Nebraska
Education program gets college credits to hundreds of Nebraska inmates
LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) – Being locked behind heavy metal doors can seem like the end of the line.
“With a prison sentence, you feel like everything’s shut off to you,” said Tami Fuller, who is currently serving a sentence in Lincoln’s Community Correctional Center.
However, a new program aims to make sure those doors don’t stay shut forever.
Fuller is one of more than 200 Nebraska inmates involved in the Unlocking Potential With Academic Resources and Development, or UPWARD, program. About 30 Southeast Community College instructors teach courses between the Reception and Treatment Center, Nebraska State Penitentiary, Nebraska Correctional Center for Women, Community Correctional Center and the Center for People.
The program’s administrator, SCC’s Amy Doty, experienced incarceration, and she says it was education that made all the difference in her life.
“After incarceration, instead of just kind of being in the moment and I’m feeling kind of hopeless and thinking about all the barriers that I was going to face when I went home, I was able to focus on building skills and building knowledge and becoming a better critical thinker,” Doty said.
Participants earn college credits, and some say the good goes well beyond the instruction.
“I’ve had them use my only my first name, or call me a student, which is amazing,” Fuller said. “When you’re incarcerated, you learn, everybody says your last name, not your first. So it humanizes you again, it makes you back into a real person.”
Some inmates look to the education to start a new chapter in their lives, like Jessica Whittaker, who’s currently taking a class to get her CDL.
“I anticipate that I’ll be a truck driver,” Whittaker said. “Overall, I want to be financially stable and set myself up for success.”
Some inmates are even using the opportunity to give back, like Lawrence Garner, who’s taking a communications class and wants to give speeches at juvenile facilities when he gets out, steering them away from crime.
“A lot of these kids are coming from broken homes, one parent homes, and I’d just like to maybe share my experience,” Garner said. “I’d take one, just one. Save one.”
It’s not just the students who soak in lessons.
“I’ve learned a lot from my students,” Rebecca Bartlett, an SCC instructor, said. “I’ve learned so much about perseverance and determination. I have learned so much from them about hope.”
The UPWARD program is set to expand next fall, with SCC administrators angling to tap into federal dollars to help run it.
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Copyright 2024 KOLN. All rights reserved.
Nebraska
Nebraska Dept. of Agriculture proposes ban on food and beverages containing any amount of THC
LINCOLN, Neb. — A public hearing Thursday drew strong opposition to proposed rules that would label food adulterated and illegal if it contains any amount of THC and its derivatives, potentially decimating Nebraska’s hemp and CBD industry.
The regulations would affect products like gummies, beverages and oral tinctures. Over 490 people wrote in opposition to the new regulations, while only three supported them.
The rule changes stem from an executive order issued by Gov. Jim Pillen in January requiring state agencies to review laws regarding the use of synthetic THC in food and beverages. The order was made to align with federal law coming in November 2026, which bans synthetic THC products and limits total THC concentrations in hemp products to not exceed 0.4 milligrams per container.
The proposed Nebraska rule goes beyond that federal standard.
“I would say it’d be similar other than it does say no THC. It is zero THC,” said Andrew Bish, chief operating officer of Bish Enterprises. “It’s not we are deferring to the federal government standard and aligning with the federal government standard. It is, in fact, a different standard.”
Fifteen speakers testified during the hearing, with many calling for the Department of Agriculture to regulate the industry rather than enforce outright bans.
“I respectfully urge the department to pursue a balanced science-based approach that protects public safety, targets specific problems, strengths and standards where necessary and holds bad actors accountable without unnecessarily eliminating access to products that may Nebraskans find valuable and beneficial,” said Dr. Andrea Holmes, a professor of chemistry at Doane University.
Many who testified were shop owners who said the regulations would result in major business losses and reduced state revenue.
“In 2025, we pay over $1 million in sales tax. We expect to be over $1.3 million in 2026,” one speaker from The Cannabis Factory said. “We’re not opposed to regulation, or oversight, or even additional taxation.”
The Department of Agriculture will review comments and decide if any changes need to be made. If not, the regulations go to the attorney general and the governor for approval.
The regulations include a carve out for the medical cannabis acts, meaning people with medical cannabis cards could get prescriptions that would not be affected by this proposed regulation change.
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Copyright 2026 KOLN. All rights reserved.
Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen said Thursday that he has asked President Donald Trump to issue a major disaster declaration for damage caused by storms that hit the state May 15-18.
The storms spawned tornadoes and flash flooding across Buffalo, Fillmore, Gage, Howard, Jefferson, Nemaha, Thayer and Thurston counties. There were numerous downed power poles and lines as well as extensive damage to schools, building and roadways. Damage just to public infrastructure is estimated at nearly $5 million.
In addition to the disaster declaration request, Pillen said he also has requested access to the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, which provides funding to governments to allow them to rebuild in ways that will reduce or mitigate future disaster losses. Approval would allow the state to apply for such grants.
Thursday’s disaster declaration request is the second in two months. Back in May, Pillen requested one for historic wildfires in March that impacted Arthur, Garden, Grant, Lincoln and Morill counties. At the time of the request, it was estimated there was at least $9.7 million in damage from the fires, which were the worst in Nebraska’s history.
Nebraska
Bandits back in the win column with tournament-opening victory in Nebraska – East Idaho News
OMAHA, Neb. – The Bandits opened the Omaha, Nebraska tournament with a 7-4 win over Fremont.
The Bandits, coming off two losses to Billings at last week’s Bandits Invitational, trailed 4-3 in the fifth, but tied it up on a sac fly by Cole Croft.
They scored three runs in the bottom of the sixth for the win.
Carter Bowen finished 3 for 3 with an RBI and two runs scored. Conner Cannon and Taye Lords each knocked in two runs for Idaho Falls (10-2).
Tyson Christenson picked up the win with four innings of relief.
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