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Linewize EdTech Manager Wins Award, Launches Screen Time Reporting

Charlotte, N.C. – October 01, 2026 -- Linewize, the North American division of Qoria, has won the Primary Education category of the Tech & Learning Awards of Excellence: Back to School 2026 for its EdTech Manager platform, while simultaneously launching the product's new Screen Time reporting feature nationwide this month.

EdTech Manager gives districts device-level visibility from classroom to student

The platform allows IT leaders and administrators to track daily screen time at the district, school, grade and individual student level, including splits between time spent at school versus at home. It also tracks app inventory, approval status, license costs, adoption rates and data privacy agreement compliance.

Turkey Track Ranch Relists for $180M After Wildfire Recovery

Dallas – October 01, 2026 -- Icon Global has relisted the 77,721-acre Turkey Track Ranch in the Texas Panhandle for $180 million, including a 25% mineral stake, following recovery from the largest wildfire in recorded Texas history.

Smokehouse Creek Fire forced the ranch off market in February 2024

The February 2024 Smokehouse Creek Fire burned approximately 46,000 acres, or 60% of the property's range land, as part of a blaze that scorched over one million acres across the region and into western Oklahoma. The fire killed thousands of head of livestock, caused two human fatalities and destroyed roughly 500 buildings after a fallen utility pole adjacent to the ranch boundary brought down live power lines. The sellers, who were in active sale negotiations at the time, withdrew the listing to allow the land time to recover.

Blue Cross, Lyft Pledge Up to $20,000 via Pink Bluebikes in Boston

Boston – October 01, 2026 -- Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts has rolled out 100 pink-wrapped Bluebikes across its Greater Boston bike-share network, pledging $1 per ride up to $10,000 for Breast Cancer Awareness Month, with Lyft matching an additional $10,000 once that threshold is hit.

Blue Cross caps donation at $10,000, triggering a matching Lyft commitment

The fleet, split evenly between 50 classic bikes and 50 ebikes, will circulate through the Bluebikes system from October 1 to October 31. Riders need no code or sign-up; any ride on the limited-edition bikes counts toward the donation pool benefiting Ellie Fund, a Needham, Massachusetts-based nonprofit serving breast cancer patients statewide.

ESA Farm Tour Unites 40 Experts on Pesticide Rules, Species Protection

Westminster, Colo. – October 01, 2026 -- Roughly 40 agricultural, regulatory and conservation specialists completed the third annual Endangered Species Act (ESA) Farm Tour September 14-16 across Minnesota and South Dakota, examining how pesticide-use rules and precision agriculture can coexist with species protection efforts.

Federal agencies joined researchers and crop consultants for three days of field assessments

The tour, hosted by the National Alliance of Independent Crop Consultants (NAICC), the Weed Science Society of America (WSSA) and the Foundation for Environmental Agriculture Education (FEAE), drew representatives from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and U.S. Department of Agriculture. South Dakota State University, the University of Minnesota and the Southern Minnesota Beet Sugar Cooperative also participated.

Lowe's, State Farm, Wells Fargo Join Habitat's New Carter Circle

Atlanta – October 01, 2026 -- Habitat for Humanity International has launched the Carter Circle, a new leadership-level giving program, naming Lowe's, State Farm, Wells Fargo and Whirlpool as its inaugural corporate partners.

Four major corporations commit to leadership-level housing investment

The four companies join 14 individual and family foundation donors as the founding members of the Carter Circle, a recognition tier for partners making strategic, high-level financial commitments to Habitat's affordable housing mission. Individual donors in the inaugural cohort include the Edwardson Family Foundation, the Larson Foundation, the Staley Family Foundation, and philanthropist J. Ronald Terwilliger, among others.

Sound Physicians Names Sergio Zanotti CEO of Critical Care Unit

Nashville – October 01, 2026 -- Sound Physicians has appointed Sergio Zanotti, MD, FCCM, as Chief Executive Officer of its Critical Care specialty, placing him in charge of programs that treat more than 170,000 critically ill patients annually.

Zanotti takes over strategy for a specialty treating 170,000 ICU patients per year

In the role, Dr. Zanotti will oversee operations for Sound Critical Care, working with regional and specialty leadership as well as hospital and health system partners nationwide to implement evidence-based clinical programs. He will also continue supporting physician leadership development across Sound's other clinical specialties.

Codoxo Named to TIME's World's Top HealthTech Companies 2026 List

Duluth, Ga. – October 01, 2026 -- Codoxo has been named to the second edition of TIME's World's Top HealthTech Companies 2026 list, a ranking produced with Statista Inc. that evaluated thousands of health-tech firms before selecting the top 500.

TIME and Statista screened companies on financial performance, reputation and online engagement

The list was announced on September 17, 2026, and is published on Time.com. Companies were assessed using three primary data sources: Financial Performance Metrics, Reputation Analysis, and Online Engagement.

TCL SunPower Launches X5 Commercial Storage System in Europe

Lyon, France – October 01, 2026 -- TCL SunPower has opened order books across Europe for its X5 industrial hybrid energy storage system, a factory-assembled unit the company says cuts last-mile transport and installation costs by up to 60% compared with site-built systems.

Factory-assembled cabinet eliminates on-site inverter installation

The X5 integrates a 50kW hybrid inverter directly inside the cabinet, arriving pre-wired rather than requiring separate transport, mounting and wiring of inverter components on site. The base unit is rated at 50kWh/100kWh and scales to 400kWh by paralleling up to four units, letting sites expand capacity without replacing hardware.

57% of Employers Boost Salaries as AI Skills Command Pay Premium

Menlo Park, Calif. – October 01, 2026 -- More than half of U.S. employers, 57%, are offering higher-than-planned salaries to secure new hires, with specialized skills cited as the top driver, according to Robert Half's 2027 Salary Guide released this week.

AI expertise now outpaces other technical skills in pay premiums

Seventy-two percent of managers report increasing pay specifically for AI-related skills, and 42% say AI expertise commands higher compensation than other technical competencies. The findings indicate that within identical job titles, a candidate's AI fluency can materially shift the final offer.

FEI Launches Media Finance Section, Absorbing 1,200-Member MFM

Morristown, N.J. – October 01, 2026 -- Financial Executives International (FEI) has opened its Media Finance Section, folding in roughly 1,200 business and financial executives from the Media Financial Management Association (MFM) as the association's first industry-specific section.

MFM members approved the merger on July 15, 2026, after board endorsement from both organizations

MFM, founded in 1961 and serving executives across broadcast, cable, publishing, streaming and digital media, now operates fully inside FEI as the Media Finance Section, effective October 1, 2026.

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