(AP) — The state education board has chosen Matthew Blomstedt to serve as Nebraska’s new education commissioner.

The board announced Thursday that Blomstedt, of Central City, was picked out of four finalists for the job. Blomstedt will replace Roger Breed, who retired earlier this year.

Blomstedt serves as executive director of the Nebraska Educational Service Unit Coordinating Council. He received a doctorate in educational leadership and higher education from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, in addition to a master’s degree in community and regional planning.

The board unanimously approved Blomstedt. Board members pointed to his experience with educators throughout the state, and his work with rural Nebraska schools.

Board president Patt Timm says in a statement that members will work with Blomstedt to develop a new state accountability system.

 (AP) — IKEA is recalling millions of children’s lamps following the death of a child who choked on the lamp’s cord and another was injured.

The “SMILA” series wall-mounted children’s lamps were sold at IKEA from 1999 through 2013 for $10 to $13. There were 2.9 million of the recalled lamps sold in the U.S. and 1.1 million sold in Canada. A total of 23 million were sold worldwide.

Consumers should stop using the lamp and contact IKEA for a free repair kit to attach the cord to the wall.

In the fatal case, a 16-month-old child died after getting entangled in the lamp’s cord. Additionally, a 15-month-old child became entangled in the lamp’s cord and nearly strangled. In both cases, the lamp cord was pulled into the crib by the infants.

(AP) A Kansas City family of 11 escaped without injury when a fire damaged their home.

Someone in the home woke up and discovered the fire about 2:30 a.m. Thursday.

The home belonged to Matt Hannah, a 21-year veteran of the Kansas City Police Department, and his wife.

The Red Cross is offering assistance.

The cause of the fire has not been determined.

(AP) – Prosecutors will no longer seek the death penalty against a southwest Missouri man who is charged with killing a classmate.

Prosecutors said Wednesday that they dropped the possibility of capital punishment after 20-year-old Gabriel Roche of Republic agreed to have his case decided by a judge, not a jury.

Roche is charged with first-degree murder and armed criminal action in the December 2011 death of 17-year-old Weston North. Roche took his classmate to a secluded area and stabbed him before slitting his throat.

Prosecutors say Roche believed North was a police informant.

The Springfield News-Leader reports Roche’s attorneys didn’t dispute that their client killed North. They asked the judge to consider charging him with second-degree murder, arguing that Roche was on drugs and hallucinating during the killing.

(AP) – A restaurant in a small rural community in southwest Missouri has been destroyed by fire.

The fire broke out early Wednesday at Tadpoles restaurant south of Hermitage near Pomme de Terre Lake. No injuries were reported.

Richard Solan, with the Hermitage fire Department, said the restaurant was a total loss. Flames could be seen two miles away.

Solan says the restaurant also burned down years ago and was rebuilt. It was then was destroyed by a tornado in 2006.

The state fire marshal’s office was called into investigate the cause.

(AP) — Approximately two dozen soldiers of the National Guard’s 35th Infantry Division will soon be heading to Kosovo to fill positions in an ongoing NATO peacekeeping mission.

The first of the soldiers will be honored in a departure ceremony Saturday at Fort Leavenworth where the division is headquartered. A second departure ceremony for remaining soldiers is scheduled for January.

The division is one of eight within the Army National Guard, made up of units from Kansas,, Missouri, Nebraska and Illinois.

Units from the 35th Division have previously deployed to the Balkans region of Europe for ongoing peacekeeping missions in 2003 and 2007.

Soldiers will first go to Fort Hood, Texas, for additional training before heading to Kosovo.

More than Two Out of Three Drivers Use Cell Phone Despite Crash Risk

High school-aged teens report using their phones or texting while driving substantially less often than adults do, according to new research by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety.  While the public often cites teens as being the most common offenders, a recent survey found that adult drivers ages 25-39 were the most likely to admit engaging in these risky behaviors behind the wheel.

“It’s noteworthy that the young novice drivers are using their phones while driving less than older drivers since, given their inexperience, they are especially susceptible to distracted driving crashes,” said AAA Executive Vice President Public Affairs, Jim Hanni. “At the same time, it is discouraging that cell phone usage picks up when drivers gain more experience, as using a phone can lead to dangerous distractions behind the wheel.”

Two out of three drivers reported using a cell phone while driving within the past month. Forty-three percent of adults ages 25-39 reported doing so fairly often or regularly while driving, compared to only 20 percent of teens.  Motorists age 60 and up were the least likely to report using a phone.

“Using your phone while driving may seem safe, but it roughly quadruples your risk of being in a crash according to previous research,” continued Hanni. “None of us is immune from the dangers of distracted driving. The best advice is to hang up and drive.”

More than one-in-four motorists reported sending a text or email while driving within the past month. Adults ages 25-39 reported texting and driving most frequently, while those age 60 and up reported doing it the least.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, one out of every ten fatal crashes involves distraction, resulting in more than 3,000 deaths per year, although experts agree the numbers are likely underestimated. Previous research shows that hands-free cell phones offer no significant safety benefits over handheld phones – hands-free is not risk-free.

The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety collected the data as part of the 2013 Traffic Safety Culture Index. The data are from a sample of 2,325 licensed drivers, ages 16 and older, who reported driving in the past 30 days.

(AP) – The Missouri State Highway Patrol has joined the investigation into a house fire that killed two young boys in a small town in western Missouri.

Authorities have not determined what caused the blaze that claimed the lives of 3-year-old Roger Garrison and his 1-year-old brother, Ashton Garrison. The fire was reported Tuesday afternoon. The house in Orrick was fully engulfed in flames when fire crews arrived.

The boys’ cause of death also hasn’t been determined.

Sgt. Collin Stosberg, a spokesman for the highway patrol, says the Ray County Sheriff’s Office asked for help from the patrol’s drug and crime control unit.

The state fire marshal’s office and the Ray County coroner’s office also are helping with the investigation.

(AP) – Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill says she’ll be shopping for a health care policy on the new federal insurance exchange but won’t be taking a subsidy.

The federal health care law requires members of Congress and their staff to get insurance through the new online marketplaces. They can continue to receive their employer contributions to put toward the purchase of the policies.

McCaskill is a Democrat who voted for the health law in 2010. She told reporters Wednesday that she plans to sign up for a policy next week for herself and two daughters. But McCaskill said she won’t be accepting the employer contribution.

Some other U.S. senators have made similar decisions.

McCaskill says her staff still will receive the employer contribution toward their health insurance policies.