Home

A lot of younger kids in Eau Claire look to have skipped this year of school. Click to hear more 715 Newsroom coverage with Jon DeMaster: The city’s school district last night said kindergarten enrollment is down four-and-a-half-percent, or about 37 kids. The district’s Michelle Radtke says many parents pulled their kids because of a lack of in-person classes this year. The drop in enrollment will cost Eau Claire schools. State money is allocated based on the number of kids

Former University of Wisconsin wide receiver Quintez Cephus is suing the school over his expulsion back in 2018. Two women accused Cephus of sexual assault, and he was quickly dismissed from the school. He was later reinstated after a jury cleared him of the charges. Cephus is not saying how much money he wants from the university. He’s accusing the school of violating his rights to due process.

A Pewaukee man is likely facing prison time for scamming the government out of one-million-dollars in PPP money. Thomas Smith pleaded guilty this week to one count of bank fraud. Investigators say Smith was part of a group that applied for one-point-two-million-dollars in Paycheck Protection loans based on inflated payroll numbers for eight different companies. Four others are charged as part of the same scheme. Smith is due to be sentenced in June.

Wisconsin’s wolf hunting season is over, just three days after it began. The state’s Department of Natural Resources yesterday closed the hunt after hunters shot or trapped 82 wolves in just 39 hours. The harvest limit is 200 wolves, though DNR said its goal was closer to 120 wolves taken. The season closes at 10 this morning across most of the state, and at 3 p.m. this afternoon for hunting zones in far northern and northwestern Wisconsin.

School teachers in Wisconsin are about to join the list of people eligible for the coronavirus vaccine. The state’s Department of Health Services yesterday said teachers will be added to the list as of Monday. Teachers are the first of the Phase 1b eligibles to get the shot. Many school districts in the state are waiting for teachers to get their vaccines before reopening schools. DHS says while teachers will be eligible, there’s no guarantee there will be enough doses to get

Older drivers in Wisconsin have some more time to get a new driver’s license. The DMV yesterday extended the deadline for drivers who are 60-years old or older to renew their driver’s licenses until May. The extension gives about 62-thousand drivers in the state more time to get to a DMV office. Those offices were closed to walk-ins throughout the coronavirus outbreak. CLICK HERE FOR MORE FROM WI DMV

There’s an effort to ‘fix’ the mistakes from the November election. State Senator Duey Stroebel yesterday introduced a plan at the Wisconsin Capitol that would address Republican concerns about the November election. The biggest change would be tightening the requirements and enforcement for indefinitely confined voting in the state. Stroebel also wants to move to a statewide absentee voter form, as well as other tweaks. Stroebel says the changes are needed to restore faith in Wisconsin’s electoral process.

Next football season will be different for Menomonie High School. Legendary coach Joe LaBuda yesterday announced his retirement. LaBuda led Menomonie to 321 wins, including five state titles. LaBuda is already in the Wisconsin Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame, and he is the seventh winningest coach in Wisconsin high school football history.

Lawmakers in Madison say it is time for Governor Evers to fix the problems at the state’s unemployment office. The Wisconsin Assembly yesterday approved a plan that begins the process to hire an outside company to update the state’s computers and orders the governor to address other problems at the Department of Workforce Development. Those problems left thousands of people waiting months to get their unemployment benefits this year.

If you are looking for an easy and local testing options, the Blue Devils have you covered. The University of Wisconsin-Stout is offering free rapid-result COVID-19 antigen tests to off-campus students, UW-Stout employees, and community members. The tests are being offered through a partnership between the UW System and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to help address the current surge in COVID-19 virus in Wisconsin. CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO.