Louisiana will be providing families with 1,000 vouchers to pay for their children’s tutoring to bridge the literacy crisis happening in the state. Whitney Thomas has more…
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Election results for the town of Melville are in limbo after the incumbent Mayor, 84-year-old Velma Hendrix was killed in a car crash Tuesday. Brooke Thorington explains.
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The fall midterms are over, so now we can turn our attention to the 2023 Louisiana Governor’s Race. Kevin Gallagher has more…:
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The LDOE is addressing the state’s literacy crisis by launching the Steve Carter Literacy Program, providing families with $1,000 vouchers for tutoring. Public school students in grades k-5 will have the opportunity to advance their reading skills with high-quality tutors approved through the LDOE if eligible.
Deputy Superintendent Jenna Chiasson says the program’s investment will bridge the literacy gap…
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Student registration is not open yet, but school systems are identifying eligible students and will notify families via email. K-3 students are eligible if they scored below proficient on the screener from the beginning of the year. K-5 students are eligible if they scored below mastery in English Learning Arts on the spring 2022 LEAP assessment.
New Orleans Representative Jason Hughes says Louisiana is not where it should be, but there are encouraging signs of improvement.
The program is the result of Act 415 of the 2021 Legislative session, named after the late Baton Rouge Representative. Once registration opens families can access the online portal at www.LouisianaTutoringInitiative.com to register and browse through available tutors.
State Superintendent of Education Cade Brumley says families will be able to apply the $1,000 to different vendors in the state for different sessions.
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Multi-lingo tutors will be available to accommodate students who do not speak English as a primary language. For additional information visit LouisianaLiteracy@la.gov.
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The small St. Landry Parish town of Melville remains in limbo after the election day death, of their mayor, 84-year-old Velma Hendrix, who was seeking a second term. And because Hendrix was killed in a car crash after the polls opened, one of her challengers Sam Londerno (LON-drah-no) says the election hasn’t been called.
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Secretary of State’s office spokesperson John Tobler says when a candidate dies after qualifying but before the polls close qualifying starts over. So qualifying will begin today and will close on Monday.
The current results, without those cast for Hendrix, indicate Londerno won 52 percent of the vote and Caretta Robertson 48 percent.
Londerno says the loss of Hendrix has left the community in shock. She says Hendrix taught school for several years and previously served as an alderman on the town’s board before she was elected mayor in 2018.
Hendrix was riding in a 2008 Acura RDX on U.S. 190 when it was struck by a 2015 Ram shortly after 11 AM Tuesday. Hendrix was taken to a local hospital and where she died from her injuries.
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Now that the elections are (for the most part) over in Louisiana, political attention will turn to the 2023 race to be Louisiana’s next governor. U.L.-Monroe political science professor Joshua Stockley says he is actually surprised that there hasn’t been more talk of who is and isn’t running next fall…:
Cut 10 (10) “…un-exciting midterm.”
Stockley says the Louisiana Republican Party’s early endorsement of Attorney General Jeff Landry for Governor could possibly backfire, if a more popular and dynamic GOP candidate decides to run. He says quite a few gubernatorial hopefuls were just waiting for this election to be over, so they could make the right move…:
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Stockley says a year is not a lot of time, when it comes to planning a campaign, staffing up and soliciting donations…:
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Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser, State Treasurer John Schroder, state Senator Sharon Hewitt, and even Congressman Garret Graves and Senator John Kennedy have been talked of as being interested in being governor.
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A plan to change how Louisiana high schools are rated will be go before the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education this morning. BESE President James Garvey says they are trying to change the formula for how schools are graded.
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Presently Garvey says most high schools are graded an “A” or “B” and that technical courses aren’t given the same weight as others in the rating system. He says tech courses aren’t getting the credit he believes they deserve.
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Garvey says tech career opportunities are a fairly well-paying field, for example, plumbers…
Today’s board meeting begins at 9 AM.
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Following the big win over Alabama, 7th-ranked LSU is looking to avoid a letdown this Saturday at Arkansas. Running back Josh Williams says Coach Brian Kelly is telling the team to stick with their process that’s got them to this point…
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Williams is a semifinalist for the Burlsworth Trophy, which is awarded to the nation’s most outstanding college football player who began his career as a walk-on. Williams walked on in 2019 and earned a scholarship in 2020. This year he leads the team in rushing with 359 yards…
The junior from Houston is just five-foot-nine, but Williams says he uses that to his advantage…
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The Ragin Cajuns football team has an opportunity tonight to get the bad taste out of their mouth from blowing a ten-point fourth-quarter lead last week to Troy as they host Georgia Southern tonight. U-L Lafayette Coach Michael Desormeaux says the Eagles are also desperate for a win…
U-L Lafayette enters the game with a 4-and-5 record and need to win at least two of their final three games in order to be eligible for a bowl game. Three of the Cajuns losses have been by a touchdown or less. Desormeaux says the losses have been frustrating…