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State of Texas: House plan links school funding to education savings accounts

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:14 GMT

AUSTIN (Nexstar) — The Texas House on Thursday filed its plan for increasing public school funding and establishing a program for subsidizing private education expenses, proposing a modest boost to baseline public school funding and money to help 25,000 students move out of the public school system.House Bill 1 by Killeen Republican Brad Buckley, the House Public Education Committee chair, would give teachers a one-time stipend of $4,000 and increase the base per-student funding by $30 -- from $6,160 to $6,190.Lawmakers kicked off the third special session with little progress negotiating on one of Gov. Greg Abbott's keynote priorities that failed during the regular session: passing an education savings account program (ESA). It would allow Texas parents to receive money to use for private school education. It's been a goal for certain conservatives that gained traction after the COVID-19 pandemic, saying voucher-like programs will give parents more options if they are dissatisfied ...

A revolving door for Gophers running backs vs. Hawkeyes

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:14 GMT

IOWA CITY, Iowa — Gophers running back Darius Taylor came back from a two-game absence to play against Iowa, but fellow tailback Zach Evans was injured before half and didn’t return at Kinnick Stadium on Saturday afternoon.Taylor, three-time Big Ten freshman of the week, rushed for 532 yards and four touchdowns this season, but missed the last two games with a leg injury suffered late in the loss to Northwestern.Evans wasn’t the only Gopher tailback to go down with injury. The U listed senior Bryce Williams as out for the season with an undisclosed injury. Williams, a sixth-year senior, has rushed for 123 yards and one touchdown this season.Linebacker Cody Lindenberg (leg) had been listed as questionable for a fourth straight week, but did not return to game action. He has missed all seven games this season.Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck had said this week that Lindenberg was “closer” to a return to the field and Lindenberg participated in some pregame drills, but didn...

Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk returns to St. Louis

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:14 GMT

ST. LOUIS - The Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk is taking place at Union Station, marking a celebration of courage and hope, as stated by the organizers. Those who register for the walk show their support for breast cancer patients, survivors, and caregivers. Making strides against breast cancer is more than just a walk. It's a movement to help save lives.  How many malls are still open around the St. Louis area? Jamie Zografos is proud to be part of this movement. She beat breast cancer eight years ago.  “I was 39. I was going in for breast augmentation because that's what you do when you're about to turn 40,” she joked. “I never had a mammogram, so it was my first mammogram that the surgeon wanted me to have before he did any work. “I was like, ‘Yeah, this is silly.’ But after the first mammogram, they said, 'Yeah, things don't really look how they're supposed to.'” After two years of challenges and complications related to surgery, she never ended up needing radi...

Avalanche Journal: Assessing Jared Bednar’s options for the rotating top-line spot

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:14 GMT

When everyone was healthy and available during training camp, the Avalanche forward lines remained exactly the same.Four games into the 2023-24 season, and Jonathan Drouin has already spent time on three different lines. The Avs won all four games, but that hasn’t stopped Colorado coach Jared Bednar from already doing some tinkering — and that’s been his plan all along.“I want to have some flexibility with our forward lines as we go throughout the year, depending on who we’re playing and what matchups we might see. So it’s a good time to experiment.”Drouin spent all of camp next to Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen on the top line, and they looked spectacular together on opening night in Los Angeles. But since then, the trio have looked great in spurts and struggled to keep possession of the puck at other times.Bednar said after camp that while stability was the thing to that point, he’s always been planning to move everyone in the top-nin...

VIDEO: Mob vandalizes 7-Eleven in Sacramento County, suspects wanted

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:14 GMT

(FOX40.COM) -- Law enforcement is asking for help with identifying the suspects who they say terrorized a Rio Linda 7-Eleven after a sideshow on Oct. 8. On the night of the crime, the Sacramento Sheriff's Office reported that nearly a dozen people vandalized and looted the store. Officers say some of the suspects are believed to be from the Bay Area. Haney-Prograis: Nearly 9K tickets sold for first SF title fight in over a decade Sacramento Sheriff's Office released photos and video to get help with identifying suspects from a looting incident at a Rio Linda 711 on Oct. 8. (Sacramento Sheriff's Office) "Please take a moment and review the attached pictures and (above) video," the department said in a social media post. "This investigation is very active, and detectives from the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Property Crimes Bureau are asking anyone with information about this incident to contact the Sheriff’s Office at (916) 874-5115 or the Sacramento Valley Crime Stoppers at (916)...

49ers WR Deebo Samuel will miss at least two games with an injured shoulder

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:14 GMT

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — San Francisco 49ers receiver Deebo Samuel will miss at least the next two games with a hairline fracture in his shoulder.Coach Kyle Shanahan said Saturday that a CT scan determined the extent of the injury suffered on the first play last week in Cleveland. Samuel will miss the game for the 49ers (5-1) on Monday night and the following week at home against Cincinnati.The Niners are hopeful he can return after the bye week when San Francisco visits Jacksonville on Nov. 12. The team is not considering an injured reserve stint for Samuel that would force him to miss at least four games. Haney-Prograis: Nearly 9K tickets sold for first SF title fight in over a decade Shanahan also said that running back Christian McCaffrey will be questionable against Minnesota after injuring his oblique last week, and left tackle Trent Williams is doubtful with a sprained ankle. Linebacker Dre Greenlaw is also questionable after missing last week's game with a hamstring inju...

Gant’s 4 TD runs propel Tennessee State to 54-0 win over D-II’s Lincoln (CA)

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:14 GMT

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Freshman Jordan Gant had four touchdown runs and Tennessee State drubbed Division II-member Lincoln (CA) 54-0 on Saturday in a game that was called after three quarters.Gant scored on runs of 31 and 3 yards to put Tennessee State (5-2) up 14-0 after one quarter. He scored from 3 yards out to end the first half, giving the Tigers a 34-0 lead. Gant’s fourth score was a 6-yarder midway through the third quarter.Jalen Rouse had a 12-yard scoring run early in the second quarter and backup quarterback Draylen Ellis followed with a 2-yard touchdown toss to Delanie Majors to make it 28-0.Ellis scored on a 4-yard run and Deveon Bryant ran it in from 14 yards out to complete the scoring in the third quarter.Deveon Bryant and Ellis combined for 82 yards on 9-of-15 passing. Rouse rushed for 93 yards on 12 carries, while Gant totaled 83 yards on 12 carries. Otis Weah rushed 14 times for 46 of the Oaklanders’ 145 total yards of offense.___AP college football: h...

Nova Wild introduces two new two-toed sloths

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:14 GMT

One of two new sloths at the Nova Wild zoo in Reston. (Courtesy Nova Wild)(Sukontarak, Dana) One of two new sloths at the Nova Wild zoo in Reston. (Courtesy Nova Wild)(Sukontarak, Dana) What has two toes and moves real slow?NOVA Wild in Reston recently announced the arrival of two adorable two-toed sloths who are now ready to meet zoo-goers.Two-toed sloths are native to Central and South America, including Brazil and Peru, according to the Smithsonian National Zoo’s website. And of course, they’re known for moving slowly.“Sloths have leafy, low-calorie diets and very slow metabolisms to match. Their metabolic rate is only about 40-45% of what would be typical for their body weight,” the zoo...

Franklin has 127 yards, touchdown as UT Martin beats Charleston Southern 17-0

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:14 GMT

MARTIN, Tenn. (AP) — Sam Franklin ran for 127 yards and a touchdown and UT Martin beat Charleston Southern 17-0 on Saturday.In addition to getting a homecoming win, the Skyhawks (6-1, 3-0 Big South-Ohio Valley) won their school best eighth-straight conference game as well as their 14th in 15 league outings.A 26-yard field goal by Aidan Laros in the closing seconds was the only scoring in a first half that had a combined eight punts and 235 total yards and a missed Charleston Southern field goal on its opening drive.There were five punts in the third quarter before Franklin’s 4-yard run with 11:18 to play capped a 12-play, 90-yard drive. Cavontay Key then returned an interception — the only turnover of the game — to midfield, leading to the clinching score. The Skyhawks ran off almost six minutes before Kinkead Dent hit DJ Nelson for a 9-yard touchdown with 2:11 to play.Dent was 13 of 29 for 145 yards with the Skyhawks finishing with 367 total yards.Zolten Osborne was 12 of 29 ...

Pollard delivers again for the Springboks to continue his comeback story at the Rugby World Cup

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:14 GMT

PARIS (AP) — Nothing will quite beat Stephen Donald coming straight from fishing whitebait on the Waikato River to boot the title-winning penalty for New Zealand as its fourth-choice flyhalf in 2011.Yet Handre Pollard’s from-out-of-nowhere emergence is proving to be another Rugby World Cup storyline for the ages.Five weeks ago, the South Africa No. 10 was preparing to play a comeback game for Leicester in a ho-hum English cup competition. He’d been on the sidelines for four months with a calf injury, robbing him of a place in the Springboks squad for a World Cup he was ready to watch on television.On Saturday night, he was booting a 78th-minute penalty from 49 meters through the Paris rain to earn his country a place in the ultimate World Cup final — the Boks vs. the All Blacks in rugby’s biggest rivalry.“It was a big moment,” Pollard said after the 16-15 win over England in the semifinals, “but it is what you want as a player on this stage. To have moments like that as a flyhalf is...