Pen and paper: Louisiana has been awarded a $55.5 million federal grant to help improve the reading and writing skills of students in the state. Louisiana is among 11 states chosen by the U.S. Department of Education to receive the Striving Readers Comprehensive Literacy grant. Louisiana will receive $18.5 million a year for three years. The grant money, according to the state education department, will be doled out to public school systems that submit applications with specific literacy plans approved by the department. Only 36% of Louisiana’s children read and write on grade level by fourth grade, Superintendent of Education John White says.
Ringing it up: With stores closing and retailers filing for bankruptcy, a trade group says it still expects holiday sales to at least match the 3.6% growth of a year ago, as online shopping keeps increasing and improving wages may put people in a mood to spend. The National Retail Federation says it expects sales in November and December to rise between 3.6% and 4%, to a range of $678.75 billion to $682 billion. It’s the first time the group forecast in a range rather than by a fixed percentage, because the impact of several big hurricanes is still uncertain. The Associated Press has the full story.
High turnaround: Houston-based oilfield services firm Frank’s International, which has offices in Lafayette and New Iberia, has named its fourth chief executive in less than three years, FuelFix.com reports. The move continues the longtime family company’s tumultuous ride since going public in 2013. President and CEO Douglas Stephens is out of the job and has been replaced immediately by its chairman, Michael Kearney. The company only said that Stephens is pursuing other interests. Read more.
