Go to the zoo and purchase a Christmas present for a child at Children's Hospital [WWL]

People are being encouraged to buy from a selection of three toys that are available at the gift shop. All of the purchases will go to the boys and girls at the hospital. Each of the gift packages are different. One is a coloring set. Another has puzzles and the third is a fiber optic lamp. Each gift has a special seasonal name too.

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Nearly 200 New Orleans-area bars selling to minors | The New Orleans Advocate

More than 100 New Orleans-area businesses were cited by the Louisiana Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Control this summer for selling alcohol and/or tobacco to minors.

Notable establishments such as House of Blues, Ye Olde College Inn, Borgne and Mahony's Po-Boys were issued citations.

The ATC said it conducted 5,474 compliance checks during the agency’s 2015 summer crackdown and issued 821 citations. Of those citations, 460 were issued for alcohol sales to a minor, and 361 were issued for tobacco sales to a minor.

About 15 percent of the businesses checked sold alcohol and/or tobacco to a minor.

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Decentralization impacts youths needing mental health services | Advocate

In recent years, New Orleans has become a case study in how children and families are affected by rapid decentralization of public education and mental-health systems.

In theory, the city’s families should have more options than ever when it comes to schools and mental-health providers. But decentralization has wrought some unintended consequences, particularly for children with the most severe needs — needs that aren’t always met by private operators.

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Hollygrove initiative aims to improve kids' outcomes from birth | The Advocate

City and state officials Tuesday detailed the second phase of a three-year initiative in New Orleans’ Hollygrove neighborhood designed to improve children’s health from birth by helping young mothers with other struggles in their lives.

The program, called Best Babies Zone and funded by a $300,000 grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, is modeled on an approach taken by the Northern Manhattan Perinatal Partnership in a specific 14-block area in Harlem. That program reduced infant mortality by 50 percent in Harlem and improved birth outcomes.

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Boo at the Zoo | Audubon Nature Institute

Bring your little ghosts and goblins to Boo at the Zoo Presented by Carnival Cruise Lines! This annual Audubon Zoo extravaganza is a safe, fun-filled Halloween event for children up to age 12, featuring trick-or-treat houses with candy, Ghost Train, a haunted house (scary and non-scary), games with prizes, entertainment and more. All games and treats, except concessions, are free with admission.

A limited number of tickets will be sold for each night, giving visitors the opportunity to experience Boo at the Zoo Presented by Carnival Cruise Lines in a more relaxed atmosphere.

October 19, 20, 26, 27, 2012; 5pm - 9pm



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An Urban Farm Puts New Orleans Teens to Work | National Journal

In a city that is perhaps the country’s most culturally rich, it is a bit surprising that the large city park in its heart is called, well, City Park. But don’t mistake the generic name for a place devoid of special activity.Indeed, at the heart of City Park is the much more colorfully named Grow Dat Youth Farm, which is developing a sense of responsibility, community, environmental stewardship, and service among city high school kids through the collaborative work of growing food.


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Mayor Landrieu, Spike Lee launch 'Flip the Script' campaign | WVUE

Mayor Mitch Landrieu and film director/producer Spike Lee want to change the attitudes of young African-American men heading down a path of destruction.

The two men introduced a multimedia, public awareness campaign called "Flip The Script" Tuesday evening at the Joy Theater. Mayor Landrieu partnered with Lee and his international advertising agency, "Spike DDB," in an effort aimed at changing the attitudes of -- and about -- young, black men across New Orleans.

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Top 15 Field Trip Spots in New Orleans | onlineschools.com

New Orleans has a reputation for being an adult playground, but visitors and residents of all ages can find a dazzling array of museums, historical homes, theaters and zoos and aquariums in the area -- all offering unique family and field trip opportunities. While New Orleans attractions number in the hundreds, let this list of 15 get you started on your tour of the Big Easy...

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Oprah-Backed Charter School Denying Disabled Collides With Law | Bloomberg

When talk-show host Oprah Winfrey handed a $1 million check last September to the principal of New Orleans Charter Science and Math Academy, 200 students watched the broadcast from a church and celebrated with a brass band. A ninth-grader with learning and emotional disabilities, sat next door in a school office. The staff was concerned his fighting and cursing could be an embarrassment...

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Ludacris Helps To Raise Over 250000 Text Books For New Orleans | BSCkids

Rapper Ludacris is teaming up with DoSomething.org and Better World Books for a massive book drive that was properly named Epic Book Drive for the Recovery School District in New Orleans. Ludacris made the announcement earlier this year that he wanted to help bring new textbooks to the town that is still recovering even 6 years after Hurricane Katrina. Ludacris’ Epic Book Drive brought in 250,000 new books for 30,000 students...

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Agents round up more than 30 in crackdown on underage drinking at Carrollton bar | WWL

Neighbors on a quiet block in the Carrollton area say the street transforms when "The Frat House" Uptown opens for the night.

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Irvin Mayfield Jr. and James Bernazzani team up to inspire New Orleans kids | NOLA.com

When James Bernazzani retired from the FBI in 2008, he decided to fight crime in a different way. He knew that arresting young criminals, prosecuting them, convicting them and incarcerating them wasn’t going to solve the crime problem in New Orleans. If children are going to blossom, they need to know how to read. He decided the “Power Through Reading” book drive would be the YRI’s first initiative. He just had to figure out how to do a book drive. He started by getting Irvin Mayfield Jr. involved...

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Seventh-graders who went to New Orleans to share experience | Wisconsin State Journal

A group of seventh-graders who recently traveled to New Orleans on a rare service-learning trip are sharing their experience at UW-Madison’s School of Education on Monday. The trip was unusual because most community service projects in New Orleans since Hurricane Katrina have involved high school or college students. Students, professors and researchers at UW-Madison are interested in hearing about the community service component...

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Lead is found at area playgrounds | The Louisiana Weekly

New Orleans announced last week the results of an initial investigation of lead on painted surfaces and in surface soil at 13 playgrounds throughout the city...

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As a playground reopens, another waits for help | WWLTV.com

It was a joyous note in Gentilly as the rebirth of Donnelly Park was celebrated Tuesday. Kids especially enjoyed using the new playground equipment their suggestions helped design. But a few miles away in Central City sit the shabby remains of what once was a city playground, the NORD Keller Center...

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Earn money for The Roots of Music by watching a video | Spin Backstage Pass spin.com @spinmagazine

You can now earn money for The Roots of Music simply by watching a video on spin.com. For every time you watch it, American Express will donate $1 to the program.

The campaign is called "Help ZYNC from American Express Support Youth Music Education".

The Roots of Music Program fills a void in music education programs in New Orleans educational institutions. Where marching bands were always an integral part of the New Orleans middle schools, this has changed drastically after Katrina and many schools don’t offer music programs anymore...

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Public Schools Break Ground in New Orleans | Construction Digital

Ground breaking at Willian Franz School

Five years after Hurricane Katrina tore through New Orleans and left it in shambles, the city is undergoing a full-scale revamp of it public school buildings, breaking ground on eight new elementary schools. The projects are funded through a $1.8 billion settlement from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to cover the damages incurred during the natural disaster. The compensation was announced in August...

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Ruby Bridges celebrates 50th anniversary of desegregation of the New Orleans Public School System at LCM | NOLA.com

Kathy Anderson / The Times-Picayune

Ruby Bridges stands in front of William Frantz Elementary School in the Ninth Ward in New Orleans. Bridges was the first African-American to attend a public school in New Orleans.

Celebrate the 50th anniversary of the desegregation of the New Orleans Public School System on Saturday from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Louisiana Children's Museum.

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State of Louisiana Brings Critical Oil Spill Claims Issues to GCCF | louisiana.gov

The state of Louisiana, with input from the 10 technical assistance providers who have been assisting impacted individuals and businesses in communities across South Louisiana to navigate the claims process for months, said that payment of emergency oil claims are being bogged down in red tape and lack transparency. The state and its partners called on independent Claims Administrator Kenneth Feinberg to make critical changes immediately to speed the process...

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Boo at the Zoo | Audubon Nature Institute - New Orleans

Bring your little ghosts and goblins to Boo at the Zoo! This annual Audubon Zoo extravaganza is a safe, fun-filled Halloween event for children up to age 12, featuring trick-or-treat houses with candy, the Mombassa Ghost Train, a haunted house, games with prizes and entertainment. All games and treats, except concessions, are free with admission...

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