Public Education
No good news about student learning on 4-year anniversary of COVID school closures(The Center Square) – Four years ago this month, schools nationwide shut down as COVID-19 numbers skyrocketed and students were sent home for what was initially planned to be… Read More
Courts
Appeals court sides with Iowa on law banning mask mandates(The Center Square) – The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eight Circuit overturned a ruling Tuesday that would have blocked a 2021 Iowa law banning mask mandates. Read More
Public Education
School attendance nationwide is suffering from ‘long COVID,’ report findsThe CDC will soon drop the last vestiges of COVID-19 guidelines, but the problems of the pandemic are not so easily undone in public schools. A report from… Read More
Public Education
North Carolina ed leaders preparing for end of federal pandemic funding(The Center Square) – A toolkit developed by North Carolina education officials will help districts analyze which learning recovery programs had the best return on investment as federal COVID-19… Read More
Public Education
Union boss Randi Weingarten fought in-person learning for months, keeps repeating claim she wanted schools to reopenThe president of the American Federation of Teachers is continuing to claim she advocated for schools to reopen during the pandemic, despite evidence to the contrary. “We’ve always… Read More
Public Education
Schools spent millions in COVID bucks on educational software. It was barely used(Daily Caller News Foundation) – School districts across the country spent millions in federal relief funds on educational software intended to mitigate pandemic learning loss, but in many cases,… Read More
Public Education
Report: COVID learning loss could cost Arizona 18,000 high school grads by 2032(The Center Square)— Arizona students have been majorly impacted long-term by virtual learning throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. A new report from the Common Sense… Read More
Public Education
Conservative school board members recalled in Oregon for vote to lift COVID-19 mask requirementsVoters in an Oregon school district voted to recall three conservative board members who voted to lift the COVID-19 mask mandate last year. Each of the members were… Read More
COVID-19, Schools
Inquiry into teachers unions’ influence over school COVID closures ramps up(The Center Square) – The U.S. House Committee tasked with reviewing the federal pandemic response is ramping up its investigation into what influence teachers unions had over federal rules… Read More
Public Education
Inquiry into teachers unions influence over school COVID closures ramps up(The Center Square) – The U.S. House Committee tasked with reviewing the federal pandemic response is ramping up its investigation into what influence teachers unions had over federal rules… Read More
COVID-19, Crime
Fraudsters likely stole $200 billion from pandemic funding meant for small businesses(The Center Square) – Taxpayers lost nearly $200 billion to fraudsters that was meant for struggling small businesses, according to a new watchdog report on the Small Business Administration’… Read More
Courts
University of Delaware settles class-action suit over campus shutdownThe University of Delaware has agreed to pay over $6 million to settle a lawsuit over the 2020 campus shutdown that ended in person classes because of Covid-19. Read More
COVID-19
Kansas schools received $1.25 billion in COVID relief funds(The Sentinel) — The amount of money Congress borrowed to give away in the name of COVID relief was mind-boggling. Eventually, $190 billion was appropriated by Congress and signed… Read More
Banks, Crime
Chiefs tickets, new SUV: Former KC bank manager indicted in multimillion-dollar COVID, unemployment benefits fraudFrom the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri:JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – A former bank branch manager in Kansas City, Mo., has been indicted by a… Read More
Courts
Washington bar exam lifts mask mandate after newspaper reportBar exam takers will no longer be required to wear masks during the 12-hour test in Washington, D.C. after a flurry of negative coverage when a newspaper reported on… Read More
Public Education
A staggeringly low number of Philadelphia students are proficient in math(Daily Caller) – Only 17% of third through eighth grade students in Philadelphia School District met math grade level expectations in the 2021-2022 school year, according to a Monday… Read More
Culture, Public Education
Union president grilled by GOP over ‘unconscionable’ school lockdownsThe head of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), Randi Weingarten, testified in front of Republican lawmakers over school lockdowns pushed by her teachers’ union.Appearing before the House… Read More
Culture, Public Education
Michigan spent $6.2M on COVID advertising to target students(The Center Square) – Michigan's Department of Health and Human Services spent $6.2 million on COVID advertising, which targeted K-12 students between October 2022 and July 2023.The campaign… Read More
Culture, Public Education
DC Public Schools require negative COVID-19 tests after spring breakThe District of Columbia Public Schools system will require staff and students to submit a negative COVID-19 test when they return from spring break.This will mark the fourth… Read More
Culture, Public Education
Pandemic relief funds finding laborers more than students(The Center Square) – Recent research is raising the alarm about states spending federal COVID-19 relief funding intended for learning loss on labor, setting the stage for a painful… Read More