A day at a time: Hundreds of teachers and school employees are again amassing on the steps of the State Capitol today as a political battle over teacher job security continues into its second day. The Senate Education Committee is the focal point of debate today. The panel is taking up its version of legislation to expand a state-funded voucher program for private school tuition, increase charter schools and diminish seniority and tenure protections for teachers. A House panel approved similar measures Wednesday. Read Daily Report PM today for a full recap of the day’s events at the Capitol from columnist John Maginnis, who is providing exclusive commentary and analysis every day during the session.
Mmmmmm: It’s been a good couple of days for Lafayette. On Wednesday, the city was named the second-most optimistic city in the United States in a Gallup report. Today, Lafayette has been announced as the winner of Southern Living‘s “Tastiest Town in the South” online poll that’s been ongoing since late last year. With 194,502 votes, Lafayette blew away the other cities on the list. Louisville was second, with 159,006 votes; and New Orleans placed third, with 57,842. Southern Living will profile each of the cities on the list and reveal the winner in its April 2012 issue. See the final vote tally here.
Anticipation building: On the day before the company’s latest iPad goes on sale, Apple stock has topped $600 for the first time. The stock reached $600.01 just after the market opened, and then retreated back to about $597 in the first half-hour of trading. Apple’s market capitalization is now nearly $555 billion. It topped $500 billion for the first time in late February, a market value peak which few companies have attained. Anticipation is high for Apple’s latest creation. Some industry experts believe the company could sell 1 million of the new iPad on Friday, when it becomes available to the public. Apple has already stopped taking advance orders for Friday and says customers should expect a two- to three-week wait for purchases made through its online store.
