CPE study finds alternatives for new four-year public university in southeast KY ‘problematic’

By Tom Latek
Kentucky Today
A Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education (CPE) study ordered by the General Assembly on the feasibility of opening a new four-year public university in southeast Kentucky, finds the alternatives suggested by lawmakers would be “problematic.”
Three alternatives posed by Senate Joint Resolution 98, sponsored by Senate President Robert Stivers, R-Manchester, included...
Here are candidates, so far, who have filed to seek election to state General Assembly, U.S. Congress

By McKenna Horsley
Kentucky Lantern
With little more than a month before the election filing deadline, a few more candidates have signed papers seeking election to the Kentucky General Assembly and U.S. Congress.
The deadline is Jan. 5, 2024 to file to appear on the primary election ballot.
Next year, Kentucky voters will decide who will represent them in Frankfort and Washington D.C. and in local...
Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet releases county unemployment data for October

Unemployment rates rose in 31 counties between October 2022 and October 2023, fell in 59, and remained the same in 30 counties, according to the Kentucky Center for Statistics (KYSTATS).
Woodford County recorded the lowest jobless rate in the Commonwealth at 2.8%. It was followed by Carroll, Cumberland and Marion counties, 3% each; and Anderson, Fayette, Nelson, Oldham, Scott, and Shelby counties,...
LWV report: Citizens increasingly excluded from lawmaking process by fast-track maneuvers

By McKenna Horsley
Kentucky Lantern
The League of Women Voters of Kentucky released a report Wednesday that found the General Assembly has increasingly fast-tracked bills in a manner that makes citizen participation nearly impossible — about a month before lawmakers return to Frankfort in January.
Click image to read the full report.
The League’s analysis found that fewer than 5% of bills that...
Connectivity study shows Kentucky schools achieve highest improvement, from 49th to 5th in nation

By Tom Latek
Kentucky Today
A national non-profit group based in Bowling Green has released a study showing most U.S. School districts are now meeting the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) internet connectivity goal, with Kentucky listed as the state with most improvement over last year.
Connected Nation’s (CN) Connect K-12 Program has released its 2023 Report on School Connectivity, in collaboration...
Campbell County Public Library names Chantelle Phillips its newest library director

The Campbell County Public Library on Monday announced Chantelle Phillips as the new library director.
The announcement comes after the retirement of JC Morgan who stepped down as CCPL director November 22 after two decades to assume the role of state director of Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.
Phillips will be a familiar face to patrons and staff alike. She has served the library system...
Live racing resumes at Turfway Park Wednesday with the return Holiday Meet through December 30

Full fields and great betting opportunities will be the highlight of Wednesday’s opening night program as live racing returns to Turfway Park Racing and Gaming for the 2023-24 season.
Racing is scheduled each Wednesday-Saturday, starting at 5:55 p.m. The 2023 Holiday Meet runs from Wednesday to Saturday, Dec. 30, and the 2024 Winter/Spring Meet will follow from Jan. 3 to March 30.
The pinnacle of...
Wreaths Across America Southgate Evergreen wreath places set for December 16; sponsors still needed

Southgate Evergreen Cemetery’s Soldiers Lot (Photo from Wreaths Across America)
Wreath Across America is reminding Northern Kentuckians of the planned wreath placement at Southgate’s Evergreen Cemetery on Saturday December 16 at 9 a.m. A ceremony will follow at 9:30 a.m.
Volunteers are needed to place the wreaths at both the Soldiers’ Lot and the Civil War Lot bordering US 27.
If...
Consumers warned of ‘fruit medley cantaloupe’ recalled due to potential Salmonella contamination

By Tom Latek
Kentucky Today
CF Dallas, LLC is voluntarily recalling select fresh-cut products made from whole cantaloupe that were part of a previously announced product recall initiated by Sofia Produce, LLC dba Trufresh, due to potential Salmonella contamination.
The fresh-cut fruit products containing recalled cantaloupe were distributed to select retail stores in Kentucky, as well as Indiana, Michigan,...
Kentucky Democratic Party far outraised its Republican rival in month before Beshear’s reelection

The aggressive fundraising drive by the Kentucky Democratic Party in support of Gov. Andy Beshear’s reelection did not take its foot off the gas in October, raising more than triple what the Republican Party of Kentucky collected in the same period.
The KDP brought in $491,474 in contributions during the final full month before the Nov. 7 election, while the RPK raised $161,858, according to reports...
Unafraid of death, former Kentucky Governor Julian Carroll reflects on his long political life

By Jack Brammer
NKyTribune reporter
At age 92, former Kentucky Gov. Julian Carroll sits in a recliner at his Franklin County home, talking about his glory years in politics and the six-page program-in-progress on a nearby stand.
The program is entitled “Julian Morton Carroll: A Lifetime of Public Service.” It contains a portrait of him, his bio, and a program that will include family and Democratic...
Talking turkey: It missed being the national bird, but it will be on most tables tomorrow; facts and figures

The Rural Blog
Tomorrow many Americans will set their tables with an array of delectable food, but in many families, the turkey is the centerpiece of dinner delights. This Thursday, over 46 million turkeys will be consumed by Americans. But how much do you know about turkeys beyond the bird’s signature “gobbling” calls? Jodi Henke and Chelsea Dinterman of Successful Farming serve...
Kentucky ag commissioner grants reprieve to Elmwood Stock Farm turkey on eve of Thanksgiving

Turkeys are normally the centerpiece of Thanksgiving dinners, but this year one turkey at Elmwood Stock Farm received a reprieve. Agriculture Commissioner Dr. Ryan Quarles pardoned the tom last week at the Georgetown farm.
“This Thanksgiving, this tom turkey won’t wind up on someone’s dinner table,” Commissioner Quarles said. “Our turkey and poultry industry is important to Kentucky and we...
Over the river and through the woods, to someplace we’ll be going this holiday — and mostly by car

AAA is projecting that over 717,000 Kentucky residents will travel over the Thanksgiving holiday travel period, from Wednesday through Sunday, up just slightly from 2022 travel numbers for the Bluegrass State.
They will be among the 55.4 million Americans expected to travel, the third largest Thanksgiving travel numbers nationwide since 2001.
As usual, the wide majority of those travelers will be...