CNN Student News 亞利桑那州槍擊案 數(shù)百人走上街頭呼吁和平

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

CARL AZUZ, CNN STUDENT NEWS ANCHOR: I'm Carl Azuz and this is CNN Student News! We're back from the long weekend and ready to kick off 10 minutes of commercial-free headlines. We start in the U.S. state of Arizona.

First Up: Arizona Shooting

AZUZ: U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords could be released from a hospital there in just days or weeks. Congresswoman Giffords was one of the victims of the shooting attack in Tucson, Arizona earlier this month. On Sunday, doctors upgraded her condition from critical to serious, so that's a step in the right direction. Hundreds of people took to the streets on Sunday to participate in a "Walk for Peace." Organizers said they wanted to honor the victims of the shooting and find a way to help bring the community together.

Some congressional leaders from both parties are trying to come together in their own way, starting with something small: sitting together at the State of the Union address. This is the speech that the president gives to Congress every year. And what you see in these pictures is last year's State of the Union address. You notice that one section is standing, while another is sitting? That's because Republicans and Democrats usually don't sit together during these speeches. This year, though, you might see a different seating arrangement.

Junior Theater Festival

AZUZ: This weekend, here in Atlanta, a cast of thousands got together for the Junior Theater Festival. The event celebrates the performing arts. It takes place the same weekend as Martin Luther King Day. In recognition of his dream, students at the festival had the chance to talk about their dreams. Listen to what they had to say.

KATE HILSCHER, STUDENT: I have a dream that some day kids will have a bigger voice in their communities. I feel like kids have a lot to say, but it's often not heard by the adults around them.

QWANIKWIA HICKLEN, STUDENT: My dream is to become an endangered species specialist and help save a kind that's dying off slowly.

ELIZABETH RENEGAR, STUDENT: A few of my dreams are to adopt a child from a foreign country and give them a home, a lot better home than they could've had.

CASEY TAYLOR, STUDENT: One of my dreams is to possibly design and run lighting for large theatrical productions. Martin Luther King Jr. was a great man and inspired me and many other people for wonderful dreams.

AZUZ: Not the only way that people paid tribute to the civil rights leader this weekend. As Samantha Hayes reported yesterday, Americans all across the country took part in community service projects and honored Dr. King's legacy.

(BEGIN VIDEO)

SAMANTHA HAYES, CNN CORRESPONDENT, WASHINGTON, D.C.: At a Washington, D.C. middle school, President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama worked with a mentoring program on a service project, a Martin Luther King Day tradition for the first family.

U.S. PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: Michelle and I and the girls are extraordinarily proud that each year on Martin Luther King's birthday, this is how we celebrate, is making sure that we're giving a little something back to the community.

HAYES: It's been nearly 43 years since the civil rights leader was assassinated at a hotel in Memphis before a protest march. In Atlanta, not far from King's childhood home, family members laid flowers at the gravesite where King and his wife Coretta Scott King are buried. Today marks the 25th anniversary of the Martin Luther King holiday. In 1994, Congress designated it a national day of service. Jesse Jackson, who was with King at the time of his death, says his dream has not been fully realized.

REV. JESSE JACKSON, RAINBOWPUSH COALITION: He would be delighted to know we've come to a higher level of socialization enough to vote for each other across lines of race, gender and religion. And so, President Barack Obama is in Washington today as head of state. He would find delight in that. But then on the other hand, the issue of violence, the shooting of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, it simply illuminates, we pray to God for her recovery, but it illuminates just how much more violent we've become.

HAYES: Back in the nation's capital, a memorial honoring Dr. Martin Luther King is scheduled for completion later this year. For CNN Student News, I'm Samantha Hayes.

(END VIDEO)

I.D. Me

TOMEKA JONES, CNN STUDENT NEWS: See if you can I.D. Me! I'm a country located in northern Africa between Algeria and Libya. I got my independence from France in the 1950s. My capital city is Tunis. I'm Tunisia, and I'm home to around 10.5 million people.

Protests in Tunisia

AZUZ: Tunisia is forming a new government that'll be responsible for leading the country to new elections. All of this is coming after weeks of riots and protests. People are upset about bad living conditions, high unemployment and accusations of government corruption. There's been fighting between protesters and police. And the Tunisian president -- who'd been president for 23 years -- was forced out of power.

Why does this matter to America? Well, for one, the U.S. and Tunisia are close allies, especially when it comes to fighting terrorists. Another concern: Before all of this started, Tunisia was considered a pretty safe and stable country. Some experts argue that what's happening in Tunisia could inspire similar protests in other countries.

What's the Word?

JOHN LISK, CNN STUDENT NEWS: What's the Word?

a type of financial aid that students earn through academic achievement

SCHOLARSHIP

That's the word!

Funding Free Tuition

AZUZ: Well, here in Georgia, we have something called the HOPE Scholarship. It's for students who do well in high school and go to college in state. But the scholarship is facing some potential challenges. Kyra Phillips heads to Athens and my alma mater -- the University of Georgia -- to look at how HOPE has helped, and why the scholarship could be in trouble.

(BEGIN VIDEO)

DANYELLE REYNOLDS, UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA JUNIOR: Go Dawgs!

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: University of Georgia junior Danyelle Reynolds beams with school pride. She is a Georgia Bulldog through and through. She's also a HOPE scholarship recipient, and that means she doesn't pay a dime toward tuition.

REYNOLDS: Initially, I was actually looking at going out of state. But once I saw the numbers of out-of-state at some schools and then paying in-state and not having to pay for that tuition, so just paying for housing and books and some of the fees, it was really a no-brainer.

PHILLIPS: A no-brainer to more than a million Georgia students who have taken advantage of the scholarship since it was introduced in 1993. Here's how it works: Earn a 3.0 grade point average in an in-state high school and maintain your grades at college. Amounts vary, but some students can get up to $6,000 a year for tuition, fees and books at any eligible Georgia university or technical school. It's funded by the state lottery, but demand is high and more money is going out than coming in. Lawmakers are dipping into reserves, scrambling to cover costs. And Georgia's new Republican governor says something needs to change.

GOV. NATHAN DEAL, (R) GEORGIA: I am dedicated to honoring the promise that has been made to our students through HOPE and will work with the general assembly to tailor the program to the financial realities that we face today.

PHILLIPS: Other legislatures in other parts of the country are watching for Georgia's next move. More than a dozen other states modeled their own scholarship programs on HOPE. Many of them are now caught in the same kind of budget crunch.

NANCY MCDUFF, ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT, UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA ADMISSIONS & ENROLLMENT MANAGEMENT: I don't know that any other program is identical to what we have in Georgia, nor has it been around as long and had a chance to grow. So, they're watching us carefully, and we're hoping that we'll be able to to preserve this so that students and families will be as impacted as least as possible given the current economic situation.

PHILLIPS: Spend a day in this college town, and you'll be hard pressed to find a Georgia student who hasn't benefited from HOPE. Freshman Lindsey Harris says the opportunity has been a life-changer.

LINDSEY HARRIS, COLLEGE FRESHMAN: It's pretty much the only way I was going to be able to go to college.

PHILLIPS: And unfortunately, her family isn't banking on the scholarship for the younger siblings.

AMY HARRIS, LINDSEY HARRIS'S MOTHER: I've got a 10-year-old also and 5-year-old. I'm not really counting on HOPE being there in eight years or 13 years for them.

(END VIDEO)

Promo

AZUZ: Want to expand your geographic genius? You know you do. Our downloadable maps: just what you're looking for. You can go to CNNStudentNews.com every day and use these free resources to help you pinpoint locations in the headlines, like today's maps for Athens, Tucson and Tunisia. They're always free, always at CNNStudentNews.com!

Before We Go

AZUZ: And before we go, we have a truly memorable musical performance for you.

ELIZABETH HUGHES, 8-YEAR-OLD NATIONAL ANTHEM SINGER: The bombs bursting in air, gave proof...

AZUZ: Eight-year-old Elizabeth Hughes didn't quit singing; her microphone quit working. It died partway through her performance of the national anthem. She never stopped singing. And eventually...she got some help. The crowd came to the rescue! And the awesome anthem was captured in this YouTube video.

Goodbye

AZUZ: Of course, the video has turned Elizabeth into a bit of a star. She certainly is a bright spot. You know, like a spangle. And it's easy to see why after that banner performance. Star... Spangle... and Banner. Well, we'll wave goodbye and see you tomorrow. For CNN Student News, I'm Carl Azuz.