10. To Fight Absenteeism, This School Sorted Its Students Into Hogwarts Houses
All the classes at Smith Elementary School in New Britain were sorted into the four houses of Harry Potter’s Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and the kids competed this school year for the chance to win a light-up golden snitch. Read Now
9. St. Paul District Drafts Policy Allowing Students to Partake in American Indian Ceremonial Burning in Schools
Smudging involves the burning of sweetgrass, sage, cedar or tobacco in a handheld bowl and waving the smoke around to heal or purify the room and those participating in the ceremony. Read Now
8. Enrollment Losses in New York City Public Schools Even Sharper Than Predicted, Down 80,000 in Two Years
Enrollment losses in New York City public schools are even sharper than the city initially predicted, according to new data released Wednesday. Read Now
7. Arizona Bill to Expand Private School Choice Program to All 1.1 Million Students Advances
A proposal to let all 1.1 million Arizona students get taxpayer dollars to attend private school cleared a state legislative committee on Wednesday. Read Now
6. Federal Appeals Court Says North Carolina Charter School Can’t Require Girls to Wear Skirts
The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has rejected a skirts requirement for girls attending a Brunswick County charter school. The 10-6 ruling from the full Appeals Court reverses part of an August 2021 ruling from an appellate panel. Read Now
Commentary of the Week:
MATHEWS: Let’s Remove Local School Districts’ Power to Block Charter Schools
Parents need help finding what works. The state should encourage inventive educators to open new schools. Read Now
5. Over $200K Being Spent on Drag Queen Shows at New York City Schools, Records Show
New York is showering taxpayer funds on a group that sends drag queens into city schools — often without parental knowledge or consent — even as parents in other states protest increasingly aggressive efforts to expose kids to gender-bending performers. Read Now
4. In the Wake of School Board Protests, U.S. Education Department Creates Parent Council to ‘Foster a Collaborative Environment’
The Education Department is creating a parent council to help them better engage in their children’s schools – a move that comes as Republicans tap into parents’ frustrations over a third year of pandemic schooling and threaten to unseat Democrats as the party of education ahead of the midterm elections. Read Now
3. Teachers Union Boss Raked In Massive Six-Figure Salary While Fighting to Close Schools
American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten was paid nearly half a million dollars during the 2021-2022 school year, a report from Americans for Fair Treatment stated Wednesday. Weingarten raked in six-figures while simultaneously pushing for schools to stay shutdown during the COVID-19 pandemic. Read Now
2. Revenge of the Pod Parents: A Temporary Solution to School Closures Finds New Life
Isla was in kindergarten in Voorhees, New Jersey when the pandemic hit. Before long, remote learning flattened school into a glitchy abstraction, and she became restless, fidgety, withdrawn. Like millions of other kids, she soon fell behind. Read Now
1. GOP Lawmakers Introduce $10 Billion School Choice Bill Ahead of Midterm Elections
Republican lawmakers introduced twin bills in Congress Thursday that would establish a federal school choice program by enacting a $10 billion tax credit program to fund education scholarships. Read Now