Sign up for Chalkbeat Newark’s free newsletter to keep up with the city’s public school system. As cell phone use in school comes under renewed scrutiny around the country, Newark Public Schools is now joining other districts that are revisiting and strengthening policies regarding electronic devices in the classroom. The district’s general cell phone policy, adopted in 2008, remains the same, but some schools are taking a harder stance this year. At George Washington Carver/Bruce Street School, a K-8 school that also serves as a school for the deaf, school leaders have introduced a new policy ..read more

Manhattan’s Professional Performing Arts School found itself in the middle of a drama in the spring when its longstanding theater program announced it would have to pull its teaching artists and close the curtains earlier because of a funding shortfall. Students at the Hell’s Kitchen 6-12 school sprung into action, launching a GoFundMe campaign that raised $60,000 and included donations from famous alums, including “The Bear” actor Jeremy Allen White. Another A-list alum, Alicia Keys, donated $60,000 with her management company, Roc Nation. And this year, the school got the full amount it need ..read more

Sign up for Chalkbeat Chicago’s free daily newsletter to keep up with the latest education news. This story has been updated to include statements from the mayor’s office and the Chicago Teachers Union president. Mayor Brandon Johnson asked Chicago Public Schools CEO Pedro Martinez to resign on Wednesday, but Martinez declined, according to published reports and at least one source familiar with internal discussions. The mayor’s request, which was first reported by FOX32, as well as the Chicago Sun-Times and WBEZ, comes weeks after reports first surfaced that Johnson was laying the groundwork ..read more

Colorado school districts will soon be able to apply for grants of up to $50,000 to help their students reduce cell phone use during the school day. State Attorney General Phil Weiser announced the “Smartphone Challenge Initiative” Friday in the library of Grand Junction High School. The program is funded with money from the state’s $31.7 million lawsuit settlement with e-cigarette manufacturer Juul Labs Inc. The initiative is the second school district grant program aimed at improving student mental health funded with Juul settlement dollars. In June, Weiser announced a $20 million mental hea ..read more

Sign up for Chalkbeat Philadelphia’s free newsletter to keep up with the city’s public school system. A parade of principals extolled the virtues of their schools Thursday to the Board of Education, moments before it took action to ramp up a comprehensive facilities study that is likely to result in at least several school closures across the city. “We need you to … champion how great our public school system is [and] what active support can be provided to build student enrollment,” said Robin Cooper, the president of the principals’ union, the Commonwealth Association of School Administrators ..read more

The Chicago Board of Education oversees policies that can impact how schools teach the district’s 323,000 students, and ultimately, how well students learn and prepare for adulthood. By most accounts, the district has come a long way in the three decades since former U.S. Secretary of Education William Bennett infamously called Chicago’s public schools the worst in the nation. Since then — and after multiple efforts at reforming public education — performance in Chicago Public Schools has significantly improved, according to researchers and public data. Researchers have also found that Chicago ..read more

In one of Tennessee’s book banning hot spots, the Rutherford County Board of Education voted Thursday to remove six books from high school libraries, including Toni Morrison’s “Beloved,” a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel about the horrific realities of American slavery. Also removed were Stephen Chbosky’s “The Perks of Being a Wallflower,” a coming-of-age novel in which the main character is gay, and “Wicked,” Gregory Maguire’s popular retelling of the classic “Wizard of Oz” tale. But Sherry Shahan’s “Skin & Bones,” which delves into eating disorders, failed to get enough votes for removal an ..read more

Sign up for Chalkbeat Colorado’s free daily newsletter to get the latest reporting from us, plus curated news from other Colorado outlets, delivered to your inbox. Denver Public Schools is setting ambitious goals for Latino students, families, and employees in response to a report from earlier this year that highlighted “serious barriers” to their success. The La Raza Report was commissioned by the district and based on historical research, as well as dozens of focus group interviews and thousands of survey responses. Released in March, it found unequal resources between schools, a dearth of L ..read more

Sign up for Chalkbeat Colorado’s free daily newsletter to get the latest reporting from us, plus curated news from other Colorado outlets, delivered to your inbox. The Adams 14 school district in Commerce City faces some of the most serious environmental hazards of any in Colorado. It’s also one of the lowest performing. But external factors such as local levels of poverty or pollution aren’t a part of Colorado’s school rating system that holds districts accountable for student test scores. Adams 14 officials have asked the State Board of Education to reconsider that. But it looks like they ha ..read more

Sign up for Chalkbeat Chicago’s free daily newsletter to keep up with the latest education news. The Chicago Teachers Union is escalating a fight with CEO Pedro Martinez as its contract negotiations drag on, with the union accusing the schools chief of plotting to close or consolidate underenrolled schools. Martinez says there are no such plans, and that the district’s recent analysis of its buildings led to the conclusion that closures were unnecessary. State law bars Chicago from closing public schools until Jan. 15, 2025. “Let me reiterate: I will not recommend that any schools be closed du ..read more