Daily News Podcast: August 10, 2026

I'm Jaron Cohen with a W.E.KU Daily News podcast for August 10, 2006. Governor Andy Beshear announced Pine Mountain State Resort Park will receive millions of dollars in renovation. Lily Burris has more. Pine Mountain in southeast Kentucky will be getting $6.9 million for improvements to the lodge and accommodations. The work is part of ongoing upgrades to a number of state parks to help boost tourism. The renovations are scheduled to start in April 2027. On-site cottages will still be open for stays during the work and the park will remain open. Pine Mountain is one of the state's oldest parks. It's near the Kentucky Ridge State Forest. I'm Lily Burris in Richmond. The Dawson Springs Independent School District is joining the pre-K-for-all pilot program that Governor Andy Beshear launched earlier this year. During a press conference recently, Dawson Springs, Superintendent Lenny Whalen, said kids that attend preschool perform better throughout their educational careers and that he wants to make sure students in his district have that opportunity. When fewer than half of Kentucky students are ready for kindergarten, we need to act. We need to make sure every student. has a chance to succeed. Well, and says the pre-K program will serve around 160 kids in Dawson Springs over the next two years. Dawson Springs is the fifth district and first in western Kentucky to join the pilot program. Typically, the state only funds preschool for students from low-income households or those with disabilities. The pilot initiative was created earlier this year under an executive order from Andy Beshear after the state legislator declined to fund the governor's proposal to fund a universal public pre-K model. Kentucky State University President Kofi Akokpo had his contract renewed by the school's board after alumni expressed no confidence. He's been in the position since July of 2023. The Kentucky State University National Alumni Association voted no confidence in Akopo earlier this month and asked the Board of Regents to not renew his contract. The alumni cited concerns with accreditation, finances, and safety, as some of the reasons the contract should not be renewed. The board chair expressed enthusiasm for a coqpo in his work at the university in a statement released after the meeting. Under a state program, some Kentucky fishermen can use experimental tools and methods aimed at reducing Asian carp populations. Will Darnal went out with a far-western Kentucky crew to see how they're targeting the highly invasive species. Wade Robbins uses a large net known as a sane to collect tens of thousands of pounds of carp in one swoop below Berkeley Dam. His net typically wouldn't be allowed under state regulations. But Robbins worked with the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources Program to try out something that would target the invasive Asian carp, which have dominated some of the state's waterways.