Indiana's COVID-19 vaccination rate has continued to stagnate, with about 10,500 Hoosiers getting the vaccine each day, according to the state's seven-day average as of Thursday.

Gov. Eric Holcomb said he still strongly encourages people to get the vaccine. Indiana ranks 36th in the country for the percentage of its population fully vaccinated.

Applications for Keep Indy Creating grants are open through Aug. 22. Among the opportunities are Artist Restart Grants intended to help artists restart their careers, and grants to address mental health and wellness.

To date nearly 20,000 households impacted financially by COVID-19 have had their rent paid by the city.

Indianapolis Public Schools is asking for input on how it will spend some of its more than $200 million in federal funding to address the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic in schools.

In an example of how states are casting for ways to spend the federal influx, Indiana's budget negotiators wrote in $75 million for the Career Accelerator Program -- nearly triple the $27 million going to a 2 percent increase for the state's higher education system.

Communities across the state are weighing what COVID-19 health and safety measures to continue this summer and into the fall, as the governor's mask requirement for schools expires at the end of June.

The Indiana Department of Health reported 57 additional confirmed deaths over the last week. That brings the state's total to 13,324 confirmed deaths.

Indiana is closing its OptumServe COVID-19 testing sites at the end of June. The sites, set up early in the pandemic, have provided more than 541,000 free tests since May of last year.

Public health experts say it is unlikely Indiana will reach a 70 percent vaccination rate by July 4 with just weeks until the deadline.