Policy & Legal: Page 5

  • A student is sitting on the floor in a school hallway with their back against a row of blue lockers and head in hands.
    Image attribution tooltip
    izusek via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    LGBTQ+ youth face higher rates of mental health challenges in South, Midwest

    A regional breakdown shows LGBTQ+ youth are more likely to struggle with mental health care access, discrimination and other challenges in these areas.

    By • March 5, 2025
  • A display of LGBTQ+ books on a library shelf
    Image attribution tooltip
    Justin Sullivan/Getty Images via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    NEA, ACLU challenge Education Department’s DEI letter

    Despite the department's attempt to clarify the original directive, education and civil rights organizations are pushing forward with their lawsuits.

    By • March 5, 2025
  • Explore the Trendline➔
    Image attribution tooltip
    Michael Loccisano via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip
    Trendline

    Equity in Education

    From early learning to high school, the pandemic impacted equity at all levels of K-12, from persistent and widening achievement gaps to uneven access to school meals.

    By K-12 Dive staff
  • A young child gets a shot from a medical professional while another adult holds the child in their lap.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Jan Sonnenmair via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Rise in measles has schools on alert

    Researchers point to vaccine skepticism as one explanation for an increase in measles cases.

    By • March 5, 2025
  • litigation funding
    Image attribution tooltip
    Alfexe via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Education Department sued over cuts to teacher training grants

    Three teacher preparation groups allege that the agency’s recent termination of three federal grant programs approved by Congress is unlawful.

    By • Updated March 19, 2025
  • A teacher speaks to a classroom of students sitting at their desks.
    Image attribution tooltip
    SDI Productions via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Education groups urge Congress to reinstate teacher workforce grants

    K-12 pipeline programs are already ending in some states due to the slashing of Education Department funds, says a letter from over 100 organizations.

    By • March 4, 2025
  • The outside of the U.S. Department of Education in Washington, D.C. is shown on a close day. People are walking on the sidewalk in front of the building.
    Image attribution tooltip
    John M. Chase via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Trump administration clarifies stance on DEI in schools

    The agency seemed to curb its hardline stance and said schools' diversity, equity and inclusion efforts are not automatically on the chopping block.

    By • March 3, 2025
  • A stack of books sits on a table in the foreground. In the background are rows of shelves of books in a room
    Image attribution tooltip
    Kenishirotie via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Are schools ‘soft censoring’ books out of fear?

    Out of 4,218 unique book titles banned in the 2023-24 school year, around 36% featured characters of color, according to PEN America data.

    By • March 3, 2025
  • A student with a backpack is shown from the side from the shoulders down, In their hands is a cellphone
    Image attribution tooltip
    FreshSplash via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip
    BY THE NUMBERS

    Half of young children own a cell phone or tablet

    Children ages 8 and younger had an average daily screen time of 2 hours and 27 minutes in 2024, Common Sense Media found.

    By • March 3, 2025
  • a white sheet of paper shows lines of bubbled letters to mark answers for a test. A yellow pencil rests on the paper.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Garrett Aitken via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    How will cutting NAEP for 17-year-olds impact postsecondary readiness research?

    The canceled exam would have provided a post-pandemic update for its age group. But it was last administered in 2012, leaving a gap in data points.

    By Briana Mendez-Padilla • Feb. 28, 2025
  • A photo illustration of a circle encompassing a question mark, pencil, and scantron test.
    Image attribution tooltip

    Photo illustration: Shaun Lucas/Industry Dive; Getty Images

    Image attribution tooltip
    POP QUIZ

    Test yourself on this week’s K-12 news

    From the growing enrollment of special education students to a Supreme Court decision on the E-rate program, what did you learn from our recent stories?

    By • Feb. 28, 2025
  • An illustration of a student looking into an empty outline of a teacher in a classroom.
    Image attribution tooltip

    Illustration: Cathryn Virginia for Industry Dive

    Image attribution tooltip
    STAFFED UP

    Innovative K-12 staffing strategies are feeling the brunt of federal funding cuts

    Efforts to improve recruitment and retention and to diversify the workforce are being impacted by the Education Department’s grant cancellations.

    By • Updated March 4, 2025
  • The side of a building with white stone and windows is shown. Letters on the building read: U.S. Department of Education
    Image attribution tooltip
    Kayla Bartkowski via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Education Department launches anti-DEI portal

    The information collection tool is part of the Trump administration's effort to eliminate practices for diversity, equity and inclusion. 

    By • Feb. 27, 2025
  • A person is walking down a hallway. Others are walking around the person and holding phones.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Kayla Bartkowski via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Concerns mount over potential loss of Medicaid funds for schools

    Efforts in the federal government to reduce spending would put school-based health services in jeopardy, advocates say.

    By • Feb. 27, 2025
  • Randi Weingarten, President of American Federation of Teachers Union (AFT), speaks about President elect Donald Trump's Education Secretary nominee, Betsy DeVos, during a news conference at the Nation
    Image attribution tooltip
    Mark Wilson via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    AFT sues Education Department over anti-DEI guidance

    The union alleged that the agency's recent guidance barring schools from considering race in any of their programs and policies is unconstitutional.

    By Laura Spitalniak • Feb. 26, 2025
  • A person is seen sitting at a table in a classroom. The photo is taken from the door of the classroom and near the door is a sign reading "Today is a Great Day To Learn Something New"
    Image attribution tooltip
    Jon Cherry via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Education Department approves more ARP spending extensions for districts

    School systems in 41 states now have 14 more months to spend down federal COVID-19 emergency funding under the American Rescue Plan.

    By • Feb. 25, 2025
  • An adult and a student are sitting at a table. The student has a magnifying glass to their head and the teacher is holding an object in front the magnifying glass. of the
    Image attribution tooltip
    Halfpoint via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Special education enrollment climbs to nearly 8M

    Data suggests the number of students with disabilities between ages 3-21 could jump by about 1 million between 2021 and 2025 if current trends hold.

    By • Feb. 25, 2025
  • Janet Mills sits at a table at the White House during a governors meeting with President Donald Trump.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Win McNamee via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Maine faces Title IX investigation over transgender athletic policies

    The Trump administration said it will withhold federal funds if the state doesn’t comply with an executive order on transgender girls’ participation in sports.

    By • Feb. 24, 2025
  • A poster outside the Education Department's building reading, in all caps, "I am stealing from you," with an illustration of Elon Musk in the center.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Jemal Countess via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    DOGE blocked from accessing Education Department’s sensitive student data until March 10

    A judge said the Trump administration failed to explain why the Department of Government Efficiency needed “sweeping access” to the agency’s records. 

    By Natalie Schwartz • Feb. 24, 2025
  • A hand holds a magnifying glass over a digital warning sign with red exclamation marks.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Supatman via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    PowerSchool faces more scrutiny following widespread data breach

    Government officials in the U.S. and beyond have announced investigations after a threat actor gained access to troves of student and staff data.

    By • Feb. 24, 2025
  • False Claims Act, Wisconsin Bell
    Image attribution tooltip
    Perry Spring via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    SCOTUS decision safeguards schools’ E-rate discounts

    In a unanimous ruling, justices found that reimbursement requests under the federal broadband discount program are subject to the False Claims Act.

    By • Feb. 21, 2025
  • Picture of LGBTQ pride flags
    Image attribution tooltip
    nito100 via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Court upholds district policy protecting students’ right to choose name, pronouns

    The policy didn’t infringe upon parents’ rights under the 14th Amendment to direct their child’s upbringing, the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found.

    By • Feb. 21, 2025
  • A photo illustration of a circle encompassing a question mark, pencil, and scantron test.
    Image attribution tooltip

    Photo illustration: Shaun Lucas/Industry Dive; Getty Images

    Image attribution tooltip
    POP QUIZ

    Test yourself on this week’s K-12 news

    From a letter ordering schools to end race-based practices to a district’s challenge to a key Trump policy, what did you learn from our recent stories?

    By • Feb. 21, 2025
  • A backpack sits on a wooden desk. Attached to backpack is hand sanitizer. Also on the desk are COVID-19 rapid tests, a mask and notebooks
    Image attribution tooltip
    Rawf8 via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Education Department announces change to ESSER reimbursement process

    The agency cited transparency and accountability as reasons for the shift, although nearly all COVID-19 spending is complete.

    By • Feb. 21, 2025
  • After signing a series of executive orders and proclamations, Trump spoke to reporters about a range of topics including recent negotiations with Mexico on tarriffs.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    How Trump’s ‘radical indoctrination’ executive order could impact schools

    The directive’s threat to pull funds from schools based on “gender ideology and discriminatory equity ideology” could have a chilling effect, experts say.

    By • Feb. 20, 2025
  • A row of elementary students work on their computers side by side in a classroom.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Stock Photo via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    What could schools expect under the new COPPA Rule?

    The Federal Trade Commission’s updated rule would impact the way K-12 leaders interact with ed tech companies — if Trump keeps it.

    By • Feb. 20, 2025