Salt Lake City School District to close four elementary schools this year
Salt Lake City School District officials voted Tuesday night to close four elementary schools in the district later this year.
The motion passed 4-3 at the Education Board meeting, signaling the closure of Hawthorne, M. Lynn Bennion, Mary W. Jackson and Riley Elementary Schools.
The closures were originally proposed in November after a months-long study, with Superintendent Elizabeth Grant saying the K-6 population in the city is getting smaller.
The four schools will close at the end of this school year, with associated boundary adjustments taking effect at the start of the 2024-2025 school year.
Sundance will screen three films sponsored by Utah Film Center
The Sundance film festival attracts submissions from all over the world, but three films being screened this year are close to home.
“Gaucho Gaucho,” “Porcelain War” and “Eternal You,” which get their world premieres during the festival this month, are all sponsored by the Utah Film Center through their Fiscal Sponsorship Program.
The program helps both local and global filmmakers and their projects, and has sponsored over 200 films since its inception a decade ago.
“Gaucho Gaucho” follows Argentine cowboys and cowgirls navigating the modern world. “Porcelain War”is about Ukrainian artists who choose to stay behind and fight Russian invasion. Both will be screened in the U.S. Documentary Competition.
“Eternal You” is about startups using AI to create avatars which allow relatives to talk with loved ones who’ve passed away. It will be in the World Cinema Documentary competition.
The Sundance film festival runs from Jan. 18 - 28. You can find in-person and online tickets on their website.
Utah Jazz receive innovation award for increasing access to watch games
The Utah Jazz have been recognized by the National Basketball Association (NBA) for efforts to increase access to broadcasts and improve viewing experience for fans of the team.
The team announced Tuesday it had received the inaugural NBA Team Viewership Innovation Award, which recognized parent company Smith Entertainment Group for making it more convenient, flexible and easy for Jazz fans to access both live games and insider team content.
Starting at the beginning of this basketball season, KJZZ, a sister station of KUTV, now airs Jazz games for free to anyone in Utah who owns a television. This and other strategies doubled the potential audience size for broadcasts across several states.
Fans who prefer streaming to television can also use the streaming platform Jazz+, which was introduced in June 2023 and launched a few months later. It allows monthly, annual, or single game subscriptions.
