Are you in the know? About educational field trips at the North Carolina Zoo that is. The Zoo offers a variety of educational activities for school and homeschool groups. To start, did you know that North Carolina teachers can bring their students to the Zoo for free, early September to early June? Out-of-state schools receive a discount on their admission. Please make sure to register on our website (www.NCZoo.org) 15 days in advance of your group’s visit.

Kentucky Kingdom and Hurricane Bay is a 63-acre theme park in Louisville, Kentucky with more than 70 rides and attractions, including six thrilling roller coasters, lots of thrill rides and family classics, and a large selection of children’s rides. Kentucky Kingdom will also feature a NEW roller coaster this year, Kentucky Flyer. The Hurricane Bay water park boasts two wave pools, two rivers, two children’s activity pools, a water coaster, and oodles of water slides. 

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina’s standing on teacher pay keeps improving compared to other states. The National Education Association released on Tuesday its annual teacher salary rankings. The data show North Carolina ranked 34th in average teacher pay during the 2017-18 school year at more than $51,200, compared to 38th the year before.

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Gov. John Bel Edwards’ push to give Louisiana public schoolteachers a pay raise and school districts their first spending increase in years won support Tuesday from the state’s top school board. Members of the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education backed the K-12 public school financing formula proposed by the Democratic governor for the 2019-20 school year. A final vote will come Wednesday. Then, the formula will move to state lawmakers for consideration.

MONROE, La. (AP) — A new coalition is providing athletic shoes for 40 children at one Louisiana elementary school. Members learned that children were coming to the office at Barkdull Faulk Elementary School in Monroe, crying because their shoes were too small and hurt their feet, or were falling apart, LSU AgCenter nutrition agent Markaye Russell said in a news release Friday. Those problems made it hard for the children to participate in physical education classes or run and play at recess, she said. Physical activity lowers the risk of obesity, which is a big problem in Louisiana.