Key Brevard school board choices.
In our continuing coverage of the Florida Primary Election, here’s a look at the Brevard school board races. Voters will decide three of the five seats on the Brevard Public Schools Board on the Aug. 18 primary ballot, with contested races in Districts 1, 2 and 5. The races are nonpartisan, meaning all registered voters within each district may participate regardless of party affiliation. In District 1 incumbent Megan Wright will face Tara Gibson, an academic coach. In District 2, incumbent Gene Trent is opposed by Kyle Savage, IT professional and former teacher, and Realtor Kelly Wentworth. And in District 5, former music educator Tammy Dennis faces Michele McCormack, a teacher with 20 years experience, and elementary educator Cecilia Trotter. Visit FloridaToday.com for details on the candidates.
Brevard kids are ready for kindergarten.
Brevard County ranks among the top 5 in the state for preparing kids for kindergarten. WFIT’s Terri Wright has more.
A new report from the Florida Chamber Foundation's Florida Business Alliance for Early Learning places Brevard County among the state's top-performing counties for kindergarten readiness. Brevard ranks fourth statewide, with 52% of children entering kindergarten ready to learn, compared with 44% statewide. Research shows that children who are ready to learn by this stage are more likely to become proficient in reading by the third grade.
ULA prepares Vulcan rocket for flight.
ULA’s new Vulcan rocket has been grounded since February following a problem with a side booster. And the Vulcan uses Blue Origin’s BE-4 rocket engines, which caused the massive explosion on the New Glenn launch pad recently. But despite these setbacks, ULA is preparing to return the Vulcan to flight - hopefully later this year. Blue Origin is modifying the BE-4 engines, and last week ULA completed a full day of testing on a new Vulcan upper stage segment at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Florida’s national parks face maintenance backlog.
In the last five years, the maintenance backlog for national parks and public lands in Florida has grown to over $680 million dollars. That can mean road repairs and other things go unfixed. As WLRN environment editor Jenny Staletovich reports, the fund to pay for fixes is about to expire unless Congress decides otherwise.
Some of the most mundane things to fix at national parks can also be among the most expensive: channel markers, crumbling roads…and toilets.
At South Florida’s three national parks and the Big Cypress Preserve, which regularly get pounded by hurricanes, the maintenance backlog now totals $346 million.
Leprosy cases in Brevard increase.
Two new leprosy cases were reported in Brevard County. That puts Brevard at the top of the list in Florida. The Florida Department of Health has confirmed two additional cases of leprosy in Brevard County in its latest report, bringing the county’s total this year to three as of August 1. Leprosy is a bacterial disease that can affect the skin, nerves and eyes. It does not spread easily.
NHC monitoring the Atlantic.
The National Hurricane Center says a tropical depression will likely form during the latter half of this week. If maximum sustained winds reach 39 mph, it would become Cristobal, the third-named storm of the season. But the storm will likely move north into the open Atlantic and not impact the U.S.
