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  • Councilmember Nithya Raman to run for L.A. mayor, challenging onetime ally Karen Bass

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    Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman is running for mayor, shaking up the field of candidates one final time.

    Raman said she will challenge Mayor Karen Bass, her onetime ally, campaigning on issues of housing and homelessness, transparency and “safety in our streets.”

    In an interview, Raman called Bass “an icon” and someone she deeply admires. But she said the city needs a change agent to address its problems.

    “I have deep respect for Mayor Bass. We’ve worked closely together on my biggest priorities and her biggest priorities, and there’s significant alignment there,” said Raman, who lives in Silver Lake. “But over the last few months in particular, I’ve really begun to feel like unless we have some big changes in how we do things in Los Angeles, that the things we count on are not going to function anymore.”

    Saturday’s announcement — hours before the noon filing deadline for the June 2 primary election — capped a chaotic week in L.A. politics, with candidates and would-be candidates dropping in and out of the race to challenge Bass, who is seeking a second four-year term.

    Raman would immediately pose a formidable challenge to Bass. She was the first council member to be elected with support from the Democratic Socialists of America, which scored an enormous victory last fall with the election of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani.

    Councilmember Nithya Raman jumps in the race for mayor, challenging former ally Karen Bass in the June primary.

    (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

    At the same time, Raman has deep ties to leaders in the YIMBY movement, who have pushed for the city to boost housing production by upzoning single-family neighborhoods and rewriting Measure ULA, the so-called mansion tax, which applies to property sales of $5.3 million or more.

    Raman’s eleventh-hour announcement caps what has been the most turbulent candidate filing period for an L.A. mayoral election in at least a generation. She launched her bid less than a day after another political heavyweight, L.A. County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, decided against a run.

    Until Raman’s surprise entry, the field had seemed to be clear of big-name challengers. Former L.A. schools superintendent Austin Beutner ended his campaign on Thursday, citing the death of his 22-year-old daughter. That same day, real estate developer Rick Caruso reaffirmed his decision not to run.

    Bass campaign spokesperson Douglas Herman did not immediately provide comment.

    Raman’s announcement comes as Bass continues to face sharp criticism over the city’s handling of the Palisades fire, which killed 12 people and destroyed thousands of homes. Unlike some of the candidates, Raman has not publicly criticized Bass about the city’s preparation for, or response to, the disaster.

    Bass, 72, faces more than two dozen opponents from across the political spectrum.

    Reality TV star Spencer Pratt, a Republican, has received praise from an array of Trump supporters, including Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco and U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, of Florida. Pratt has focused heavily on the city’s handling of the fire, which destroyed his home.

    Spencer Pratt poses for a portrait in Pacific Palisades.

    Spencer Pratt poses for a portrait in Pacific Palisades.

    (Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

    Democratic socialist Rae Huang is running against the mayor from her political left. Huang has called for more public housing and for a reduction in the number of police officers, with the cost savings poured into other city services.

    Brentwood tech entrepreneur Adam Miller, who has described himself as a lifelong Democrat, said the city is on a downward trajectory and needs stronger management. The 56-year-old nonprofit executive plans to tap his personal wealth to jump-start his campaign.

    Also in the race is Asaad Alnajjar, an employee of the Bureau of Street Lighting who sits on the Porter Ranch Neighborhood Council. Alnajjar has already lent his campaign $80,000.

    At City Hall, Raman’s entrance into the mayor’s race is a bombshell, particularly given her relationship with Bass.

    In December 2022, not long after taking office, Bass launched her Inside Safe program, which moves homeless people indoors, in Raman’s district.

    Two years later, while running for reelection, Raman prominently featured Bass on at least a dozen of her campaign mailers and door hangers. Raman’s campaign produced a video ad that heavily excerpted Bass’ remarks endorsing her at a Sherman Oaks get-out-the-vote rally.

    Raman, whose district stretches from Silver Lake to Reseda, ultimately won reelection with 50.7% of the vote. In the years that followed, she continued to praise Bass’ leadership.

    In November, while appearing at a DSA election night watch party for Mamdani, Raman told The Times that Bass is “the most progressive mayor we’ve ever had in L.A.”

    Last month, Bass formally announced that she had secured Raman’s endorsement, featuring her in a list of a dozen San Fernando Valley political leaders who backed her reelection campaign.

    Raman ran for office in 2020, promising to put in place stronger tenant protections and provide a more effective, humane approach to combating homelessness. On her campaign platform, she called for the transformation of the LAPD into a “much smaller, specialized armed force” — but never specified what exactly that would mean.

    A woman takes a photo with her phone at the C. Erwin Piper Technical Center on Saturday.

    A woman takes a photo with her phone at the C. Erwin Piper Technical Center on Saturday.

    (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

    Since then, the LAPD has lost about 1,300 officers — a decrease of about 13%. The City Council has put in place new eviction protections for tenants, while also capping the size of rent increases in the city’s “rent stabilized” apartments, which were mostly built before October 1978.

    Raman does not face the same political risks as Horvath, who had already been running for reelection in her Westside and San Fernando Valley district. Horvath, had she run for mayor, would have had to forfeit her seat on the county Board of Supervisors.

    If Raman loses, she would still hold her council seat, since she does not face reelection until 2028.

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    David Zahniser, Noah Goldberg

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  • Trump says ‘dilapidated’ Kennedy Center will close for two years for renovations

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    Less than a year after taking over the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and appointing himself chairman, President Trump has announced that the venue will shut down for two years, beginning July 4, to undergo a major renovation.

    “This important decision … will take a tired, broken, and dilapidated Center, one that has been in bad condition, both financially and structurally for many years, and turn it into a World Class Bastion of Arts, Music and Entertainment, far better than it has ever been before,” Trump wrote Sunday on his social media website.

    Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), who serves as an ex officio member of the center’s board of trustees, condemned Trump’s decision to close the venue in a statement issued early Monday.

    “As President Trump continues his demolition tour of Washington, he’s now setting his sights on one of America’s great cultural institutions,” Whitehouse said. “And yet again, he’s bucking rules and convention to do so. If he succeeds, it will be because of a series of suspect and illegal actions to commandeer the Kennedy Center as a clubhouse for his friends and political allies and install leadership who will satisfy his every whim.”

    Whitehouse attributed Trump’s decision to an attempt to cover up “his failures by shuttering a national landmark that belongs to the American people” and noted that the president announced his intentions without getting input from “the Board, Congress, and others, as law and precedent dictate.”

    The president’s announcement came in the wake of a cascade of Trump-initiated changes for the center that began in mid-December when its board voted to rename the venue the Trump-Kennedy Center and quickly added the president’s name above Kennedy’s on the building’s exterior.

    Prominent artists soon began canceling performances, including jazz drummer Chuck Redd, who pulled out of a Christmas Eve show, and the jazz group the Cookers, which canceled two New Year’s Eve performances.

    Additional cancellations included banjo player Béla Fleck and “Wicked” composer Stephen Schwartz, who announced he no longer intended to host a May 15 gala at the center. Opera star Renée Fleming followed, although scheduling conflicts were the reason given.

    There was also the stunning news last month that the Washington National Opera’s board approved a resolution to leave the venue, which it has occupied since 1971.

    Last week brought a new low for the center’s calendar when renowned composer Philip Glass added his name to the growing list of protest cancellations. Glass sent a letter to the Kennedy Center board saying that he would no longer stage June’s world premiere of Symphony No. 15 “Lincoln” at the center.

    “Symphony No. 15 is a portrait of Abraham Lincoln, and the values of the Kennedy Center today are in direct conflict with the message of the Symphony. Therefore, I feel an obligation to withdraw this Symphony premiere from the Kennedy Center under its current leadership,” Glass wrote in the letter, which was shared with The Times.

    The National Symphony Orchestra had commissioned the piece and appeared to be caught off guard by Glass’ announcement. Executive Director Jean Davidson said the orchestra only learned of the news at the same time as the press.

    Arts watchers soon began wondering about the orchestra’s future at the center. Would it leave like the Washington National Opera? Roma Daravi, Kennedy Center head of communications, said that wasn’t a possibility.

    “The relationship is strong, and we have a wonderful season here with Maestro [Gianandrea Noseda] in his 10th year leading the NSO,” Daravi wrote in an email, noting the “record-breaking success at the recent Gala benefiting the NSO which launched the new season. The event raised $3.45 million, marking an all-time fundraising record for the organization.”

    Daravi’s email did not hint at the prospect of the center closing. Trump also did not appear to be leaning in that direction early last week when he posted on his social media site that he was intent on bettering the arts complex.

    “People don’t realize that the Trump Kennedy Center suffered massive deficits for many years and, like everything else, I merely came in to save it, and, if possible, make it far better than ever before!” Trump wrote.

    In Sunday’s post announcing the Kennedy Center’s imminent closure, Trump didn’t acknowledge the recent cancellations, nor did he make mention of myriad reports that ticket sales at the venue had been plummeting. He simply said the closure would result in extraordinary results.

    “[I]f we don’t close, the quality of Construction will not be nearly as good, and the time to completion, because of interruptions with Audiences from the many Events using the Facility, will be much longer. The temporary closure will produce a much faster and higher quality result!” Trump wrote.

    Kennedy Center President Richard Grenell confirmed the news on X, writing, “I am grateful for President Trump’s visionary leadership. I am also grateful to Congress for appropriating an historic $257M to finally address decades of deferred maintenance and repairs at the Trump Kennedy Center.”

    It remains unclear whether the National Symphony Orchestra will perform elsewhere during the closure. The orchestra did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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    Jessica Gelt

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  • Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, one of the nation’s oldest newspapers, shuttering

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    The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette will be shutting down its operations with a final edition slated for May 3, the newspaper’s owner, Block Communications, announced Wednesday.”We deeply regret the impact this decision will have on Pittsburgh and the surrounding region,” the announcement states.The Post-Gazette is the largest newspaper representing the Pittsburgh metropolitan area and traces its roots to 1786, forming under its current name in 1927.Block Communications said the closure comes after losing “more than $350 million in cash operating the Post-Gazette” over the past 20 years. In addition, Pittsburghsister station WTAE reports that they cited a November decision that ruled in favor of the paper’s union, restoring the terms of its 2014-17 contract. Workers represented by the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh had been on strike for more than three years, then the longest active strike in the country.On Wednesday morning, the Post-Gazette’s publisher asked a court to freeze an order requiring the company to change its health insurance for union workers. Shortly after they were denied, the announcement came that the newspaper would close.In the announcement on Wednesday, Block Communications said the decision would require them to work under a contract that was “outdated and inflexible operational practices unsuited for today’s local journalism.””We deeply regret the impact this decision will have on Pittsburgh and the surrounding region,” the announcement stated.The Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh released a statement about the Post-Gazette shutdown, saying in part, “Instead of simply following the law, the owners chose to punish local journalists and the city of Pittsburgh.”Post-Gazette staff learned about the closure during a Zoom meeting. In the video, which Pittsburgh’s Action News 4 has seen, the president of Block Communications called it extremely difficult news as she made the virtual announcement that will end nearly two centuries of the P-G in Pittsburgh.”This is a seismic change for the entire region,” said Andrew Conte, managing director of the Center for Media Innovation at Point Park University. “We often talk about the local news crisis as a problem of the media, but really, it’s a crisis for all of us. It’s a community challenge because it affects how people interact with local news and information, and when something as large as the Post-Gazette goes away, it creates a huge void.”Conte worked as a journalist in the Pittsburgh area for decades. Like many Pittsburghers, he has watched the yearslong battle between Post-Gazette journalists and Block Communications and the recent end to a three-year strike.”People have been thinking about what it would mean to lose the Post-Gazette for a long time,” he said. “But when it actually happened today, it felt like a gut punch.”The Post-Gazette started out in 1786 as a weekly called The Pittsburgh Gazette and was the first newspaper published west of the Allegheny Mountains. As one of its first major stories, the Gazette published the newly adopted Constitution of the United States.Pittsburgh is located in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. County Executive Sara Innamorato called the decision to close “a major loss” for the area.”I’m deeply worried about the public’s ability to access trustworthy and fact-checked information at a time when misinformation is running rampant online,” she said in a statement.It is one of the oldest continuously published newspapers in the United States.Conte said it’s tough news for the journalists losing their jobs, as well as the community.”The real challenge is the work that journalists do that is accurate, objective, relevant to lots of people, that trained people are going out and asking these questions and finding out what’s going on and telling people, and that’s what’s being lost here is that we have fewer people doing that work,” he said.Announcement follows Supreme Court denial of bid to halt order Also on Jan. 7, 2026, the Supreme Court denied the Post-Gazette’s request to freeze a temporary injunction that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit had issued more than nine months ago. In a November 2025 decision, the appeals court held that the company had bargained in bad faith and improperly declared an impasse in the bargaining process. It ordered the company to comply with remedies ordered by the National Labor Relations Board.PG Publishing Co. filed an emergency motion with the Supreme Court to stay the order in response. In the Jan. 7 decision, which vacated a Dec. 22 stay from Justice Samuel Alito’s that had paused the 3rd Circuit’s injunction, justices did not explain their reasoning, Bloomberg Law reported.Second Pittsburgh paper to announce closing in one weekBlock Communications is the same company that owned the Pittsburgh City Paper, a free alt-weekly that announced it was closing on Dec. 31, 2025, after 34 years serving the city.In a statement to sister station WTAE’s news partners at the Trib, owner Block Communications said, in part, “The City Paper business model has not reached a level of financial performance that allows Block Communications to continue operating it responsibly.”Block Communications also owns The Blade, a newspaper in Toledo, Ohio.

    PITTSBURGH —

    The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette will be shutting down its operations with a final edition slated for May 3, the newspaper’s owner, Block Communications, announced Wednesday.

    “We deeply regret the impact this decision will have on Pittsburgh and the surrounding region,” the announcement states.

    The Post-Gazette is the largest newspaper representing the Pittsburgh metropolitan area and traces its roots to 1786, forming under its current name in 1927.

    Block Communications said the closure comes after losing “more than $350 million in cash operating the Post-Gazette” over the past 20 years. In addition, Pittsburghsister station WTAE reports that they cited a November decision that ruled in favor of the paper’s union, restoring the terms of its 2014-17 contract. Workers represented by the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh had been on strike for more than three years, then the longest active strike in the country.

    On Wednesday morning, the Post-Gazette’s publisher asked a court to freeze an order requiring the company to change its health insurance for union workers. Shortly after they were denied, the announcement came that the newspaper would close.

    In the announcement on Wednesday, Block Communications said the decision would require them to work under a contract that was “outdated and inflexible operational practices unsuited for today’s local journalism.”

    “We deeply regret the impact this decision will have on Pittsburgh and the surrounding region,” the announcement stated.

    The Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh released a statement about the Post-Gazette shutdown, saying in part, “Instead of simply following the law, the owners chose to punish local journalists and the city of Pittsburgh.”

    Post-Gazette staff learned about the closure during a Zoom meeting. In the video, which Pittsburgh’s Action News 4 has seen, the president of Block Communications called it extremely difficult news as she made the virtual announcement that will end nearly two centuries of the P-G in Pittsburgh.

    “This is a seismic change for the entire region,” said Andrew Conte, managing director of the Center for Media Innovation at Point Park University. “We often talk about the local news crisis as a problem of the media, but really, it’s a crisis for all of us. It’s a community challenge because it affects how people interact with local news and information, and when something as large as the Post-Gazette goes away, it creates a huge void.”

    Conte worked as a journalist in the Pittsburgh area for decades. Like many Pittsburghers, he has watched the yearslong battle between Post-Gazette journalists and Block Communications and the recent end to a three-year strike.

    “People have been thinking about what it would mean to lose the Post-Gazette for a long time,” he said. “But when it actually happened today, it felt like a gut punch.”

    The Post-Gazette started out in 1786 as a weekly called The Pittsburgh Gazette and was the first newspaper published west of the Allegheny Mountains. As one of its first major stories, the Gazette published the newly adopted Constitution of the United States.

    Pittsburgh is located in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. County Executive Sara Innamorato called the decision to close “a major loss” for the area.

    “I’m deeply worried about the public’s ability to access trustworthy and fact-checked information at a time when misinformation is running rampant online,” she said in a statement.

    It is one of the oldest continuously published newspapers in the United States.

    Conte said it’s tough news for the journalists losing their jobs, as well as the community.

    “The real challenge is the work that journalists do that is accurate, objective, relevant to lots of people, that trained people are going out and asking these questions and finding out what’s going on and telling people, and that’s what’s being lost here is that we have fewer people doing that work,” he said.

    Announcement follows Supreme Court denial of bid to halt order

    Also on Jan. 7, 2026, the Supreme Court denied the Post-Gazette’s request to freeze a temporary injunction that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit had issued more than nine months ago.

    In a November 2025 decision, the appeals court held that the company had bargained in bad faith and improperly declared an impasse in the bargaining process. It ordered the company to comply with remedies ordered by the National Labor Relations Board.

    PG Publishing Co. filed an emergency motion with the Supreme Court to stay the order in response.

    In the Jan. 7 decision, which vacated a Dec. 22 stay from Justice Samuel Alito’s that had paused the 3rd Circuit’s injunction, justices did not explain their reasoning, Bloomberg Law reported.

    Second Pittsburgh paper to announce closing in one week

    Block Communications is the same company that owned the Pittsburgh City Paper, a free alt-weekly that announced it was closing on Dec. 31, 2025, after 34 years serving the city.

    In a statement to sister station WTAE’s news partners at the Trib, owner Block Communications said, in part, “The City Paper business model has not reached a level of financial performance that allows Block Communications to continue operating it responsibly.”

    Block Communications also owns The Blade, a newspaper in Toledo, Ohio.

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  • Airspace and travel restrictions on much of Caribbean airspace following US strikes on Venezuela

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    Much of Caribbean airspace has been closed as the United States hit Venezuela with a “large-scale strike” early Saturday and said President Nicolás Maduro and his wife were captured and flown out of the country after months of stepped-up pressure by Washington — an extraordinary nighttime operation announced by President Donald Trump on social media hours after the attack. This has caused flight cancellations to and from Caribbean airports. So far, there have been nearly 900 cancellations and over 4,000 delays.The airspace closure impacted thousands of people traveling to or from Caribbean countries, all as a busy holiday travel season winds down.Related video above: See a report on the strikes and capture of Venezuela’s presidentThe legal authority for the strike — and whether Trump consulted Congress beforehand — was not immediately clear. The stunning, lightning-fast American military action, which plucked a nation’s sitting leader from office, echoed the U.S. invasion of Panama that led to the surrender and seizure of its leader, Manuel Antonio Noriega, in 1990 — exactly 36 years ago Saturday. Here’s what the attack on Venezuela means for travel in the region:FAA imposes airspace restriction on Puerto RicoThe Federal Aviation Administration has imposed a temporary airspace restriction on Puerto Rico’s international airport and surrounding regions.An announcement by Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan posted on the social media site X said the restriction was placed because of the “security situation related to military activity” in Venezuela.As a result, most commercial airlines to and from the airport that are operated by U.S. airlines have been suspended or may be canceled.Foreign airlines and military aircraft are not included in this restriction, the statement said. “Passengers are urged to check the status of their flight directly with their airline before heading to the airport.”Delta Airlines announced that it began canceling flights in Caribbean airspace Saturday morning, and announcements from American Airlines and United followed soon after.State Department urges Americans in Venezuela to shelter in placeThe State Department issued a new travel alert early Saturday, warning Americans in Venezuela urging them to “shelter in place” due to the situation.”U.S. Embassy Bogota is aware of reports of explosions in and around Caracas, Venezuela,” it said without elaboration.”The U.S. Embassy in Bogota, Colombia, warns U.S. citizens not to travel to Venezuela. U.S. citizens in Venezuela should shelter in place.” The embassy in Bogota has been shuttered since March 2019 but operates remotely.The view from New EnglandThe cancellations affected many New England travelers, some of whom became stranded in foreign countries.”At first, we didn’t know what was going on because they kept delaying the flight,” said Tricia Maloney. “All the flights but ours were cancelled, and ours kept being delayed and delayed and delayed and it was finally cancelled.”Maloney and her family were scheduled to fly back to Boston on Saturday from vacation in Curacao, which is about 40 miles from Venezuela.Plans quickly changed for them.”Our hotel didn’t have any availability, so everyone was scrambling for hotels,” Maloney said. “So, we’re in a new hotel now for tonight, and we’ll have to figure something out tomorrow.”Others, like the Marchese family from Wilbraham, ran into the opposite problem.They were supposed to vacation in Aruba, but amid ongoing flight restrictions, their plan B is Florida.Two families from New Hampshire are now struggling to make changes.”Everyone is like panicking, we can’t even find flights out here until Friday,” said Casie Woodman of Fremont, New Hampshire.A vacation to Aruba for Casie Woodman, of Fremont, New Hampshire, is taking an unexpected turn after she woke up Saturday to learn of the U.S military actions in Venezuela and the closed airspace in the area. “There’s no flights through any airlines, even just to get in the United States, until Friday,” said Woodman.Woodman says families at the resort are scrambling and older people are concerned about getting their medicine.Manchester’s Gus Emmick and his family thought they’d be spending their vacation in Saint Martin, but now they are at Logan Airport.”Many, many families are just sitting here trying to scramble and figure out what happened and what they are going to do,” said Gus Emmick, of Manchester, New Hampshire.The family is switching gears and looking to head to Florida.”As much as we love New Hampshire, December has been a little rough, so we are looking for warmer weather and hoping we’ll see some,” said Emmick.Aviation expert Tom Kinton said safety is the reason behind the airspace closure.”There were hundreds of aircraft and fixed-wing drones as part of this operation. You want to get that all cleaned up before you let civilian aircraft back into that airspace again,” said Tom Kinton. According to the FAA, the closed airspace is impacting flights in and out of Caribbean destinations like Aruba, Barbados and even Puerto Rico. Delta flights to and from the following airports have been cancelled for the day, according to a spokesperson. They are as follows:Luis Munoz Marin International Airport in Puerto Rico (SJU)Princess Juliana International Airport in Sint Maarten (SXM)Henry E. Rohlsen Airport in Saint Croix (STX)Cyril E. King Airport in St. Thomas (STT)Queen Beatrix International Airport in Aruba (AUA)Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport on St. Kitts, Caribbean Islands (SKB)Curaçao International Airport in Curaçao (CUR)Grantley Adams International Airport in Barbados (BGI)Hewanorra International Airport in St. Lucia (UVF)Bonaire International Airport near Kralendijk in the Caribbean Netherlands (BON)Argyle International Airport in Argyle, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVD)Maurice Bishop International Airport in Grenada (GND)V.C. Bird International Airport in Antigua and Barbuda (ANU)It’s unclear when the Delta flights will resume for these airports. Now, Kinton said the airspace is slated to open at 5 a.m. Sunday. However, it could be that a narrower airspace is opened for the time being or the opening could be delayed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

    Much of Caribbean airspace has been closed as the United States hit Venezuela with a “large-scale strike” early Saturday and said President Nicolás Maduro and his wife were captured and flown out of the country after months of stepped-up pressure by Washington — an extraordinary nighttime operation announced by President Donald Trump on social media hours after the attack.

    This has caused flight cancellations to and from Caribbean airports. So far, there have been nearly 900 cancellations and over 4,000 delays.

    The airspace closure impacted thousands of people traveling to or from Caribbean countries, all as a busy holiday travel season winds down.

    Related video above: See a report on the strikes and capture of Venezuela’s president

    The legal authority for the strike — and whether Trump consulted Congress beforehand — was not immediately clear. The stunning, lightning-fast American military action, which plucked a nation’s sitting leader from office, echoed the U.S. invasion of Panama that led to the surrender and seizure of its leader, Manuel Antonio Noriega, in 1990 — exactly 36 years ago Saturday.

    Here’s what the attack on Venezuela means for travel in the region:

    FAA imposes airspace restriction on Puerto Rico

    The Federal Aviation Administration has imposed a temporary airspace restriction on Puerto Rico’s international airport and surrounding regions.

    An announcement by Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan posted on the social media site X said the restriction was placed because of the “security situation related to military activity” in Venezuela.

    MIGUEL J. RODRIGUEZ CARRILLO

    Passengers wait at Luis Munoz Marin International Airport as all flights are cancelled following U.S. military action in Venezuela, on Jan. 3, 2026, in Carolina, Puerto Rico. 

    As a result, most commercial airlines to and from the airport that are operated by U.S. airlines have been suspended or may be canceled.

    Foreign airlines and military aircraft are not included in this restriction, the statement said. “Passengers are urged to check the status of their flight directly with their airline before heading to the airport.”

    Delta Airlines announced that it began canceling flights in Caribbean airspace Saturday morning, and announcements from American Airlines and United followed soon after.

    State Department urges Americans in Venezuela to shelter in place

    The State Department issued a new travel alert early Saturday, warning Americans in Venezuela urging them to “shelter in place” due to the situation.

    “U.S. Embassy Bogota is aware of reports of explosions in and around Caracas, Venezuela,” it said without elaboration.

    “The U.S. Embassy in Bogota, Colombia, warns U.S. citizens not to travel to Venezuela. U.S. citizens in Venezuela should shelter in place.” The embassy in Bogota has been shuttered since March 2019 but operates remotely.

    The view from New England

    The cancellations affected many New England travelers, some of whom became stranded in foreign countries.

    “At first, we didn’t know what was going on because they kept delaying the flight,” said Tricia Maloney. “All the flights but ours were cancelled, and ours kept being delayed and delayed and delayed and it was finally cancelled.”

    Maloney and her family were scheduled to fly back to Boston on Saturday from vacation in Curacao, which is about 40 miles from Venezuela.

    Plans quickly changed for them.

    “Our hotel didn’t have any availability, so everyone was scrambling for hotels,” Maloney said. “So, we’re in a new hotel now for tonight, and we’ll have to figure something out tomorrow.”

    Others, like the Marchese family from Wilbraham, ran into the opposite problem.

    They were supposed to vacation in Aruba, but amid ongoing flight restrictions, their plan B is Florida.

    Two families from New Hampshire are now struggling to make changes.

    “Everyone is like panicking, we can’t even find flights out here until Friday,” said Casie Woodman of Fremont, New Hampshire.

    A vacation to Aruba for Casie Woodman, of Fremont, New Hampshire, is taking an unexpected turn after she woke up Saturday to learn of the U.S military actions in Venezuela and the closed airspace in the area.

    “There’s no flights through any airlines, even just to get in the United States, until Friday,” said Woodman.

    Woodman says families at the resort are scrambling and older people are concerned about getting their medicine.

    Manchester’s Gus Emmick and his family thought they’d be spending their vacation in Saint Martin, but now they are at Logan Airport.

    “Many, many families are just sitting here trying to scramble and figure out what happened and what they are going to do,” said Gus Emmick, of Manchester, New Hampshire.

    The family is switching gears and looking to head to Florida.

    “As much as we love New Hampshire, December has been a little rough, so we are looking for warmer weather and hoping we’ll see some,” said Emmick.

    Aviation expert Tom Kinton said safety is the reason behind the airspace closure.

    “There were hundreds of aircraft and fixed-wing drones as part of this operation. You want to get that all cleaned up before you let civilian aircraft back into that airspace again,” said Tom Kinton.

    According to the FAA, the closed airspace is impacting flights in and out of Caribbean destinations like Aruba, Barbados and even Puerto Rico.

    Delta flights to and from the following airports have been cancelled for the day, according to a spokesperson. They are as follows:

    • Luis Munoz Marin International Airport in Puerto Rico (SJU)
    • Princess Juliana International Airport in Sint Maarten (SXM)
    • Henry E. Rohlsen Airport in Saint Croix (STX)
    • Cyril E. King Airport in St. Thomas (STT)
    • Queen Beatrix International Airport in Aruba (AUA)
    • Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport on St. Kitts, Caribbean Islands (SKB)
    • Curaçao International Airport in Curaçao (CUR)
    • Grantley Adams International Airport in Barbados (BGI)
    • Hewanorra International Airport in St. Lucia (UVF)
    • Bonaire International Airport near Kralendijk in the Caribbean Netherlands (BON)
    • Argyle International Airport in Argyle, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVD)
    • Maurice Bishop International Airport in Grenada (GND)
    • V.C. Bird International Airport in Antigua and Barbuda (ANU)

    It’s unclear when the Delta flights will resume for these airports.

    Now, Kinton said the airspace is slated to open at 5 a.m. Sunday. However, it could be that a narrower airspace is opened for the time being or the opening could be delayed.

    The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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  • Education Department announces new steps in downsizing push

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    The U.S. Department of Education announced new steps Tuesday in President Donald Trump’s push to downsize the federal agency. Trump signed an executive order in March that called for eliminating the Education Department, but his administration has previously acknowledged that dissolving it entirely would require an act of Congress, which created the agency in 1979. For now, the department is moving forward with plans to shift key services to other parts of the federal government through six new interagency agreements. “The Trump Administration is taking bold action to break up the federal education bureaucracy and return education to the states,” U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said in a statement. “Cutting through layers of red tape in Washington is one essential piece of our final mission.”The announcement is already facing pushback. Critics fear that the Education Department shakeup will disrupt critical services that students rely on.The National Education Association called it an “illegal plan to further abandon students.”Minnetonka Public Schools Superintendent David Law, who serves as president of AASA, The School Superintendents Association, said the reorganization could prove counterproductive. “It talks about streamlining and efficiency, and yet it’s counterintuitive to me that multiple agencies having their hand on something is more efficient,” Law said.Under the plan, the Labor Department will co-manage the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, which administers K-12 grant programs and Title 1 funding for low-income schools, as well as the Office of Postsecondary Education, which oversees grants for institutions of higher education.The Department of the Interior will take on a greater role in administering Indian Education programs. The Department of Health and Human Services will co-manage the Child Care Access Means Parents in School (CCAMPIS) program and Foreign Medical Accreditation. The State Department will help oversee international education and foreign language studies programs. In the past, the Trump administration has also talked about moving management of other Education Department services, like the student loan portfolio and civil rights enforcement. The administration is still “exploring options,” according to a senior department official who briefed reporters on Tuesday ahead of the official rollout. Tuesday’s announcement builds on a sweeping downsizing effort that started earlier this year. The Trump administration has already launched an interagency partnership with the Labor Department to manage adult education and career and technical education programs.In July, the Supreme Court paved the way for the Education Department to move forward with roughly 1,400 layoffs.The Education Department said in an email on Tuesday that no additional layoffs are expected at this time as a result of the new interagency agreements.

    WASHINGTON —

    The U.S. Department of Education announced new steps Tuesday in President Donald Trump’s push to downsize the federal agency.

    Trump signed an executive order in March that called for eliminating the Education Department, but his administration has previously acknowledged that dissolving it entirely would require an act of Congress, which created the agency in 1979.

    For now, the department is moving forward with plans to shift key services to other parts of the federal government through six new interagency agreements.

    “The Trump Administration is taking bold action to break up the federal education bureaucracy and return education to the states,” U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said in a statement. “Cutting through layers of red tape in Washington is one essential piece of our final mission.”

    The announcement is already facing pushback. Critics fear that the Education Department shakeup will disrupt critical services that students rely on.

    The National Education Association called it an “illegal plan to further abandon students.”

    Minnetonka Public Schools Superintendent David Law, who serves as president of AASA, The School Superintendents Association, said the reorganization could prove counterproductive.

    “It talks about streamlining and efficiency, and yet it’s counterintuitive to me that multiple agencies having their hand on something is more efficient,” Law said.

    Under the plan, the Labor Department will co-manage the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, which administers K-12 grant programs and Title 1 funding for low-income schools, as well as the Office of Postsecondary Education, which oversees grants for institutions of higher education.

    The Department of the Interior will take on a greater role in administering Indian Education programs. The Department of Health and Human Services will co-manage the Child Care Access Means Parents in School (CCAMPIS) program and Foreign Medical Accreditation. The State Department will help oversee international education and foreign language studies programs.

    In the past, the Trump administration has also talked about moving management of other Education Department services, like the student loan portfolio and civil rights enforcement. The administration is still “exploring options,” according to a senior department official who briefed reporters on Tuesday ahead of the official rollout.

    Tuesday’s announcement builds on a sweeping downsizing effort that started earlier this year.

    The Trump administration has already launched an interagency partnership with the Labor Department to manage adult education and career and technical education programs.

    In July, the Supreme Court paved the way for the Education Department to move forward with roughly 1,400 layoffs.

    The Education Department said in an email on Tuesday that no additional layoffs are expected at this time as a result of the new interagency agreements.

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  • Mayor Bass lifts state of emergency on homelessness. But ‘the crisis remains’

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    On her first day in office, Mayor Karen Bass declared a state of emergency on homelessness.

    The declaration allowed the city to cut through red tape, including through no-bid contracts, and to start Inside Safe, Bass’ signature program focused on moving homeless people off the streets and into interim housing.

    On Tuesday, nearly three years after she took the helm, and with homelessness trending down two years in a row for the first time in recent years, the mayor announced that she will lift the state of emergency on Nov. 18.

    “We have begun a real shift in our city’s decades-long trend of rising homelessness,” Bass said in a memorandum to the City Council.

    Still, the mayor said, there is much work to do.

    “The crisis remains, and so does our urgency,” she said.

    The mayor’s announcement followed months of City Council pushback on the lengthy duration of the state of emergency, which the council had initially approved.

    Some council members argued that the state of emergency allowed the mayor’s office to operate out of public view and that contracts and leases should once again be presented before them with public testimony and a vote.

    Councilmember Tim McOsker has been arguing for months that it was time to return to business as usual.

    “Emergency powers are designed to allow the government to suspend rules and respond rapidly when the situation demands it, but at some point those powers must conclude,” he said in a statement Tuesday.

    McOsker said the move will allow the council to “formalize” some of the programs started during the emergency, while incorporating more transparency.

    Council members had been concerned that the state of emergency would end without first codifying Executive Directive 1, which expedites approvals for homeless shelters as well as for developments that are 100% affordable and was issued by Bass shortly after she took office.

    On Oct. 28, the council voted for the city attorney to draft an ordinance that would enshrine the executive directive into law.

    The mayor’s announcement follows positive reports about the state of homelessness in the city.

    As of September, the mayor’s Inside Safe program had moved more than 5,000 people into interim housing since its inception at the end of 2022. Of those people, more than 1,243 have moved into permanent housing, while another 1,636 remained in interim housing.

    This year, the number of homeless people living in shelters or on the streets of the city dropped 3.4%, according to the annual count conducted by the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority. The number of unsheltered homeless people in the city dropped by an even steeper margin of 7.9%.

    The count, however, has its detractors. A study by Rand found that the annual survey missed nearly a third of homeless people in Hollywood, Venice and Skid Row — primarily those sleeping without tents or vehicles.

    In June, a federal judge decided not to put Los Angeles’ homelessness programs into receivership, while saying that the city had failed to meet some of the terms of a settlement agreement with the nonprofit LA Alliance for Human Rights.

    Councilmember Nithya Raman, who chairs the City Council’s Housing and Homelessness Committee, said the end of the emergency does not mean the crisis is over.

    “It only means that we must build fiscally sustainable systems that can respond effectively,” she said. “By transitioning from emergency measures to long-term, institutional frameworks, we’re ensuring consistent, accountable support for people experiencing homelessness.”

    Times staff writer David Zahniser contributed to this report.

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    Noah Goldberg

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  • Billionaire Tom Steyer drops $12 million to support November redistricting ballot measure

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    As California voters receive mail ballots for the November special election, which could upend the state’s congressional boundaries and determine control of the House, billionaire hedge-fund founder Tom Steyer said Thursday he will spend $12 million to back Democrats’ efforts to redraw districts to boost their party’s ranks in the legislative body.

    The ballot measure was proposed by Gov. Gavin Newsom and other California Democrats after President Trump urged Texas leaders to redraw their congressional districts before next year’s midterm election. Buttressing GOP numbers in Congress could help Trump continue enacting his agenda during his final two years in office.

    “We must stop Trump’s election-rigging power grab,” Steyer said in a statement. “The defining fight through Nov. 4 is passing Proposition 50. In order to compete and win, Democrats can’t keep playing by the same old rules. This is how we fight back, and stick it to Trump.”

    Steyer’s announcement makes him the biggest funder of pro-Proposition 50 efforts, surpassing billionaire financier George Soros, who has contributed $10 million to the effort.

    Steyer founded a hedge fund whose investments included massive fossil fuel projects, but after he learned of the environmental consequences of these financial decisions, he divested and has worked to fight climate change. Steyer has spent hundreds of millions of dollars supporting Democratic candidates and causes and more than $300 million on his unsuccessful 2020 presidential campaign.

    Steyer plans to launch a scathing ad Thursday night that imagines Trump watching election returns on Nov. 4 and furiously throwing fast food at a television when he sees Proposition 50 succeeding.

    “Why did you do this to Trump?” the president asks. The ad then shows a fictional TV anchor saying that the ballot measure’s success makes it more likely that Trump will be investigated for corruption and that the records of convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein will be released. “I hate California,” Trump responds.

    The advertisement is scheduled to start airing Thursday night during “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” The late-night show was in the spotlight after it was briefly suspended by Walt Disney Co.-owned ABC last month under pressure from the Trump administration because of a comment Kimmel made about the slaying of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

    The esoteric process of redistricting typically occurs once every decade after the U.S. Census to account for population shifts. The maps, historically drawn in smoke-filled backrooms, protected incumbents and created bizarrely shaped districts, such as the “ribbon of shame” along the California coast.

    In recent decades, good-government advocates have fought to create districts that are logical and geographically compact and do not disenfranchise minority voters. At the forefront of the effort, California voters passed a 2010 ballot measure to create an independent commission to draw the state’s congressional boundaries.

    But this year, Trump and his allies urged leaders of GOP-led states to redraw their congressional districts to boost Republicans’ prospects in next year’s midterm election. The House is closely divided, and retaining Republican control is crucial to Trump’s ability to enact his agenda.

    California Democrats, led by Newson, responded in kind. The state Legislature voted in August to call a special election in November to decide on redrawn districts that could give their party five more seats in the state’s 52-member congressional delegation, the largest in the nation.

    Supporters of Proposition 50 have vastly outraised the committees opposing the measure. Steyer’s announcement came one day after Charles Munger Jr., the largest donor to the opposition, spoke out publicly for the first time about why he had contributed $32 million to the effort.

    “I’m fighting for the ordinary voter to have an effective say in their own government,” Munger told reporters. “I don’t want Californians ignored by the national government because all the districts are fortresses for one party or the other.”

    A longtime opponent of gerrymandering, the bow-tie-wearing Palo Alto physicist bankrolled the 2010 ballot measure that created the independent commission to draw California’s congressional districts.

    Munger, the son of a billionaire who was the right-hand man of investor Warren Buffett, declined to comment about whether he planned to give additional funds.

    “I neither confirm nor deny rumors that involve the tactics of the campaign,” Munger told reporters. “Talk to me after the election is over.”

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    Seema Mehta

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  • Legacy Things! Sheila Jackson Lee’s Daughter Reveals She’s Running For Her Mom’s Congressional Seat Weeks After Her Passing

    Legacy Things! Sheila Jackson Lee’s Daughter Reveals She’s Running For Her Mom’s Congressional Seat Weeks After Her Passing

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    Erica Lee Carter, the daughter of the late Sheila Jackson Lee, has revealed that she’s running for her mom’s congressional seat.

    RELATED: VP Kamala Harris Selects Minnesota Governor Tim Walz As Running Mate

    Here’s What Erica Lee Carter Revealed

    According to Fox News, Carter made the announcement on Monday, August 12, via X, formerly known as Twitter. Carter opened her statement by sharing her gratitude for those who showed her family an “outpouring” of love and support after her mother’s passing.

    As she continued her statement, Carter revealed that “so many community leaders and democratic stalwarts” requested that she “consider completing” her mother’s “term this year by running in the November 5th Special Election.”

    “After consideration, the answer is YES,” Carter added.

    Carter ended her message with, “Together, we will finish for my Mom, The Honorable Sheila Jackson.”

    According to Fox News, if Carter wins the election, she would fill her mother’s seat until January 3.

    Social Media Reacts

    Social media users reacted to Carter’s announcement on X, formerly known as Twitter.

    More On Sheila Jackson Lee & Her Recent Passing

    As The Shade Room previously reported, Sheila Jackson Lee’s family announced her passing on July 19. Her relatives reportedly called her a “champion of the people.”

    “Today, with incredible grief for our loss yet deep gratitude for the life she shared with us, we announce the passing of United States Representative Sheila Jackson Lee of the 18th Congressional District of Texas,” her family wrote at the time.

    Additionally, the Lee family praised Sheila for her decades of work fighting for “racial justice, criminal justice, human rights, with a special emphasis on women and children.”

    RELATED: Prayers Up! U.S. Representative Sheila Jackson Lee Passes Away at 74

    What Do You Think Roomies?

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    Jadriena Solomon

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  • Bhad Bhabie Reveals The Gender Of Her First Child! (PHOTOS)

    Bhad Bhabie Reveals The Gender Of Her First Child! (PHOTOS)

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    Bhad Bhabie has taken to social media to reveal the gender of her first child. As The Shade Room previously reported, the 20-year-old revealed her pregnancy earlier this month.

    RELATED: Congrats! Bhad Bhabie Announces She’s Pregnant With Her First Child

    Bhad Bhabie Shares Her Gender Reveal

    On Tuesday, December 12, Bhad Bhabie, whose real name is Danielle Bregoli, took to her official Instagram account to share a photo. In the picture, the expecting mother sits on a motorcycle, holding her stomach and looking over her shoulder.

    Additionally, pink smoke blew from the bike’s exhaust pipes.

    In the post’s caption, Bhad Bhabie confirmed that she is expecting a baby girl.

    “💗ITS🎀A💓GIRL💖,” the 20-year-old wrote.

    To note, the expecting mother sported top and bottom garments from Heaven by Marc Jacob’s collaboration with Barragán.

    Check out additional pictures from the 20-year-old’s photoshoot for fashion collaboration below.

     

    Social Media Reacts

    Social media users entered The Shade Room’s comment section to share their continued congratulations and well wishes for the 20-year-old.

    Instagram user @ahjezthat wrote, “Aww congrats 🥳.”

    While Instagram user @iamravendiaz added, “This 🔥 gender reveal”

    Instagram user @mylifeasprincesss referenced Bhad Babie’s viral catchphrase, “Okay she gone have a lil catch me outside.”

    While Instagram user @porshajay added, “…I pray she’s grown and will implement more structure and discipline for her own daughter. 🙏🏾”

    A Look Back On The 20-Year-Old’s Pregnancy Announcement

    As The Shade Room previously reported, the 20-year-old announced her pregnancy on Friday, December 1. At the time, she posted a photo sporting a white tee and sweatpants with her bump protruding.

    At the time, Bhad Bhabie did not explicitly reveal the father of her unborn child. However, she is currently dating a rapper named Le Vaughn. To note the rapper is a father to a one-year-old son.

    Additionally, one of three posts on Bhad Bhabie’s Instagram page includes her and Le Vaughn sitting courtside.

    Check it out below.

    As The Shade Room previously reported, Bhad Bhabie went viral after appearing on the ‘Dr. Phil’ talk show in 2016.

    Roomies, please join us in sending continued congratulations to Bhad Bhabie.

    RELATED: Congrats! Ciara & Russell Wilson Welcome Their Baby Girl! (PHOTO)

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    Jadriena Solomon

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  • Turtle Island Indoor Water Park to Celebrates Its Grand Opening in Belcourt, North Dakota

    Turtle Island Indoor Water Park to Celebrates Its Grand Opening in Belcourt, North Dakota

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    BELCOURT, N.D., December 12, 2023 (Newswire.com)
    –
    North Dakota’s newest indoor water park celebrated its grand opening on December 8, 2023.  Turtle Island Indoor Water Park is the area’s premiere destination for family fun, attached to Sky Dancer Casino & Resort, at 3965 Sky Dancer Way NE, Belcourt, ND 58316. 

    The indoor water park features three water slides, a 175-foot-long lazy river, an activity pool, and a children’s play area. Tickets are on sale now by going to the website, turtleislandadventureparks.com

    “We are thrilled to welcome families from across North Dakota, Canada, and Minnesota!” said Carl Foy, Marketing Director for Turtle Island Indoor Water Park.  “Turtle Island Indoor Water Park is going to be the number one destination in our area for families. There is something for everyone – thrill seekers will love our waterslides, our youngest guests will play all day at the splash pad, and parents can spend a relaxing day on the lazy river. Being attached to Sky Dancer Casino & Resort offers families easy access to lodging and dining, without ever having to step outside.” 

    Following the grand opening, the water park will be open Wednesday through Monday every week. The operating schedule varies per day, but the full schedule is available at turtleislandadventureparks.com. 

    “With the holidays right around the corner we encourage families to make their plans and book tickets soon,” said Foy. “North Dakota winters are cold, so we’re excited to offer this year-round getaway for families to escape the windchills and enjoy a weekend away. It’s always Summer at Turtle Island Indoor Water Park.”

    In addition to slides, a pool, and a lazy river, Turtle Island Indoor Water Park celebrates the Ojibwe culture and traditions of the local area. Turtle Island is named for the Ojibwe origin story, where the center of creation begins on a turtle’s back. Visitors to the water park will see other characters and scenes from the creation story depicted on murals and installations throughout the park.

    Families can expect more exciting options in the area soon. Turtle Island Indoor Water Park marks the first attraction opening as part of the new Turtle Island Adventure Park, a family destination concentrated in and around the Belcourt area. Over the coming months a trampoline park, winter park, and arcade will join the water park to give families even more options for fun during their visit. 

    “Turtle Island Adventure Park will truly be a destination for families with children of all ages,” said John Allery, Director of Inclusive Economic Development Projects with the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa. “Bringing this attraction to the Turtle Mountains is a significant opportunity for us to share our local community and culture with even more visitors.” 

    WEBSITE & SOCIAL MEDIA 

    ###

    Source: Turtle Island Indoor Water Park

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  • Highland Park native Che Flores is NBA’s first nonbinary and transgender official

    Highland Park native Che Flores is NBA’s first nonbinary and transgender official

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    Tuesday’s NBA season tipoff includes a historic moment for Highland Park native Che Flores.

    The longtime basketball referee announced their status as nonbinary and transgender in an interview Sunday with men’s lifestyle magazine GQ. Flores is the league’s first such referee and is believed to be the first out nonbinary and transgender official in all major U.S. and Canadian sports.

    Flores, who uses the pronouns they and them, was not available for comment Tuesday. But their former coach Jim Couch, who coached Flores at Burbank’s Bellarmine-Jefferson High School and Los Angeles Pierce College, said he wasn’t surprised Flores “climbed their way to the top.”

    Flores “was a special player whose passion and effort led to [their] success,” Couch said. “That success is not a surprise.”

    Flores, who grew up in Highland Park, is starting their second season in the NBA after working as a non-staff official during the 2021-22 season. They previously worked 10 seasons in the WNBA and nine seasons in the NBA G League, according to their National Basketball Referee Assn. profile. Flores worked both association’s finals series in 2022.

    Previously, Flores spent 13 years officiating several NCAA leagues, including the Pac-12, Big 12 and Mountain West. They also worked the women’s Division I title game in 2021 and the Final Four in 2019.

    Flores, 44, told GQ they weren’t seeking any spotlight with their announcement. Instead, they said, this is a way to provide visibility for queer youths.

    “This is just to let young kids know that we can exist, we can be successful in all different ways,” Flores told the magazine. “For me, that is most important — to just be a face that somebody can be like, ‘Oh, OK, that person exists. I think I can do that.’ ”

    A starting point guard on Bellarmine-Jefferson’s CIF Southern Section Division IV-A title team — the school’s first — Flores played with future WNBA player Jaclyn Johnson. Couch coached Flores at Bell-Jeff as the senior upped their postseason play, averaging 18 points, 8.4 assists and seven steals, topping their average of 11.9 points, 6.2 assists and 5.6 steals in the regular season.

    After graduation, Flores moved on to Pierce College before transferring and playing two seasons at Cal State Northridge. There, Flores played 27 games over two years, finishing with 26 points, 18 rebounds, 19 assists and 10 steals.

    Couch, who retired as Pierce College’s women’s basketball coach, last saw his former player in 2010 when they were officiating a community college women’s basketball game between Pierce and Ventura College, which the latter won by a few points, according to Couch.

    “It was a game where I could have used a couple of calls, but [Flores] wasn’t having it,” Couch said with a laugh. “I think I had more calls against me.”

    Flores’ announcement comes at a time when legislators and governing bodies worldwide have restricted or banned the participation of transgender athletes.

    House Republicans passed a bill in April barring transgender females from participating on girls’ or women’s sports teams in federally supported schools and colleges.

    World swimming’s governing body, FINA, also banned transgender women from competing in female events in 2022.

    Flores told GQ that “being misgendered as she/her always just felt like a little jab in the gut.” But since the announcement, Flores said they “can go through the world, and even my job, a lot more comfortably.”

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    Andrew J. Campa

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  • Incident IQ Announces CEO Succession

    Incident IQ Announces CEO Succession

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    Founder and CEO Travis Collins announces retirement, Chief Operating Officer R.T. Collins appointed as new CEO


    ATLANTA, March 22, 2023 (Newswire.com)
    –
    Incident IQ, the workflow management platform built for K-12, announced today that CEO Travis Collins will retire on March 31 and that Chief Operating Officer R.T. Collins will succeed him as Incident IQ’s new CEO.

    Travis Collins has been the chief executive of Incident IQ since the company’s founding in August of 2016. Prior to Incident IQ, Travis was the founder and CEO of Lexicon Tech Solutions, Inc., CEO of the ChannelMax subsidiary of ScanSource, Inc., the co-founder of Black Arrow eCom, and the co-founder and CEO of AccuScan, Inc. He also served on the Rockdale County (GA) Board of Education for 12 years, completing his Board service in 2008. Travis began his professional career with NCR Corporation and is a 1979 graduate of the Georgia Institute of Technology with a B.S. in Industrial Management.

    “Being a part of the Incident IQ team and working with the K-12 community to help improve support for teaching and learning has been the highlight of my professional career,” Travis Collins said. “I can’t wait to see the innovations and improvements that our team and our partner districts will create together in the years to come. It has been a joy and privilege to be part of this journey — not a day of it has really felt like work.” 

    Travis will continue to serve Incident IQ as a member of the company’s Board of Directors.

    “I am excited to announce that Chief Operating Officer R.T. Collins has been unanimously appointed by the company’s Board of Directors to become the next Chief Executive Officer of Incident IQ,” continued Travis Collins. “R.T. has led our team since the earliest days of iiQ to build the company, earn the trust of the K-12 community, and to create and realize the vision for our ‘workflow management platform built for K-12.’ There is no better leader for Incident IQ than R.T.” 

    R.T. Collins will officially assume his position as CEO on April 1, 2023, and will continue to serve as a member of the company’s Board of Directors.

    As COO, R.T. Collins has been instrumental in Incident IQ’s growth from its first pilot customer to now serving more than 1,200 school districts nationwide. He similarly helped drive the transformation of Incident IQ from the initial founding members to today’s high-performing team of 150 people. Prior to Incident IQ, R.T. served in the United States Air Force as an officer and military attorney, before leaving active duty to lead the K-12 services practice at Lexicon Tech Solutions. 

    “This moment in Incident IQ’s journey is the most exciting yet, and I’m thrilled to be leading an incredible team on such an important mission,” said R.T. Collins. “Our opportunity in the next several years is to fully transform how K-12 schools tackle support and operational workflows districtwide. By making these workflows easier, we can create massive efficiencies for districts and return time for what matters most: teaching and learning.”  

    “We see tremendous demand from K-12 school districts for Incident IQ’s workflow management solutions which optimize critical district support functions,” said Larry Contrella, Incident IQ Board Member and General Partner at JMI Equity. “From the company’s beginning, Travis invested to build an amazing team and culture that remains laser-focused on partnering with schools to accomplish this mission and to help them free up time to focus on educating students.” 

    Contrella continued, “As COO, R.T. ‘s leadership has been critical to iiQ’s rapid growth from the start and over the last seven years. We’re thrilled that he will now be leading the company as Incident IQ’s next CEO.” 

    About Incident IQ 

    Incident IQ is the workflow management platform built exclusively for K-12 schools, featuring asset management, help ticketing, facilities maintenance solutions, and more.  More than seven million students and teachers in over 1,200 districts rely on the Incident IQ platform to manage and deliver mission-critical services.

    Incident IQ is based in Atlanta.

    Source: Incident IQ

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  • Incident IQ Announces iiQ Events and New iiQ Facilities Enhancements at TCEA 2023

    Incident IQ Announces iiQ Events and New iiQ Facilities Enhancements at TCEA 2023

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    New event management solution helps K-12 schools manage event reservation, approval, and preparation workflows.

    Press Release
    –

    Jan 31, 2023 08:30 EST


    ATLANTA, January 31, 2023 (Newswire.com)
    –
    Incident IQ is announcing a new addition to its award-winning K-12 workflow management platform at this year’s TCEA conference in San Antonio. The company is releasing iiQ Events—a product that streamlines the process of planning and executing school events. The new offering is part of Incident IQ’s commitment to providing K-12 building and maintenance teams with tools built for the unique support needs of today’s schools.

    Managing a multitude of school and community events has long been a struggle for K-12 staff. From managing location availability and approving requests, to securing necessary equipment and final event preparation — coordinating school functions requires effort from many different support teams. iiQ Events manages these event workflows from start to finish, handling event requests and scheduling and preparation tasks, while keeping district staff in sync and key stakeholders informed.

    Users can quickly find available locations based on event needs and submit data-rich reservation forms in seconds. iiQ Events prevents accidental double bookings and provides building staff with a detailed timeline of event activities—including set-up and breakdown times—so that no events run the risk of overlapping each other. Districts can choose from single or multi-stage approval workflows, allowing key decision-makers the ability to give the go-ahead on an upcoming event.

    Once an event is approved, work orders can automatically be dispatched to relevant support teams to begin preparation, ensuring that all necessary equipment and personnel are on-hand for the big day.  

    Facility leaders are also provided with a detailed event calendar, which keeps track of upcoming district events. Users can create custom views, which display the events relevant to a specific individual or building team. Districts can also sync their event calendar with popular solutions such as Google Calendar and ArbiterSports, ensuring that events are visible and teams stay in sync.

    “Facilities teams are the backbone of schools—not only do they coordinate and assist with special events, but they also accomplish the important tasks that keep district buildings running smoothly,” said Chris Burns, iiQ Facilities Product Manager. “iiQ Events optimizes workflows so facilities teams can stay coordinated and prepared for events, all while operating from the same platform that IT teams, teachers, and staff use regularly.”

    Jun Kim, Director of Technology at Moore Public Schools in Moore, Oklahoma, explains how Incident IQ’s platform makes submitting requests easier on school staff, while streamlining operations across the district’s IT and maintenance teams. “I hear nothing but positives coming from our entire staff—Incident IQ has really streamlined our processes. iiQ Facilities and iiQ Ticketing use the same interface, so it’s a lot easier for our end users to put in tickets. The workflow and ease of use is phenomenal.”

    The release of iiQ Events is part of the latest wave of enhancements for K-12 building and maintenance teams. iiQ Facilities, the work order solution for K-12 building teams, has been enhanced with new labor rate tracking to help support teams manage overtime and hourly rates, and improved parts and labor analytics that report labor and inventory costs.

    Take a look for yourself—you can find Incident IQ at Booth #447 at TCEA from Monday, Jan. 30, through Thursday, Feb. 2. For more information about iiQ Events, visit IncidentIQ.com and register for the upcoming webinar, which will take users through iiQ Events in detail.

    About Incident IQ 

    Incident IQ is the workflow management platform built exclusively for K-12 schools, featuring asset management, help ticketing, facilities maintenance solutions, and more. Millions of students and teachers in districts across 49 states rely on the Incident IQ platform to manage and deliver mission-critical services.

    Incident IQ is based in Atlanta.

    Source: Incident IQ

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  • Incident IQ Names New Chief Revenue Officer

    Incident IQ Names New Chief Revenue Officer

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    Press Release
    –

    Nov 29, 2022


    ATLANTA, November 29, 2022 (Newswire.com)
    –
    Incident IQ, the workflow management platform built for K-12, announced today that Mark Horne has joined the company’s leadership team as Chief Revenue Officer.

    Prior to joining Incident IQ, Mark Horne was the Chief Marketing Officer of Pindrop, a leading voice identity and security company. Throughout his career, Horne has led top-performing marketing operations at B2B SaaS companies like NCR, Sage, and RedHat. 

    “Mark’s experience with go-to-market alignment, demand generation, and leadership makes him a perfect fit for Incident IQ,” said Travis Collins, CEO of Incident IQ. “Mark will help the company in our mission to deliver maximum value to K-12 school districts with our workflow management platform technology. His expertise in coordinating marketing, sales, and customer success operations will help continue Incident IQ’s rapid growth. We are excited for Mark to join Incident IQ.”

    “I fell in love with the mission of Incident IQ,” said Mark Horne. “With countless friends who are teachers, two children who have gone through the K-12 school system, and a wife who spent years substituting teaching, I have seen firsthand how challenging it is for educators. Helping make the operations and technology of a school district run smoothly and giving time back to the teachers and staff is critical as we race to develop the leaders of the future. I am thrilled to join Incident IQ and be a part of the great company the team has built.” 

    About Incident IQ

    Incident IQ is the workflow management platform built exclusively for K-12 schools, featuring asset management, help ticketing, facilities maintenance solutions, and more. Millions of students and teachers in districts across 49 states rely on the Incident IQ platform to manage and deliver mission-critical services.

    Incident IQ is based in Atlanta. 

    Source: Incident IQ

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  • Are We Really Getting COVID Boosters Every Year Forever?

    Are We Really Getting COVID Boosters Every Year Forever?

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    School is in session, pumpkin spice is in season, and Americans are heading to pharmacies for what may soon become another autumn standby: your annual COVID shot. On Tuesday, the White House announced the start of a “new phase” of the pandemic response, one in which “most Americans” will receive a COVID-19 vaccine just “once a year, each fall.” In other words, your pandemic booster is about to become as routine as your physical exam or—more to the point—your flu shot. One more health-related task has been added to your calendar, and it’s likely to remain there for the rest of your life.

    From a certain standpoint, this regimen makes a lot of sense. The pandemic’s biggest surges so far have come in the winter, and a fall booster could go a long way toward mitigating the next of those surges. What’s more, the new plan greatly simplifies COVID-vaccination regimens, both for the public and for providers. “It has been bewildering in many cases to understand who is eligible for a booster, how many boosters, when, which boosters, how far apart,” Jason Schwartz, a vaccine-policy expert at Yale, told me. “I think that has held down booster uptake in some really discouraging ways.” In a sense, White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator Ashish Jha told me, the new plan just codifies the way things already worked: The last time low-risk Americans became eligible for another shot was last fall. (The elderly and immunocompromised have operated on a different schedule and will likely continue to do so, Jha said.)

    Still, some public-health experts worry that the White House is jumping the gun. Back in April, a number of them told Stat News’s Helen Branswell they were concerned that the U.S. would adopt such a policy without the data needed to support it. When the White House made its announcement on Tuesday, many felt their concerns had been vindicated. “We’ve had twists and turns and surprises every single step of the way with COVID, and the idea that we’re going to have one shot and then we’re done is not really consistent with how things have worked in the past,” Walid Gellad, a professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, told me. The plan, in his view, glosses over considerable uncertainties.

    Read: America’s fall booster plan has a fatal paradox

    For one thing, it assumes that the virus will follow an annual schedule with peaks in the fall and winter—not unlikely, but also not a given. For another, we still don’t have a firm grasp on the magnitude or duration of the benefits offered by the new Omicron-specific vaccine. For all we know, Gellad told me, the added protection afforded to someone who gets the shot tomorrow may have largely dissipated by New Year’s Eve.

    And that’s not to mention the massive uncertainty presented by the specter of future variants. In a briefing Tuesday, Jha acknowledged that “new variant curveballs” could change the government’s plans. But the announcement itself includes no such caveats, which some public-health experts worry could cause problems if course corrections are needed down the line. For all we know, new variants could necessitate more frequent updates, or, if viral mutation slows, we might not even need annual shots, Paul Thomas, an immunologist at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, in Tennessee, told me.

    If the routine the White House describes sounds a lot like flu shots, that’s no accident. The announcement explicitly recommends that COVID vaccines be taken between Labor Day and Halloween—“just like your annual flu shot.” That comparison, though, is part of what concerns critics, who worry that the shift into a more flu-like framework will entail the adoption of a vaccines-only approach to COVID prevention. Many of the interventions that have proved so effective over the past two and a half years—masking, distancing, widespread testing—have not traditionally been a major part of our flu-season protocols. If we treat COVID like flu, the thinking goes, such interventions risk falling even further by the wayside. The announcement, which makes no mention of any other prevention tactics, doesn’t offer much reassurance to the contrary.

    Read: A simple rule for planning your fall booster shot

    But that reading, Jha told me, is “just clearly wrong.” Although vaccines are “the central pillar of our strategy,” he said, testing, masking, and improving indoor air quality are all important as well. But as my colleague Katherine Wu has written, the country has been relying more and more on vaccines—and less and less on the other interventions at our disposal—for some time. Even if you do read the new policy as an abnegation of masking, ventilation, and the like, it may not functionally be much of a departure from the status quo.

    For now, Thomas said, the White House’s plan makes sense—as long as it stays sensitive to changing circumstances. “We keep learning new things about this virus,” he told me. “The rate of mutation is changing. The spread through the population is changing.” And as such, he said, our response must be flexible.

    The White House announcement seems like a good-faith attempt to balance competing priorities: on the one hand, the need to communicate uncertainty and acknowledge complexity; on the other, the need to keep the message from getting so complex that it confuses people to the point that they tune it out entirely. In this case, the administration seems to have come down on the side of simplicity. That could be a mistake, Gellad says—one that public-health authorities have made over and over throughout the pandemic. “When you try and make things simple and understandable and present them without sufficient uncertainty,” he told me, “you get into trouble when things change.”

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    Jacob Stern

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  • Bridges Mountain West Region Announces Steve Boyer as Vice President

    Bridges Mountain West Region Announces Steve Boyer as Vice President

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    Press Release
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    updated: Apr 28, 2021


    CARMEL, Ind., April 28, 2021 (Newswire.com)
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    Bridges is pleased to announce Steve Boyer as Vice President of Bridges Mountain West Region. In this role, Boyer will bring immense leadership experience to Bridges of Montana, Bridges of Colorado, and Bridges of Wyoming. Bridges is confident that Steve Boyer’s experience, leadership, and vision will lead Bridges to continued growth and development.

    Steve Boyer began his career at Bridges in 2014 as Regional Director in Lafayette, Indiana. Boyer then served as a Strategic Development Specialist where he developed expansions in Kentucky and Virginia. Since 2018, he has worked as Regional Operations Director for individuals receiving support throughout West-Central Indiana. 

    Prior to Bridges, Steve Boyer has served as a leader in the field of Human Services since 2008, first working as an administrator in facilities serving at-risk children. In 2012, he transitioned to HCBS Waiver Supports as a QIDP working for a large community provider and, later in 2014, as a Waiver Case Manager. 

    Steve Boyer has a bachelor’s degree from Indiana University in Economics as well as a master’s degree from Indiana Wesleyan University in Business Administration. Boyer serves on the Board of Directors for Ascending Angels, a non-profit organization providing no-cost final-rest options for individuals receiving supports, veterans, and individuals experiencing homelessness.

    Jonathan Burlison, Chief Executive Officer of Bridges US, said, “I am thrilled to welcome Steve Boyer into this role. From day one, he has been a tremendous asset to our team and the growth of our company. Steve exemplifies the qualities of what our team values. Above all else, he has immense dedication for each individual we serve. This is a wonderful transition for Bridges Mountain West region consumers and employees.”

    Bridges’ mission is to provide the services necessary to allow individuals with disabilities, with the support of their families and friends, to live, learn and work where they choose within the community. Keep up to date with Bridges by liking our Facebook page.

    Source: Bridges US

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