nEWS yOU oUGHT tO KNOW!

LITTLE MISS AFRICAN AMERICAN SCHOLARSHIP PAGEANT ANNOUNCES NATIONWIDE REGISTRATION The Little Miss African American Scholarship Pageant will celebrate 21 years on Sunday, August 10, 2014 at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre in Los Angeles, CA. Pageant producer Lisa Ruffin has once again announced a nationwide registration and will select 50 young participants, between the ages of 6 and 12 for the event. The pageant has seen supported over the years from numerous celebrities including Will and Jada Smith, Denzel Washington, Shaquille O’Neal, Laila Ali, LL Cool J, Jamie Foxx, Tarji P. Henson, Chandra Wilson and James Pickens, Jr. The pageant will award over $10,000 in scholarships this year. Young hopefuls, age six to 12 can submit their application for participation at www.LittleMissAfricanAmerican.org . The last day to register is May 14, 2014.

DALLAS ISD SCHOOL YEAR WILL END ON JUNE 6 AFTER TEA APPROVES WAIVER FOR MISSED DAY The Dallas Independent School District’s 2013-2014 school year will end on June 6 after the Texas Education Agency approved its request to not make-up a mandatory school day missed due to inclement weather. Dallas ISD was notified of the decision April 29. Texas requires that school districts provide 180 days of instruction. Dallas ISD schools have been closed three days due to inclement weather this school year. The district had built two inclement weather days into its calendar, meaning it faced the prospect of extending the school year by one day to make up for an additional missed day March 3. Dallas ISD’s request to waive the third missed day was approved. This notice will also be available at www.dallasisd.org.

(AP) – US GRADUATION RATE REACHES 80% U.S. public high schools have reached a milestone, an 80 percent graduation rate. Yet that still means 1 of every 5 students walks away without a diploma. Citing the progress, researchers are projecting a 90 percent national graduation rate by 2020.

Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth Mayors Back Bullet Train The mayors of Houston, Dallas and Fort Worth on Thursday announced their unified support for the construction of a privately funded bullet train between the two metropolitan regions.