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Trump order would deny student loan relief to nonprofit workers engaged in 'improper' activity
President Donald Trump is ordering changes to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program that would disqualify workers of nonprofit groups deemed to have engaged in “improper” activities
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is ordering changes to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program that would disqualify workers of nonprofit groups deemed to have engaged in “improper” activities.
An executive order being signed Friday directs the Education Department to modify the program to deny loan relief to some borrowers. It would exclude loan forgiveness to people whose work is tied to illegal immigration, foreign terrorist groups or other illegal activity, White House officials said.
Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
This week in Aspen marks the debut of Shaun White's Snow League. It's a four-contest circuit that the retired three-time Olympic gold medalist hopes can alter the trajectory of halfpipe snowboarding. White's league promises $1.6 million in prize money, and $50,000 first prizes for men and women. It also offers Olympic qualifying points with the Milan-Cortina Games less than a year away. Top names competing this week include defending Olympic champion Ayumu Hirano on the men's side and Maddie Mastro for the women. White says he sees the league as a long-needed way to bring the best riders together more than every four years for the Olympics.
PITTSBURGH — Organizers of a ballot referendum directing the city to divest from countries committing genocide, specifically citing Israel, conceded that they did not have enough signatures to make it on the ballot during a hearing Friday morning — ending the legal challenges it faced.
Maya T. Prabhu - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (TNS)
ATLANTA — A Georgia House staffer will not face charges for his part in a tussle outside the chamber earlier this year that led to him shoving a state senator to the ground.
Cam Fowler is back to play in Anaheim for the first time since the Ducks traded the longest-serving and highest-scoring defenseman in franchise history to the St. Louis Blues less than three months ago. Fowler insists he feels no bitterness or disappointment about the way his 14 1/2 seasons in Orange County ended, and he is likely to receive a boisterous welcome when the Blues face the Ducks. Fowler had been a mainstay on the Ducks’ blue line since 2010, when the team selected him with the 12th overall pick. The Ducks traded him to St. Louis in December.
Adnan Syed, the accused murderer who became the subject of the widely popular podcast “Serial,” has had his sentence for the 1999 killing of Hae Min Lee reduced to time served.
Officially, Meghan Markle’s surname became the unwieldy Mountbatten-Windsor when she married Prince Harry in 2018, but she isn’t wrong in wanting to use Sussex as her last name instead, after her husband’s dukedom, according to experts on royal titles.
Led by Kezza Giffa's 25 points, the High Point Panthers defeated the Gardner-Webb Runnin' Bulldogs 85-64 in the Big South Conference Tournament on Friday.
Oklahoma's top public schools official is continuing his quest to put a Bible in classrooms. Republican State Superintendent Ryan Walters announced this week he's teaming with country music singer Lee Greenwood and seeking donations to buy $59.99 leather-bound “God Bless the USA” Bibles. The move comes one day after a legislative subcommittee in the GOP-controlled Legislature turned down Walters' request for $3 million to pay for the Bibles. Walters announced his Bible mandate last year, prompting a lawsuit from a group of parents and teachers. Some of his proposed policy changes, like a mandate that schools collect immigration status of students, have faced opposition from other GOP leaders.
A former campaign fundraiser for ex-U.S. Rep. George Santos has been sentenced to serve one year in prison for impersonating a high-ranking congressional aide while raising campaign cash for the disgraced New York Republican. Sam Miele pleaded guilty in 2023 to a single count of federal wire fraud for his role in the criminal case that led to Santos’ expulsion from office. Miele admitted that in 2021, he solicited donations under the name Dan Meyer, who was then-chief of staff for U.S. Rep. Kevin McCarthy, the eventual House speaker before his departure in late 2023.
D’Wayne Wiggins, a founding member of the Grammy-nominated group Tony! Toni! Tone! behind the classic songs “Anniversary,” “It Never Rains (In Southern California)” and (Lay Your Head on My) Pillow,” has died. He was 64. A statement released by his family on social media says Wiggins died Friday morning after battling bladder cancer over the past year. Wiggins was a vocalist and bass guitarist of the beloved R&B group, which included his brother Raphael Saadiq and their cousin Christian Riley. The Oakland, California, natives became mainstays of the New Jack Swing movement, blending R&B, jazz and traces of gospel melodies.
At Paris Fashion Week, Kenzo’s latest evolution trades its signature jungle prints for something sharper: punk-infused tailoring, underground energy, and a touch of British irreverence. For its first dedicated women’s show in eight years, the LVMH-owned house embraced a rebellious streak. Shawl-collared tuxedo jackets melted into kimono shapes, harem pants slouched low, and lingerie peeked from waistbands. The soundtrack? Sex Pistols, Patti Smith and Blondie — setting the mood for a collection that felt more East London than Parisian cool.
Every player in the top two divisions of men’s soccer in France will have “WO=MAN” written on the back of their jerseys instead of their names this weekend. The French league initiative is centered around International Women’s Day on Saturday. It started Friday with Toulouse’s home game against Monaco. It was continuing on Saturday and Sunday with the other teams in Ligue 1 and Ligue 2. The LFP says the “WO=MAN” message highlights “the importance of gender equality not only on the field, but also in the stands.” LED panels around the pitches will display “WO=MAN” and official match balls have the motto written on them.
In the fast-changing world of college basketball, some things remain constant. Saint Mary’s, the small school in San Francisco’s East Bay region, keeps piling up wins at the rate that only the blue bloods of the sport can match. The Gaes are ranked 21st in the country after winning back-to-back outright regular season titles in the West Coast Conference and head into the conference tournament with a chance to become the first team to repeat as champions other than Gonzaga since Pepperdine in 1991-92.
JuJu Watkins scored 31 points, Kiki Iriafen added 21 and each grabbed 10 rebounds in their first Big Ten Tournament games, leading No. 2 Southern California to an 84-79 victory over Indiana. The Trojans are 3-0 in Indiana this season and have won eight straight. They'll face either fourth-seeded Maryland or fifth-seeded Michigan in Saturday's first semifinal. Yarden Garzon made five 3-pointers and led the Hoosiers with 23 points. The Trojans struggled to pull away until Talia von Oelhoffen and Watkins made back-to-back 3s late in the fourth to give USC its largest lead of the game, 77-68.
Chloe Kitts had 25 points and 10 rebounds and No. 5 South Carolina held off a furious second-half rally from Vanderbilt to win 84-63 on Friday in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals. MiLaysia Fulwiley scored 15 off the bench and Sania Feagin added 13 points for South Carolina, which has won five straight. Coach Dawn Staley’s Gamecocks, the Southeastern Conference’s top seed, appeared plenty motivated to win a third straight tournament title. They came out of the gates strong, shooting a blistering 67% from the field in the first half to build a 48-23 lead at the break.
Authorities are pulling submerged vehicles from the Columbia River, including a car thought to have belonged to a Portland couple who vanished in 1958 while out for a drive with their three daughters. The vehicles, including the station wagon believed to belong to Ken and Barbara Martin, were found after a yearslong search by diver Archer Mayo. The Martins never returned from a drive to the mountains to collect Christmas greenery. The bodies of two of the couple's daughters washed up months after they vanished. A Hood River County sheriff’s deputy says the station wagon is encased in mud and debris, so authorities aren't certain it belongs to the Martins.
COLUMBIA, S.C. — An Irmo man indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of threatening the life of President Donald Trump was denied bond Friday after a hearing in which a prosecutor told the magistrate judge that the man posed a danger to the community.
Maryland and 19 other states are suing multiple federal agencies in a lawsuit alleging that President Donald Trump’s administration has illegally fired thousands of federal probationary workers. Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown is leading the coalition of attorneys general in the federal lawsuit that was filed late Thursday in Maryland. The lawsuit says the mass firings will cause irreparable burdens and expenses on the states, because they will have to support recently unemployed workers and adjudicate claims of unemployment assistance. The lawsuit also says the layoffs will hurt state finances due to lost tax revenue and additional services for the suddenly unemployed.
Greg Bluestein - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (TNS)
ATLANTA — While clashes between Democrats and Republicans are the stuff of Georgia political lore, the real tensions shaping the final sprint of this year’s 40-day session are between the GOP-led House and Senate.
The NBA fined DeMar DeRozan $25,000 on Friday for publicly criticizing officials after the Sacramento Kings' loss to the Denver Nuggets. “The refs were terrible,” DeRozan said after the 116-110 loss on Wednesday, according to the Sacramento Bee. The Nuggets had 30 free throws to 14 for the Kings. That included a 13-4 difference in the fourth quarter in which Denver outscored Sacramento 32-17.
Former central banker Mark Carney looks set to become Canada’s next prime minister after the governing Liberals announce a replacement for Justin Trudeau on Sunday. U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats to impose sweeping tariffs have sparked a surge in Canadian nationalism. That has dramatically revived the Liberal Party’s chances in a general election that’s expected within days or weeks. Carney navigated crises when he was the head of Canada’s central bank and at the Bank of England. He has picked up one endorsement after another from Cabinet ministers and members of Parliament since January.
An independent investigation has been opened into the coaching staff at Bay FC following publication of a report that described a “toxic” work environment at the club, National Women’s Soccer League Commissioner Jessica Berman confirmed. The San Francisco Chronicle published an investigation Friday that said at least two formal complaints had been made about the team under coach Albertin Montoya. Two former players, who were not named in Chronicle’s report, described the team environment as toxic and two former Bay FC employees agreed with the assessment.
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Barring a last-minute reprieve, Brad Sigmon will be led into South Carolina’s death chamber Friday evening. He will be strapped into a metal chair and, nearly 24 years after beating his ex-girlfriend’s parents to death, he will wait for three people to shoot him.
BALTIMORE — Mayor Brandon Scott and the Baltimore Police Department on Friday filed a joint motion with the U.S. Justice Department contending the city has fulfilled its obligations with two sections of a federal consent decree.
A judge on has declined a Georgia state senator’s request for an arrest warrant against a state House staffer following a confrontation between the two earlier this year. State Sen. Colton Moore, a Republican from Trenton, had sought the arrest warrant against Keith Williams, a lawyer in the House speaker’s office. The two men were involved in a scuffle outside the House chamber in January. Fulton County Magistrate Judge Robert Wolf said at the end of a hearing that he hadn’t seen sufficient evidence to support probable cause that criminal charges were warranted. A lawyer for Moore said they intend to appeal the judge's decision to Fulton County Superior Court.
Religious leaders, scholars and diplomats have gathered at Notre Dame University in Indiana for a conference on Ukraine studies with a theme of hope. The timing may not seem good. It comes amid a deterioration of relations between Washington and Kyiv as Russia presses its attacks on Ukraine. But speakers said it’s more important than ever to maintain hope — not as a pie-in-the-sky sentiment but as a force that energizes Ukrainians’ resistance. “Hope is not only a spiritual resource” but a “strategic security asset,” said Taras Dobko, rector of Ukrainian Catholic University in Lviv. The three-day conference, “Revolutions of Hope: Resilience and Recovery in Ukraine,” concludes Saturday.
Former major league outfielder Tyler Naquin says his attempted comeback as a right-handed pitcher was over a year in the making. Naquin played the outfield for four different major league teams from 2016-23. He has signed a minor league contract with the Guardians in hopes of making it back to the big leagues as a pitcher. Naquin says he started working out as a pitcher in January 2024. The 33-year-old Naquin says he hasn’t pitched in an actual game since throwing in a scrimmage while playing for Texas A&M in 2010. He said he also pitched in high school.
JJ Quinerly made a critical steal to set up her game-winning basket and scored 24 points to lift No. 16 West Virginia to a 73-69 win over No. 20 Kansas State in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Tournament. The Wildcats attempted a sideline inbounds lob into the key when Quinerly soared in to intercept the ball with a minute to go. She then drove into the lane for a floater that put West Virginia on top 71-69 with 44.2 seconds remaining. Temira Poindexter missed a wide-open 3 from the right sideline before Sydney Shaw iced it with two free throws. The fourth-seeded Mountaineers face the winner of Colorado and TCU in Saturday’s semifinals. Jordan Harrison scored 17 of her 19 points in the second half for West Virginia. Kennedy Taylor scored 21 points for the Wildcats
The Big 12 has moved six of its conference football games to Friday nights next fall, along with another matchup of league teams that won’t count in the standings. Those were among the 10 games involving Big 12 teams selected Friday by the league’s television partners, ESPN and Fox, for Friday night broadcasts. There will be two games on three of those nights. The first will be the opening weekend of the season when Baylor hosts SEC team Auburn, and Colorado is home against ACC team Georgia Tech on Aug. 29.
Health officials say West Texas now has almost 200 measles cases and New Mexico's case number has tripled to 30. The case counts were updated on Friday. A child died of measles in Texas last week. New Mexico health officials said Thursday they are investigating a possible adult measles death. Federal health officials announced they would send a team to Texas this week. Most of the cases are in people younger than 18 and people who are unvaccinated or have an unknown vaccination status.
Tennessee will hold its spring game in the usual scrimmage format on April 12. Coach Josh Heupel said creating a big stage this time of year benefits development. The Volunteers’ spring game attracted more than 58,000 fans in 2023. Neyland Stadium’s spring-game capacity was reduced to 10,000 last year because of a renovation project and the limit will be about 45,000 this year. Heupel said it's important for young players to experience playing in front of a big crowd before the fall. Schools such as Nebraska, Ohio State, Texas and Southern California have scrapped their spring games this year.
