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81°
Wednesday, jun 10
Tag:
Education Policy
Schools
'This Is Sick!' NY School's 'Timeout Box' Draws Outrage, Triggers State Investigation
A New York school superintendent has been placed on home assignment amid explosive allegations that special needs students were subjected to a so-called classroom “timeout box” at an elementary school. The Salmon River Central School District launched an investigation after a former school board member alleged that students at St. Regis Mohawk School in Akwesasne were subjected to improper restraint and seclusion practices, the district’s Board of Education confirmed Thursday, Dec. 18. The school is located within the Saint Regis Mohawk Reservation. In a Facebook post that has since gone vi…
Schools
Penn State Fraternity Sigma Pi Suspended For Hazing, But Continues To Operate Off-Campus
A Penn State fraternity has been formally suspended from the university for at least four years following an investigation into hazing, officials announced on Thursday, July 31. The Sigma Pi fraternity was placed on an indefinite organizational suspension, effective Wednesday, July 17, after Penn State’s Office of Student Accountability and Conflict Response investigated multiple reports of hazing and serious misconduct beginning in March 2025. According to the university, allegations included physical and mental abuse, forced consumption of alcohol and other undesirable substances, forced …
Schools
Bell-To-Bell Ban: NY Schools Have Days Left To Finalize Smartphone Restrictions
“More learning, less scrolling:” That’s the message behind New York’s new Distraction-Free Schools Law, which will restrict smartphone use from the first bell to the last across K-12 public schools starting this fall. Gov. Kathy Hochul hosted a roundtable on Monday, July 14, with Capital Region school leaders and the state teachers union to discuss how the statewide ban will be implemented when the 2025-2026 school year begins. The new law — signed earlier this year — requires all public school districts to publish their distraction-free device policies by Friday, August 1. Nearly 150 distr…
News
Supreme Court Green-Lights Trump Plan To Gut Education Department
The Supreme Court has just swept aside a lower-court injunction and handed President Donald Trump permission to restart mass layoffs at the US Department of Education, reviving his promise to dismantle the agency created nearly half a century ago. In an unsigned, 6-3 order divided along ideological lines that was released late Monday afternoon, July 14, the justices lifted a spring ruling by US District Judge Myong Joun of Massachusetts that had forced the administration to rehire hundreds of Education Department employees terminated during a March reduction-in-force. Earlier report…
Schools
Showdown At Massapequa: McMahon Says NY Mascot Ban Violates Civil Rights Law In Campus Visit
Federal officials are siding with the Massapequa Chiefs — and threatening action against New York over its ban on Native American school mascots. In a dramatic visit to Massapequa High School on Friday, May 30, US Secretary of Education Linda McMahon announced that New York’s statewide mascot policy violates Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits race-based discrimination in federally funded education programs. The US Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) determined that state officials illegally targeted Native American imagery while allowing other race- and et…
Schools
Federal Judge Blocks Trump From Dismantling Education Department
In a decisive legal ruling, a federal judge has blocked the Trump administration from dismantling the Department of Education, mandating the reinstatement of employees who were terminated. US District Judge Myong Joun of Massachusetts said the department cannot be shut down without Congressional approval. In his injunction, Joun also told the administration to reinstate Education Department employees who lost their jobs during the reduction-in-force announced on Tuesday, March 11, "to restore the Department to the status quo." President Trump issued an executive order on Thursda…
Schools
NY School District's Transgender Athlete Policy Sparks Federal Investigation
The Trump administration has opened an investigation into a public school district in upstate New York over its policy permitting transgender athletes. Rep. Elise Stefanik confirmed that the US Department of Education is investigating the Saratoga Springs City School District for alleged Title IX violations “after my strong public advocacy," in a post on X Tuesday, May 6. Stefanik linked to a New York Post article in which Education Secretary Linda McMahon confirmed that the administration was looking into whether the district discriminated against girls by allowing biological boys to play …
Schools
Millions To Have Paychecks Garnished As Federal Student Loan Collections Restart
Millions of Americans may soon have their wages garnished as the Trump administration resumes student loan collections paused since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. About 5.3 million borrowers are set to receive wage garnishment notices in the summer of 2025, according to the Department of Education. The federal government officially restarted student loan debt collections on Monday, May 5. Nearly 195,000 borrowers began receiving 30-day warning letters from the Treasury Department. Their Social Security or other federal benefits will be seized through the Treasury Offset …
Schools
National Teacher Of Year Named As Woman Who Returned Home To Teach With Mentor
A Pennsylvania high school teacher has been named the 2025 National Teacher of the Year, education officials announced Tuesday, April 29. Ashlie Crosson teaches English and journalism at Mifflin County High School in Lewistown, where she also helps students publish a newspaper, magazine, and run social media accounts. She earned the national title after being selected as Pennsylvania’s 2024 Teacher of the Year by the state Department of Education. Crosson started teaching in Delaware in 2011, later returning to Pennsylvania to work in the Bellefonte Area School District while earning her m…
Schools
Trump Weighs In On NY School Mascot Battle: ‘Long Live The Massapequa Chiefs!’
President Donald Trump is throwing his support behind a Long Island school district fighting to keep its Native American-themed mascot. Trump came to the defense of the Massapequa Chiefs, blasting New York’s push for a rebrand as “ridiculous” and “an affront to our great Indian population," in a Truth Social post on Monday, April 21. The school district has been ordered to retire its decades-old mascot under a 2023 New York State mandate banning Indigenous-themed names and logos in public schools. “I agree with the people in Massapequa, Long Island, who are fighting furiously to keep the M…
News
Trump Administration To Resume Student Loan Debt Collections, Millions Face Seized Paychecks
The Trump administration will begin seizing tax refunds and garnishing paychecks from millions of Americans in default on their student loans for the first time in five years. The Department of Education announced it will restart collections on its defaulted student loan portfolio on Monday, May 5. The agency said about 42.7 million people owe more than $1.6 trillion in student loan debt. About five million borrowers are already in default, with millions more in late-stage delinquency. "American taxpayers will no longer be forced to serve as collateral for irresponsible student loan p…
Politics
Trump Signs Executive Order To Dismantle Education Department
President Trump has signed an executive order that could lead to the dissolution of the Education Department. The order, signed late Thursday afternoon, March 20, cannot alone lead to the closure of the department since Congressional approval of the move is required. The directive tasks Education Secretary Linda McMahon with initiating the necessary steps to close the department, asserting that federal control over learning has faltered. “The department’s useful functions will be preserved, fully preserved,” Trump said during a signing ceremony in the East Room of the White House on …
Schools
District To Retire 'Raiders' Name In Hudson Valley To Avoid Losing State Funding: Officials
An Orange County school district has announced it will no longer use the “Raiders” name for its athletic teams following state education regulations that prohibit schools from using Native American-related team names and imagery. In a letter to the community on Wednesday, March 12, Port Jervis City School District Superintendent John J. Bell confirmed the decision, stating that the district will not select a new team name at this time. The "Raiders" name and mascot logo will be dropped as of Monday, June 30, Bell wrote. In his letter, Bell explained several reasons b…
Politics
Trump Moves To Dismantle Education Department With Executive Order
In a striking shift in policy, President Trump is poised to issue an executive order on Thursday, March 6, that could lead to the dissolution of the Education Department. According to sources familiar with the matter, this directive will task Education Secretary Linda McMahon with initiating the necessary steps to close the department, asserting that federal control over learning has faltered. The draft order, first reported by The Wall Street Journal, articulates a resolute stance: “The experiment of controlling American education through Federal programs and dollars — and the unacco…
Politics
Trump Wants To Shut Education Department: Here's Why, What It Means
President Donald Trump says he's considering an executive order to dismantle the functions of the US Department of Education, aiming to eventually abolish the agency. This move aligns with his administration's broader strategy to decrease the federal government's size and return control of education policy to the states. The proposed executive order would maintain only those functions required by statute within the department, while other programs would be transferred to different agencies. An agency can't be abolished without Congressional approval. This reflects Trump's campaign pr…
Schools
New Study Reveals Shocking Amount Of Phone Use By Teens While At School
A brand-new study has uncovered surprising trends in teen phone use during school hours, raising fresh concerns about digital distractions in the classroom. The study, published by JAMA Pediatrics on Monday, Feb. 3, found that students spent a significant portion of the school day on their phones, with messaging, Instagram, and video streaming among the most-used apps. Researchers also noted that a quarter of students logged more than two hours of screen time during class. In addition, students whose parents held bachelor’s degrees or higher spent about a half-hour less on their phones dur…
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