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Could there be some light at the end of the coronavirus tunnel in Pensacola? That appears to be the belief of Mayor Grover Robinson, who shared the latest numbers Monday.

“Cases – the positivity rate is 3.85%  from March 20 in Escambia County; that’s down significantly from before, although we’ve been at 2.52 – 2.52 and 1.33 on the 19th,” said Robinson.

Speaking at a now-reopened City Hall, the mayor added that hospitalizations at the three major hospitals – Baptist, West Florida and Ascension-Sacred Heart – are continuing to remain under 30.

Until she came to the United States in 2010, all Basma Alawee had known was her life in Iraq. She had her family, her friends and her career in engineering. Once her husband started working with American troops, they became a target. They were granted a special immigration visa and started a new life in Jacksonville, Florida. 

“Most of the time refugees leave home taking nothing with them, they cannot even take their documents, and sometimes in many cases, like me, couldn’t even have time to say goodbye to loved ones,” she said. 

On a 5-4 vote, the University Of West Florida Board Of Trustees approved changing the name of the T.T. Wentworth Museum in downtown Pensacola.

The idea for changing the name stems from discovery of a massive amount of memorabilia about Wentworth’s time as a Ku Klux Klan leader in the 1920s and 30s. If approved by the state, the museum would be known as the Pensacola Museum of History at the University of West Florida.

Gov. Ron DeSantis is proposing a $106 million civics education initiative for Florida's public schools, supporting civics literacy and education.

“I’m urging the Legislature to take up this proposal during the current legislative session, using the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund,” said the governor. “So the money’s there; we need to figure out the best way to use it.”

Speaking in Naples on Wednesday, DeSantis said his plan contains an incentive for teachers who earn a "Florida Civics Seal of Excellence" designation.

Look for a stormy St. Patrick’s Day in the Florida Panhandle and south Alabama, as a portion of Winter Storm Xylia moves across the region.

The forecast thinking hasn’t changed all that much, according to Megan Borowski -- a meteorologist at FPREN – the Florida Public Radio Emergency Network.

“We’re still expecting strong thunderstorms to roll through late Wednesday night into early Thursday morning,” Borowski said. “We could get a couple of strong storms in our area [Wednesday] during the day, but that line of the strongest storms shouldn’t arrive until Wednesday night.”

For the latest weather update click here.

With less than a week until the beginning of spring (March 20), residents in the Florida Panhandle and south Alabama will get a preview of storms that are typical of the Vernal Equinox.

Despite the leisure and hospitality industry still struggling during the coronavirus pandemic, Florida’s unemployment rate continues to improve as vaccinations increase and people return to the workforce.

The state Department of Economic Opportunity reported Monday that Florida’s unemployment rate decreased to 4.8% in January, down 0.3 percentage points from a revised December rate.

For parents of high school students, SAT scores are a huge deal, with college admissions and scholarships on the line. Paying tutors are a form of preparation, but scammers are also lurking about and tricking parents into paying for bogus SAT prep materials.

Here’s how it can work: you get an unsolicited call from a person claiming to be from the College Board, the company responsible for SAT tests, or another educational organization.

Do you know what a social worker does for a living? March is National Social Work Month, so WUWF’s Bob Barrett got together with three social workers and got some answers.

Sandra Crawford, Amanda Helm and Shannon Massingale are all licensed certified social workers at The Lakeview Center in Pensacola. We recently got together for a conversation over Zoom to talk about social workers, what they do, how they feel about their jobs and their clients and what it takes to thrive in their careers. Here is a sample of that conversation.

At the Statehouse, major legislation intended to shield businesses and health care providers from lawsuits related to COVID-19 is headed to the full Senate after its Rules Committee this week merged two bills into one lengthy proposal.

One bill dealt with liability of health-care providers; the other initially deals only with liability of non-health care businesses. Sponsor Jeff Brandes (BRAND - iss) describes the decision to roll the bills into one measure as a strategic move, as negotiations move forward with House leaders.

Local governments in Florida and their ability to strictly enforce measures to reduce the spread of the coronavirus are being targeted by Gov. Ron DeSantis.

DeSantis’ executive order issued late Wednesday requires local governments to cancel fines issued for violating local COVID-19 orders between March 1, 2020 and this past Wednesday.