This article was originally published in Ohio Capital Journal. Ohio senators have passed a bill to limit cell phone use in schools, but it allows local districts to decide on the best practices for their students. “Being a parent in the age of smartphones is — my mom would say is harder than she had it,” Natalie Hastings, mom-of-two, said. Hastings believes boundaries with technology are important, but there are struggles when it comes to school. Help fund stories like this. Donate now! “There was some bullying in the restrooms and people were taking videos,” she said. “There is now a policy i ..read more

With just a few hours remaining until the midnight deposit deadline, West Virginia high school senior Sam Dodson thought he knew which university he’d commit to for the fall but second thoughts were bubbling up. Accepted to a number of prestigious institutions, he had narrowed his final choice down to two: Columbia University and Dartmouth College. There were multiple considerations at play: academic opportunities; social life; Manhattan’s Upper West Side vs. bucolic Hanover, New Hampshire. And over the past few weeks a new one had emerged: the quickly spreading pro-Palestinian campus protests ..read more

This article was originally published in Virginia Mercury. The Virginia Board of Education recently approved six applications to bring students and colleges together to offer specialized instruction amid concerns over awarding state funds to private schools and financial uncertainty as leaders discuss funding for the biennium budget. Under Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s administration, which has made laboratory schools a priority since the governor’s term started in 2022, the list of applications accepted by the board increased from six to 12 on April 18. The additions are Paul D. Camp Community Colleg ..read more

This article was originally published in El Paso Matters. The El Paso Independent School District is planning to close or consolidate schools — which the district calls “sunsetting campuses” — by the 2025-26 school year as it braces for continued declining enrollment. EPISD Superintendent Diana Sayavedra on Wednesday announced the district is evaluating programs, resources and facilities and will present recommendations to the Board of Trustees in late fall. The district will hold a series of community meetings this month to introduce their restructuring plans and gather public input. Hel ..read more

This article was originally published in Maryland Matters. Five days after the Maryland State Board of Education unanimously voted to appoint Carey Wright as the state’s permanent superintendent of schools, she held a news conference on Monday to announce the creation of a task force to assess academic achievement. Wright said members of this group will include local superintendents, principals and higher education representatives to provide recommendations on how to better assess how students are doing in the classroom. The group will be led by the Center for Assessment, a national education ..read more

This article was originally published in Nebraska Examiner. LINCOLN — The state teachers union and other advocates for keeping public funds for public schools say they won’t let supporters of Nebraska’s revamped school choice law sidestep the voters this fall. They said so while launching a petition drive Tuesday to repeal Legislative Bill 1402, the latest version of a scholarship or voucher program for K-12 students attending private schools. That law turned a tax credit program into a direct state appropriation to nullify a previous ballot initiative. State Sen. Lou Ann Linehan of Elkhorn. A ..read more

This article was originally published in EducationNC. Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper presented his $34.5 billion budget proposal for Fiscal Year (FY) 2024-25 on Wednesday, calling for approximately an additional $1 billion to go toward public education — including an average 8.5% raise for teachers, a $1,500 retention bonus, and reinstatement of master’s pay. His proposal includes a 5% raise for most state employees, which includes non-certified school employees, and most community college employees. Cooper said his proposal presents lawmakers with a choice to invest in North Carolina’s public sch ..read more

This article was originally published in Houston Landing. Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District leaders plan to cut their librarian staff in half next year, becoming the latest Houston-area district to reduce librarians amid budget cuts.  Expecting a $138 million budget deficit for the 2024-25 school year, leaders of the Houston-area’s second largest school district are aiming to slash roughly 670 staff positions, including 50 librarians. The plan would leave 42 librarians in a district with 117,000 students and 88 schools. Help fund stories like this. Donate now! The changes have ..read more

A recent decision by the Louisiana Supreme Court handed a decisive win to backers of a long-running campaign to create a new, overwhelmingly white Baton Rouge-area school system, further concentrating poverty in the remaining, majority-Black part of the district.  When finalized, the secession will likely cost East Baton Rouge Parish Public Schools 10,000 students and 25% of its $700 million budget, school board President Dadrius Lanus estimated.  “This is all rooted in institutional racism,” he said in an interview. “It’s about what white, middle-class people want for their kids.”&n ..read more

This article was originally published in Georgia Recorder. Gov. Brian Kemp signed a suite of education-related bills into law Tuesday, including a controversial measure that will allow parents of children in low-performing schools to claim $6,500 in state education funds to pull their children out of the public system and enroll them in private school or teach them at home. Supporters say expanding school vouchers will help kids in schools that don’t meet their needs succeed academically. Opponents say they siphon needed dollars from underfunded public schools to private institutions with less ..read more