Rochester, N.Y. – October 19, 2026 -- Families comparing schools in the Rochester area have a new data point: The Harley School has been named the #1 Best Private High School and the #1 Best Private K-12 School in both Monroe County and the Rochester area on Niche's 2027 Best Schools list.

Harley's STEM programs rank #2 on Niche's list

Niche also ranked Harley #2 for Best High School STEM Programs. According to the school, that is the highest ranking for any private school in the area.

Niche builds rankings from report cards and real reviews

Niche is an online platform for searching for schools and colleges. It publishes its rankings annually, drawing on a comprehensive K-12 report card along with real reviews, user data and surveys. Families use the database to find the right school for their children.

Ypsilanti – October 19, 2026 -- Eastern Michigan University is offering eligible students a $4,000 scholarship to join its Marching Band, and students do not need to major in music to qualify.

The scholarship pays $1,000 a year for four years

The award is open to all students who meet the marching band requirements, whatever their academic major. Only about 40% of band members are music majors. Students from disciplines across the university make up the rest.

J. Nick Smith, associate director of bands and director of Athletic Bands, said the scholarship helps attract more students and rewards them for the countless hours they put into the activity. EMU President Brendan Kelly, a two-time alum, said the college experience is about "finding and building community."

United States – October 19, 2026 -- The anonymous messaging app NGL has passed 15 million installs in recent weeks, and a child-safety advisory now urges parents to keep their kids away from such apps.

Anonymous messages have been linked to teen deaths

These apps let users message others without revealing who they are. The advisory says that ability is exploited by people who want to cyberbully, defraud, or molest.

Sixteen-year-old Carson Bride died by suicide on June 23, 2020. Between January 23 and June 22, 2020, he received 105 messages through YOLO, an app for sending anonymous messages on Snapchat. Most were severe harassment, often sexually explicit and threatening. Evidence indicates he tried several times to identify the senders, and his final phone search was for a way to reveal the YOLO username.

Unspecified location – October 19, 2026 -- Parents who link to their child through Snapchat's new Family Center can see the child's friend list and who they messaged in the past seven days, but the Organization for Social Media Safety says the tool will not meaningfully improve child safety.

The tool shows contacts, not conversations

Snap, Inc. announced Family Center this month. Parents must first request permission from their child. Snap confirmed that the tool gives parents no insight into "the substance of those conversations."

Four criticisms from the safety watchdog

First, the group says teens intent on risky activity can simply use a second, secret account, which Family Center cannot monitor. Snap responded that people with multiple accounts must fully log out to switch between them. In the group's test, switching took about four seconds, the same time it took to reach Family Center from the home screen.

Bethesda – October 19, 2026 -- Starting in November, the ice! Christmas attraction opens at eight Gaylord Hotels and JW Marriott resorts across the United States, with new Harry Potter, Home Alone and Nightmare Before Christmas themes. More than 300 master ice artisans from Harbin, China, have arrived to build it.

Artisans carve for nearly 40 days before opening

The crew will sculpt millions of pounds of ice into scenes covering more than 20,000 square feet. They work with chippers, tongs, handsaws, grinders and chainsaws, turning 300-pound blocks into details no bigger than a coin and scenes taller than 30 feet. Their 300-page design books and generations-old techniques guide the work. A proprietary coloring process and accent spotlights add color.

Once the attraction opens, several artisans stay on site to maintain the sculptures and give daily live carving demonstrations.

Alexandria – October 19, 2026 -- Residents of Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William Counties can now book certified personal trainers who arrive at their home, office or neighborhood with professional-grade equipment. GYMGUYZ, which describes itself as the world's largest in-home and on-site personal training franchise, has launched its Northern Virginia location. Its bright-red vehicles carry the gear, so clients skip the commute, the crowded gym and the guesswork.

A retired-minded executive became the franchise owner

The location is owned by Daniel Ward, a longtime government contracting executive who had planned to retire. A former colleague who had moved into franchising prompted him to explore business ownership. He chose GYMGUYZ because it makes professional training more convenient, accessible and personalized for people of all ages and fitness levels.

New York – October 19, 2026 -- Attack Shark's R5 Turbo, a 43g wireless gaming mouse with 8KHz polling over both wired and wireless connections, goes on sale October 23, 2026, in black, white and a new Dune colorway.

A carbon fiber shell weighing about 43g

The housing is injection-molded carbon fiber composite with a hollowed-out, breathable design. Weight is approximately 43g (± 3g). A glass-like cool-touch coating is meant to reduce stickiness from hand sweat during long sessions.

A PixArt sensor tracks up to 750 IPS

The PixArt PAW3950MAX optical sensor covers 1,200-60,000 DPI in 50-DPI steps. It tracks at up to 750 IPS with 60G acceleration. A three-level lift-off distance setting lets players adjust tracking height to their preference.

Irvine – October 19, 2026 -- OluKai's new Pāhi boot costs $300, gets early access on October 20 and goes on sale sitewide on October 22, with a sole designed to be resoled so the boots last for years.

The limited-edition boot is a collaboration with Neil Kamimura, a Big Island Hawai'i native and master bladesmith. Self-taught, Kamimura gained international recognition by winning the History Channel competition show Forged in Fire. When he is not restoring vintage motorcycles, he makes knives and swords sought after by celebrities and collectors.

Pull-up leather is built to develop a patina

The Pāhi uses premium pull-up leather saturated with dense waxes and oils. With wear, the leather develops a distinctive, multi-tonal patina. It also naturally resists water, drying, cracking and hardening over time.

Middletown, Delaware – October 19, 2026 -- Most public golf courses welcome diners who never pick up a club, while private clubs often require membership for any access, including the dining room, according to a HelloNation article.

The article draws on insights from Patrick Keefe, a dining expert at The Pub at Frog Hollow Golf Club in Middletown. It describes a public course restaurant or grille room as an option for the wider community, where guests can usually walk in for a casual meal.

Menus stay casual, with views over the fairway

Many course restaurants have large windows or patio seating overlooking the fairways, which makes them popular for casual lunches and family dinners. Guests can expect sandwiches, salads, burgers, and shareable appetizers rather than a formal, multicourse meal. Many venues now also offer a lineup of craft beer.

Tucson – October 19, 2026 -- Park fans can now buy T-shirts and other branded products from WNP Gear, a new collection from Western National Parks sold exclusively through the nonprofit's online store.

The first collection carries a colorful Western-inspired look

Western National Parks (WNP), a nonprofit partner of the National Park Service since 1938, built the initial lineup around T-shirts and other WNP-branded products. The designs use the organization's modern, colorful visual identity, inspired by the landscapes, wildlife, cultures, and stories of the West. New products and designs will be added over time.

The line represents the wider park community, not one site

Many WNP products celebrate individual national park sites. WNP Gear instead extends the organization's identity beyond any single park, giving supporters a way to represent the broader community connected by a shared appreciation for national parks.