Nebraska
New interim director of Nebraska African American commission sees pace picking up after turnovers | Nebraska Examiner
LINCOLN — A state agency charged with advocating for Nebraska’s African Americans has cycled through two executive directors in the three years since it launched.
Each stayed less than a year before resigning. A trio of spots on the governing board also are vacant as the Nebraska Commission on African American Affairs continues to find its bearings.
But a founding commissioner who is now filling in as interim director expects the commission to step up activity this year and amplify the voice of Nebraska’s roughly 92,000 African Americans in towns small, big, rural and urban.
Indeed, John Carter of Benkelman said he’d like the 14-member commission to go as far as to assume oversight of certain state economic development funds to help ensure that dollars intended for Black populations reach and impact them.
“If you’re going to have a legislatively mandated commission, it needs to have relevance. It needs to matter,” said Carter. “We’re hitting the ground running to identify and address the issues.”
Meetings this week to set a new pace
A pair of meetings scheduled this week should help set a new pace, said Carter and others familiar with the commission.
On Wednesday, the commission will hold a quarterly public meeting at 9 a.m. at the State Office Building in Lincoln. Among items to be discussed is a “lack of response” from Gov. Jim Pillen’s Office.
Carter said the governor’s staff hadn’t returned recent phone calls, email or meeting invites from the commission and said that was a barrier to filling board vacancies and moving forward in general.
A spokeswoman for Pillen, in response to a reporter’s query, said the commission is not a “code agency” and therefore is not subject to the governor’s direct control. But Pillen supports the commission’s statutory mission, Laura Strimple said, and has “demonstrated a strong commitment to expanding opportunities for Nebraska’s African American community.”
Strimple noted that the governor met with commission members in July, and she said he has been in contact with them through other state agencies such as the Department of Administrative Services.
Turnover at the commission has contributed to some communications delay that, Strimple said, “has been cleared up.”
Carter, who also is chair of the commission, said he hopes to see the commission this year take its place as a “true liaison” between the Black community, the state and the Legislature.
On Saturday, the commission plans its first community-based public meeting since a meet-and-greet session early on. It is to be held at 10 a.m. at North Omaha’s Malcolm X Center.
A key topic, commissioners said, is the industrial business park and multipurpose sports center planned in North Omaha — and how the state commission and community members can work together to have more influence on such high-dollar projects.
Commissioner Gwendolyn Easter of Omaha said she and others are concerned also because elected leaders of North Omaha were not invited to be part of the dignitary lineup that last week announced recipients of nearly $125 million in public funds for the business park and sports center.
More input in economic development
Carter said a goal is to see the commission become as or more involved than the Nebraska Department of Economic Development in such matters that involve economic growth projects in the Black community.
According to the 2020 legislation that created the commission, its functions include coordinating programs relating to the African American community and economic development.
Too often, said Easter, longtime African-American businesses and residents are overlooked and livelihoods are hurt in the name of bigger development. Changes in the North Omaha child care industry are an example, she said.
As larger early childhood education institutions entered the market with support from institutional leaders, she said, smaller and older businesses such as her Safe Haven preschool academy suffered.
“At one time that was our leading business that Black people thrived in,” she said of home-based and smaller day care settings. She advocates for more discussion and brainstorming with established residents and businesses.
If the aim of public dollars is to help bring change to a historically neglected community, Carter said, locals should be provided with more assurance that “indigenous” families and workers will benefit. He pointed to the planned North Omaha business park: “Will it support people or just be an extension of the airport?”
More town halls
State Sen. Terrell McKinney, one of two African Americans in the Legislature, said the turnover of executive directors at the commission has not been “a good sign.” He said he is hopeful the commission will elevate its profile and connection to his North Omaha district, and believes the commission could become an effective ally.
“I welcome that,” he said. “There are not too many of us down there, and the commission can be a vital resource and ally to try and change things.”
Carter, a retired Dundy County sheriff’s deputy and former assistant police chief in Tekamah, said he envisions more commission-hosted town hall meetings across the state to hear how African Americans are faring.
Individual commissioners already are expected to listen to people in their respective areas of the state and convey needs and progress to the larger commission.
But Carter plans to seek more funding so the commission can increase staffing and programming — “to do a better job of integrating African Americans into everyday life of Nebraska.”
He sees now as a “great time” for the state commission to raise the volume in relaying “community perspective” especially on economic empowerment.
He cited concern, for example, over the recent loss of key state cabinet-level African American officials including heads of the DED and Department of Health and Human Services. He also referred to the departure of an African American woman as CEO of the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce.
Opportunities and treatment of Nebraskans are not equal — and “depend on the color of your skin and where you live,” Carter said.
At least one way to make positive inroads, he said, is for commission representatives to visit towns across the state. He cited a Juneteenth celebration that he helped organize in McCook, Nebraska, a few years back.
Most who attended were white, Carter said. But information and soul food were shared, and he felt that many left with a greater understanding of African American history and struggles.
“What I’ve learned is if you go into communities, share experiences and stories … it can change minds and build relationships.”
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Nebraska
Nebraska ag experts say early detection for livestock parasites, illnesses will be important during summer show season
County fairs and livestock shows are ramping up this summer as several cattle illness threats are starting to emerge in Nebraska and other states. Livestock experts aren’t raising alarm about increased spread, but they are encouraging livestock owners to pay more attention this year to biosecurity efforts and the movement of their animals.
Two threats have emerged over the last several months: the rise in a tick-born disease called Theileria and the return of a flesh-eating parasite called the New World Screwworm.
At least 10 feedlots and three breeding herds have reported cases of imported cattle having Theileria. The disease is caused by the Asian longhorn tick, most commonly found on the East Coast. The tick itself hasn’t been found in Nebraska, but the disease can be spread further by reusing needles with an infected animal or through other blood-sucking organisms such as lice. The symptoms include anemia, jaundice, loss of appetite, exercise intolerance and weakness. In some cases, the disease can be fatal.
Cattle owners have been closely watching the spread of the New World Screwworm. It wreaked havoc on U.S. herds decades ago, but it was eradicated from the country in the 1960s. Cases started appearing in Texas in early June, and cattle owners in neighboring states have assumed that the parasite will eventually spread north. The screwworms lay eggs in the flesh of live animals, which can cause infections, disease and death if left untreated.
Nebraska Extension said early detection of the parasite is “critical for successful control efforts.” Possible early signs of New World Screwworm infections include non-healing wounds, depression or restlessness, foul-smelling lesions, presence of maggots in living tissue and animals showing pain or discomfort. They could show this behavior through shaking their heads or showing pain or irritation around wounds.
Several county fairs and shows have already started this summer. The Nebraska State Fair will kick off at the end of August in Grand Island. But several other large-scale shows, including the Burwell Rodeo that brings together animals from outside Nebraska, will culminate over the next few weeks.
Vaughn Sievers, the agriculture director for the Nebraska State Fair, said fair officials work closely with an official State Fair veterinarian to evaluate the health of animals before they are allowed onto fairgrounds.
“To date, the fair has not experienced a disease outbreak,” Sievers said. “However, we coordinate closely with our security and veterinary teams to maintain response plans and designated quarantine areas in the event one were to occur.”
Officials with the Nebraska Department of Agriculture said livestock owners should start biosecurity measures even before they set out to travel to shows. The state agency is recommending livestock owners ensure all their equipment is clean and disinfected, and they should monitor their animal’s health leading up to traveling for shows.
While livestock are at fairs, the department said exhibitors shouldn’t share tools with others, and when using a community hose, they should not allow their animals to drink directly from the hose or dip the community hose in their bucket.
After the shows or fairs are over and animals are heading back to farms, livestock owners should isolate all the show animals for at least two to three weeks, just in case illnesses develop several days after returning home. Experts recommend keeping animals away from nose-to-nose contact, if they’re able.
The Nebraska State Fair has a protocol for handling biosecurity measures and subsequent contingency plans.
Nebraska Extension has provided checklists for ag producers who are taking their animals outside state lines. Lindsay Waechter-Mead, a beef educator with Nebraska Extension, recommended certain regulations with traveling cattle that can take multiple days to complete. Even domestic pets, such as cats and dogs, also require a Certified Veterinary Inspection to cross state lines.
Nebraska softball finalized its coaching staff on Wednesday. Head coach Rhonda Revelle signed an extension that runs through the 2031 season. The program also finalized several previously announced coaching changes.
Revelle earned the extension after leading Nebraska to one of its best seasons in history, bringing the team back to the Women’s College World Series for the first time since 2013. The Huskers totaled a school-record 52 wins in Revelle’s 34th season as Nebraska’s head coach, helping solidify her as the winningest coach in Nebraska athletics history.
“As we said when we had the privilege of naming the field at Bowlin Stadium in her honor, Rhonda Revelle is Nebraska Softball. Rhonda is not only a great leader of our softball program, but she is a world-class individual who elevates our entire athletic department in many ways. The trajectory of our program is at an all-time high coming off a record-breaking season and we are excited for the years ahead under the leadership of Rhonda and her outstanding staff.”
Revelle also re-worked the responsibilities of her coaching staff, elevating existing staff members and bringing in a slew of former players as assistants. This comes following the retirement of long-time assistant Lori Sippel in June.
Diane Miller has been elevated to associate head coach, and Mandie Nocita was promoted to assistant coach. Olivia Ferrell and Jordy Frahm also join the staff and will serve as assistant coaches. Hannah Coor and Hannah Camenzind have been added as graduate assistants. Lauren Camenzind will be a graduate manager for the Huskers.
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Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen on Wednesday announced measures to further cut state spending, including a cut in state agency spending and a hiring freeze on most positions.
Pillen said in a news release that the measures are necessary after the state paid out $307 million more in state tax refunds than anticipated in fiscal year 2026, which ended June 30. Tax receipts have come in below projections in March, April and May, leading to a current expected deficit of $172 million.
That’s after lawmakers closed a $646 million budget hole in their most recent legislative session.
The governor has previously sought to cut spending to provide more property tax relief to Nebraska residents and had called for additional cuts during the current fiscal year.
“I am pleased with the progress we have made, but I’m not satisfied,” Pillen said in a news release.
Accompanying the release was a memo Pillen sent to state agencies, boards and commissions in which he called on them to “exercise additional fiscal restraint.”
Among the measures outlined in the memo:
- A freeze on creating any new positions or filling any vacancies without approval from the state budget office. The freeze does not apply to law enforcement or corrections positions.
- A 5% reduction in budgets for all state agencies.
- All agencies, boards and commissions must provide monthly cash flow projections.
- Agency leaders are directed to “concentrate” on eliminating redundant processes, services regulation and aid programs.
- Agency leaders are directed to reduce their agencies’ physical footprint and “consolidate teams and services.”
All state entities are required to submit their plans for reducing spending by the end of the month.
The memo also said agencies should “prepare for downward adjustments to appropriations” not only in the current fiscal year but also in the 2028 and 2029 fiscal years.
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