Policy & Legal: Page 5

  • School buses stand idle on December 15, 2015 in Los Angeles, California.
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    David McNew via Getty Images
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    ICE agents denied entry into LAUSD elementary schools

    The DHS maintains that the incidents, which rattled the education community, were "wellness checks on children who arrived unaccompanied at the border." 

    By • April 14, 2025
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    Stock Photo via Getty Images
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    Ransomware attacks surge 69% across global education sector

    Ransom demands averaged $608,000 for international education entities in the first quarter of 2025, a Comparitech analysis found.

    By • April 14, 2025
  • Rows of empty chairs and desks sit in front of a blank chalkboard in a school classroom. Explore the Trendline➔
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    Stock Photo via Getty Images
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    Trendline

    Attendance and Absenteeism

    Our latest K-12 Dive Trendline takes a closer look at chronic absenteeism’s impact on schools and where educators are seeing success with attendance.

    By K-12 Dive staff
  • A person is sitting at a desk in a classroom looking at a laptop. On the desk is a pile of laptops.
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    Jon Cherry via Getty Images
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    States sue to recover ESSER extended spending allowances

    Tutoring, after-school programming and facility improvements have already been canceled, and layoffs are likely due to the lost funding, says the lawsuit.

    By • April 11, 2025
  • Maine Gov. Janet Mills sits with a hand on her face
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    Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images via Getty Images
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    Trump administration moves to cut off Maine’s federal K-12 funds

    The move marks a first in the administrations' fight over transgender policies by initiating a funding cut to an entire state education system.

    By • April 11, 2025
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    Photo illustration: Shaun Lucas/Industry Dive; Getty Images

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    POP QUIZ

    Test yourself on this week’s K-12 news

    From schools’ latest financial risks to the shuttering of some regional Offices of Head Start, what did you learn from our recent stories?

    By • April 11, 2025
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    Retrieved from National Park Service.
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    Title I at 60: The debate continues

    Some want to change the formula-based program, a cornerstone of Lyndon Johnson's War on Poverty, into a block grant.

    By • April 11, 2025
  • Two students use tablets as they sit next to each other in a classroom.
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    FatCamera via Getty Images
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    Will end to federal Office of Ed Tech mean an end to equity?

    Former employees fear a loss of progress now that the Trump administration has shuttered the office.

    By • April 11, 2025
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    Mario Tama via Getty Images
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    Deep Dive

    States, lawmakers push back on ‘abrupt and chaotic’ reversal of COVID funds

    The Education Department ended ESSER late liquidation, months after many states had received preapproval from the Biden administration.

    By • April 10, 2025
  • A person with a megaphone is standing outside the U.S. Department of Education.
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    Kayla Bartkowski via Getty Images
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    House committee advances ‘gender ideology’ bills

    Proposals seek to end what Republicans say is gender indoctrination in schools. Democrats say the bills are harmful to transgender students.

    By • April 9, 2025
  • Anti-affirmative action activists with the Asian American Coalition for Education protest outside the U.S. Supreme Court Building on June 29, 2023 in Washington, DC.
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    Anna Moneymaker via Getty Images
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    Education Department’s DEI order postponed as case pends

    Several states have rebuked the certification requirement, which threatens to cut federal education funds over DEI initiatives. 

    By • April 9, 2025
  • Linda McMahon arrives to the U.S. Department of Education's building in Washington, D.C., for her first day in office.
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    US Department of Education. (2025). "03042025 SLM First day in the Office-3" [Photograph]. Retrieved from Flickr.
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    ‘Let’s shake it up’: McMahon defends massive cuts at Education Department

    The U.S. secretary of education spoke at the ASU+GSV Summit in California about the rapid changes the Trump administration is making to the agency.

    By Natalie Schwartz • April 8, 2025
  • he U.S. flag and Department of Education flags whip in the wind outside the department's headquarters
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    Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images via Getty Images
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    Deep Dive

    The Education Department’s approach to civil rights enforcement is changing. Here’s how.

    Rapid and targeted investigations, outside agency involvement and federal funding cuts may be the new norm for schools.

    By • April 8, 2025
  • President Donald Trump stands next to Linda McMahon while holding the executive order in the White House.
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    Chip Somodevilla via Getty Images
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    Trump changes put school districts at financial risk, Moody’s says

    States are unlikely to fill gaps left by the federal government cuts, leaving districts with a "limited menu of options,” per the sector forecast.

    By • April 8, 2025
  • MPS, Milwaukee public schools, Sean Kane, lead paint abatement
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    "Fourth Street School" by Freekee is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0
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    Ousted Milwaukee school facilities chief had lost parents’ trust over lead abatement

    Community groups had been calling for facilities director Sean Kane’s dismissal for what they said was a failure to act on risks and follow safe practices.

    By Robert Freedman • April 8, 2025
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    Avosb via Getty Images
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    Supreme Court maintains freeze on teacher training grants

    The case in question involves the agency’s February announcement to cancel $600 million in “divisive” teacher preparation grants. 

    By • April 6, 2025
  • An adult is sitting on a floor with two toddlers who are sitting on the floor. The adult is guiding one of the child's hands while the other child plays with blocks on the floor.
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    FatCamera via Getty Images
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    Head Start imperiled by HHS cutbacks, advocates say

    The agency's overhaul has sparked concerns about access, affordability and safety for the program serving preschoolers from low-income families.

    By • April 4, 2025
  • A person is seated as a desk. They are waving their left hand. A name plate sits in front of them and people are seated in row in the background.
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    Win McNamee via Getty Images
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    ‘New sheriff in town’: DOJ to enforce anti-trans Trump orders

    A joint Title IX Special Investigations Team will shift some civil rights investigations and enforcement from the Education Department to the Justice Department.

    By • April 4, 2025
  • A photo illustration of a circle encompassing a question mark, pencil, and scantron test.
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    Photo illustration: Shaun Lucas/Industry Dive; Getty Images

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    Test yourself on this week’s K-12 news

    From rescinded funds to one state’s curriculum controversy, what did you learn from our recent stories?

    By • April 4, 2025
  • Public school district administrators pour balloons representing the sports drink Powerade over their superintendent's head following a public speech.
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    Permission granted by Springfield Public Schools
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    AASA '25

    Here’s how Missouri’s largest district rallied its community to boost attendance

    With a pandemic-era order sunsetting and funding at stake, Springfield Public Schools used consistent strategy — and a little Powerade — to gain buy-in.

    By • April 4, 2025
  • Several people are seen outside the U.S. Department of Education headquarters during a protest. Two people with their backs to the camera are sitting in wheelchairs. One sign reads "Protect Students Protect Public Schools." Another sign says "Our Schools Are Not For Sale."
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    Kayla Bartkowski via Getty Images
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    Special education cuts will have ‘immense harm,’ Democrats say

    Lawmakers on Capitol Hill are seeking answers about impacts on students with disabilities and proposing full funding for IDEA.

    By • April 3, 2025
  • Students are sitting at several tables working in groups. There are laptops and notebooks on the tables and the tables are pushed to a wall of windows.
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    FatCamera via Getty Images
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    Districts encouraged to use Title I flexibility for school choice

    Existing federal formula grants under Title I can be used to help parents choose access to advanced courses, CTE and tutoring, the Education Department says.

    By • April 2, 2025
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    Spencer Platt / Staff via Getty Images
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    Teacher with PTSD entitled to accommodation under ADA, 2nd Circuit says

    On remand, a New York school district might demonstrate that the 15-minute break the teacher requested wasn’t reasonable, the court noted.

    By Laurel Kalser • April 2, 2025
  • A person points at a touchscreen, ready to press, which features AI chatbot prompts.
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    Laurence Dutton via Getty Images
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    House panel weighs AI’s pitfalls, potential as Education Dept cuts loom large

    Innovating with artificial intelligence in schools remains exciting to some lawmakers, while others fear deepening inequities.

    By • April 1, 2025
  • A jar of cash sits next to a stack of books on a teacher's desk.
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    Stock Photo via Getty Images
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    Education Department cancels ESSER spending extensions

    The move shocked some education leaders in states where previously approved funds had been spent and were awaiting federal reimbursement.

    By • April 1, 2025
  • A close-up short of Linda McMahon in a crowded room.
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    Tierney L. Cross via Getty Images
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    McMahon: Lack of transparency on ‘ideological indoctrination’ violates FERPA

    Withholding information such as a student's gender transition violates parents' rights and could result in lost funding for schools, the education secretary said.

    By • April 1, 2025