Police report reveals how child with autism got out of house before drowning in Fort Myers pondFort Myers Firecats 11U team headed to Pop Warner Super Bowl
FORT MYERS Police report reveals how child with autism got out of house before drowning in Fort Myers pond A police report has been released revealing new details on how a 7-year-old boy with autism was able to leave his home before drowning in Fort Myers.
FORT MYERS Fort Myers Firecats 11U team headed to Pop Warner Super Bowl The Fort Myers Firecats 11U football team won the Southeast Region to earn the program’s first trip to the Pop Warner Super Bowl.
NAPLES New details released on former city employee accused of embezzlement More details have been released on purchases made by a former Naples city employee accused of embezzlement.
Hong Kong investor buys former Sears at Edison Mall for $5.8M Edison Florida Real Estate LLC bought the buildings at 4125 Cleveland Ave. on Nov. 18.
FEMA to hold farm recovery events for Lee and Hendry counties FEMA is set to hold a farm recovery event for both Lee and Hendry counties to educate farmers on available government assistance programs.
FEMA approves $4.58 million for Charlotte County debris removal FEMA has approved an additional $114 million to reimburse Florida communities for debris removal after hurricanes Milton, Helene and Debby.
NAPLES Attorney for Naples mayor granted deposition to question officer for DUI arrest The attorney defending the mayor of Naples after she was arrested for DUI has been granted his request to depose a Naples police officer who responded to a call saying she was driving drunk.
HENDRY COUNTY Man dies in construction-related accident in Hendry County A man has died after a construction-related accident early this morning at a South Florida Water Management project area in Hendry County.
FORT MYERS BEACH Precautionary boil water notice in effect for Fort Myers Beach A precautionary boil water notice is in effect for all residents of Fort Myers Beach due to a water main break on Estero Boulevard.
LEE COUNTY Lee Commissioners accept $22.7M state grant for water management project at Larry Kiker Preserve The Lee Board of County Commissioners voted on Tuesday to accept a $22.7 million Resilient Florida Grant for a water management project.
LEE COUNTY Lee Commissioners vote to adopt Lee County Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan The Lee Board of County Commissioners voted Tuesday to approve a resolution adopting the Lee County Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan.
FORT MYERS Accused prowler arrested after deputies find cell phone and ID at Lee County crime scene Deputies have arrested a man after discovering his cell phone and driver’s license at the scene where they responded to calls about a suspicious person.
FORT MYERS Precautionary lockdowns for 2 Fort Myers schools lifted The Lee County School District has lifted its precautionary lockdowns on two Fort Myers schools early Tuesday morning.
Car engulfed in flames on West Villages Parkway in Sarasota A head-on collision that ended in a fire occurred on River Road, south of West Villages Parkway, in Sarasota County.
Caloosahatchee Bridge drivers endure traffic delays due to construction running late Motorists on the Caloosahatchee Bridge in Fort Myers endured severe traffic delays Tuesday morning due to the Florida Department of Transportation pedestrian walkway project.
FORT MYERS Police report reveals how child with autism got out of house before drowning in Fort Myers pond A police report has been released revealing new details on how a 7-year-old boy with autism was able to leave his home before drowning in Fort Myers.
FORT MYERS Fort Myers Firecats 11U team headed to Pop Warner Super Bowl The Fort Myers Firecats 11U football team won the Southeast Region to earn the program’s first trip to the Pop Warner Super Bowl.
NAPLES New details released on former city employee accused of embezzlement More details have been released on purchases made by a former Naples city employee accused of embezzlement.
Hong Kong investor buys former Sears at Edison Mall for $5.8M Edison Florida Real Estate LLC bought the buildings at 4125 Cleveland Ave. on Nov. 18.
FEMA to hold farm recovery events for Lee and Hendry counties FEMA is set to hold a farm recovery event for both Lee and Hendry counties to educate farmers on available government assistance programs.
FEMA approves $4.58 million for Charlotte County debris removal FEMA has approved an additional $114 million to reimburse Florida communities for debris removal after hurricanes Milton, Helene and Debby.
NAPLES Attorney for Naples mayor granted deposition to question officer for DUI arrest The attorney defending the mayor of Naples after she was arrested for DUI has been granted his request to depose a Naples police officer who responded to a call saying she was driving drunk.
HENDRY COUNTY Man dies in construction-related accident in Hendry County A man has died after a construction-related accident early this morning at a South Florida Water Management project area in Hendry County.
FORT MYERS BEACH Precautionary boil water notice in effect for Fort Myers Beach A precautionary boil water notice is in effect for all residents of Fort Myers Beach due to a water main break on Estero Boulevard.
LEE COUNTY Lee Commissioners accept $22.7M state grant for water management project at Larry Kiker Preserve The Lee Board of County Commissioners voted on Tuesday to accept a $22.7 million Resilient Florida Grant for a water management project.
LEE COUNTY Lee Commissioners vote to adopt Lee County Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan The Lee Board of County Commissioners voted Tuesday to approve a resolution adopting the Lee County Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan.
FORT MYERS Accused prowler arrested after deputies find cell phone and ID at Lee County crime scene Deputies have arrested a man after discovering his cell phone and driver’s license at the scene where they responded to calls about a suspicious person.
FORT MYERS Precautionary lockdowns for 2 Fort Myers schools lifted The Lee County School District has lifted its precautionary lockdowns on two Fort Myers schools early Tuesday morning.
Car engulfed in flames on West Villages Parkway in Sarasota A head-on collision that ended in a fire occurred on River Road, south of West Villages Parkway, in Sarasota County.
Caloosahatchee Bridge drivers endure traffic delays due to construction running late Motorists on the Caloosahatchee Bridge in Fort Myers endured severe traffic delays Tuesday morning due to the Florida Department of Transportation pedestrian walkway project.
In this photo taken on Sept. 17, 2019, Ryan Chapman and other students starting Staffordshire University’s esports degree course play “Counter-Strike” in the school’s new London digital studio. A number of U.K. and U.S. universities are launching degrees in esports, or competitive multiplayer videogaming, to capitalize on the booming industry’s growing demand for skilled professionals. (AP Photo/Kelvin Chang) On their first week in class, a group of students is playing a first-person shooter video game in a sleek new digital studio. It’s their introduction to the degree in esports they’ve all enrolled in. The group clicking away on their mice are at the University of Staffordshire, one of several U.K. and U.S. schools launching programs aimed at capitalizing on the booming industry’s need for skilled professionals. Ryan Chapman, 18, said his parents were “skeptical at first” about studying esports, or competitive multiplayer videogaming. “But now they understand how big the industry is growing, the pace it’s growing at. They’re now really all for it because it’s a great industry to start to get into,” said Chapman, who was among the students in the lab playing Counter-Strike, one of the most popular esports games. The University of Staffordshire last year launched its bachelor’s and master’s esports programs, in which students mainly learn marketing and management skills tailored to the industry. This autumn, it’s expanding the program to London while other schools are also debuting esports degree courses, including Britain’s Chichester University, Virginia’s Shenandoah University, Becker College in Massachusetts and The Ohio State University. In Asia, where esports has seen strong growth, schools in Singapore and China offer courses. The global esports market is expected to surge to $1.1 billion this year, up $230 million from 2018 on growth in sponsorships, merchandise and ticket sales, according to Newzoo . The research firm expects the global esports audience to grow in 2019 to about 454 million as fans tune in on livestreaming platforms such as Twitch and Microsoft’s Mixer. Esports tournaments have become a cultural phenomenon and now rival traditional sports events in size and scale. Big competitions are held in arenas where thousands of fans watch big-name professional video gamers compete for lucrative prize pools. Esports leagues have franchises in North America, Europe and Asia. The biggest names, such as Fortnite superstar Tyler “Ninja” Blevins, can earn millions in prize money and livestreaming deals. Esports are even set to be a medal event at the Southeast Asian Games in the Philippines in November. Dozens of U.S. colleges have offered varsity level esports competitions for years. But some schools are taking it a step further by adding courses as the industry’s boom drives demand for professionals who know how to, for example, organize esports tournaments. New niche degrees partly highlight the changing economy, but they also reflect the “need to communicate to parents and students that there will be a job waiting for someone once they earn a degree,” which may include hefty tuition fees and student loans to pay for them, said Joni Finney, director of the University of Pennsylvania’s Institute for Research on Higher Education. She worried that some degrees are too specialized and that some schools are launching them to offset falling enrolment. “It’s really up to the faculty of those institutions to step up and say, ‘You know, a degree in business will cover these kinds of jobs,’ rather than saying we have a degree in a certain job category,” Finney said. Becker College formally launched its Bachelor of Science in esports management this month after an initial “soft release” last year. “It’s no longer kids playing games in their basement,” said Alan Ritacco, dean of Becker College’s School of Design and Technology. The top esports players now earn almost as much as the highest paid stars in traditional sports like golf or tennis, he said. The schools emphasize that their courses aren’t about just playing video games. “People are unaware of the industry that goes behind esports,” said Matt Huxley, a lecturer at Staffordshire University’s Digital Institute London, a new outpost in tech hub Here East that the university, which is based near Birmingham, England, opened so students could be closer to companies in the capital. Huxley, who teaches a class on organizing tournaments, said learning about esports was akin to studying sports management. “If you were to go and study to be a director of football you’re not playing football, you’re learning the business behind how (player) transfers work, how you run a stadium and all those kind of operational things.” Chichester University hired former pro gamer Rams Singh, known as R2K, as a senior lecturer for its program, which includes playing games such as FIFA and League of Legends as part of the course. Ohio State is poised to launch an esports and game studies undergraduate major that will include the application of games to health and medicine. A business focus helps to ease worries among students and parents about paying tuition for degrees that have no track record. In Britain, standard tuition fees are set at 9,250 pounds ($11,430) a year while the U.S. programs charge as much as $36,000 a year. “There’s always going to be risks but I have zero regrets,” said Ellis Celia, 26, who is also starting the Staffordshire course. The industry “can only go up at this point,” she said.