BARBADOS: Task force going after Jamaica gangs. Jamaica's National Security Minister, Senator Colonel Trevor MacMillan, says a joint Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) and Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) Task Force is going after the most serious of the 150 gangs believed to be operating in the island, as authorities seek to put the brakes on spiralling crime. Full article

BARBADOS: Jamaican students to be searched at school. The searching of students for weapons at schools across Jamaica has been given approval by Education Minister Andrew Holness, who has at the same time declared war on criminals. Full article

BERMUDA: School Students Ride Free. The Ministry of Tourism and Transport has devised an action plan to implement free public transportation for school children this fall, beginning September 8th, 2008, Premier Dr. Ewart F. Brown announced today. Full article

BERMUDA: Young bike racer dies after racetrack crash. Toriano Wilson - 'the golden child' of Bermuda motor racing - has died after being involved in a high-speed crash at the Virginia International Raceway yesterday. Full article

BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS: Master William McIntyre of Cedar School is the BVI's Finalist for the 2008 Conde Nast Youth Essay Competition. The 16th Annual Conde Nast Traveler "My Caribbean" Youth Essay Competition, sponsored by Conde Nast Traveler Magazine and the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) is designed to introduce the benefits of tourism to children in the region and reward them for knowledge of their country.  Full article

CUBA: Cuban Women Celebrate Social Integration. This Saturday, Cuban women celebrate the 48th anniversary of the Federation of Cuban Women (FMC), an organization that advocates rights, equality and integration of women. Full article

DOMINICA: National Youth Council in shock over president's resignation. The National Youth Council (NYC) is presently in shock after the resignation of its President Kelvar Darroux. FUll article

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: FLACSO hands students the tools to understand politics, policy. The Latin American Faculty of Social Sciences( FLACSO) today opened its Diploma in Political Science conceived as a specialist program to provide students the theoretical and practical tools necessary to observe, analyze and discuss politics and policy. Full article

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Dominican teachers agree with Education Ministry shakeup. "Although Alejandrina German, ex minister of Education was always receptive and willing to find solution to the problems of the teachers, a change at the top of the Education Ministry  was pertinent," said Dominican Teachers Association (ADP) president Maria Teresa Cabrera. Full article

JAMAICA: Some churches shun HIV-positive Jamaicans. For three years, she found comfort in her church. So involved was the 41-year-old mother of three that she devoted herself to the choir and served as an usher, making several friends along the way. Full article

JAMAICA:  Police youth clubs to get gov't funding. POLICE Youth Clubs are to receive a major chunk of the $5 million in financing that the government has set aside for youth clubs this year, according to parliamentary secretary in the Ministry of Information, Youth and Culture, Senator Warren Newby. Full article

JAMAICA: Alternative education an option. A growing number of Jamaican parents are looking at alternative learning systems in an effort to have their children achieve academic excellence, given the increasing competitive nature of the classroom and work environments. Full article

JAMAICA: Student Loan Boost. The Government says it plans to increase the pool of funds available through the Students Loan Bureau, to ensure that students from poor families can have access to tertiary education. Full article

NETHERLAND ANTILLES: Teenager sent to prison for robbing tourist couple. An eighteen-year-old St. Maartener was sentenced to seventeen months on Wednesday for robbing a tourist couple from Russia and the Ukraine in the Maho area. The cases against three other suspects were postponed until a later date, while a fourteen-year-old suspect was acquitted of all charges. Full article

TRINIDAD & TOBAGO: Youths shine in debate. THIS COUNTRY’S young people gave the 41 members of the House of Representatives a lesson in political and parliamentary debate during a fiery session of the National Youth Parliament at the Hilton Trinidad, St Ann’s yesterday. Full article

TRINIDAD & TOBAGO: Students happy with CAPE. SECONDARY school principals yesterday described the quality of this year’s Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) exam results as exceptional and satisfactory with many schools registering 100 percent pass rates in several subject areas. Full article

TRINIDAD & TOBAGO: AIDS legislation: Tobago needs confidentiality. The question of confidentiality, especially in a small society like Tobago, ranks high among the issues that must be addressed in the drafting of any legislation which seeks to protect the rights of persons infected with HIV/AIDS as well as those affected by the disease. Full article

US VIRGIN ISLANDS:  CAHS student raising awareness about dangers of illegal tire-dumping. "The tires dumped by unscrupulous and morally challenged people become a breeding ground for disease carrying mosquitoes that can spread malaria, dengue fever, encephalitis, West Nile Virus and yellow fever that can affect each and every one of us." Full article

US VIRGIN ISLANDS: Students Will Get to Work Right Away, Education Commissioner Says. When the territory's schools open their doors Aug. 25, students will walk right into their classrooms, take their seats and begin the school year without delay. Full article

US VIRGIN ISLANDS: Students Sought for Saturday Science Academies at UVI on St. Croix. St. Croix students in grades five through eight are being sought to participate in the 2008-2009 Science Awareness Saturday Academies program at the University of the Virgin Islands, St. Croix campus. Full article

US VIRGIN ISLANDS: St. John Teens Get Yacht Club Scholarships. Quincey Pentrack and Max Nickbarg have won scholarships from the St. John Yacht Club, which also paid for three $150 memberships in the St. John Kids and the Sea program. Full article