College students in Louisiana have disappointing news heading their way, as letters are being sent out this week reminding them they will owe 60-percent of their spring tuition in January. Jeff Palermo has the story…
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The Louisiana Policy Institute conducted a report on the benefits of the school readiness tax credits. Emelie Gunn has more on the results…
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Governor John Bel Edwards is asking a Baton Rouge court to outline Attorney General Jeff Landry’s political power. Halen Doughty has more…
Cut 3 (31) “I’m Halen Doughty”
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This week thousands of Louisiana college students will have a difficult decision to make, as they’re reminded they will owe almost 60-perent of their semester’s tuition in January. For the first time in its history, TOPS will not cover a recipient’s entire tuition because the legislature was not able to fully fund the program. Higher Ed Commissioner Joe Rallo says some students could be forced to drop out.
Rallo says there’s scarce resources available to fully fund the scholarship program and the problem could continue as the state is facing more mid-year budget cuts are expected. But he is optimistic TOPS will always be around in some fashion.
Rallo says higher education is about the student’s future and hopes students make the decision to invest in this opportunity. He says even without TOPS, there are funding options, which is why high school grads are required to file for FAFSA.
The average LSU student will owe more than $2-thousand for the spring tuition, not including fees.
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The Louisiana Policy Institute for Children released a report on how the school readiness tax credits are benefiting the state. Melanie Brofin with L-P-I-C says the incentive helps working families afford and access early care and education for children up to 4 years old. She says the program is moving in the right direction.
CUT 7 (10) “gotten credentials”
Over 14-thousand families have claimed the credit to fund early childcare or preschool. Brofin says the school readiness tax credits have been very effective and they’re hoping it will be approved in the upcoming legislative session.
Funding to support early child care and education from kids 0 to 3 has been cut by close to 70-percent. And Brofin says the slots available are of better quality but unfortunately the number of slots has been decreasing because of cuts in funding to the program. She says more than 20-thousand families who qualify are not getting assistance.
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The quarrel between Governor John Bel Edwards and Attorney General Jeff Landry continues, as the governor is asking a Baton Rouge court to define Landry’s role in state government. Publisher of LaPolitics.com, Jeremy Alford, says Landry has interpreted his role to be much further reaching than his predecessors, and the two officials disagree about how much power the AG should have.
Cut 10 (10) “traditional boundaries”
Edwards is asking the court to rule that the governor prevails when state leaders disagree about legal matters. Alford says this lawsuit could be a response to another suit the AG filed over an executive order banning LGBT discrimination, in which the court ruled in Landry’s favor. Alford says this new ruling could impact much more than just that executive order.
If the court rules in the governor’s favor Wednesday, Landry would not be able to prevent Edwards from hiring attorneys to file lawsuits against oil companies for coastal damages. Alford says Louisiana has become increasingly partisan over the past couple of terms, and this dispute is the product of that divide.
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Northwestern State University has received the 2017 Military Friendly School designation by Victory Media. N-S-U Vice President of Technology Darlene Williams says they are proud to be recognized for their efforts to provide educational opportunities for military students and their families.
Williams says they have a long history of working with and serving the military with their relationships with Fort Polk and Barksdale Airforce Base. She says they also have a nationally ranked online degree program.
More than 16-hundred schools were considered for the honor. Williams hopes receiving designations like this will bring in more military students to the school. She says they have specific services in order to responsive to the needs of these students.
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UL-Lafayette head football coach Mark Hudspeth publicly apologized for the behavior of four of his players who were recorded in the locker room singing an anti-Donald Trump rap song filled with vulgarities. Hudspeth says these young men have shown remorse for their actions.
Hudspeth says the four players in the video have been punished, but did not say how. He says they also have taken steps to ensure the locker room breeds an environment of discipline, relaxation and comfort.
Hudspeth says the team will also partake in one-thousand hours of community service by visiting every middle school and high school in Acadiana.
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For the second time this season, 16th ranked LSU is getting ready to play a game against the 21st ranked Florida Gators. The two schools were scheduled to play each other October 8th, but Hurricane Matthew postponed the contest. Florida is now 7-3 record, they lead the SEC East at 5-and-2 and they have one of the top defenses in the league…
Cut 19 (13) “lot of speed” (2x)
According to reports out of Florida, seven starters for the Gators are already ruled out for the game, including quarterback Luke Del Rio, and two more are questionable. Saturday is Senior Day and Coach O says that’s one of the many reasons the team wants to beat the Gators in a bad way…