| Good Morning, The past week in Louisiana’s political world has been chock a block full of developments. The state is making sweeping changes in how reading is taught in an effort to improve dismal literacy rates among Louisiana's youngest students. The changes focus on schools identifying and monitoring reading goals; high-quality instruction and intervention; ongoing professional growth for teachers in effective instruction; and heavy support from families. A total of 41% of third graders are reading below grade level. In addition, the number of third graders with reading and related problems rose by 37% since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. People were shocked earlier this week to learn of the number of young children killed under the watch of the state Department of Children and Family Services. The agency has been hemorrhaging staff and has been unable to keep up with reports of children being beaten and sexually abused in their own homes. DCFS jobs and budgets were slashed under Gov. Bobby Jindal, but funding hasn’t been restored since Gov. John Bel Edwards took office. National politics dipped into Louisiana for an expensive meal last week when Herschel Walker, the famed University of Georgia running back now running for a hotly contested U.S. Senate race, came to New Orleans to raise money. Walker is a Republican attempting to unseat Sen. Raphael Warnock, a Georgia Democrat who was elected in January 2021. The race could decide which party controls the U.S. Senate. Walker attended a $500 per person fundraiser at Drago’s restaurant in Metairie. Afterward, Walker and his wife went to dinner at Commander’s Palace. And the state remembered long forgotten Black veterans when the governor last week turned dirt on a $350,000 African American Veterans Monument to honor freed and formerly enslaved Louisiana soldiers who fought for the Union during the Civil War as well as soldiers from World War I and II, the Vietnam War, the Iraq War and more recent conflicts. Louisiana is home to more than 80,000 Black veterans, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. About a third of 1.3 million enlisted soldiers, sailors and airmen are African American. The monument was designed by Shaleen Jones, who teaches at Xavier University in New Orleans, and should be finished by next summer. Wednesday will be a fairly busy day at the State Capitol. An Administration of State Transportation and Development Services task force will study what other states do as they consider reorganizing the state Department of Transportation and Development. Then DOTD will give an update of Interstate 10 widening. And lawmakers will start studying proposals for setting up systems for electric vehicles. As always, check throughout the day for the latest Louisiana political news at theadvocate.com/politics or NOLA.com/politics and on Twitter at @MarkBallardCNB, @tegbridges, @samkarlin, @WillSentell. Here are a dozen articles, commentaries and editorials that will catch you up for the week to come. One last item: Thank you to our subscribers. Your support means a great deal to us. If you're not yet a subscriber, we’ve got a special offer you can check out here. – Mark Ballard | 
