Federal grant will help EWU train tomorrow’s science teachers
The federal government will pay Eastern Washington University to train 20 students to become K-12 science teachers.
U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) announced the $600,000 grant. She said the money comes from a scholarship program at the National Science Foundation and the Micron Foundation.
“By equipping our future science teachers with the knowledge and research experiences to bring hands-on, inquiry-based learning methods into their classrooms, we are helping to create a more engaging and impactful science education experience for K-12 students,” EWU President Sheri McMahan said in a statement announcing the grant.
The money is expected to pay tuition and expenses for 20 students majoring in science fields and seeking endorsements to teach in Washington.
Flavored tobacco ban could be up for discussion in WA legislature
When state lawmakers return to Olympia in January, they could be asked to consider a bill that would ban the sale of flavored tobacco products. If approved, Washington would become the third state in the U.S. to do so.
Dr. Ruchi Kapoor, a cardiologist in Bellevue, said when teens become addicted to tobacco products, the effects are long-lasting.
“The time to end flavors and really kind of curtail the end-roads that this product is making to our youth is now, not 40 years from when we finally see these people come into my clinic with heart attacks and strokes,” Kapoor said at a recent press conference organized by a group called Flavors Hook Kids Washington.
The group’s push is latest attempt to ban flavored tobacco products in Washington. Proposals in 2020, 2021 and 2022 died in the legislature. Seven states and more than 380 local governments (none in Washington) have adopted restrictions on the sale of those products, according to the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.
Washington job vacancies fall as Fed tries to tame inflation
There are fewer job openings in Washington now than at any point since 2021. But that doesn’t come as a surprise to economists, who have been expecting a cooldown as part of the Federal Reserve’s inflation battle.
Immediately after the pandemic, hiring got hot. In some sectors, there were far more openings than applicants to fill them. That was the story of employment in Washington and the nation for close to two years.
Today, it’s a different story. Job growth in the state is still considered good. But there are many fewer vacancies.
State economist Dave Reich says that’s a signal that the Fed’s plan to blunt inflation is working.
“The goal was to try to reduce job openings and not have organizations lay people off like that's the sort of soft landing approach: to try to get inflation under control, but not see a big spike up in unemployment,” Reich said in a recent briefing. “And so from the job openings perspective, they've been doing a good job.”
That may be cold comfort for job seekers, because now that competition for available workers has cooled, so have post-pandemic wage gains. And Reich noted that in some areas, wages are actually receding.
The overall goal of balancing and stabilizing inflation, wages and employment is still attainable, Reich said, but we’re not there yet.
State wildlife officials bar some wildlife feeding in attempt to blunt disease spread
Feeding wild deer, elk, and moose in parts of Spokane County is illegal under an emergency rule approved by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.
It’s part of an effort to prevent Chronic Wasting Disease from spreading after Washington’s first case was confirmed in a deer found in Fairwood, north of Spokane.
The rule prohibits placing or scattering feed, hay, salt or other food types to feed or attract deer, elk and moose in the areas around Mt. Spokane, Micah Peak and Cheney.
The department says wildlife feeding can draw animals together where they can then transmit CWD to each other.
This rule does not apply to normal agricultural practices or livestock care.
You can report cases of CWD or get more information on how to have harvested animals tested for the disease on the Department of Fish and Wildlife website.
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Reporting was contributed by Doug Nadvornick, Emil Moffat, Brandon Hollingsworth and Owen Henderson.