Glenn Mosley

Grant money from the U.S. Department of Transportation will help fund ongoing studies looking at critical transportation issues in the Northwest.

Transportation issues affect all of us, whether it’s simply wondering why that red traffic light is blinking, or wondering why the commuter traffic is jammed up again. It’s these kinds of issues, both national and regional in scope, which will be addressed by universities around the Northwest with the help of grant money from the U.S. Department of Transportation.

The Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival is back for another year at the University of Idaho in Moscow. Now ten years after the death of its namesake, the festival, like many such celebrations, is challenged by a changing jazz industry.

Read more on Groove Notes.

Agriculture is a tremendous force in shaping the Idaho economy, according to John Hammel, dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at the University of Idaho. Hammel told state budget writers Wednesday that the industry’s strength comes from its diversity.

“It is tremendously diverse, with over 150 commodities grown statewide, and has a growing livestock sector, which is led by dairy production. This diversity minimizes the impact to Idaho from a downturn in any particular agricultural sector,” says Hammel.

Three million dollars has been donated to the football stadium project at Washington State University. It is the largest single gift in the history of Cougar athletics.

WSU Athletic Director Bill Moos called the donation significant because, he says, it means the university can be competitive with the best collegiate athletic programs in the nation.

The football stadium project was approved by the university's Board of Regents on November 18th. The total cost of the stadium project is $80 million.

A state judge has ruled in favor of the University of Idaho in a lawsuit filed challenging the university's guns on-campus policy.

The lawsuit was filed in January by Aaron Tribble, a law student at the UI, who was challenging the university's restrictions against firearms in university housing. The policy does not allow loaded weapons, including conceal carry, on campus.

Tribble argued that the ban on firearms infringed on his constitutional rights.

Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden is hosting a series of meetings in north Idaho to promote better understanding of the state’s laws regarding access to public records and open meetings.

Wasden says citizen participation in government is critical and that without it our system of government fails. However, he says that to participate fully citizens need access to their government.

The independent panel investigating safety and security policies at the University of Idaho in the wake of the murder of graduate student Katy Benoit in August says the university’s plans in those areas are comprehensive.

The panel was convened by UI President Duane Nellis to review the university’s safety and security policies as they relate to the safety of students, faculty, and staff. The panel has found that the university’s policies are complete and comprehensive but is making several suggestions.

Paul Wulff is out of his job as head football coach at Washington State University.

When Paul Wulff was hired at Washington State University as head coach of the Cougar football team four years ago, he walked into a program that was in shambles.

He leaves the program now with the thanks of Athletic Director Bill Moos for helping to rebuild the program’s foundation, but in the end that wasn’t enough for Wulff to keep his job.

The supplemental budget proposal submitted by Washington Governor Christine Gregoire today includes cuts in higher education funding and the suspension of the State Work Study Program for college and university students.

Educators around the country are tapping into the interest in zombies in popular culture as a means to reach students. One such place using the teaching tool is the University of Idaho.

Last week on the UI's Moscow campus there was a public lecture called "Zombies and International Politics." It was delivered by Tufts University professor Dan Drezner, who says zombies work as a metaphor for current global concerns.

The Regents of Washington State University are considering a Martin Stadium upgrade project that would cost an estimated $80 million.

When Oregon State University defeated Washington State University in college football last Saturday, it did so with five team members who had been heavily recruited by WSU.

“They loved Washington State, loved everything about it, their parents were crazy about it. They ended up going to Oregon State—now this is not Oregon, Oregon State, primarily because of their facilities,” says Bill Moos, WSU's director of intercollegiate athletics.

The University of Idaho has released school records pertaining to the August shooting death of university graduate student Katy Benoit.

The information released Wednesday by the UI includes the employment records of Ernesto Bustamante, the former university professor who police say shot and killed Benoit in August before committing suicide.

"The University responded immediately and decisively to protect Katy and to remove Bustamante from our community once we were aware of her concerns," says University of Idaho President Duane Nellis.

A new study from the group Complete College America says that despite years of increasing enrollments at colleges around the country, the number of students finishing college is stagnant.

Longtime ABC news reporter and anchor Ted Koppel accepted the 2011 Edward R. Murrow Award from Washington State University Friday night.

When Ted Koppel wrapped up a press availability with members of the news media Friday, some younger members of the press corps gave him a round of applause. Koppel admonished those reporters for doing so; reporters, he said, never applaud at the end of a press conference.

The author of the 2009 bestseller, “The Big Burn,” says the famous 1910 fire that scored millions of acres in the Northwest still holds relevance for us today.

There weren’t always public lands in America, and there was a time when the Forest Service was on the chopping block in Congress. The future of both was impacted by the famous 1910 fire in north Idaho, western Montana, and eastern Washington.