Alabama

After a bus driver shortage resulted in a delayed or canceled routes and stranded students last year, St. Louis Public Schools has a new $30 million contract with Zum Services to provide and track buses for 220 routes.

Commenting on a Facebook post asking for their reactions to Alabama's school cellphone restrictions, many parents voiced their support, and some said the policy should apply to teachers, too.

Administrative systems at the county 911 center were impacted by a cybersecurity incident, though radio communications and certain dispatch functions were unaffected. Officials are taking steps to contain the issue.

The state Office of Information Technology reported the breach, which is affecting systems across the state. Some state employee usernames and passwords were compromised in the incident, uncovered Friday night.

K-12 students will have to store any wireless communication devices in their cars or lockers during the school day. Gov. Kay Ivey is expected to sign the bill, as she said in February that she supported it.

The university will offer a bachelor’s degree in Esports Performance Management and Coaching, much of which will focus on the health and wellness of an esports athlete.

An informative event last week hosted attendees from law enforcement, the judicial system, private businesses and educational institutions such as Troy University, Wallace Community College and local high schools.

New legislation in Alabama bans K-12 students from using portable communication devices on campus during the school day and requires that they be trained on the risks of social media.

Legislation active in each state focuses on the functions of IT agencies. One such bill would replace Florida Digital Service, while Alabama representatives may add cybersecurity to the Office of Information Technology’s duties.

Alabama and Oklahoma are the latest states to block AI tools with overseas ties from being used on government devices. Concerns include a lack of security as well as data collection and storage practices.

Gov. Kay Ivey released the group’s final report on GenAI use in state agencies. It recommends a standardized framework, stronger oversight and training to guide the responsible use of the technology.

Police officials say modern tech like license plate readers placed throughout their cities has been instrumental in aiding patrol officers in locating stolen vehicles, wanted suspects and missing people.

The Alabama State Department of Education and the nonprofit Be Pro Be Proud launched a mobile workforce development tour, bringing virtual and augmented reality job site simulations to students throughout the state.

Mayor Randall Woodfin writes about how collaboration between cities helped shape the Birmingham Talks program, which was inspired by work in other cities that used tech to help children with language.

Two area law enforcement agencies recently received grants that will allow one agency to beef up security at its county courthouse and the other to help traumatized officers.

A two-part grant is helping local hazardous materials planners in Alabama prepare for disaster, doing so by awarding a mix of state and federal funding.

A bill introduced by Rep. Patrick Sellers, D-Jefferson County, would require the Alabama Department of Education and local districts to adopt a policy for the 2026-27 school year restricting cellphone use during the day.

Work is set to commence this month on the fourth phase of the Robotics Technology Park, run by state agency Alabama Industrial Development and Training. It will focus on building and working with electric vehicles. Opening is expected in spring 2026.