Education
Schools must act carefully on students’ off-campus speech, Supreme Court rules
For decades, U.S. courts have ruled that public school students “do not shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech and expression at the schoolhouse gate,” as the Supreme Court said in 1968. In that case, Tinker v. Des Moines Independent School District, the justices held that high school students who were suspended for protesting […]
Student leaders criticize lawmakers over university funding freeze
Student leaders at Iowa’s public universities on Thursday decried the state’s decision not to increase funding to the Board of Regents, prompting a proposed tuition increase for the upcoming year. “The burden of financing Iowa’s colleges and universities should not be placed squarely on the shoulders of young people hoping for a better future,” said […]
Reynolds announces $20 million school mental health program
Gov. Kim Reynolds announced several new education programs Wednesday, including a $20 million initiative to offer additional mental health resources to Iowa schools. The Iowa Center for School Mental Health is a partnership between the Department of Education and the University of Iowa. College of Education Dean Daniel Clay said the center will serve three […]
Iowa community college leaders oppose student debt forgiveness, free college
Student debt forgiveness raises concerns about fairness to students who chose lower-cost educations, two Iowa community college leaders said during a recent interview on Iowa PBS. Forgiving student debt does not solve the underlying issues in higher education, said Kristie Fisher, the chancellor of the Iowa Valley Community College District. “What I’d hate to see […]
Iowa’s new law raises question: ‘What is systemic racism?’
Faculty and staff in public schools, including public universities, are not to engage in the discussion of “systematic racism” in Iowa or the U.S. when conducting trainings of faculty, staff, and students. That’s according to House File 802, recently passed by the Iowa Legislature and signed into law by Gov. Kim Reynolds. Training instructors are […]
Iowa Board of Regents proposes tuition hikes for public universities
Students at Iowa’s public universities would see higher tuition and fee rates for the upcoming school year under a new proposal by the Board of Regents. The Board of Regents, governing body for the University of Iowa, Iowa State University and the University of Northern Iowa, will meet Thursday to hold a first reading of […]
College athletes score a big win in the U.S. Supreme Court in NCAA dispute
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled Monday that the National Collegiate Athletics Association cannot limit educational compensation to student athletes due to their amateur status. The 9-0 decision in NCAA v. Alston was delivered by Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch, who said the college athletics body is not exempt from antitrust law. “Put simply, this […]
Wisconsin congressman tries to ban ‘critical race theory’ in District of Columbia schools
WASHINGTON — A Republican member of the U.S. House from Wisconsin wants to restrict how District of Columbia public school teachers talk about racism and sexism, drafting a bill that’s the latest attack by the GOP against discussions of race and gender in U.S. schools. The bill introduced last week by Rep. Glenn Grothman, titled the “Ending […]
Cyberattack on New Hampshire school district illustrates growing threat to states and localities
WASHINGTON — In October 2019, officials at a tiny western New Hampshire school district suddenly realized they had a problem on their hands. The Sunapee School District’s servers, documents and other internal information systems had been locked down by an outside entity demanding a ransom payment. A cyberattack, like the Colonial Pipeline one that spurred days […]
U.S. House Ag leader seeks permanent scholarship funding for 1890 land-grant colleges
WASHINGTON — Leaders from 1890 land-grant colleges laid out to the House Agriculture Committee how a fresh infusion of scholarship funding provided by Congress has helped those historically Black institutions educate and train the next generation of agriculture workers. Committee Chairman David Scott, D-Ga., said their testimony would help members of the committee work to […]
Iowa schools to use $774.5M in federal aid to improve literacy, achievement gaps
Iowa state education officials laid out plans for spending $774.5 million in federal aid from the American Rescue Plan, including efforts to address a drop in student literacy. The pandemic-related aid is aimed at elementary and secondary schools, part of a $122 billion effort nationwide. Iowa and other states got access to two-thirds of their […]
School district refused to let domestic-abuse victim return to work
An Iowa school district acted unreasonably when it refused to let a teacher who had been the victim of domestic abuse return to work without first seeking counseling. The school district’s actions resulted in the teacher losing pay and employment, even though she posed no threat to anyone at the school, the judge found. Mara […]