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Walters: Joseph’s literary crusade for teaching phonics is paying off

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:58 GMT

Sometimes – not often, but sometimes – one person can have a life-changing impact on the wellbeing of millions of people.Marion Joseph, who died nearly a year ago at age 95, was one of those people. She impacted millions of California schoolchildren present and future who struggle with reading comprehension, the vital skill that underlies all of education.The pandemic underscored that too many of California’s elementary school students lack effective reading ability. EdSource noted that, prior to the pandemic, fewer than 50% of the state’s third-graders were reading at the expected level for their age. Three years later, after students had suffered through school closures and haphazard Zoom school, that had dropped to 42%.It’s evident that one factor in the state’s reading crisis was that too many students were being subjected to a trendy form of reading instruction called “whole language,” which largely left them struggling on their own to decipher the words in their books.For deca...

Pope offers prayer for earthquake victims in Ecuador, Peru

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:58 GMT

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis offered prayers Sunday for the victims of an earthquake that shook vast swaths of territory in Ecuador and parts of Peru.During his weekly Sunday noon blessing, Francis recalled that the 6.8-magnitude temblor caused “death, injuries and heavy damage.”“I’m close to the Ecuadorean people and assure them of my prayers for the dead and suffering,” Francis said.Saturday’s quake killed at least 15 people, injured hundreds and brought down homes and buildings in vastly different communities, from coastal areas to the highlands. At least one of the deaths was in Peru. Source

Busy Saturday: Maryland House passes Trans Health Equity Act, advances price-gouging and data protections, backs a new state spirit

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:58 GMT

This content was republished with permission from WTOP’s news partners at Maryland Matters. Sign up for Maryland Matters’ free email subscription today.The Maryland House of Delegates voted Saturday to approve the Trans Health Equity Act — a bill that just a year ago disappeared from the chamber’s agenda ahead of a floor vote.Delegates debated the legislation for about 25 minutes early Saturday afternoon before passing the measure 93-37.Del. Anne Kaiser (D-Montgomery), the lead sponsor of the bill, was joined by 59 cosponsors this session.Kaiser said she thought it was important to serve as a voice for the trans community in the chamber.“What is being said nationally about trans people are the same lies that were said about gays and lesbians 20 years ago,” said Kaiser, who was one of the first openly gay members of the General Assembly. “And that’s part of the reason I feel the passion and the connection to our trans brothers and sisters.”She commended Del. Bonnie Cullison (D-Montgo...

Maryland lawmakers allot more money to K-12 education

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:58 GMT

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Maryland lawmakers are working to shift between $300 million and $400 million in the state budget to add more help to implement the state’s K-12 education funding law, known as the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future.The money is in the state’s $63.1 billion budget plan, which the Maryland House approved Friday for the next fiscal year on a 131-5 vote. That sends the legislation to the Senate.The funds moved to education are to help address a $1.4 billion shortage in the blueprint, beginning in fiscal year 2027, said Del. Ben Barnes, who chairs the House Appropriations Committee.“So that should get us down and significantly reduce the shortfall, which will still have to be dealt with. But the feeling is that before we can start on future commitments, we need to fulfill the commitment we’ve already made,” said Barnes, a Democrat.The funds that are being moved are on top of $500 million that Gov. Wes Moore, a Democrat, set aside in...

Who is Alvin Bragg, the Manhattan DA leading the probe into Trump’s role in hush money scheme?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:58 GMT

(CNN) — Alvin Bragg, a former New York state and federal prosecutor, drew national attention when he made history as the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office first Black district attorney. Now he is back in the spotlight as his office nears a conclusion in its yearslong investigation into former President Donald Trump’s alleged role in a hush money scheme.Bragg has remained tight-lipped on the details of the latest Trump probe, which he inherited from his predecessor, Cy Vance, who began the investigation when Trump was still in the White House.But on Saturday, Trump announced on social media, ahead of any details from Bragg’s office, that he anticipates he will be arrested in connection with the investigation within days. The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office declined to comment on the former president’s remarks.The high-profile case relates to a $130,000 payment made by Trump’s former personal attorney Mich...

Fire crews extinguish blaze in multi-family home in Medford

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:58 GMT

Fire crews worked late into the night Saturday to extinguish a wind-whipped blaze that ripped through a multi-family home in Medford. Firefighters could be seen using a ladder truck to douse flames that were pouring out of the roof of the home at the intersection of George Street and College Avenue. A resident of the building was overcome with emotions as the home he’s had for many years was consumed by the blaze.The cause of the fire remains under investigation

How to shop for new insurance if you lose Medicaid coverage

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:58 GMT

Medicaid coverage will end for millions of Americans in the coming months, and it will push many into unfamiliar territory: the health insurance marketplace.States will start cutting people from the government-funded plans when they no longer qualify based on income, a process that has been paused since shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic hit.The timing of these cuts will vary. But all states have insurance markets where people who lose Medicaid can buy new coverage with help from subsidies. Some states will even connect shoppers with a potential new plan.Shopping for affordable insurance that covers regular doctors and prescriptions can be daunting, especially in marketplaces that offer dozens of choices and subsidies to help pay for them. Experts say it helps to start this search with a plan. Here’s a deeper look at the process.WHAT’S HAPPENING TO MEDICAID?Nearly 85 million people are covered by government-funded Medicaid, which focuses on people with low incomes.At the start of t...

Fight over science holds up key UN climate report

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:58 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — Publication of a major new United Nations report on climate change is being held up by a battle between rich and developing countries over emissions targets and financial aid to vulnerable nations.The report by hundreds of the world’s top scientists was supposed to be approved by government delegations Friday at the end of a weeklong meeting in the Swiss town of Interlaken.The deadline was repeatedly extended as officials from big nations such as China, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, as well as the United Nations and the European Union haggled through the weekend over the wording of key phrases in the text. The report by the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is meant to cap a series that digests vasts amounts of research on global warming compiled since the Paris climate accord was agreed in 2015.A summary of the report was approved early Sunday, but three sources close to the talks have told The Associated Press that there is a risk that agreement on th...

Higher cancer rates found in military pilots, ground crews

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:58 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — A Pentagon study has found high rates of cancer among military pilots and for the first time has shown that ground crews who fuel, maintain and launch those aircraft are also getting sick. The data had long been sought by retired military aviators who have raised alarms for years about the number of air and ground crew members they knew who had cancer. They were told that earlier military studies had found they were not at greater risk than the general U.S. population. In its yearlong study of almost 900,000 service members who flew on or worked on military aircraft between 1992 and 2017, the Pentagon found that air crew members had an 87% higher rate of melanoma and a 39% higher rate of thyroid cancer, while men had a 16% higher rate of prostate cancer and women a 16% higher rate of breast cancer. Overall, the air crews had a 24% higher rate of cancer of all types. The study showed ground crews had a 19% higher rate of brain and nervous system cancers, a 15% highe...

Multiple injured in shooting inside South Side Restaurant

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:58 GMT

CHICAGO — Multiple people were injured in a shooting that took place in a South Side restaurant Saturday night.According to police, officers responded to a shooting at the 2400 block of East 72nd Street around 9:06 p.m. and found multiple people injured inside the restaurant. Police say three armed men exited a car and approached the restaurant and began shooting from outside. Three men and one woman were shot. Family remembers Chicago woman found dead in laundry cart Police reports state that a 29-year-old man suffered a gunshot wound to the thigh and was transported to a hospital in good condition. Two other men, 29 and 32, suffered gunshot wounds to the leg and were also transferred in good condition. A 29-year-old woman suffered one graze wound to the ear and is also listed in good condition. There is currently no one in custody and police are investigating the incident.