level. The data comes from a study by the National Federation of State High School Associations. LHSAA Executive Director Eddie Bonine says the national trend is not reflected in Louisiana.
Cut 4 (08) “increase for us.”
The sports that saw the biggest declines nationwide were football and basketball.

The Louisiana Board of Regents has approved a new master plan that sets the goal of 60-percent of working-adults possessing a college degree or other employment credential beyond a high school diploma by 2030. Currently, less than half of Louisiana adults have achieved that benchmark. Higher Education Commissioner Kim Hunter Reed says it will take more teachers, bigger schools and more money invested into public colleges, but she says the pieces are in place to pull that off…
cut 12 (12) “…there”
The master plan does not include a cost on how much money it will take to achieve this goal.

New data shows nationally, participation in high school athletics has his dipped. Kevin Barnhart has the story.

Cut 1 (31) “I’m Kevin Barnhart”

_______________________________

Money from a federal lawsuit against Volkswagen is being used in Louisiana to help school systems by new, alternative fuel-powered school buses. Brooke Thorington has more.

Cut 2 (31) “…I’m Brooke Thorington” 

______________________________

The Board of Regents wants 60 percent of working age adults to have a post-secondary education by 2030 in a state where less than half have one currently. Matt Doyle has more…

Cut 3 (30) “…Matt Doyle.”

________________________________________

For the first time in three decades, participation in high school sports has dropped at the national level.  The data comes from a study by the National Federation of State High School Associations.  LHSAA Executive Director Eddie Bonine says the national trend is not reflected in Louisiana.

Cut 4 (08) “increase for us.”

The sports that saw the biggest declines were football and basketball.

Among the possible reasons for the decline is the issue of players’ safety, something Bonine says his organization doesn’t take lightly.

Cut 5 (09) “…weather we’re having.”

The numbers are not a disaster for high school sports as the most recent season had the third-highest number of athletes on record.  Bonine believes sportsmanship is a contributing factor that keeps the numbers high locally.

Cut 6 (07) “…at our venues.”

____________________________

Louisiana schools are using money the state received from a federal lawsuit against Volkswagen to replace old diesel school buses with new alternative fuel buses.

The state got 19.8-million-dollars from the settlement, and Louisiana Clean Fuels co-coordinator Tyler Hermann says the money will subsidize half of the cost of alternative fuel buses for school districts.

Cut 7 (10)“…number”

Schools replacing diesel buses with new “cleaner” burning diesel would only receive a 25 percent subsidy.

In 2017 VW pleaded guilty to installing software on their vehicles that hid their nitrogen oxide emission levels. Hermann says the settlement works towards addressing that environmental damage.

Cut 8 (11) “benefit”

The settlement money was disbursed to states based on the number of VWs sold in each state.

Hermann says the money the state received from the settlement can only be used for a narrow range of projects like purchasing cleaner buses or installing electric charging stations.

Cut 9 (09) “…off-base”

Once the state received the settlement it was divided into thirds, one each going to the Department of Environmental Quality, the Department of Natural Resources, and DOTD.

_______________________

The Board of Regents sets an ambitious goal of making sure 60 percent of all working-age adults in Louisiana have post-secondary education by 2030.

Commissioner of Higher Education Kim Hunter Reed says that would mean more than doubling the number of credentials the state produces annually.

Cut 10 (07) “…an option.”

That comes out to increasing credentials from 40,000 a year to over 85,000 a year.

A recent study showed Louisiana was one of the states most at risk of losing jobs to automation and robotics. Reed says we’re approaching a point where a high school diploma just won’t cut it.

Cut 11 (11) “at that.” 

Currently less than half of Louisiana’s working-age population has a post-secondary certification.

Doubling the number of credentials the state puts out every year means you’ll need more teachers, bigger schools, and a lot more money invested into higher ed. Reed says the pieces are in place to pull that off.

Cut 12 (12) “…there.”

_____________________________

DTOD inspectors say the stretch of the I-10 bridge over the Atchafalaya Basin that recently reopened following a deadly crash appears to be safe.  DTOD spokesperson Rodney Mallett says the structure had to undergo a thorough evaluation following the cleanup effort.

Cut 13 (09) “…cause any cracks.”

Mallett says there were some spots in the on the top deck in the concrete that sustained damage, but it is nothing the renders the structure as unsafe.

Cut 14 (09) “…a regular basis.”

Mallett says now that DOTD has done their part in to increase infrastructure safety, they are asking the public to do their part to be safe behind the wheel.

Cut 15 (10) “…we could avoid.”

_________________________________________________________

Louisiana Tech senior quarterback J’Mar Smith is set to make his 28th collegiate start when leads the Bulldogs into Austin to take on the 10th ranked Texas Longhorns. Smith says he prepared well in the offseason and believes he’s ready to take a big step in his development

Cut 16  (16) “…than ever”   

Smith says he feels good after losing ten pounds during the offseason…

cut 17 (20) “…my highest level” 

Texas is young in its defensive secondary. Smith says he’s spent a lot of time watching them on film…

Cut 18 (17) “…high level” 

____________________________________________________

Georgia Southern rolls into Tiger Stadium this Saturday for the first game of the season on the heels of a 10-win season that shows they aren’t just some Sun Belt pushover.

Eagles Coach Chad Lunsford says even though they’ve been labeled the underdogs, they aren’t scared to bring their triple-option attack into Death Valley.

 cut 19 (18)   “LSU” 

The team is led by QB Shai Werts who racked up 987 yards passing and 908 yards rushing with 25 total touchdowns last year.

It’s a much louder environment than they’re used to playing in, and to compensate the team has been giving their players a little taste of what to expect in Baton Rouge.

cut 20 (20) “Offense” 

The only team the Eagles played last year with a similar talent level to LSU was Clemson. They lost that game in the other Death Valley 38-7.

State and local officials are putting plans into action to try to keep Fibrebond from leaving Minden for east Texas. The company has threatened to leave due to the poor condition of bridges in north Louisiana that forced them to take a 247-mile detour to ship products west. Minden Mayor Terry Gardner says they’ve found a new route that should shave off 170 miles…

Cut 3 (09) “…them.”

The new route will have the company ship it’s 150,000-pound structures down highway 80, through Camp Minden, and out through Darlene.

A cold front is moving through the state today and by tomorrow should make its way to the coast. While it is expected to bring down temps and humidity, State Climatologist Barry Keim says it may bring a bit of rain as well.

Cut 6 (07) “…some extra clouds.”

The Council for a Better Louisiana is offering voters a more detailed look at where the major candidates for Governor stand on the big issues with the Gubernatorial Survey…

cut  2 (30) I’m Kevin Barnhart”  

The Westbound lane of I-10 over the Atchafalaya Basin Bridge is now open two days after it was shuttered after a firey and deadly explosion involving three 18-wheelers. The crash sparked hazmat fears and the resulting wreckage was so substantial that it was clearly visible from the eastbound lane. DOTD opened the bridge at 3pm today.

Council for a Better Louisiana releases its candidate surveys, offering interested voters a more in-depth, detail-oriented look at the major candidates for Governor. CABL President Barry Erwin says the 11 to 15-page survey asked candidates to weigh in on most of the hot button policy issues of the day.

Cut 9 (07) “…about”

The U-S teen birth rate has declined to its lowest level in recorded history. As of 2018, there were about 17 babies born per one-thousand girls’ ages 15 to 19 in the United States. Tulane Sociology professor Michele Adams says it is not that teens are having less sex, it’s that more are practicing safer sex
Cut 12 (12) “…consequences of sex”
State and local officials are putting plans into action to try to keep Fibrebond from leaving Minden for east Texas. The company has threatened to leave due to the poor bridge conditions which’s forced detours to ship products. Minden Mayor Terry Gardner says it’s crucial the state and local powers do everything they can to keep the company in Minden due to impact on the local economy.

Cut 5 (07) “…people.”

Census estimates put Minden’s population at just over 12-thousand people.

It’s Labor Day Weekend and LSU kicks off their football season at home this Saturday. State Climatologist Barry Keim tells us what to expect.

Cut 8 (11) “…your umbrellas handy”

If your travel plans have you headed to southeastern Florida for the three day weekend it looks like Hurricane Dorian is predicted to be a Category 3 storm as it nears the US mainland.