Tag: schools

Gavin Newsom Signs Law Barring Removal of LGBTQ Books from Schools

Admin

Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill Monday that will ban school boards from removing books that teach racial or LGBTQ topics in the classroom.

School boards around the U.S. are removing books and materials from classrooms that parents have deemed inappropriate, causing books with overtly racial or sexual material to become a flashpoint in the culture wars. A.B. 1078, which Newsom signed, will prevent school boards from banning instructional materials or library books that include information teaching about racial or LGBTQ topics, and will allow the county superintendent to take unilateral action to include these materials, according to the bill.

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Commentary: Compulsory Schooling Laws Have Got to Go

Admin

When Massachusetts passed the nation’s first compulsory school attendance law in 1852, parents were mandated to send their children to school under a legal threat of force. Today, that threat remains stronger than ever.

Prior to that law, and those that followed in all other US states over the subsequent decades, cities and towns were compelled to provide schooling for those who wanted it, but parents were under no obligation to use those schools. Many didn’t, choosing instead to send their children to private schools, church or charity schools, “dame schools” in their neighbor’s kitchen, apprenticeships for older children and teens, or to homeschool.

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Schools Struggle to Get Students to Class amid Learning Loss

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Schools across the country are struggling to get kids to class while still recovering from the learning loss following the COVID-19 pandemic, according to The New York Times.

The National Assessment of Educational Progress released a report this month showing that students who missed three or more days of school had lower math scores than those who were not absent. Schools, however, are having trouble finding bus drivers to get children to class, with some districts delaying their start times each day and others forced to postpone school for a week, according to the NYT.

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Undone Pennsylvania Budget Leaves Struggling Schools Empty-Handed

The Center Square

As the first day of school nears across Pennsylvania, the undone budget will leave the poorest districts without the earmarked funds the state promised.

Teachers, administrators, and advocates recently told the House Education Committee that without the money, schools can’t address worker shortages, or provide mental health support, programs for pandemic-induced learning loss, technology upgrades, and building maintenance.  

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Appeals Court Upholds Connecticut Ban on Religious Exemptions

The Center Square

A federal appeals court has upheld a 2021 Connecticut law banning religious exemptions for immunization requirements for schools, colleges and early education, but critics of the restrictions are vowing to take their case to the Supreme Court.

In the 2-1 ruling issued on Friday, the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed a lower court ruling that rejected a lawsuit challenging the repeal of the state’s long-held religious exemptions to childhood vaccines. 

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Biden Administration Withholding Funds from Schools with Hunting Courses

Admin

The Biden Administration’s Department of Education (ED) confirmed that it is deliberately withholding federal funds from elementary and middle schools that have courses in hunting or archery.

As Fox News reports, the ED issued a statement claiming that the decision was due to an interpretation of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (BSCA) passed last year in response to several shootings. The agency claims that its interpretation determined that funding for any shooting-related activities will be blocked across the country, under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965.

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Wisconsin Congressman Scott Fitzgerald Introduces Bill Taking on National Education Association’s Political Clout

M.D. Kittle

U.S. Representative Scott Fitzgerald (R-WI-05) introduced a bill that would check the power of the National Education Association (NEA).

The Stopping Teachers Unions from Damaging Education Needs Today (STUDENT) Act aims to reform the NEA’s federal charter and “rededicate the organization to the pursuit of increased student learning and quality education in schools across America,” according to the congressman.

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Cities Turn to Schools to House, Support Migrants

Admin

Multiple cities are turning to school districts to house and support an influx of migrants through the summer months.

Following the expiration of Title 42, both New York City and Chicago have been overwhelmed by the number of migrants that have come to the cities, arguing that there is a lack of resources. In response, the city governments, including the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, have considered school districts to house migrants.

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Governor Lee Encourages Law Enforcement and Schools to Apply for School Security Grant

Kaitlin Housler

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee announced Wednesday that the state is now accepting applications for grant funding from law enforcement agencies and schools in order to “further strengthen security at Tennessee schools.”

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TEA Fights Payroll Deduction Law, Possibly Puts Pending Teacher Raises at Risk

TC Weber

Three of Tennessee’s teacher associations have filed a lawsuit against Tennessee over a new law prohibiting payroll deductions for labor association dues. The law, scheduled to go into effect on July 1, includes provisions for increased educator pay.

Governor Bill Lee and Interim Education Commissioner Sam Pearcey are named in the lawsuit. TEA is asking for a restraining order and temporary and permanent injunctions on the payroll dues deduction ban.

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School Choice in Wisconsin Wins in Day of Breakthrough Education Spending and Revenue Sharing Deals

M.D. Kittle

School choice in Wisconsin would get a huge funding boost, and Milwaukee and Milwaukee County would stave off financial devastation in deals announced Wednesday.

Just when it appeared the Milwaukee portion of a massive state shared revenue plan was on the brink of collapse, the Republican-controlled Legislature reached an agreement with Democrat Governor Tony Evers that will allow pension debt-ridden Milwaukee County and the city to put in place a new sales tax — without having to ask their voters to do so. 

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Curriculum Transparency Bill Proposed in Pennsylvania House

Bradley Vasoli

Two Pennsylvania State House members are preparing to introduce a bill to facilitate parents’ and taxpayers’ access to K-12 school curricula.

In a memorandum asking colleagues to cosponsor their measure, Representatives Kristin Marcell (R-Richboro) and Jill Cooper (R-New Kensington) argue current school transparency requirements are inadequate. While state law mandates that school boards post policies governing curriculum review, district officials need not publish the actual syllabus or name the instructional texts. Districts must provide residents access to course outlines and texts, but that usually entails an interested party visiting the school. 

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Schools Axe Homework, Deadlines in the Name of Equity: Report

Admin

Several schools throughout the country are moving to axe homework and deadlines in an effort to increase equity, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Under the philosophy of “equitable grading,” students are given more chances to show they have mastered a subject, a practice that downplays the importance of homework and eschews deadlines in an attempt to give kids who struggle with hardships at home more opportunities to learn the material, according to the WSJ. Schools in California, Nevada and Connecticut are moving to implement “equitable grading,” though opponents of the system, many teachers and students say it disincentives students and leads to a lack of accountability.

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Tennessee General Assembly Extends Eligibility for Participation in State Education Savings Account Program

TC Weber

Tennessee lawmakers passed a bill on Friday that would extend eligibility for participation in the state’s Educational Savings Account (ESA) program to Hamilton County students.

The Senate passed its version of the bill, which limited expansion to Chattanooga, back in February. This week, the House passed a version (SB0012) that included Knoxville in the ongoing pilot program.

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Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs Vetoes More Bills Including Election Policies and School Safety

Neil Jones

Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs revealed another batch of legislative actions Tuesday, including four more vetoes for Republican-led legislation.

“Katie Hobbs just vetoed my bill that would have affirmed that courts are to interpret election laws in the interests of transparency – insane,” shared State Representative Alexander Kolodin (R-Scottsdale).

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Republican Lawmakers Introduce Bill to Arm Wisconsin School Employees

M.D. Kittle

Two Wisconsin lawmakers, looking to stop school shooters before they have a chance to take more innocent lives, have introduced a bill that would allow teachers and staff members to carry firearms on school grounds.

State Representatives Scott Allen (R-Waukesha) and Cory Tomczyk (R-Mosinee) recently introduced a bill that would create an exception to the state’s prohibition on guns at schools.

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House Education Administration Committee Passes Bill That Would Arm Teachers

TC Weber

The Tennessee House Education Administration Committee has passed a bill out of the committee that allows those teachers who wish to carry a firearm, to do so, provided their District Superintendent signs off, and they meet prescribed requirements. Current law allows teachers who have served as law enforcement agents, to carry firearms. This bill, HB1202,  would expand those eligible.

The vote passed, after nearly an hour of discussion, by a vote of 12-6. In opposition were three Republicans and three Democrats:

Representative Charlie Baum (R – Murfreesboro)
Representative John Gillespie (R-Memphis)
Representative Mark White (R-Memphis)
Representative Harold Love (D-Nashville)
Representative Antonio Parkinson (D-Memphis)
Representative Sam McKenzie (D-Knoxville)
Representative Kirk Heston voted present.

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Tennessee Lawmakers Put State Department of Education on Notice About Low Math Proficiency Rate

TC Weber

Tennessee lawmakers questioned Tennessee Department of Education (TDOE) representatives after they revealed the low percentage of state high school students who were proficient in math. 

Tennessee’s Deputy Commissioner of Education Eve Carney and Assistant Commissioner of Academic Strategy Christy Wall appeared before the State House Education Instruction Committee this week to talk about upcoming math instructional strategy for Tennessee schools. 

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Mastriano Proposes Bill for Pennsylvania School Curriculum Transparency

Bradley Vasoli

Pennsylvania state Senator Doug Mastriano (R-Gettysburg) this week announced he is introducing legislation requiring public K-12 schools to post their curricula online. 

Should the policy become law, school districts and charter institutions must provide public web access to syllabi for all classes and thorough lists of the textbooks planned for use in those courses as well as commonwealth academic standards for all course offerings. Should a school make any curricular revisions, it would have 30 days to publish them. 

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Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton Proposes Next Step for Tennessee in Possibly Rejecting Federal Education Funds

TC Weber

Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R-Crossville) has laid out the next step required for Tennessee to possibly reject federal education dollars in the future. On Monday, he filed legislation (add an attachment here) that would create an 11-member task force, helmed by  Tennessee Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn, to study the process required for the state to forego federal funding.

The proposed committee would begin meeting monthly in August and would be expected to deliver a strategic plan to Governor Lee and the General Assembly by December 1. The legislation further requires that Commissioner Schwinn, in her role as chair, notify the US Department of Education by August 31 and advise them on Tennessee’s intent to explore the possibility of Tennessee rejecting federal funding.

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Wisconsin Assembly Passes Bills Requiring Schools to Get Transparent on School Crimes

M.D. Kittle

Sick of the recurring violence going on in classrooms, hallways and gymnasiums, parent Kate Bertram last week told the Wauwatosa School Board that the “new pandemic in Wauwatosa schools is a lack of accountability.” 

A Republican-led bill passed Tuesday in the Assembly demands more accountability from Wisconsin’s schools in tracking crime. 

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Commentary: Schools Are Pushing Gender Pronouns and Hiding It from Parents

RealClearWire

A new report reveals students in the nation’s largest school districts are encouraged to change their names and pronouns without parental knowledge, even though those same schools require parental approval for over-the-counter medicine.

The report, released by The Defense of Freedom Institute for Policy Studies (DFI), found that “eight of the nation’s 20 largest school districts allow students to use names and pronouns at school aligned with their gender identity without parental knowledge and consent,” said DFI.

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Tennessee State Board of Education Releases State Charter School Authorizer Evaluations

TC Weber

At last week’s quarterly meeting, the State Board of Education (SBE) released its latest evaluation of Tennessee’s charter school authorizers. The State Board evaluates Tennessee’s six charter school authorizers at least every two years. In 2021 evaluations were delivered for Hamilton County Schools, Knox County Schools, and Shelby County Schools. That left the Achievement School District, Metro Nashville Public Schools, and the TN Public Charter School Commission for this year.

In 2019, Tennessee became the 4th state in the U.S. to implement authorizer evaluations when the State General Assembly passed legislation charging the SBE with conducting periodic evaluations of authorizers to determine authorizer compliance and evaluate quality. To bring this charge to fruition, the State Board partnered with SchoolWorks, an education consulting group with experience in authorizer evaluations.

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Former Metro Nashville Public School Board Member Fran Bush Announces Run for Nashville Mayor

TC Weber

Former Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS) School Board member Fran Bush celebrated her 49th birthday Friday by announcing her intent to run for Nashville Mayor in the upcoming election. In her video announcement, Bush touted her record as a school member as the impetus for her mayoral run.

“While serving my time as a school board member for Metro Nashville Public Schools for four years, I was able to work on behalf of 80,000-plus students, their families, teachers, support staff, and bus drivers,” she said. “My work also included being the only board member who championed getting our students back in the classroom during an unprecedented time during COVID-19.”

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MNPS Provides Marketing Budget for Individual Schools in Wake of Recent Enrollment Declines

TC Weber

Over the past several years, Tennessee lawmakers have increased school choice options for families. In an effort to influence parents’ educational choices, Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS) is providing each school with a stipend designed to entice families to make zoned schools their first choice. It’s a continuation of a strategy first implemented last year, and one that the district feels was successful.

In an email, MNPS spokesman Sean Braisted tells The Tennessee Star, “Our goal as a district is to get as many families as possible to choose MNPS as their first option for student success.”

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Local Tennessee School Districts Navigating Changes in State Funding Formula

TC Weber

Tennesse’s school districts have started preparing their individual budgets for the 2023-2024 school year. They are doing it while contending with a new state funding formula and with limited guidance from the Tennessee Department of Education(TDOE). The change in formula completely alters how district allocations from the state are calculated. In the past, the state has provided calculations for local districts. This year, that too will change.

In notes obtained by The Tennessee Star from a call between the TDOE and the Superintendent Study Council, local officials were informed that the department will soon be sending out Data Verification Packets to districts that will include district-specific data from 1st, 2nd, and 3rd 20-day reporting periods. Districts are required to report attendance counts at 20-day intervals throughout the year.

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Poll: Americans Say Critical Race Theory Dividing Young People

M.D. Kittle

More than two-thirds of American voters believe the tenets and teachings of Critical Race Theory are only serving to further divide young people, according to a recent national poll. Conducted for Summit Ministries by nationally renowned polling firm McLaughlin & Associates, the poll shows 69 percent of respondents with an opinion on the issue believe CRT curriculum further divides ethnic groups and races among American youth. Less than one-third (31%) say CRT promotes racial healing and reconciliation among America’s kids. 

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Tennessee Department of Education Releases ACT Scores for 2022 Graduates

TC Weber

This week, the Tennessee Department of Education (TDOE) released the ACT state results and participation rate for the 2022 graduating class, two months after national data was released by ACT. The results show that Tennessee is not moving the needle in student outcomes.

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Analysis: Tennessee State Report Card Scores for Cannon, Williamson, and Nashville Metro School Districts

TC Weber

The recently released Tennessee State Report Card for schools and districts offers a means for parents to gather information about their children’s schools and compare and contrast neighboring school districts. The report focuses on performance, but also provides data on student demographics, student funding, staffing levels, and other pertinent information required by parents to make informed judgments about their children’s education opportunities.

“With the release of the State Report Card, Tennessee continues our firm commitment to providing families with clear, actionable information on how our districts and schools are serving students,” said Commissioner Penny Schwinn. “The Report Card allows stakeholders to access years’ worth of meaningful data through an interactive, easy-to-navigate online platform, and now the latest data is available to help Tennesseans to explore and learn about their local schools and districts.”

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State Department Tells Staff Abroad to Promote Anti-Populist ‘Disinformation’ Game in Schools

Just the News

The same State Department office that partnered with a Department of Homeland Security-backed private consortium that reported purported election misinformation to tech platforms for removal in the 2020 and 2022 cycles is also using internet games to affect elections abroad.

In an Oct. 31 memo reviewed by Just the News, Secretary of State Antony Blinken encourages diplomatic and consular posts worldwide to promote “Cat Park,” funded by State’s Global Engagement Center (GEC) and U.S. Embassy The Hague and released to coincide with UNESCO’s Global Media and Information Literacy Week.

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Gov. DeSantis: Nation’s Report Card Scores Show Keeping Schools Open the Right Decision

The Center Square

The 2022 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) rankings indicate that Florida students are “well ahead of their peers, especially with younger and educationally at-risk students who were harmed the most from distance-learning in other states,” the governor said.

“We insisted on keeping schools open and guaranteed in-person learning in 2020 because we knew there would be widespread harm to our students if students were locked out,” Gov. Ron DeSantis said. The results, he said, “once again prove that we made the right decision.”

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Commentary: America’s Schools Warm to Climate Activism

RealClearWire

Public school districts are adopting curricula on climate change from well-funded progressive groups casting the issue as a threat to life on the planet that students should respond to through activism. 

As of fall 2020, 29 states and the District of Columbia have adopted standards that require science classes to teach human-caused climate change as a peril beyond dispute, according to K12 Climate Action,  a group that is part of the progressive Aspen Institute. 

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Pennsylvania Weighs Parental Bill of Rights as Gender, Race Issues Flare in Schools

The Center Square

Punctuated by claps, cheers, jeers and a call to order, the Senate State Government Committee held a public hearing on a proposed parental bill of rights that raised questions of local control, race, and gender issues.

Senate Bill 996 is sponsored by Republican gubernatorial nominee Sen. Doug Mastriano, R-Chambersburg. 

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Proposed Ohio House Bill Looks to Eliminate ‘Third Grade Reading Guarantee’

Hannah Poling

House Bill 497 sponsored by Representatives Gayle Manning (R- North Ridgeville) and Phil Robinson (D- Solon) would eliminate student retention under Ohio’s Third-Grade Reading Guarantee.

Ohio’s Third-Grade Reading Guarantee is a program utilized to identify students who are behind in reading from kindergarten through third grade. Since the 2013-14 school year, third graders must obtain a 685 score or higher on a standardized reading test or they will be held back a grade.

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Three Ohio School Districts Take Part in Pilot Program to Teach Students About Where Their Food Is Grown

Hannah Poling

Three local school districts in Ohio are teaching students about where the food they eat at school is grown, as well as adding to the overall menu variety, as part of a pilot program through Feed Our Future’s Local Menu Takeover.

This pilot program started last year in Northeast Ohio, and this year, three Cincinnati school districts have committed to serving only locally sourced meals this week as part of Farm to School Month.

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Commentary: So-Called ‘Ethnic Studies’ Promote Antisemitism, Bigotry in U.S. Schools

RealClearWire

Parents are understandably concerned with the divisive curricula now taught in America’s schools. Ideas like critical race theory and extreme gender ideology often replace the subjects traditionally taught in core classes like science and social studies. Students no longer learn the importance of our nation’s history. They learn a warped worldview that divides us into the oppressors and the oppressed.

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FBI Whistleblower: ‘Nobody I Know Signed Up’ to Investigate Parents Who Vented at School Board Meetings

Admin

An FBI whistleblower who was recently suspended said in an interview this week that he became a whistleblower last November because of Attorney General Merrick Garland’s email ordering the FBI to use Patriot Act counterterrorism tools to target parents at school board meetings.

Special Agent Kyle Seraphin, who was indefinitely suspended on June 1 after nearly six years with the Bureau, said that he was so disturbed by the directive, he went to his congresswoman’s office in New Mexico, and made a “protected disclosure.”

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Some Michigan Schools Keep Mum on COVID Relief Spending

The Center Square

Theoretically, taxpayers should be able to see how Michigan schools are spending $5.7 billion of taxpayer money to recover from COVID-19-related learning loss.

But an investigation by The Center Square through more than 80 records requests to schools statewide shows how difficult it can be to obtain itemized COVID spending records. Many schools never responded to an initial Freedom of Information Act request.

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Florida Gov. DeSantis Launches Tour to Empower Parents in Education

Admin

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is stepping up his efforts to empower parents and stamp out liberal ideology in schools as part of his fall reelection campaign.

The Republican on Monday announced a statewide tour and his intention to get involved in local school board races through endorsements.

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Pennsylvania House Republicans Want Education Secretary’s Gender Policy Reversed — or His Resignation

Bradley Vasoli

Twenty Republican members of Pennsylvania’s House of Representatives this week called on acting Pennsylvania Education Secretary Eric Hagarty to reverse controversial state guidelines concerning schools’ treatment of sex and gender. 

On a webpage titled “Creating Gender-Inclusive Schools and Classrooms,” the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) calls “binary gender,” e.g., the idea that gender and biological sex are properly denoted as either “male” or “female,” a “faulty concept.” The document also suggests that teachers host a “gender-neutral day” for students above the second grade wherein kids would identify ways in which they will eschew gender stereotypes on that day. Elsewhere, the guidance counsels teachers to ask a student his or her gender identity before assuming the right pronouns by which to call the child. 

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Ohio Students Could Be Allowed Excused Mental Health Days from School

The Center Square

Ohio could join 11 other states and allow students to miss school if they feel the need to stay home that day for their mental health.

A bill proposed in the Ohio House would give K-12 students three mental health days a year, defining mental health days as a “school day during which a student attends to the student’s emotional and psychological well-being in lieu of attending school.”

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Ducey Appeals Ruling Against Arizona’s Limiting COVID Relief to Open Schools

The Center Square

Gov. Doug Ducey is appealing a federal judge’s decision blocking his decision to withhold federal COVID-19 relief to unopened schools. 

While Arizona had lifted all mask mandates in April 2021, some schools still maintained a mask requirement.

To incentivize the removal of classroom mask policies, Ducey restricted a $163 million aid package to maskless, opened schools. The aid amounts to $1,080 per student. The state funding came from the $2 billion in federal stimulus money from the American Recovery Plan Act.

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Michigan Schools Are Getting Paid to Change Their ‘Racist’ Mascots

Admin

Several Michigan school districts will receive more than $400,000 in funding to change their mascots, according to a Native American Heritage Fund (NAHF) press release.

NAHF, which receives some of Michigan’s gaming revenue, is giving $411,438 out of $480,000 in grants to four districts with mascots that depict Native Americans, according to a press release from the fund. Each school district will receive the funds for its transformation in August.

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DeWine Tells Ohio School Leaders Arming Teachers Remains Optional

The Center Square

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, in a letter to school superintendents around the state, called arming teachers in classrooms a serious local decision that remains optional after he signed a new law that reduces training needed for guns in schools.

DeWine, who recently signed House Bill 99, also told school leaders he would rather districts use school resource officers than armed teachers.

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Ohio Democratic Gubernatorial Candidate Nan Whaley Supports Vaccine Mandate for Children

Cooper Moran

Ohio Democratic Gubernatorial Candidate Nan Whaley signaled her support for a vaccine mandate for children in an interview with The Ohio Capital Journal.

Whaley, who covered her positions on multiple issues in the interview, compared a coronavirus vaccine mandate to those of established requirements for other diseases.

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Poll: Racial and Sexual Curricula in Schools Dividing Americans

Admin

According to a new poll, Americans are divided along party lines on the question of whether or not to actively teach about race and sexuality in public schools.

The Associated Press reports that the poll by the University of Chicago, AP, and the NORC Center for Public Affairs Research asked two questions of respondents: Do parents have too little, too much, or about the right amount of influence over what their children learn, and do teachers have too little, too much, or about the right amount of influence in the same area?

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Arizona Schools Must Give Students Moment of Silence Each Day

The Center Square

Arizona Governor Doug Ducey signed a bill to ensure that students will have time to take a moment of silence at school each day.

Ducey signed House Bill 2707. It’s a bill that requires all public and charter schools to give students a moment of silence at the beginning of the day. The one-to-two-minute moment of silence can be used in a way determined by the student and their parents.

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