Connect with us

Southeast

Kentucky Republican says early childhood education is the answer to workforce, childcare crises

Published

on

Kentucky Republican says early childhood education is the answer to workforce, childcare crises

A Republican lawmaker on Tuesday promoted his ambitious plan to bolster early childhood education as a way to head off a looming crisis once pandemic-era federal aid dries up for the childcare sector.

Kentucky state Sen. Danny Carroll pitched his legislation at a Senate committee meeting as lawmakers delved into an issue that he says carries short- and long-term implications. A lack of childcare keeps some parents from working, contributing to low workforce participation rates. Reinforcing early childhood education builds a strong foundation that contributes to student success later in life, Carroll said.

“We must take advantage of this crisis that we’re about to face and we must transform the way that we think about early childhood education and the meaning of this,” Carroll told the committee. “It’s not babysitting. It’s not childcare. It’s not daycare. It’s education.”

KENTUCKY HOUSE DELIVERS $1.3B EDUCATION FUNDING INCREASE BUT OMITS UNIVERSAL PRE-K

The Senate Families and Children Committee took no vote Tuesday on the sweeping measure — a week after Carroll unveiled the proposal. Carroll, who chairs the committee, said he hoped a committee vote could come next week. Much of the discussion, he said, revolves around the bill’s price tag — currently pegged at $300 million over the next two fiscal years.

Advertisement

“You look at the totality of this issue, it’s worth the investment,” Carroll told reporters after the meeting.

Senators are currently reviewing the two-year state spending plan approved by the House and will eventually present their own version. The final budget details will be hashed out in a conference committee of House and Senate leaders. The GOP has supermajorities in both chambers.

Kentucky state Sen. Danny Carroll speaks with reporters about his early childhood education bill on Feb. 20, 2024, in Frankfort, Kentucky. (AP Photo/Bruce Schreiner)

Republican state Sen. Julie Raque Adams said she was impressed by the bill’s comprehensive approach, pointing to its potential impact on getting more Kentuckians into the workforce.

“You hear from every sector of society that they have workforce challenges,” she said. “And we’re never going to fix those workforce challenges until we solve this critical piece of childcare.”

Advertisement

The bill comes amid uncertain times nationwide for childcare providers and parents. The $24 billion of pandemic aid that Congress passed in 2021 for childcare businesses is drying up. Republican state lawmakers across the country have responded by embracing plans to support child care.

Still, the largest investments in child care have come from Democratic lawmakers. In New Mexico, the state is covering childcare for most children under 5 using a trust funded by oil and natural gas production. In Vermont, Democratic lawmakers overrode the GOP governor’s veto to pass a payroll tax hike to fund child care subsidies.

Kentucky has lost about half of its childcare providers in the past decade and risks losing more once the federal aid evaporates, necessitating the need for the state to step in with help, Carroll said.

“For once, I want Kentucky to be the one that gets out in front and sets the example for this entire nation,” he told the committee. “And we have an opportunity to do that.”

Carroll’s bill has drawn praise from advocates for business and children.

Advertisement

His measure, dubbed the Horizons Act, would include state support for childcare centers and families struggling to afford childcare. It would create funds meant to help increase the availability of early childhood education services and to foster innovations in early childhood education.

As part of the initiative, the state community and technical college system would offer an associate degree in early childhood education entrepreneurship, to prepare more people to operate childcare centers.

Carroll’s early childhood proposal stands in contrast to one championed by Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear. The governor has proposed providing preschool for every 4-year-old in Kentucky. His budget plan included $172 million each year of the two-year budget to accomplish that. The program would extend preschool education to an estimated 34,000 additional 4-year-olds, freeing up space for more younger children in childcare centers, he said. His proposals have made no headway in the GOP-dominated legislature.

On Tuesday, state Health and Family Services Secretary Eric Friedlander, a key member of Beshear’s administration, touted the governor’s universal pre-K plan at the committee hearing while also praising lawmakers for focusing on the issue of early childhood education.

Advertisement

“Investing in these kids is exactly what we should be doing as a commonwealth,” he said.

Read the full article from Here

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Southeast

Ex-mayor convicted after son walks in on lewd act at alcohol-infused pool bash

Published

on

Ex-mayor convicted after son walks in on lewd act at alcohol-infused pool bash

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

A former Louisiana mayor has been found guilty of having sex with a minor after prosecutors revealed her teenage son caught her in the act with his friend at a 2024 alcohol-infused pool party hosted at her home.

Misty Roberts, 43, the former mayor of DeRidder, was convicted of carnal knowledge of a juvenile and indecent behavior with a juvenile on Tuesday, according to KPLC. 

Roberts was subsequently released on a $100,000 surety bond, the outlet reported. 

The verdict followed days of testimony from Roberts’ family members, teenagers at the parties and the victim himself as prosecutors worked to paint a picture of the booze-filled events leading up to the incident.

Advertisement

Prosecutors charged that Misty Roberts had sex with her son’s 16-year-old friend at a booze-filled house party in 2024. (Misty Roberts/Facebook)

On Tuesday, the victim took the stand to tell the jury he was drunk when he and Roberts – who was serving as mayor at the time – had sex, according to KPLC. 

In closing arguments, Assistant District Attorney Charles Robinson began by saying, “I told ya’ll at the beginning of the trial that ‘a lewd and lascivious photo is worth a thousand words.’ Here, you have it,” the outlet reported. 

Robinson then pointed to a series of evidence exhibits showing Roberts posing with the victim while obscured by furniture, including photos from the night of the incident in which Roberts is seen wearing a bikini as the teen smiles up at her.

TEACHER PLEADS GUILTY TO SEXUALLY ABUSING 15-YEAR-OLD STUDENT WEEKS AFTER GIVING BIRTH: REPORT

Advertisement

Misty Roberts, the former mayor of DeRidder, has been found guilty of having sex with a minor. (Louisiana Highway Patrol)

However, defense attorney Adam Johnson reportedly attempted to convince the jury that key parts of the case were not properly investigated by police, including potential DNA evidence, witness testimony and video surveillance from Roberts’ home. 

Johnson alleged the investigation was an attempt to “railroad” Roberts by lead investigator Melissa Welch, who previously testified she told the victim’s mother that witnesses need to “get on board or get run over by the train.” 

Earlier in the trial, jurors were shown text messages between Roberts and her teenage son, with the pair discussing what type of alcohol the teens wanted for the party hosted at her home. 

FORMER KANSAS ART TEACHER ACCUSED OF HAVING SEX WITH STUDENT IN JEEP TO STAND TRIAL

Advertisement

Misty Roberts was serving as mayor of DeRidder at the time of the 2024 pool party, according to KPLC.

In another exchange, Roberts’ son warned her of the victim’s age, texting her, “He is seventeen,” according to the outlet. The victim was 16 years old at the time of the alleged incident. 

Additional text messages from the night of the party show Roberts’ son calling the situation “crazy” and telling her that his younger sister was emotional. 

Upon taking the stand, Roberts’ daughter told the court that she witnessed her mother and the victim “on top of each other” the night of the party, KPLC reported.

NEW JERSEY TEACHER WHO SLEPT WITH STUDENTS AT FAMILY BAGEL SHOP LEARNS PRISON SENTENCE

Advertisement

Additionally, prosecutors revealed the victim’s mother texted Roberts to confirm she was not pregnant, with Roberts assuring her she was on birth control. 

Roberts then screenshotted the exchange and sent the messages in a separate group chat, suggesting she would take the emergency contraceptive “Plan B,” the outlet reported. 

A DoorDash driver also previously took the stand to testify that he fulfilled an order from “Misty C” to purchase the emergency contraceptive and leave it at the front door of the home.

FLORIDA TEACHER CHARGED FOR ALLEGED SEXUAL RELATIONSHIP WITH STUDENT WHO LIVED WITH HER

The driver then reportedly heard rumors of the incident and told jurors he believed his delivery was connected. 

Advertisement

Over the weekend, Roberts’ ex-husband, Duncan Clanton, testified that Roberts admitted to having sex with the teenage boy and revealed that the couple’s children had caught them in the act, the outlet reported.

Text messages between the married couple showed Clanton telling Roberts, “I would deny what happened if you’re approached by anyone at the meeting,” on the day of a city council meeting.

HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL COACH CHARGED WITH RAPING FOSTER DAUGHTER, SERVING VICTIM TEQUILA SHOTS: REPORT

In another exchange, Clanton reportedly testified Roberts texted him, “I need you to deny it, please.”

Clanton added that while he refused to deny the allegations, he avoided talking about the incident. 

Advertisement

“I can’t keep hurting others, friends and family. Lord knows I’ve done enough,” Roberts reportedly texted Clanton, KPLC reported.

LOUISIANA SCHOOL’S TEACHER OF THE YEAR ACCUSED OF INAPPROPRIATE CONDUCT WITH FORMER STUDENT

Roberts resigned from her position as mayor just days before her arrest in 2024. 

Carnal knowledge reportedly carries a possible sentence of up to 10 years in prison, with indecent behavior carrying a sentence of up to seven years. She will also be required to register as a Tier 1 sex offender, according to KPLC.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

Advertisement

Her sentencing is scheduled for April 17. 

Roberts’ attorney did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment. 

Related Article

Ex-mayor caught in lewd act at booze-filled pool party, prosecutors say

Read the full article from Here

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Southeast

Trump, BBC agree on mediator for $10 billion lawsuit over Jan 6 documentary editing controversy

Published

on

Trump, BBC agree on mediator for  billion lawsuit over Jan 6 documentary editing controversy

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

President Donald Trump and The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) agreed on a mediator on Tuesday to help resolve the president’s $10 billion lawsuit. 

The BBC has come under intense scrutiny over a 2024 Panorama documentary about Trump’s Jan. 6, 2021, speech delivered before the riot at the U.S. Capitol. Critics called the documentary misleading because it omitted Trump’s call for supporters to protest peacefully. Trump sued the BBC in December for both defamation and for a violation of Florida’s Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act for $5 billion apiece, seeking $10 billion total. 

While ABC and CBS have both settled lawsuits with Trump in the past year, the BBC has vowed to fight the case. The two sides agreed on John W. Thornton, Esq., to serve as a pretrial mediator, who will seek a resolution. 

President Donald Trump and The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) agreed on a mediator on Tuesday to help resolve the president’s $10 billion lawsuit.  (Patrick van Katwijk/Getty Images)

Advertisement

“The BBC defamed President Trump by intentionally and deceitfully editing its documentary in order to try and interfere in the Presidential election. President Trump will continue to hold accountable those who traffic in lies, deception, and fake news,” a spokesperson for Trump’s legal team told Fox News Digital. 

The BBC did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 

Trump’s suit, filed in the Southern District of Florida Federal Court, was filed in a personal capacity and named the BBC and BBC Studios Productions as defendants. The parties have proposed a mediation session the week of Oct. 26. Mediation, a standard case management step required by the court, is contingent on the outcome of a jurisdictional challenge the BBC is expected to submit later this month. 

“As we have made clear previously, we will be defending this case. We are not going to make further comment on ongoing legal proceedings,” a BBC spokesperson told Fox News Digital.

LEGAL ANALYST PREDICTS TRUMP COULD WIN ‘CONSIDERABLE’ DAMAGES FROM BBC DOCUMENTARY LAWSUIT

Advertisement

President Donald Trump has tangled in the courts with several media organizations. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)

The BBC previously issued an apology for the erroneous edit and said it had pulled the program from its platforms, but a spokesperson for the broadcaster added, “While the BBC sincerely regrets the manner in which the video clip was edited, we strongly disagree there is a basis for a defamation claim.”

The controversy began with a bombshell report from The Telegraph that featured excerpts from a whistleblower dossier compiled by Michael Prescott, a communications advisor hired by the BBC to review its editorial standards.

The whistleblower revealed that the BBC “Panorama” documentary released in 2024 had a misleading edit of comments Trump made at the rally that preceded the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.

The documentary omitted Trump urging his supporters to protest “peacefully” and instead spliced two separate comments made nearly an hour apart, making it appear he was calling for violence.

Advertisement

“We’re going to walk down to the Capitol. And I’ll be there with you. And we fight — we fight like hell,” the documentary showed Trump saying, with no indication the statements came far apart.

EX-BBC DIRECTOR GENERAL TELLS NETWORK THEY SHOULDN’T AGREE TO PAY TRUMP ANY MONEY

In reality, Trump said, “We’re going to walk down to the Capitol. And we’re going to cheer on our brave senators and congressmen and women, and we’re probably not going to be cheering so much for some of them because you’ll never take back our country with weakness. You have to show strength and you have to be strong.”  It was 54 minutes later that Trump called on his supporters to “fight like hell” for election integrity.

The New York Times referred to the ordeal as “one of the worst crises in its 103-year history” of the BBC. The blunder led to the resignations of BBC News CEO Deborah Turness and BBC director-general Tim Davie.

Turness insisted in an interview last week that the BBC does not have any institutional bias against Trump. 

Advertisement

Trump’s legal team suggested the defendants “timed the publication of the Panorama Documentary to be close in time to the 2024 Presidential Election” and the value of the president’s “personal brand alone is reasonably estimated to be worth tens of billions of dollars.”

Fox News Digital’s Joseph A. Wulfsohn contributed to this report. 

Related Article

BBC says it will fight Trump’s $10 billion lawsuit over edited Jan 6 comments

Read the full article from Here

Continue Reading

Southeast

Police warned prosecutors 3 times about violent illegal immigrant before he allegedly killed Virginia mother

Published

on

Police warned prosecutors 3 times about violent illegal immigrant before he allegedly killed Virginia mother

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

Newly uncovered emails show the Fairfax County Police Department warned the county’s commonwealth attorney about a criminal illegal migrant with more than 30 previous arrests at least three times before he allegedly stabbed a mother to death in the Washington, D.C., area.

Abdul Jalloh, 32, was charged with murder after allegedly stabbing 41-year-old Stephanie Minter to death at a bus stop in Fairfax County, Virginia, in late February. 

Jalloh, an illegal immigrant from Sierra Leone in West Africa who had lived in Virginia since the age of 9, was arrested at a liquor store one day after the stabbing when an employee called 911 to report Jalloh was shoplifting.

Abdul Jalloh, 32, is accused of killing Stephanie Minter, 41, at a Virginia bus stop.  (Fox 5 DC)

Advertisement

According to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Jalloh entered the country in 2012 and has more than a dozen arrests in northern Virginia. 

His criminal history includes more than 30 arrests for charges of rape, malicious wounding, assault, drug possession, identity theft, trespassing, larceny, firing a weapon, contributing to the delinquency of a minor and pick-pocketing, yet his charges were dropped by local prosecutors almost every time, according to DHS.

Emails obtained by WJLA showed the Fairfax County Police Department (FCPD) warned Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano’s office about Jalloh on at least three occasions, but no action was taken to remove him from the country.

In an email to Fairfax County Chief Deputy Commonwealth’s Attorney Jenna Sands, a Fairfax County police major said he wanted to bring Jalloh’s release to her attention because he “is one of the repeat (and violent) offenders” they had previously discussed.

Abdul Jalloh on a bus in Virginia (Fairfax County Police Department)

Advertisement

DHS RIPS DEM-RUN COUNTY AFTER ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT MURDERER RELEASED: ‘BLOOD ON THEIR HANDS’

“I wanted to get your background on why he is out so soon and ask if his prior suspended sentence (of I believe 5 years) was pursued by your office? Unfortunately, based on MTV Station’s numerous dealings with him, it is not a question of if, but rather when he will maliciously wound (or worse) again. My role of keeping the public safe, prompts me to follow up on his status,” the major wrote.

In another email discussing a bond alert from August 2025, a FCPD employee told Assistant Police Chief Brooke Wright that Jalloh had more than 100 incidents with FCPD resulting in multiple charges spanning from theft to violent crimes, according to the outlet.

“JALLOH’s offenses began with domestic violence incidents and escalated to assaulting other victims and threats with weapons (knives),” the employee wrote in the email. “He has been involved in multiple stabbing incidents with victims identifying him as the offender in these cases. This year JALLOH has been the offender in a malicious wounding where he stabbed a man in May 2025, in which he received a bond on July 31, 2025 — three weeks later, this incident occurred where he assaulted an older male and stomped his head into the ground.”

PRO-POLICE GROUP ASKS DOJ TO PROBE SOROS-BACKED VIRGINIA PROSECUTOR USING BIDEN-ERA LAW ONCE AIMED AT COPS

Advertisement

The employee added a list of Jalloh’s criminal history to the email, which included:

2014: Assault on family member (nolle prossed)

2015: Assault on family member (nolle prossed)

2017: ID theft to avoid arrest (guilty)

2017: Assault (guilty)

Advertisement

2018: Possession of marijuana (guilty)

2018: Destruction of property (guilty) — Original charge: malicious shoot/throw occupied building

2018: Contributing to the delinquency of a minor (nolle prossed)

2018: Rape (nolle prossed)

2018: Grand larceny (nolle prossed)

Advertisement

2022: Trespassing (nolle prossed)

2023: Trespassing (guilty)

2023: Disorderly conduct (guilty)

2023: Possession of a schedule three substance (guilty) — Original charge: possession of a schedule one or two substance

2023: Malicious wounding (nolle prossed)

Advertisement

2023: Malicious wounding (guilty) — Sentenced to seven years, with five years suspended to probation

2023: Stealing property from a person (nolle prossed)

2024: Petit larceny (nolle prossed)

2024: Trespassing (nolle prossed)

2024: Petit larceny (nolle prossed)

Advertisement

2024: Disorderly conduct (nolle prossed)

2024: Malicious wounding (nolle prossed)

2024: Failure to appear in court (dismissed)

2025: Malicious wounding

*Nolle pressed refers to a prosecutor’s formal decision to drop criminal charges.

Advertisement

In response to the email, Wright said Sands “had a specific conversation regarding them prosecuting without a victim in court for the stabbing given the circumstances, and she was on board with a victimless prosecution.”

In a May 2025 email obtained by WJLA, police emailed Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano’s office — including Sands and other prosecutors — warning that Jalloh “has a history of stabbing community members and was on probation during the most recent assault.”

“For those reasons and the reasons outlined in the document, we ask that you argue he continues to be held at the ADC,” an officer wrote.

The email also explained a May 4, 2025, incident in which Jalloh allegedly stabbed a man in the leg while he was sleeping with his girlfriend.

“Without hesitation, the Victim stated that Jallow was the person who stabbed him. Jalloh has been charged with numerous Malicious woundings and been convicted of one in 2023 and [is] currently out on probation for the aforementioned crime and living in an OAR provided motel room,” the officer wrote.

Advertisement

OAR is a nonprofit in Fairfax County that provides “alternatives to incarceration” for criminals.

VIRGINIA MURDER SUSPECT IN BUS STOP STABBING HAD LENGTHY CRIMINAL HISTORY, MULTIPLE DROPPED CHARGES

Similar to the other email, the officer included a list of prior police involvement, including an incident from April 14, 2024, during which Jalloh allegedly stabbed a homeless man in the head and upper body while he was sleeping at a bus stop, telling him, “get up, you can’t sleep here.”

Later that same day, Jalloh allegedly stabbed a woman in the head after attacking her and stealing her money, according to the email.

Other incidents included Jalloh allegedly choking a woman, stomping on her, burning her chest and raping her in October 2018, stabbing a person inside a McDonald’s in January 2023 and stabbing an elderly man in February 2023.

Advertisement

The email also said police had a record of 178 incidents, citing Jalloh as a known shoplifter and noting he “is often intoxicated/high and located w/narcotics on his person.”

Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger has said DHS would need to provide a signed judicial warrant from a local judge to ensure that Jalloh is deported. (Department of Homeland Security/Getty Images)

DANGER This individual has a long history of stabbing community members and is currently on probation for doing that very thing,” the officer wrote. “He has shown a blatant disregard for human life and is a danger to the community.”

In a statement to Fox News Digital, Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis said his department “respect[s] the criminal justice system and the distinct roles and responsibilities of each entity within it.”

“In previous cases involving this defendant, our officers and detectives conducted thorough investigations, made lawful arrests, and presented evidence for prosecution,” Davis wrote. “The court outcomes are in no way related to any shortcomings associated with the FCPD. This defendant must be held accountable for his actions. We remain committed to our role to ensure that happens.”

Advertisement

DEM GOVERNOR UNDER FIRE AFTER ILLEGAL ALIEN ALLEGEDLY STABS WOMAN TO DEATH AT BUS STOP: ‘HEINOUS’

Despite Jalloh’s criminal history and the recent killing of Minter, Democratic Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger said she would not honor a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainer, which is a written request for law enforcement to maintain custody of a person for up to 48 hours after their scheduled release to allow for transfer to ICE custody.

A governor’s spokesperson told WJLA that DHS would need to provide a signed judicial warrant from a local judge to ensure that Jalloh is deported.

“Sanctuary [Gov. Abigail Spanberger] is fighting to protect a MURDERER over American citizens,” DHS wrote in an X post. “This monster is responsible for fatally stabbing Stephanie Minter. ICE does NOT need judicial warrants to make arrests. 

“The heroes of ICE will continue to arrest and remove criminal illegal aliens across the Commonwealth while Governor Spanberger RELEASES them from jails into Virginia communities to commit more crimes and create more victims.”

Advertisement

In early February, Spanberger ended cooperation with state agencies and federal immigration authorities through an executive directive, claiming she had “serious concerns that chaotic federal law enforcement actions across the country are eroding years of trust,” adding immigration enforcement “contributes to a culture of fear and distrust.”

A Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office spokesperson told Fox News Digital the office “was aware of Jalloh’s criminal history and shared police concerns about potential future dangerousness. That is why our Chief Deputy Commonwealth’s Attorney personally handled these cases.”

The spokesperson said prosecutors “will often explore many different pathways to successful prosecution, but, at the end of the day, our decisions are constrained by what testimony is available and what is legally permissible and practicable in Fairfax courts.”

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

Spanberger’s office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Advertisement

Fox News Digital’s Preston Mizell contributed to this report.

Related Article

Virginia Gov Spanberger cuts ties with ICE in federal immigration enforcement cooperation

Read the full article from Here

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Trending