Ackman Headlining NYC Talk on Jews and Colleges Divides Scholars
His upcoming May 18 appearance as the headliner at the Center for Jewish History's next symposium is highlighting those divisions while stoking a debate over free speech and supporting diverse viewpoints that Ackman himself has promoted.
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18 minutes ago
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Lawmakers advance bill supporting legality of corner crossing
CHEYENNE – The ongoing conversations concerning corner crossing in Wyoming continued Tuesday as a state legislative committee narrowly voted to continue pursuing a bill to decriminalize it. The corners in question refer to the intersection of publicly and privately owned lands, and whether members of the public, often hunters, fishers and hikers, are allowed to cross diagonally between public lands at their intersection with private property. Discussions around this topic heated up in 2021 when a group of four Missouri hunters were sued by a ranch owner in Carbon County for corner crossing between public lands that intersected with his property. He alleged more than $7 million in damages and appealed the initial court decision. Some members of the Wyoming Legislature's Joint Travel, Recreation, Wildlife and Cultural Resources Committee wanted to wait until a decision comes from the U.S. Supreme Court in reconsideration of the lower federal court's ruling that found their actions to not be trespassing. The nation's high court hasn't announced whether it will hear this appeal, however. Corner crossing graphic The appeals court used this graphic to depict corner crossing. Other committee members, however, thought it would be prudent to at least continue advancing the bill draft for further consideration to be proactive in identifying a solution to the problem. 'This is exactly why we have interims. This is why this committee exists. This is our job. We're taking up an issue that is going to be here for quite some time to come,' said Sen. Bill Landen, R-Casper. But Sen. Larry Hicks, R-Baggs, he said he felt there are too many unresolved details that could cause issues further down the line, including additional litigation. He said the current bill draft doesn't properly address things like what is legally considered a cornerstone that marks the intersection of properties, and the use of the word 'authorizes' in the draft, asking whether that meant individuals are authorized by law or must seek authorization to cross corners from a separate entity. Ryan Semerad, the attorney representing the Missouri hunters, said the primary benefit of this bill is not that it answers every single question, but that it transfers violations from criminal to civil court. 'I don't think there is a person who believes that someone should be taken off the public lands in handcuffs because they stepped on the wrong blade of grass,' he said. He added that current enforcement of this issue further burdens law enforcement and the judicial system. 'I think this bill is appropriate, because it takes the conversation into the appropriate arena and outside of that (criminal) arena, where the stakes are much higher, where if a landowner thinks corner crossing is a crime, they might bring force to bear, they might respond in a much more aggressive fashion,' he said. Hicks asked how long it could take for the judicial appeal process to play out for the existing case. Semerad said the Supreme Court could receive the case as early as Sept. 17 and the file could be distributed to justices on Oct. 1. After that, he said the court could decide in the coming weeks whether to hear the appeal. If they decide to hear the case, Semerad estimated a decision could come by next June. Representatives from associations representing private property owners opposed consideration of the bill, calling it both incomplete and unnecessary to consider before a decision from the Supreme Court. Brett Moline, policy advocacy director for the Wyoming Farm Bureau Federation, said his main problem with the bill is that it still allows for property damage. As not all intersections have visible cornerstones, and some GPS systems may be inaccurate, even by a few meters, this could cause someone to walk through private property, even unintentionally. Though Semerad said it is just a matter of someone stepping on the wrong blade of grass, Moline argued this could cause serious damage if hundreds of hunters are doing this, potentially forming a trail through someone's private property. Wyoming Stock Growers Association Executive Vice President Jim Magagna echoed these concerns, urging lawmakers to be advocates of private property rights and hash out decisions once a final judicial ruling comes. Rep. Karlee Provenza, D-Laramie, said her reasoning for support of this draft legislation is to represent the people of Wyoming. 'I don't know if anybody was awake in June or July, but the amount of people that showed up (in support) for public lands was astronomical,' she said, referencing an event she hosted on the steps of the Wyoming Capitol where around 500 residents showed up to protest potential loss of public lands. 'Committee, I'm going to ask you not to get bogged down in the details. Don't get sold on what needs to be a perfect bill. The goal here today is to represent Wyoming. And if there's one thing that is broadly supported here, it's that I want to go and step foot on my public land.' With a 7-6 vote in favor, the committee will continue the discussion of the bill draft at its next meeting in Casper in November. No formal amendments were proposed during Tuesday's meeting, but several were discussed that may intend to clear up some of the details that several members thought were left unclear. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
18 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Columbus City Schools eyes staff cuts, school closings to make $50 million in reductions
The Columbus City school board has voted to cut $50 million annually from its budget to deal with a growing financial crisis, with additional school closures and staffing cuts a possibility. At an Aug. 13 special meeting, a joint committee of board members and committee members approved a recommendation to cut the $50 million, moving the recommendation to the school board. For 2026, the district has a $1.8-billion budget. On Aug. 19, the board voted to approve making the cuts and directed the superintendent to present a plan by the end of November for what the cuts should look like. Board President Michael Cole said that the cuts will be challenging, but added that "first and foremost," they will be in "the best interests of our children." "It's not a comfortable conversation, it's not one that's easy, but I can say that this is one that we're equipped for and this is what folks elected us to do — to make these tough decisions," Cole said. District facing financial headwinds Last week, The Dispatch reported that the district will begin deficit spending this year and will be out of cash by fiscal year 2029 under current projections. Presently, the district has more than $300 million in reserve cash. The discussion around budget cuts comes amid a variety of pressures on the district, including a recent reduction in funding from the state, federal funding uncertainty and inflation. The district also faces a growing penalty from the state for noncompliance related to the transportation of charter and nonpublic students. In fiscal year 2025, the penalty is projected to be assessed at $10 million, and from fiscal year 2026 to 2029, the transportation penalty is projected at $15 million, according to data presented on Aug. 13. And on Aug. 14, the Columbus Education Association, which represents teachers and other faculty, voted to approve a new contract with the district that includes 2.25% raises for members of the union, which the board approved at the Aug. 19 meeting. Personnel costs make up over 83% of the district's budget, according to district data. Cole said that the reality is that personnel expenses are "a significant portion of our budget." "It's important to identify where we can have the most minimal impact on that space," Cole said. "Without jumping in front of things, I want to make sure we do the proper work necessary to ensure kids have what they need to succeed in the district." John Coneglio, president of the CEA, said that budget cuts "will fall heavily on the teachers and support staff." "That's a concern of mine, and as we go through this process, we're going to make sure that all of our teachers are supported and the process is done correctly," Coneglio said. More school closures could be coming The board also discussed revamping school closings in the context of the threat to the district's financial solvency. The CCS board voted in December 2024 to close Broadleigh Elementary, Buckeye Middle School, Moler Elementary and the building that houses Columbus Alternative High School. The board also voted to close West Broad Elementary — under the condition that the board can secure funding to replace the school building on the site — and to close the Downtown board office building at 270 E. State St. Columbus City Schools Superintendent Angela Chapman said that clearing up some expenses on the operations side of maintaining and operating "legacy" buildings could afford the district the ability to invest in classrooms. "We're also looking at our operations, and looking how we can provide services leaner and make ways that are more efficient so we can redirect some of the dollars on the operation side of the classroom to help close some of those gaps," Chapman said. Marielle Henault, a member of Pint-Sized Protestors and the Columbus Education Justice Coalition, said during public comment that the board needs to create a community-centered approach that "would truly involve the communities that could be impacted." "We can see all the numbers we want, but at the end of the day, our kids are not numbers and their communities aren't squares on a game board that can be moved around at someone's whim," Henault said. Cole Behrens covers K-12 education and school districts in central Ohio. Have a tip? Contact Cole at cbehrens@ or connect with him on X at @Colebehr_report This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: CCS board approves $50 million in cuts, details could come by November Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
18 minutes ago
- Yahoo
City of Eau Claire continues to grow
EAU CLAIRE — New data from the Wisconsin Department of Revenue reveals that the city of Eau Claire has grown by about 6.7% in the last five years. It is now the seventh largest city in the state. Eau Claire County was also found to be the fourth fastest growing county in the state. 'For the county, the net migration is what stands out as more of a growth factor,' said Regional Economist for the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development (DWD) Tom Walsh. However, what percentage of those migrating into the city would make up a part of the workforce is harder to come by. What he was able to point out was that a larger than average percentage of the population in Eau Claire is between the ages of 18 and 24. 'The City of Eau Claire will tend to have more people in the college-age demographic just because of the location of the university,' he said. 'For a reference point, the US and Wisconsin are at 9.1% and 9.3% in the 18 to 24 demographic, whereas the estimate for the city of Eau Claire is about 20%.' While not everyone in this age demographic is in college, he said it is a little tricky to determine how much of this age demographic makes up what is considered to be the labor force. 'The labor force is the employed plus the unemployed,' he said. 'The unemployed is anyone that is actively seeking work. So a college student would be considered in the labor force if they're actively employed or if they're actively seeking work. They would not be in the labor force if they're not currently working or not currently looking for work.' Walsh did not have data on the percentage of people in the city of Eau Claire who make up the workforce, but the 2025 Workforce Profile Snapshot for Eau Claire County produced by the Wisconsin DWD lists that the labor force participation rate for Eau Claire County is 67.8 percent. This is 2.5 percentage points higher than the state's overall labor force participation rate. The labor force participation rate is the percentage of those aged 16 and older who make up the labor force. The unemployment rate for Eau Claire County is 2.7%. Other things affecting the city and the county's workforce participation include the aging population. 'That's really being driven by the Baby Boom age demographic,' he said. 'When you have a lower percentage of your population that's in the prime working years, it has a labor market impact.' He said the effects of the aging population include 'the tight labor market, the difficulty finding workers, and an increased in need for healthcare.' Currently, about 28.7% of Eau Claire County is composed of individuals who are aged 55 or older according to the DWD's 2025 Workforce Profile Snapshot for Eau Claire County. Walsh did point out that much of the data he was pulling was from the American Community Survey Estimate which would offer slightly different numbers than the data from the Wisconsin Department of Revenue. Nonetheless, he said it offered some ability to make comparisons. Solve the daily Crossword
