KEARNEY, Neb. (AP) — Residence hall students at the University of Nebraska at Kearney recycled more than 13,000 pounds (5896.76 kilograms) of material during a six-week recycling competition between residence halls dubbed “Recycle-Mania.”

3,250 pounds (1474.19 kilograms) more was recycled this year than last year’s 9,457 pounds (4289.67 kilograms).

Associate director of residence life LeAnn Jochum says that the effort keeps waste out of landfills.

Men’s Hall won this year’s competition with an average of 15.7 pounds (7.12 kilograms) recycled per resident. The residence hall with the greatest improvement over last year was Mantor-Randall Hall, with an average of 10.7 pounds (4.85 kilograms) per resident.

UNK’s Residence Life and Sustainability Committee sponsored the event.

KEARNEY, Neb. (AP) — The University of Nebraska Board of Regents has approved a $6 million upgrade to the student union on the Kearney campus.

The board on Friday approved the plan, which will include the addition of a Chick-fil-A restaurant, an expansion of Starbucks, a new dining area and a meeting space at the University of Nebraska at Kearney student union.

The project is slated to begin as early as this month and will renovate the building entrance and adjacent corridors, reconfigure meeting and dining spaces, update interiors, fix issues with the heating and air conditioning systems and address lighting and sewer issues.

Vice Chancellor for Business and Finance Jon Watts says the renovation will enhance the social and student activities hub of the university.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska wildlife officials will again be collecting spawning walleyes this spring to gather their eggs for stocking purposes.

The state Game and Parks Commission says the fish collections will be done at Sherman Reservoir, Merritt Reservoir and Lake McConaughy.

That means parts of those lakes will be restricted beginning Saturday.

The collection will continue until officials have enough eggs. The eggs will be transferred to Nebraska state fish hatcheries. Adult walleyes are released back into the lake.

The commission plans to stock nearly 30 million walleye in lakes and rivers across the state.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A University of Nebraska Medical Center tower in Omaha will be lit in blue this weekend to observe Autism Awareness Month.

Officials say the Hope Tower, a 120-foot light tower located on the UNMC campus, will be cast in blue light starting Saturday night. The lights will stay on until dawn on Sunday.

The lighting event is one of many around the country participating in the Light It Up Blue effort, observed on April 2 and dedicated to raising awareness of autism. Among others participating is the White House, which will be illuminated in blue on Sunday.

About 1 in 68 school-aged children has autism or related disorders, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported last year.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The amber waves of grain are about to turn into bean pods as farmers report they’ll plant millions of acres in soybeans instead of wheat this year as a global glut of the grain has made it unprofitable to grow.

In its annual prospective plantings report released Friday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said wheat acres will be the lowest on record this year at 46.1 million acres and soybean planting will be at a record high of 89.5 million acres.

The United States has more than 1 billion bushels of surplus wheat in storage and the oversupply has driven wheat farmers in several states including Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio and South Dakota to shift previously planted wheat acres to soybeans.

“The big trend there is that wheat is grown in just about every continent around the world except Antarctica so those acres elsewhere have increased dramatically. The U.S. has lost production to the rest of the world,” said Todd Hultman, a grain market analyst for DTN, an Omaha, Nebraska-based agriculture market data provider.

He said wheat overproduction caused prices to collapse and made production unprofitable. Good growing weather for wheat worldwide for four consecutive years has been a contributing factor, he said.

Corn has experienced a similar trend leading farmers to cut corn acres 4 percent from last year to 90 million, the USDA report said.

If this year’s planting weather favors soybeans and more acres are shifted out of corn, this could be the first year since 1983 that farmers planted more acres in soybeans than corn.

Soybeans have produced large harvests too, but it is a hot commodity around the world with demand highest in China where soybean meal feeds pigs, cows and fish in a culture increasingly seeking to eat more meat. The record global demand has maintained more favorable prices for soybeans making them more profitable to grow than corn or wheat, said Chad Hart, an agricultural economist at Iowa State University.

It all shouldn’t change much at the grocery store except that plentiful grain and soybean supplies lead to low livestock feed prices which help keep the cost of producing beef lower.

Friday’s report is based on a survey of farmers and is the first indication for the year of planting intentions.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A commission that will decide whether to approve the Keystone XL in Nebraska is allowing the pipeline’s opponents to formally participate in its proceedings.

The Nebraska Public Service Commission’s chairman announced Friday that he will let groups such as the Bold Alliance, the Sierra Club and the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska become intervenors in the case. Intervenors are allowed to write legal briefs, cross-examine witnesses and present formal arguments alongside pipeline developer TransCanada’s attorneys.

Commission Chairman Tim Schram says the groups can only discuss issues outlined in state law. The tribes can only focus on the project’s social and cultural impact, and environmental groups can only make arguments about the project’s impact on soil, plant life and other natural resources.

Landowners along the proposed route were also granted intervenor status.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska lawmakers have given first-round approval to a bill that would eliminate a two-year waiting period for felons to vote.

Senators voted 28-8 Friday to advance the bill. Its sponsor, Sen. Justin Wayne of Omaha, says the current law is outdated and based on a history of disenfranchising black voters.

He says the waiting period runs counter to the Legislature’s goals of reducing prison crowding and recidivism because voting encourages civic engagement.

Sen. John Murante of Gretna says the bill could violate the state constitution and people convicted of voter fraud should not get their voting rights back. Murante is considering a run for Nebraska secretary of state.

MARCH 30, 2017 (OGALLALA, NEB.) — A man wanted in connection with a Nebraska homicide is in custody. Amedeus L. Leroux (DOB 9/8/01) turned himself in to Colorado authorities in Denver this afternoon, Thursday, Mar. 30, 2017.

Leroux, who was wanted on outstanding Nebraska and Colorado warrants, will be charged with second-degree murder in the Tuesday, March 28 stabbing death of John Fratis, 25, of Ogallala.

The Keith County Attorney’s Office is beginning the extradition process to have Leroux returned to Nebraska.

Lt. Tim Arnold of the Nebraska State Patrol expressed thanks to Nebraska and Colorado media and the public for their help. “The media spreading the word, and tips from the public helped greatly in this investigation.”

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — University of Nebraska-Lincoln officials say the Lied Center for Performing Arts has received a significant gift to support classical music performances.

The donation comes from 77-year-old Anabeth Hormel Cox, of Lincoln. At her request, the amount was not disclosed.

Lied Center officials announced the gift Thursday at a news conference. Following the announcement, the performing arts center revealed its classical music schedule for the 2017-18 season. Performances include the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra with Andre Watts on Oct. 12, the 2017 Van Cliburn Gold Medalist on Oct. 24 and the Berlin Philharmonic Piano Quartet on Feb. 21.