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State of Texas: Hope fades for deal on school funding, education savings accounts

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:25:26 GMT

AUSTIN (Nexstar) — Time is running out on the third Special Session, and hope is fading for a deal to send more money to Texas public schools.Texas Governor Greg Abbott expanded his special session call last week to include more school funding and money for teacher pay raises. Those items have bipartisan support among lawmakers. But the governor tied those items to his priority of letting parents use public funds to pay for private school through education savings accounts. The Education Spending Accounts, or ESA, plan is opposed by House Democrats, but the opposition from about two dozen rural Republicans has so far prevented the plan from passing in the House. At a news conference Wednesday, Abbott said that he expected the House to unveil a bill that would win support from a majority of lawmakers. In addition to education savings accounts, the governor said the plan would include funding for teacher pay raises, school safety and a plan to phase out the STAAR exam in public schoo...

State cross country: Mounds Park Academy’s Snider wins Class A boys title, Highland Park girls second in 2A

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:25:26 GMT

Last fall, Eddie Snider was out-kicked by competitors in every single race.“Except for state,” he noted. “I managed to get one guy (there).”That was en route to an 18th place finish in 2022.In the ensuing offseason, Snider aimed to get stronger. He trained with that goal in mind, and his efforts paid major dividends. Not only was he faster this fall, but he was able to consistently finish stronger.“I feel like that really helped me build up that power and speed,” the Mounds Park Academy junior said. “This year, I haven’t lost a kick.”Saturday included. Snider overtook Redwood Valley’s William Ahrens down the closing stretch to win the Class A state cross country title at Les Bolstad Golf Course.“He got a little bit of distance on me going into the final stretch, and then I just got a little bit more momentum than he did on the final kick,” Snider said. “So I just passed him and prayed and hoped that he would not catch up, I guess.”Snider won with a time of 15 minutes, 40 seconds – o...

Class 3A state cross country: Roseville’s Mechura, Forest Lake’s Hushagen win individual titles

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:25:26 GMT

Things were going well for Forest Lake junior Norah Hushagen through the first two kilometers of Saturday’s Class 3A state cross country meet.Hushagen was executing her plan to perfection and had pushed herself into the top spot.Then she went around a corner, and went to the ground.“So that was something I didn’t account for, but it happens. It was pretty muddy,” Hushagen said. “It was just me (who fell down), then people jumped over me.”But it didn’t phase her.“I just kind of bounced right back up,” said Hushagen, who crossed the finish line lathered in mud on her arms and legs. “It was motivation like, ‘Oh, shoot, I just lost a few seconds, I better go even faster.”So that’s what she did. Hushagen swiftly out-paced the field over the remainder of the race, cruising to a state title in a time of 17 minutes, 27.6 seconds – 33 seconds faster than the second-place finisher, Mia Hoffman of Bemidji. Hushagen’s teammate, Anna VanAcker, finished fourth. Wayzata cruised to the team title.T...

Wisconsin high school volleyball: St. Croix Falls wins Division 3 state title

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:25:26 GMT

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The year-long wait was worth it for St. Croix Falls.St. Croix Falls players celebrate with fans at the Resch Center in Green Bay after the Saints five-set victory over Howards Grove in the Divsion 3 championship match at the Wisconsin state girls volleyball tournament. (photo by Jim Hoehn)The top-ranked Saints defeated four-time defending champ Howards Grove in an epic five-match struggle Saturday to win the Division 3 championship at the Wisconsin girls state volleyball tournament.St. Croix Falls (36-2), which lost to Howards Grove in the title game last season, dropped the first set 25-17, but won the next two 25-23 and 25-18. Howards Grove overcame a 21-16 deficit in the fourth set to win 26-24. The Saints then overcame an 11-8 deficit in the decisive fifth set.“These girls fought hard, they played out of their minds. A few of them really stepped up and played really, really well,” said St. Croix Falls coach Stacie Hoff. “We came out a little flat again, but lik...

I-70 in Aurora reopened after man seen in median “with a gun” taken into custody

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:25:26 GMT

Interstate 70 at Tower Road in Aurora has reopened after a man standing in the median “with a gun” was taken into custody, according to the Aurora Police Department.UPDATE: The man was safely placed into custody and officers will be reopening I-70 shortly. We appreciate your patience. Just after 3:15p, officers responded to 911 calls about a man holding a gun in the air, standing in the median of I-70. Officers responded and observed this…— Aurora Police Dept (@AuroraPD) November 4, 2023Police responded at 3:15 p.m. to reports of a man “holding a gun in the air” in the median of the interstate, police said in an X post.The interstate was completely shut down while officers worked toward a “peaceful resolution,” and police reported the man in custody just after 4 p.m.Police said the interstate will reopen “shortly.”#I70 westbound: Roadway reopened to traffic between US 40; East Colfax Avenue and Exit 286 – Tower Road. https:...

Firefighters extinguish blaze that erupted at Tustin High School

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:25:26 GMT

Fire crews were quick to respond after one of the buildings on the Tustin High School campus caught fire on Saturday. According to a social media post from the Orange County Fire Authority, firefighters responded to the engineering building at Tustin High School shortly after 1 p.m.  Right turn on red? With pedestrian deaths rising, US cities are considering bans A photo posted to X, formerly Twitter, by OCFA shows firefighters walking through the burnt interior of the structure, and another photo shows black smoke billowing out of the building’s garage doors. Firefighters walking through the structure's burnt interior (left), smoke billows out of the engineering building at Tustin High School on Nov. 4, 2023 (right). (Twitter/@OCFireAuthority)“The swift action saved a significant portion of the building from damage,” OCFA said. No injuries were reported, and the cause of the fire is under investigation. 

Live updates | Palestinians report deadly Israeli airstrikes as US urges humanitarian pause

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:25:26 GMT

The U.S. is trying to persuade Israel to take a humanitarian pause from airstrikes on Gaza, where Palestinians reported on Saturday that there were multiple fatalities across the besieged enclave.U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is making a new push to help civilians, and met with Arab foreign ministers on Saturday in Jordan. That was after his talks in Israel with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who insisted there could be no temporary cease-fire until all hostages held by Hamas are released. President Joe Biden suggested Saturday that progress is being made on the humanitarian pause.The Palestinian death toll in the Israel-Hamas war has reached 9,448, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza. In the occupied West Bank, more than 140 Palestinians have been killed in violence and Israeli raids. The UNRWA says 72 of its staff members have been killed.More than 1,400 people in Israel have been killed, most of them in the Oct. 7 Hamas attack that started the fighting...

Prep roundup: San Mateo snaps skid against Burlingame in Little Big Game

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:25:26 GMT

San Mateo’s offense started strong, and then its defense did the rest as the Bearcats defeated Burlingame 17-14, snapping a 13-game losing streak vs. their rivals in the Little Big Game.Around 3,000 fans attended the 96th meeting between the schools. Burlingame still leads the series 59-33-4.The Bearcats led 17-6 at halftime and then held on. Xavier Zaragoza, filling in at running back as a replacement for 1,000-yard rusher Emmanuel Fitzgerald, who was attending a funeral, carried 25 times for 88 yards with a touchdown.It was another productive day on the ground for a team that entered Saturday averaging 299.9 rushing yards per game.San Mateo may not pass very often, coming into the game throwing just 42 passes all season. But quarterback Cameron Palma completed the only pass he attempted, and it went for a 25-yard touchdown to Matt Radulovich. Gabe Buenrostro rushed for 54 yards. Felipe Sorbara and Palma had interceptions.San Mateo had lost each of the previous 11 meetings by...

“Children are dying every day”: Thousands march in San Francisco demanding ceasefire in Gaza

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:25:26 GMT

Thousands of protesters chanting “ceasefire now” and demanding an immediate end to Israel’s attacks on Gaza marched down San Francisco’s Market Street on Saturday, part of what was billed as an “International Day of Solidarity” with Palestinians that saw anti-war demonstrations across the country.Ahead of the march, protestors gathered under the London Plane trees lining Civic Center Plaza outside City Hall, waving Palestinian flags and carrying signs reading “End Apartheid” and “Resistance is Justified When People are Occupied.”“Children are dying every day, and I feel like it’s beyond the age-long conflict between Israel and Palestine,” said Rewina Beshue, 30, who lives in San Francisco and whose family in Ethiopia has witnessed years of sectarian violence. “I see all the kids dying, and I just want to bring more awareness to it.”Carina Escaname, of Hollister, cries during Pro-Palestinian pro...

California targets Apple, but Cupertino loses big

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:25:26 GMT

(BCN) -- Cupertino may be forced to lay off dozens of workers, cut services and put new tax measures on the ballot to compensate for the loss of nearly $60 million likely to be ripped from its budget.California's Department of Tax and Fee Administration is targeting tech giant Apple over how it allocates local sales taxes, and Cupertino is caught in the crossfire with officials left scrambling to find solutions."The CDTFA has done an audit of one of our big taxpayers and has identified that there are dollars being allocated improperly, and through that audit, they are asking for that process to be corrected," Matt Morley, Cupertino's Assistant City Manager, told San Jose Spotlight. Muslim student hit by car at Stanford, incident being investigated as hate crime Under a longstanding tax sharing agreement between the city and Apple, dating back to 1998, the company designates all online product sales to California residents as taking place in Cupertino and allocates the local 1% por...