Category: News

Some Ohio parents are upset about a state senator’s comments about students with disabilities.

The Lakota Local Schools Board of Education held a special meeting on Wednesday to discuss the state’s school voucher system. Ohio Sen. George Lang, who joined the meeting remotely, said he supports the voucher program but thinks it’s unfair to public schools because they have to assume larger costs ‒ for example, costs related to teaching students with disabilities ‒ that private schools don’t.

“We know for a fact that it costs more to teach a student with severe disabilities,” said Lang, a Republican from West Chester. “I’m gonna make a number up, let’s say that cost is $50,000 a year … compared to a student who comes from a family with a loving mom and a loving dad who put education at a high level. It costs a lot less to educate those students.”

Reddit users on an Ohio subReddit said Lang implied students with severe disabilities don’t have loving parents. Lakota Cares, a Lakota Local Schools parents group, called Lang’s comments “deeply troubling and harmful.”

“The comparison between students with disabilities and students from families with ‘loving moms and dads’ is incredibly problematic,” a Friday statement from the group on Facebook read. “It implies that students from different family structures or with disabilities are less worthy of resources, which is simply not true. Every student has unique needs, and it is the responsibility of our education system to provide the support necessary for all students to thrive.”

Lang did not respond to The Enquirer’s multiple calls on Monday. He clarified his comments to Local 12 on Friday.

“Let me be clear that I did not say ‒ or intend to say ‒ that children with disabilities do not come from loving homes,” he told the outlet. “With that said, we have to recognize that every child learns differently and brings unique circumstances to the classroom. As a result, the cost to educate each child will not be the same, but we have a responsibility to provide every student with an equally high-quality education ‒that’s what I’m fighting for.”

One of Lakota’s board members declined to comment to The Enquirer about Lang’s remarks; the other four did not respond to the request.

Lakota Local Schools was not able to provide the annual cost for students with disabilities. In 2023, the average cost per student to a school district was around $15,000, according to the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce.

The discussion about vouchers, which also included Ohio Reps. Jennifer Gross and Thomas Hall, at times became tense. Lakota’s board voted that it was willing to join Vouchers Hurt Ohio, a coalition of over 200 school districts that filed a lawsuit against Ohio over the voucher program.

Lakota, the largest suburban public school district in Southwest Ohio, will join the coalition if the Lakota Education Association also votes to join the lawsuit.

Lancashire Constabulary has been successful in establishing who the baby’s father is and he has been co-operating with the investigation.

Detective Chief Inspector Bryony Midgley, of Lancashire Constabulary’s Major Crime Review Team, said: “This is a really sad case and one which has had a huge impact on the local community and beyond.

“We are still committed to establishing who the baby’s mum is and the full circumstances that led to him being abandoned.

“Our determination to get answers is unrelenting and we ask anyone who may have information which could help us, no matter how small, to come forward to us, as this may provide the key to unlocking the investigation.

“Thanks to advances in DNA technology we have made progress in this case, and we have managed to establish who the baby’s dad is.

“He has been co-operating and helping with our investigation, but we still don’t know who the mum is, and I would appeal to anyone with information to help us identify mum to come forward and speak to us.

“We believe that there is someone out there now who knows what happened.

“You may not have felt confident to come forward before. Your circumstances or loyalties may have changed, but I would urge you to now come forward and speak to our officers who are ready to talk to you.

“We will then be able to use developments in forensic science to confirm who mum is.

“Even the smallest piece of information could be pivotal to our investigation. I appreciate this happened some time ago but please cast your minds back, perhaps you heard something, or saw something that didn’t feel right. It may have seemed insignificant at the time, but knowing what you know now, please get in touch. It could be crucial to finding the truth about what happened to this little baby boy.

“This is something Lancashire Police won’t give up on. We have a responsibility to find out who mum was and understand that she might have been vulnerable.

“We need your help to identify her.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact police on 101, quoting log 0273 of 19^th March 2025. 

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Richard Gere and his family are celebrating their first official Spanish Father’s Day!

On Wednesday, March 19, Gere’s wife Alejandra Silva shared a carousel of photos on Instagram as she celebrated the Pretty Woman actor, 75, on Father’s Day. Silva and Gere, who recently moved back to Silva’s home country of Spain, could be seen spending time with their three younger boys at the beach.

In a few photos, Gere and Silva can be seen running through the ocean with sons Alexander, 5, and James, 4. Silva also included a photo of Gere with their sons and her son Albert, 11, as the four lean their heads into each other.

“Happy 1st Spanish Father’s Day to the dad of the world,” Silva wrote across the snap of Gere and their three boys.

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Related: Richard Gere’s Wife Alejandra Silva Says He ‘Loves’ to Read Stories to Their Children: ‘Very Devoted and Present Father’

“Feliz primer día del padre español ♥️♥️ Te queremos!!! #fathersday #diadelpadre,” Silva wrote in her caption, which translates to “Happy First Spanish Father’s Day! We love you!”

Silva also shared a snap on her Instagram Story showing the cute photos drawn by her little ones to celebrate Gere on the special day. “Happy Father’s Day!” she wrote alongside the family photo drawings.

Alongside their three younger sons, Gere is dad to son Homer, 24, whom he shares with his second wife Carey Lowell.

In January, Silva sat down with ELLE España and raved about her family’s new life in Spain. “Richard is a very devoted and present father. He loves to read them stories. It seems like an idyllic photo, but it’s true. He’s a great dad,” Silva told the outlet, before explaining his other roles around the house. “He doesn’t cook. I do it, but when I cook, he plays the guitar.”

The Agency star shared in the interview that he has found new fulfillment since moving to the country with his wife and their kids.

“The truth is that you are seeing us in our momentum. We are happier than ever,” Gere told the outlet. “[Alejandra], because she is at home and I because, if she is happy, I am happy.”

Read the original article on People

Mother’s Day is just around the corner, and the GBN Shop has everything you need to treat someone special.

If you’re looking for a truly unique gift for a one-of-a-kind mum, GBN Shop is the only place to purchase the products used by the team at The People’s Channel. Now that’s star quality!

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With a few clicks, you could be enjoying a brew with our trademark GBN Studio Mug, upgrading your outfit with our stylish Fearless t-shirts made from organic cotton, or enjoying some well-deserved shut-eye with our hilarious Un-Woke Satin Eye Mask.

Use code MOTHERSDAY at checkout to unlock FREE delivery nationwide*. There’s no minimum spend to worry about — just pick your favourite item from our exclusive range, and it’ll be delivered straight to your door (or directly to your mum’s address) at no charge.

Best of all, there’s no limit on the number of times you can use code MOTHERSDAY on the GBN Shop, ensuring there are plenty of opportunities to save on purchases from the GBN Shop over the coming weeks.

Google Wallet is introducing a new way for parents to help their kids manage money.

Also: Google Wallet now alerts you to loyalty card benefits you’re missing out on

Rolling out over the next few weeks, Google says, your kids can use Google Wallet on Android to securely tap to pay at stores and access supported passes like event tickets, library cards, and gift cards. This means your child can have access to the money they need through their phone or watch without having to worry about carrying (and losing) a debit or credit card.

Parents can see spending and manage cards

For parents, it adds the ability to easily see where your child is spending money and to avoid the hassle of sending cash with your child — which is quickly becoming obsolete anyway, with many theme parks, movie theaters, and other kid-friendly places only accepting cards.

Using the Google Family Link app, parents can manage available cards, track purchases, and even receive email alerts for transactions.

Also: Google Family Link now limits who can contact your child’s device

Cards can only be added with parental consent (the process takes just a few minutes), Google says, and parents can easily track recent purchases. Children will only be able to make purchases in-store, not online or across any other Google service. Like the standard Google Wallet, authentication methods such as fingerprint, facial recognition, PIN, or passwords apply.

Limits

At least in the press release, Google didn’t mention the ability to set spending limits, so it seems like this is potentially unlimited spending on whatever card you have attached. Lots of cards offer their own limits, though, so it seems like a feasible workaround would be to only attach a card with whatever spending limit you choose.

Also: You can use your passport in Google Wallet now – but not as your actual passport

A child can create their own Google account at 13 years old without adult supervision, but the current age limit for regular Google Wallet is 16 years old, making this a great option for kids who need to spend money with friends or on school trips.

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A woman attacked a one-month-old baby so violently that the newborn was left with injuries doctors said were like those from a serious car crash.

Shaazia Arshad, 26, inflicted nearly 30 separate injuries on the baby boy.

Prosecutor Alistair McDermid said the baby had been born healthy and had no conditions that might have made his bones brittle.

A health visitor who checked him when he was three weeks old reported him well, calm when handled, and he had no visible injuries when a naked weight check was carried out.

On May 22, 2023, Arshad’s partner returned from taking a shower to find the baby crying and his left eyelid swollen.

While he was at work, Arshad rang him to say the baby’s “leg didn’t look right”. He drove home and noticed the baby’s leg was badly swollen from his knee to his ankle and was rock-hard and red.

He took the baby straight to the GP, where a doctor noticed the baby let out a “horrible” cry the instant he was taken out of his car seat and examined.

The baby was taken to hospital where he was assessed by paediatricians, X-rayed and scanned.

Mr McDermid said “multiple skeletal surveys” revealed that injuries “that had been inflicted” on him included a haemorrhaged and bruised eyelid, likely inflicted by blunt force trauma, 19 broken ribs, a broken right arm, two broken thighs, and tibia and fibula fractures on both legs.

Mr McDermid said: “Injuries of this type are those that would usually be expected in a significant road traffic collision.

“They would have caused this baby substantial pain.”

The court heard that throughout the baby’s time in hospital, various medical professionals attempted to obtain a history of events but Arshad was unable to explain how the baby came by his injuries.

The baby is said to have made a full recovery.

Arshad was arrested and failed to explain to police how the baby had been hurt, even when police put to her that her “lack of knowledge was impossible”.

Arshad, a first offender, now of Alloa, Clackmannanshire, pleaded guilty to assaulting the baby – who cannot be identified for legal reasons – to his severe injury.

John McBride, defending, said the facts as narrated by the prosecution were “accepted without issue”.

He said: “She accepts this is a very serious matter.”

As Arshad wept in the dock, Sheriff Wyllie Robertson deferred sentence until April 16 for reports, and continued bail.

He said: “A custodial sentence will clearly be at the forefront of the court’s consideration.”

Parenting is full of tough decisions, but some debates begin before a child is even born.

When a Finnish father longs to pass down his language to his child, but his American wife and her family sees no need, the conversation quickly turns from parenting to personal identity.

Read on for the full story.

I’m a Finnish guy living in the U.S.

My wife and I are planning to have a child.

But there’s a big rift between him and the rest of his family.

There is one thing that I don’t agree with her.

She and her whole family don’t like the idea that I’d be speaking Finnish to my kid.

They say my child wouldn’t need it and things like this.

But he doesn’t find this arrangement fair or comfortable.

Honestly, I’d be more afraid of speaking English to my kid ’cause I can’t speak it so well.

So what would be the connection between me and my child…

AITA?

Everyone needs a chance to connect, and for him, it’s his heritage.

What did Reddit think?

The benefits of being bilingual pretty much totally outshine the trivial worries his wife’s family highlighted.

His extended family isn’t only wrong, but also kind of rude.

Perhaps his wife’s family’s qualms are a sign of a bigger issue at hand.

When you look at it objectively, there’s really no debate to be had.

Every child deserves to know the full story of where they came from.

If you liked that post, check out this story about a guy who was forced to sleep on the couch at his wife’s family’s house, so he went to a hotel instead.

A 19-year-old man who killed his mother and two younger siblings as part of a failed plot to kill 30 children at a primary school and become the worst mass murderer in British history has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 49 years.

Nicholas Prosper admitted murdering Juliana Falcon, 48, Kyle Falcon, 16, and Giselle Falcon, 13, last month.

He also admitted to buying a shotgun without a certificate, possession of a shotgun with intent to endanger life and possession of a kitchen knife in a public place.

Prosper refused to attend Luton crown court on Wednesday but was then ordered to be brought to the sentencing, causing the start of the hearing to be delayed, a court official told reporters.

After hiding for two hours and believing his plan was thwarted as police swarmed the area, Prosper flagged down officers in a marked car who detained him.

On Tuesday, Luton crown court heard how he had shot dead his family at their home in Luton after a violent struggle and how it was part of a wider plan to carry out a mass shooting at his former primary school to gain notoriety as a mass murderer.

His premeditated plan was months in the making. The day before carrying out the murders, Prosper bought a shotgun from an online seller for £650 after he “made a high-quality forgery of a shotgun certificate or licence”.

He had planned to murder his family while they slept on Friday 13 September, a date chosen on purpose, and then leave the home at about 8.30am to travel to St Joseph’s school to carry out the attack.

His plans were disrupted when his family realised that something was wrong. After challenging him, a violent struggle followed.

The court heard that Juliana was killed by a single shotgun shot to her head but her hands and arms had “slash injuries and bruising as if she had been trying to ward off blows from a knife”. Giselle was killed with a single gunshot to her face. Her body was found underneath a dining table “as if she had been trying to hide there”. Kyle died after being shot twice. His body was found with more than 100 knife wounds.

Neighbours called the police after hearing sounds of frantic footsteps, shouting and gunshots. Prosper fled the home before officers arrived, holding a bag containing the shotgun he had used to murder his family. Alongside the gun were 33 cartridges, which he had planned to use at a morning assembly at St Joseph’s.

Maureen Murphy, the headteacher of St Joseph’s, said last month that staff were “very shocked” to learn of the plan.

More details soon …

March 19, 2025

Dunnes Stores has today recalled 1,564 five-pair packs of pink marl baby socks, following a complaint made to the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC).

The caller to the CCPC helpline reported that a loose thread from one of the socks had wrapped tightly around their baby’s toe, causing it to swell. This had resulted in a hospital visit and surgical intervention was needed to remove the thread.

Product safety officials from the CCPC contacted Dunnes Stores to alert them to the danger, and as a result, the chain is recalling the 1,564 five-pair packs of baby socks. The CCPC is responsible for making sure that a wide range of products sold in Ireland are safe for consumers.

Grainne Griffin from the CCPC said:

“There are 1,564 five-pair packs of pink marl baby socks being recalled by Dunnes today, following a call to our helpline. We are grateful to this parent for taking the time to alert us to this issue. Calls to our helpline guide our work and we will always prioritise issues concerning the safety of consumers.

Dunnes Stores has engaged constructively with us and have recalled these baby socks. If you think you have a pack of these socks, please stop using them. If you still have the packaging, check the product code and batch number. Consumers should dispose of the socks or return them to Dunnes Stores for a refund.”

Consumers with similar safety concerns can contact our helpline on 01 402 5555 or email ask@ccpc.ie

The socks were removed from sale in December 2024.

For more information on this product recall visit the Dunnes Stores Unlimited Company recalls Baby Girls 5pk Design Sock – Pink Marl.

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