Nebraska

Nebraska needs immigrants • Nebraska Examiner

Published

1 year ago

January 23, 2025

Nebraska needs immigrants • Nebraska Examiner

Nebraska emerged from the pandemic in 2022 with the worst workforce shortage in the U.S.

Businesses and governments statewide had more than 80,000 job openings and only 32 people looking for work for every 100 of those openings, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Unfortunately, according to the same dataset, Nebraska and Utah currently have the lowest available worker ratio to job openings in the U.S. Only 56 Nebraskans are looking for work for every 100 job openings, while the national average is 84 people looking for work for every 100 openings.

This is not a short-term problem. In 2022, there were 2,000 fewer Nebraska students enrolled in kindergarten than in the 12th grade, according to Nebraska Public Schools data.

A possible solution

Business and trade association leaders say: “Immigrants are the solution!”

Omaha Together One Community (OTOC) leaders conducted more than 100 meetings over the past three years with Nebraska agricultural, health-care, labor, education, hospitality, philanthropic, faith, construction, immigrant, legal, banking, and community leaders to learn more about our workforce needs.

We learned that an owner of a dairy farm had been awake for almost 48 hours milking his cows because his short-term immigrant staff had to leave Nebraska when their work visas expired. We heard of immigrants with work visas who can come to the U.S. with their families, but their spouses and working-age children are not allowed to work.

We learned of Nebraskans who travel 90 miles each way to see an elderly grandmother because their local long-term care facility is closed due to an inability to hire adequate staff.

We also heard of community leaders who were concerned that their schools and churches were at risk of closing. They no longer had pharmacies, hardware stores and car repair shops. They were at risk of losing their grocery stores and coffee
shops. They said loud and clear: “We don’t need immigrant workers! We need immigrant families!”

A new alliance

As result of these meetings, a statewide non-partisan alliance has formed. The Nebraska Alliance for Thriving Communities includes leaders from across the state. This 70-member Alliance agrees on a common-sense set of immigration priorities to enrich our communities and address Nebraska’s
workforce shortage.

According to a recent study funded by the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce Foundation, “There is universal and widespread business support for immigration reform as a means to address the workforce gap in Nebraska. Participants clearly understood that the demand generated from the state’s current economic growth trajectory will exceed the state’s projected workforce supply. Nebraska’s decreasing birth rate coupled with a high labor force participation rate will require a talent influx in order to meet the needs of the state’s strong projected economic growth. There was universal consensus that immigration is critical to the state’s ability to continue to grow and prosper.”

Omaha Together One Community agrees! Nebraska needs more immigrants, not less!

Kathleen Grant is a leader of Omaha Together One Community Omaha Together One Community, a 30-year-old organization of 30 church congregations and community organizations that trains leaders to work across barriers for the common good.

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Nebraska

Former Nebraska City doctor ruled competent to stand trial

Published

11 hours ago

January 27, 2026

Press Room

Former Nebraska City doctor ruled competent to stand trial

LINCOLN, Neb. (WOWT) – Medical experts at the Lincoln Regional Center have determined a doctor arrested for two different cases involving minors is now competent to stand trial.

Dr. Travis Tierney, 56, was taken into custody by a fugitive team at the airport last May. He is accused of sneaking into a West Omaha home to have sex with a boy between the ages of 12 and 15.

Travis Tierney(Sarpy County jail)

Investigators allege Tierney did this three weekends in a row in April 2024.

Last summer, Tierney, a former Nebraska City neurosurgeon, was wanted for allegedly swapping nude photos with a 16-year-old boy in Sarpy County. He was out on bond and not supposed to leave the county when investigators realized he was in Arizona.

State psychiatrists have now determined he is competent to stand trial in both cases.

Tierney is currently in custody at the Sarpy County Jail on a $5 million bond.

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Nebraska

Nebraska Extension announces 2026 Beef Feedlot Roundtable Series

Published

23 hours ago

January 26, 2026

Press Room

Nebraska Extension announces 2026 Beef Feedlot Roundtable Series

LINCOLN, Neb — Nebraska Extension is inviting feedlot owners, managers, employees, and allied industry professionals to attend the 2026 Beef Feedlot Roundtable Series, set for Feb. 17–19 at three locations across western and central Nebraska. The series will feature research-based discussions on feedlot management, cattle health, nutrition, and market outlooks, offering practical information for participants to apply to their operations. Each roundtable will run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., with a $20 attendance fee payable at the door. Lunch will be provided, and pre-registration is requested for meal planning. The events will take place on Feb. 17 at the Prairie Winds Community Center in Bridgeport, Feb. 18 at the Bayer Water Utilization Learning Center in Gothenburg, and Feb. 19 at the Nielsen Community Center in West Point. Featured presentations include “Maximizing calf gain in the backgrounding phase” by Dr. Jim MacDonald, “Managing cattle health from feedlot arrival to finish” by Dr. Dan Thomson and Dr. Jacob Hagenmaier, “University of Nebraska–Lincoln research highlights” by Dr. Galen Erickson, “New World screwworm: What feedlots need to know” by Dr. Matt Hille, and “Beef cattle market outlook” by Dave Weaber from Terrain (Farm Credit).

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Nebraska

2026 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Emmett Johnson (RB – Nebraska)

Published

1 day ago

January 26, 2026

Press Room

FantasyPros will be taking a look at early NFL Draft scouting reports before the Combine in February. Here’s a look at Nebraska running back Emmett Johnson.

2026 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Emmett Johnson

Emmett Johnson (RB – Emmett Johnson)

5-foot-11 | 200 Pounds

Background

Emmett Johnson was a three-star recruit who redshirted in 2022, then worked his way into the running back rotation over the next two years, finishing with 90-411-2 (4.6) in 2023 and 117-598-1 (5.1) in 2024, also catching 39-286-2 that season. This past season, Johnson took over as the team’s workhorse and put together a huge 251-1,451-12 (5.8) line with 46-370-3 receiving.

Positives

Established himself as the lead back in Nebraska’s balanced rushing attack in 2025. Shows nice flexibility and knee-bend, with a naturally low center of gravity. Bread and butter are one-cut concepts where he can stretch the defense laterally before planting his foot and getting upfield. Has solid speed to outrun defenders to the corner on sweeps, tosses, etc. Makes very clean, crisp cuts as a runner.

Johnson skinnies through congestion, with a good feel for pockets of space. Shifty jitterbug type with impressive suddenness and lateral quickness to make defenders miss in a phone booth; very difficult to tackle one-on-one, and was rarely brought down by the first defender in range. Has a lot of creativity in his game and can salvage something out of nothing at times. Mixes in a lot of different moves, from stutter-steps to jukes to spins to back-jukes, with outstanding stop-start movement skills.

Not the most powerful back, but shows the ability to work through some arm tackles. Good competitiveness and leg drive in short-yardage situations. Ball security has been very solid, with only three career fumbles as a runner, plus one as a receiver. Johnson’s role as a receiver expanded significantly this past year, where he showed reliable hands. Has ideal quickness/creativity to scheme into space against opponents.

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Negatives

On the smaller side for a feature back, with a thinner build than usual. As his size might suggest, Johnson doesn’t bring a ton of power as a runner and isn’t going to consistently push the pile. Rather than burrowing ahead for what he can get, his tendency to escape and bounce runs can compound problems when the blocking isn’t there.

Johnson’s pad level rises on contact. When combined with his competitive finishing, it leads him to take a lot of punishment from opponents. Struggles in pass protection. Doesn’t have the ideal contact balance when taking on opponents in blitz pickup. Might not be the ideal choice to protect the quarterback on third downs, which may limit his usage in the passing game overall.

Summary

A very quick, agile back who makes crisp cuts upfield and shows excellent creativity to make defenders miss in space. His impressive, statement-making 2025 campaign put him on the map.

While Johnson is not a very powerful back and struggles in pass protection, he should be able to contribute as a change-of-pace type at the next level. Looks poised to be among the first handful of backs off the board on draft day.

Projection: Round 4