Voucher slow-down: The growth in two Louisiana programs that pay for private school tuition with public money is slowing, but they still pay full or partial tuition for nearly 9% of the students attending private school in the state, The Associated Press reports. The Louisiana Scholarship Program, known as the voucher program, and the Tuition Donation Rebate program were created by the state in 2012 and six in ten private schools use at least one of them. But after rapid growth in its first two years, the voucher program has hovered around 7,000 children annually and continues to slow. In response, the state is funneling more money into the Tuition Donation Rebate Program, which has grown to about 2,000 students. Read the full story.
Antidote injections: Sheriff’s deputies in St. Tammany Parish can now help people who have overdosed on heroin or other opioids. Parish Sheriff Randy Smith says the Florida Parishes Human Services Authority has provided 200 doses of the antidote naloxone, packaged as nasal sprays. Smith says deputies often arrive at the scene of an overdose before an ambulance, so this gives them a chance to help immediately. Smith says that he asked the authority for help because opioid overdoses continue to rise in the parish. Read the full story.
Disaster recovery: Arizona-based CORE Construction is opening an office in Baton Rouge to focus on disaster recovery, City Business reports. The Arizona-based firm is looking to hire more than 20 project managers and superintendents across both Louisiana and Texas. CORE has done a bevy of work for the Recovery School District and the Orleans Parish School Board as New Orleans’ education system completes its rebuilding from Hurricane Katrina. The firm is also working on a $60 million extended-stay Residence Inn at 316 St. Charles Ave. in New Orleans. Read the full story.
