News from around the nation.

Trump admin to halt new grant funding to Harvard; Environmental groups fight plan to add warehouses in CA's Inland Empire; Detroit area pollution worsens, as 'clean vehicle' debate rolls on; Appreciation can go a long way for AL teachers under pressure.

Transcript

The Public News Service Tuesday afternoon update, I'm Mike Clifford.

The Trump administration announced Monday it's pausing all new federal grant funding for Harvard, that from Axios.

They report the Ivy League University has been at the center of President Trump's escalating war against colleges and universities as he seeks to influence their priorities through federal funds.

Harvard is currently suing the administration, which froze $2.2 billion in federal funds after the university rejected a litany of demands.

And next to California, where a big warehouse project proposed for the Inland Empire is being challenged in court tomorrow by a coalition of environmental justice groups.

Clean air advocates want to block a 213-acre business park in Bloomington approved by San Bernardino County, saying the town is already choking on exhaust fumes from truck traffic.

Katie McKeown is an attorney for the Western Center on Law and Poverty, representing one of the plaintiffs, the People's Collective for Environmental Justice.

We're claiming that they did not take into account the air pollution that the park would cause, that they didn't consider alternatives to placement of the park in a different place in the county where there is less pollution.

The judge has already ordered the county to redo its environmental impact report.

I'm Suzanne Potter.

Meantime, air pollution in Motor City is getting worse.

According to a new report that cites transportation emissions as the primary culprit.

The American Lung Association's 2025 State of the Air Report ranks Detroit, Warren and Ann Arbor as six worst in the nation for year-round particle pollution.

Last year, they ranked 13th.

Ann Arbor's Ecology Center reports passenger vehicles and light-duty trucks account for 58 percent of transportation emissions, and Detroit is among the most challenging places to live with asthma.

Laura Kate Bender is with the American Lung Association.

If you are a person with asthma, a kid, a senior, someone who works or plays outdoors, or if you have lung disease, that could put you at greater risk.

But anyone's health can be harmed from breathing unhealthy levels of ozone and particle pollution.

While most people like the concept of cleaner vehicles, some, including the American Petroleum Institute, argue that strict mandates limit consumer choice and strain the power grid.

Crystal Blair reporting.

And it's Teacher Appreciation Week.

Alabama educators are reflecting on the pressures they face both inside and outside the classroom.

Among them is Brian Billy with Teach for America Alabama.

He points to a national report that finds only one in three teachers say they feel satisfied with their resources and support.

We hear from our teachers that we support that the work is overwhelming, that it is a lot, that they're being asked to do so much.

Billy says while Alabama has made progress with legislation like the TEAMS Act for math and science teachers and paid parental leave, at the same time, teachers often have to take on second jobs and adding duties.

This is Public News Service.

Jewish students from Columbia University and Barnard College are speaking with members of the Congress today, and they've got a lot to say.

They'll be addressing the encampments and protests against the Israel-Hamas war, the Trump administration's attacks on Columbia University, and sharing their views on freeing international student Mahmoud Khalil.

Columbia undergraduate student Sarah Boris says politicians and media outlets spread misinformation about life in the encampments, particularly that they were anti-Semitic.

It was really interesting to hear that when as a Jewish student I was literally doing Chag Dala through the gate because I wasn't allowed on campus to practice my religion.

And I was doing it with all these Jewish students that were part of the encampment and found so much meaning in it.

She says she was part of the first encampment, which lasted about three days.

Boris says it was a spiritual time being part of a movement aligning with her values.

She wants members of Congress to understand what life was like in the encampments and how it shouldn't be used in attacks on free speech.

I'm Edwin J. Vieira.

And next to Indiana, where activists with the 5501 movement will hold new protests this summer against the Trump administration.

More now from our Joe Ulori.

Elisa Advani with Indiana 5501 says local organizers will lead the new events.

Advani says the movement wants to fight government overreach and protect constitutional rights.

It's a national group.

It was designed specifically so that there would be coordinated protests in every state on the same day.

And it's grown exponentially.

Now we've had protest groups pop up by the 10s, 20s, 30s across every state.

Critics say the protests exaggerate federal actions.

Some argue they turn legal and policy debates into political fights.

And finally, President Donald Trump signed an executive order which could open national marine monuments to commercial fishing.

This includes the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument off the coast of Cape Cod.

The protected area holds an abundance of aquatic plant and animal species and serves as an ideal feeding ground for squid, whales, dolphins and sharks.

Priscilla Brooks with the Conservation Law Foundation says it's called the Serengeti of the Sea for a reason.

It's truly an amazing place and it supports an incredible diversity of marine wildlife.

She says opening the area to fishing would sacrifice decades of scientific progress for short-term gain.

Fishing groups say restrictions hurt their bottom line and that the gear they use remains far from the protected monuments below.

The executive order states that America should be the world's dominant seafood leader and calls for the suspension of any regulations that burden America's commercial fishing industry.

Trump has also signed an executive order specifically targeting the Pacific Islands Heritage Marine National Monument, one of the world's biggest ocean reserves just west of Hawaii.

I'm Katherine Carley.

This is Mike Clifford for Public News Service, member and listener supported.

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