Goodwill Industries of North Louisiana received accreditation from an international organization for its programs that help adults get jobs.

Amanda Joy Bell-Gouthiere has been named executive director of the Shreveport Opera.

Inmates at the Bossier Parish jail are getting some of the best medical care the region has to offer. It doesn't cost the parish one penny, but ultimately taxpayers are footing the bill.

Shreveport police clear up an injury accident on northbound I-49 that sent the driver of a Toyota Solara to the hospital with serious injuries.

WASHINGTON — Barack Obama's groundbreaking candidacy has raised high expectations among blacks and whites that his election would make race relations in the United States better. A USA TODAY/Gallup Poll of nearly 2,000 Americans also finds about a third of both groups say the defeat of the first black to win a major party's presidential nomination would worsen race relations. The survey underscores the unusual stakes in this election even though neither Democrat Obama nor Republican John McCain has sought to cast their contest as a matter of racial politics but rather one of different prescriptions for the nation. Obama is slightly ahead of McCain in Gallup's daily nationwide tracking poll, 46%-43%. "Much of the Obama campaign has been fueled by hope that if he is successful he could address the most divisive issue in American politics, which is the issue of race," says political scientist Vincent Hutchings of the University of Michigan, but he says blacks and whites have conflicting perspectives on what that means. FIND MORE STORIES IN: United States | Illinois | African | University of Michigan | Hispanics | Republican John McCain | Al Sharpton | Jesse Jackson | Gallup | Exhibit A | Democrat Obama | Vincent Hutchings "Many blacks look to Obama to help address issues of racial inequality," Hutchings says. "For many whites, Obama's success is Exhibit A that racism or racial barriers are not entirely evaporated but are really not a major problem in America any more." Tensions between black leaders about the right approach to problems in the black community were evident last week when Jesse Jackson, who twice sought the Democratic nomination, apologized for using a crude phrase to criticize Obama in private comments heard on a live microphone. The Illinois senator has emerged as the leading spokesman for black America: 29% of blacks name him as the person who speaks for them on issues of race, more than all other public figures combined. Six percent identify civil-rights activist Al Sharpton, 4% cite Jackson. Among other findings: • A majority of blacks, whites and Hispanics say Obama's election would make race relations better. Blacks are most optimistic: 23% say it would make relations "a lot better," compared to 13% of whites. • A majority of whites and Hispanics and 45% of blacks say Obama's defeat wouldn't affect race relations, but 18% of blacks predict a loss would make race relations "a lot worse;" just 6% of whites agree. • By overwhelming margins, those surveyed say Obama's election would open up opportunities for other African Americans in national politics.

The Caddo registrar of voters office will observe state Voter Registration and Education week with a parishwide voter drive at Shreve Memorial Library branches. It runs today through Friday.

Two animals were hit by vehicles on Caddo Parish roads early this morning. Both happened in the northern part of the parish, near Blanchard. Deputies say a donkey was killed about 3 a.m. as a herd of animals wandered onto state Highway 1. The animal was struck by a car and a SUV. The drivers of the vehicles were not injured, according to deputies. At about the same time, a horse was stuck by a vehicle on Shreveport-Blanchard Highway. Deputies say the horse received a leg injury and may have to be put down. The driver of that accident left the scene.

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) _ New child support laws passed this year by the Louisiana Legislature could mean an increase in the financial commitment paying parents make to their children. Lawmakers debated more than a dozen bills relating to the management of children after their parents break up. Nine were approved by the legislators and ended up on the governor's desk. Robbie Endris, executive director of the Department of Social Services' Support Enforcement Services Division, says one of the bills that made it into law allows judges to add special expenses for camps, music lessons and sports to child-support obligations. Tamithia Shaw, co-chair of the child-support guidelines review committee, says her committee found that after a divorce, the noncustodial parent is less willing to pay for activities.

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) _ Here are the winning numbers selected Sunday in the Louisiana Lottery: Pick 3 0-1-8 (zero, one, eight) Maximum prize $500 Pick 4 3-3-6-1 (three, three, six, one) Maximum prize $5,000

Late Sunday, Caddo Parish deputies were investigating the discovery of the body of a Keithville man found in a pond.