The St. Landry Parish community is mourning the death of a Leonville Elementary School teacher, killed in a head-on car crash on I-49 Sunday. Kace Kieschnick reports.
Cut 1 (34) “…I’m Kace Kieschnick.”
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The state education superintendent has a message for school district leaders – crack down on unruly kids. Andrew Greenstein reports.
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Northeast Louisiana is already seeing an economic boost from Meta’s artificial intelligence data center — and the facility isn’t even open yet. Jeff Palermo reports.
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A beloved St. Landry Parish elementary school teacher was killed in a head-on crash on I-49 Sunday. Leonville Elementary School confirmed the death of Katelyn LeBlanc in a Facebook post that read, “She loved her students wholeheartedly and poured herself into helping them learn, grow, and feel valued each day.” One of her former students, Andre Champagne, says she was a pure soul.
Cut 4 (09) “…of the classroom.”
Champagne says LeBlanc was a beloved mentor in the tight-knit Leonville community. He says she made students look forward to coming to class each day and cared about them inside and outside of the classroom.
Cut 5 (09) “…that same resource.”
Champagne says LeBlanc’s guidance as an English teacher helped him become a professional sportswriter. More importantly, though, he says she taught her students life lessons like patience and prepared them for life beyond the classroom.
LeBlanc’s four daughters attend Leonville Elementary.
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State Education Superintendent Dr. Cade Brumley is urging school districts to crack down on unruly student behavior this upcoming school year. Brumley is calling on districts to make a commitment to stand firm on inappropriate behavior.
Cut 7 (11) “…make that happen.”
Brumley says laws are in place to deal with students who habitually disrupt classroom learning.
Cut 8 (11) “…an automatic expulsion.”
In this past legislative session, lawmakers adopted a House resolution which urges school systems to comply with and enforce the state’s anti-bullying laws. Brumley says students have made such tremendous strides in the classroom in recent years, and he doesn’t want to see it undone by a select few students who act up.
Cut 9 (08) “…inappropriate student behavior.”
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The search for the remains of 15-year-old Ja’Derrius Minnieweather is now in its third week in the North Landfill in Zachary, near Baton Rouge. East Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore says the hot, humid conditions are making things very hard for the searchers, especially with them being covered in gear from head to toe.
Moore says the searchers are sifting through thousands of cubic yards of material, including hazardous items.
Investigators say 51-year-old Maurice Parms killed the teen and put his body in a dumpster, and those contents were subsequently dumped in the landfill. Moore says the searchers are not giving up.
Cut 12 (11) “…were their child.”
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The economic impact of Meta’s 50-billion-dollar A-I data center is already being felt across northeast Louisiana. Grow NELA President and CEO Rob Cleveland says just 18 months into construction, sales tax collections are soaring.
Cut 13 (09) “…40-million dollars”
The Hyperion data center is under construction in Richland Parish, where Cleveland says first-quarter sales tax collections reached 38-million dollars — six times higher than during the same period last year. He says sales tax revenues are also climbing in neighboring Franklin Parish, while Ouachita Parish is on pace for a record-breaking year.
Cleveland says Meta’s investment is also attracting new businesses to the region.
Cut 14 (10) “…in Ouachita Parish.”
Cleveland says the economic boom is fueling residential development, and local restaurants and other businesses are seeing increased customer traffic.
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The Hyperion data center is expected to become operational in 2030, and final completion is expected by 2032. The massive A-I data center is expected to produce 75-hundred construction jobs and one-thousand permanent jobs once construction is completed.
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The Saints report for their second training camp under head coach Kellen Moore today. New Orleans went 6-and-11 in Moore’s first season but ended the season 5-and-4 when rookie Tyler Shough took over as the starting quarterback. Luke Johnson covers the Saints for NOLA-dot-com and says fans should be hopeful heading into year two.
With Shough returning and big free agent additions like running back Travis Etienne (AY-chan), guard David Edwards and linebacker Kaden Ellis, Johnson says there will not be as many preseason battles to earn a starting spot. He’s more intrigued by depth battles like in the running back room.
The Saints and wide receiver Chris Olave are negotiating a contract extension after the former first-rounder’s All-Pro season last year. Johnson says it isn’t a question of if an extension gets done but when. He expects Olave to be a top playmaker for the Black and Gold offense.
Cut 18 (13) “…he stays healthy.”