Briefly

- North Idaho College is one of 10 American community colleges participating in the new Metallica Scholars program. As part of the program, the iconic heavy metal band’s foundation awarded $100,000 to each of the 10 colleges to support career-technical education, workforce development programs and removing barriers students face while continuing their education and learning a trade.

- U.S. Sens. Mike Crapo and Jim Risch, both Idaho Republicans, voted Thursday to support the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act to strengthen and build a more efficient and effective Department of Defense. The act includes several wins for Idaho facilities and projects, Crapo said.

- Wildlife advocates are seeking a court order that would force U.S. officials to consider whether grizzly bears should be restored to more Western states following the animals’ resurgence in the Northern Rockies. Grizzly bears are protected outside Alaska. Some 1,900 bears live in Wyoming, Montana, Idaho and Washington. The request comes after environmentalists successfully blocked grizzly hunts planned in Wyoming and Idaho last year.