Hot off the press: Cellcontrol, a Baton Rouge startup at the Louisiana Technology Park that has developed a device to prevent cell phone use—including talking and texting—while people drive, got a front-page mention in USA Today Tuesday. The company says that, along with its business partner, Scosche Industries, Cellcontrol recently won the 2012 In-Car Accessory Innovation Award at the International CES trade show. Check out the story here, and read a Business Report article from about a year ago on the company here.
In tune: The Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra has opened up nominations for its annual Teacher of the Year award, which recognizes educators who have incorporated music into their classrooms. Nominations can be from a principal, supervisor, PTA member, fellow teacher, friend, parent or student. Nomination forms can be submitted by mail to the Baton Rouge Symphony, 7330 Highland Road, Baton Rouge, LA 70808, or faxed to 767-4609. The deadline for receipt of nominations is Friday, Feb. 24. Nomination forms can be found at the orchestra’s website here. Winners will be recognized at the Entergy Masterworks Concert on March 22.
Rare air: In November, the five-parish area surrounding Baton Rouge attained one-hour and eight-hour ozone standards established in 1997 by the Environmental Protection Agency, meaning for the first time in history the entire state of Louisiana is meeting those standards. The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality and EPA Region 6 are holding a celebration to mark the achievement at the LDEQ headquarters in Baton Rouge, 602 North Fifth St., at 1 p.m. Thursday. Read a recent Business Report story on what meeting the standards means for Baton Rouge here.
