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Friday's Afternoon Update

Spring stunner: Jobs report blows past forecasts

The labor market roared ahead in April as milder weather helped employers add 288,000 jobs — the most in more than two years. The unemployment rate fell to 6.3% from 6.7% — the lowest since September 2008, the Labor Department said Friday. More at USA Today, the AP, and Reuters.


What In-State Tuition Means For One Undocumented Student In Florida

Mayra Rubio was 3 months old when she moved to Homestead with her brother and parents from Guadalajara, Mexico. After she graduated from South Dade Senior High, she realized she could not afford the out-of-state tuition for public colleges and universities. More at StateImpact Florida.


Why boomers are retiring to college

Tourism Trends

So long, 'Cocoon'

pinellas tourism
It’s about more than the beaches these days. Visit St. Pete/Clearwater, the Pinellas County tourism agency, launched a campaign Thursday to portray the area as a younger, hipper and more sophisticated destination for a younger and more diverse demographic of tourists. This ad is designed to appeal to Pinellas’ growing market of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender tourists.

» Full story from the Tampa Bay Times

Many older Americans are trading the leisure circuit for the college campus in retirement. "University-based retirement communities” — or UBRC’s for short — are retirement communities that have a formal or informal relationship to a nearby university, and as a result, offer their residents academic benefits that others cannot. More at PBS.


Aviation business chooses Miramar for customer service center

Lufthansa Technik, an aviation maintenance, repair and overhaul industry, will expand its South Florida regional office in Miramar, creating 24 jobs, the governor's office announced Thursday. The expansion will create a capital investment of $114,000. More at the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.


AutoNation April new vehicle sales up 14 percent

AutoNation's new vehicle sales climbed 14 percent in April from the prior-year period, the best performance for the month in eight years. The nation's largest automotive retailer said Friday that it sold 25,669 new vehicles in April. More at the AP.

Wild Florida
Headline

yellow-banded millipedeThey're sneaky, they break into homes and they're beginning to bug a lot of people. They also serve as an organic hallucinogen for monkeys, who eat them to score a cheap high. Experts caution humans against doing likewise. They’re the yellow-banded millipede, yet another exotic invader to South Florida. Learn more about these creatures and take the quiz to answer the question: Which critter are you? More from the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.