One common experience many students share is taking a bus to and from school. However, next year Jefferson County Public Schools will discontinue providing transportation for most magnet students, except those attending Central and Western High School. This decision follows a challenging year for the district's transportation system, resulting in late arrivals and a loss in instructional time. 

Major statements from JCPS spokesperson Carolyn Callanan, “No transportation for magnet/traditional remains what the district feels is the best option.  “Ultimately, the board makes the decision." According to JCPS, this plan will result in 4-5 million minutes of lost instruction time, compared to the alleged 12 million currently. The board took over two hours to reach a vote, amid vocal opposition from community members, JCPS employees, and elected officials were present at the meeting. The JCPS board met for a long meeting on Wednesday, April 11th and voted four to three deciding to discontinue busing at magnet and traditional schools, excluding Western and Central High School. This decision follows an audit that exposed numerous failures leading to transportation challenges at the start of the 2023-24 school year. The district reported a shortage of bus drivers, resulting in delays. 

During the board meeting, journalists from WHAS11 WDRB and The Courier Journal had reported that tensions were high and many attendees yelled at the board. Despite no public comments scheduled, attendees voiced their concerns about the impact on children. There were disagreements between board members about the plan's equity and rushed timeline, later a motion was finally proposed, discontinuing transportation for most schools except Western and Central High School. According to WHAS11, Superintendent Marty Pollio had acknowledged concerns about equity earlier in March, but stressed the need for action to ensure student access to education, emphasizing the decision's difficulty but necessity for the district to thrive.  

Questions and tensions escalated during the meeting, with board members and transportation leaders clashing, and concerns raised about racial equity. The transportation issues are said to disproportionately affect students of color, prompting calls for action. At the Louisville NAACP Headquarters, Raoul Cunningham, president of the organization said “The Jefferson County school district is in a crisis in leadership. It is suffering from a crisis in trust and truth-telling. It is suffering from a crisis in competence and compassion.” Cunningham blames Pollio for his poor management of the predicament the county is in, stating that the plan could eliminate bus rides for over 16,000 students.

The Louisville City soccer season started on March 16, with an away game against El Paso. The soccer team, founded in 2015, has quickly become a source of pride and community in Louisville. The team is part of the United Soccer League, or the USL, which was founded in 1986 and is made up of over twenty teams across the U.S. In only eight years, they’ve become a dominant force in the league with their high stats and record-breaking history. 

Aside from frequent high scores (5-0 against Birmingham and 6-0 against Hartford, both this season), being ranked second best out of all 12 eastern teams, and a +16 goal difference, City broke USL record in 2017 and 2018 by winning the championship two years in a row. We remain the only team with any consecutive wins.

The team has had some bad seasons, for example last year in which they had a less than 50 percent win rate and only 47 goals in 34 games- for reference this season they've had twenty three goals in only seven games. 

Part of the  success is attributed to the selection of new players, most already having scored goals. One player that has been crucial is number 14, Wilson Harris. Last season he was tied for most goals overall (9) with Cameron Lancaster, another prolific player in our history. This season he already has eight goals, leaving him in second place for the most goals in 24’ out of the entire USL. 

Harris, besides almost beating his personal record, made Louisville City history in their game against Charleston Battery on April 8th by scoring his first ever hat trick (a hat trick is when a player scores three goals in one game), becoming the fifth ever player in all of their history to achieve it.

Although it’s not as popular as our men’s team, Louisville does have a women's team: Racing Louisville FC, part of the Nation Women’s Soccer Team, or the NSL. Their low acclaim is partly because it was announced in 2019, starting their first season in 2021. That’s not to say they don’t pull in dense and lively crowds, only that fewer people are aware of the team. 

Sadly, Racing isn’t doing quite as well as City, ranked at 10 out of 14 women’s teams. Throughout their history they have stayed fairly low on national rankings, holding their spot as 9/12 in 2022 and 2023. 

Their luck hasn’t shifted yet this season, ending most games in draws. Having so far had two losses, five draws, and only one win.

Thousands of fans in Louisville are watching closely to see how the '24 soccer season turns out, hoping for City’s continued success and a turn of luck for racing.

As the end of the school year approaches, many high schools around the world are having their prom events. Prom is a school dance typically for junior and senior students and plus ones that many look forward to. A huge part of prom is the dressing up, and it sometimes can even get competitive. This year, a debate over wearing Easter brunch dresses to prom has caused a big internet debate.

  The famous social media platform TikTok is a place for people to post and express themselves. As prom season approaches, many are filming videos in their prom dresses with their dates or friend group. Many of these videos feature girls who are wearing shorter dresses that would typically be worn to Easter celebrations or brunches.

A video went viral by user Ellie_Gonzalez featuring her and her friends' prom dresses. The comment section was filled with people making remarks on the dresses. Brown School Sophomore Leyla Taylor states that “Prom is a big thing that mostly everyone looks forward to. It’s a night where you can go all out and have fun. I think the Easter dresses are just not prom at all.”

  The majority of people believe that they think that the dresses aren't appropriate for prom. “I think they are pretty and everything, I just don’t think they fit prom. If I saw someone in a dress like that I would think they were going to a birthday brunch,” Brown School freshman Cora Cash says. Prom dress code is typically thought of as formal and many think the “Easter dresses” do not apply to that.

   The other side of the debate are those who wear the “Easter dresses” to prom and those who support the idea. Prom is not a cheap event. Many tend to go all out, since it is an event that is looked forward to and one of the last big events of their high school years. Prom dresses, on average, are between $350-$500. People like to go all out for prom, but some don’t have the funding to do so. So, while the Easter dresses may be less extravagant, they may be a better option for some. Ella Kozoll, freshman at Brown says “I think people should just wear what they want. You obviously can’t please everyone. Tik Tok is just a very judgmental place in general.” Besides, some may just not want to go all out. 

This debate has moved from just Tik Tok to other platforms like Instagram, Twitter, and even news platforms. At Brown, we have our own opinions on the topic, the most common being that the Easter dresses just do not suit prom. Considering this year's prom attendees and their outfits, they went all out and took it seriously. Some may not, or just prefer the style of Easter dresses.