LSU EARNS SERIES SWEEP WITH WIN OVER MILWAUKEE 1B
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BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA
M o n d ay, F e b r u a ry 16, 2026
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Cameras now recording in special ed classes
state funds helped schools install devices BY ELYSE CARMOSINO staff writer
sTAFF PHoTo By MICHAEL JoHNsoN
EASY COME, EASY THROW ABOVE: A float rider tosses a handful of candy during the Krewe of Comogo parade in Plaquemine on Sunday. MIDDLE RIGHT: A rider hands a toy to a child during the Krewe of Comogo parade on Sunday. BOTTOM RIGHT: The royal court float of King Frank Corcoran and Queen Britney Temple rolls on Sunday during the inaugural Zachary Mardi Gras Parade.
MARDI GRAS 2026
4-day weeks gaining popularity in La. schools East Feliciana made change to attract teachers
INsIDE, 4A, 8A
BY CHARLES LUSSIER PHoTo By soNyA Goss
that has led to a pause in funding for the Department of Homeland Security. A partial government shutdown began Saturday after congressional Democrats and President Donald Trump’s team BY AAMER MADHANI failed to reach a deal on legisAssociated Press lation to fund the department WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Lawmak- through September. Democrats ers and the White House offered are demanding changes to how no signs of compromise Sunday immigration operations are conin their battle over oversight ducted after the fatal shootings of federal immigration officers of U.S. citizens Alex Pretti and
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Renee Good by federal officers in Minneapolis last month. Congress is on recess until Feb. 23, and both sides appear dug into their positions. The impasse affects agencies such as the Transportation Security Administration, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, U.S. Coast Guard, the Secret Service, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The work at ICE and CBP goes
staff writer
on unabated because Trump’s tax and spending cut law from 2025 provided billions more to those agencies that can be tapped for deportation operations. About 90% of DHS employees were to continue working during the shutdown, but do so without pay — and missed paychecks could mean financial hardships. Last year there was a record 43-day government shutdown.
Two decades ago, the East Feliciana Parish school district shifted to a four-day school week. Seven years later, the district discontinued it and reverted to a traditional five-day school week. After a 13-year hiatus, it is trying the four-day week once again. Starting in August, classes will run Tuesday through Friday, with Mondays off. Each school day will be an hour longer. Back in 2006, the only four-day district in Louisiana was neighboring St. Helena Parish. A handful of individual schools across the state also had shortened weekly schedules, but a lot has changed in the past 20 years. Currently, 15 school districts hold classes only four days each week. That’s nearly a quarter of the
ä see SHUTDOWN, page 6A
ä see SCHOOLS, page 4A
Partial government shutdown over DHS funding continues
WEATHER HIGH 73 LOW 53
ä see CAMERAS, page 4A
sTAFF PHoTo By MICHAEL JoHNsoN
THEADVOCATE.COM
White House and lawmakers clash on oversight
Cameras will now record what happens in special education classrooms in public schools across Louisiana under a new law meant to protect students with disabilities that required the cameras to start rolling this month. Act 479, which the state Legislature passed in 2025, requires public schools to put at least one camera in each classroom where most students receive special education services for at least half of the day. Feb. 1 was the deadline for school districts to install the devices. Families will be able to request footage if they believe their child has been abused or neglected while in the school’s care. The push for classroom cameras began after a St. Tammany Parish parent said her nonverbal 5-yearold son was verbally and physically abused by school staffers. The family sued the school district and worked with lawmakers to introduce legislation in 2022 requiring districts to install cameras in special education classrooms if a parent requested them. However, some parents said their requests were denied or schools took longer to respond than the legislation allowed, said Ashley McReynolds, program director at The Arc of
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101sT yEAR, No. 231