Good reads and listens... |
5 things civil rights data says about public schools: NPR Ed’s Jonaki Mehta talked to researchers who dug into the mountains of information in the latest Civil Rights Data Collection, which surveyed schools about the 2023-24 school year. Some of what they and the Education Department distilled: The number of kids in preschool rose in the 2023-24 school year, while those in K-12 public schools declined. The population of students with disabilities grew. Black students were more likely to be suspended than students of other races. And the teacher workforce was far less diverse than the student population.
Money for STEM researchers — after billions in cuts: NPR Ed’s Elissa Nadworny looked into a White House announcement about what was billed as a historic investment into American innovation, including $100 million to support U.S. citizens getting into science Ph.D. programs. Two things to remember, she reports: The Trump administration has canceled or paused more than $11 billion dollars in federal research money to universities. And the U.S. is losing appeal as a destination for researchers because of shifting immigration policies.
Should religious schools have access to full taxpayer funding? The Supreme Court will tackle that in its new session, which began last week. At issue is a Colorado law that provides universal preschool programs that are open to all students regardless of race, religion or gender identity, NPR’s Nina Totenberg reports. A Catholic parish in Colorado wants the state's money for its pre-K program, but it doesn't want to admit LGBTQ students or students with gay or lesbian parents. The outcome could have profound consequences, potentially, for public schools across the country, especially charter schools.
The missing piece: The Florida Department of Education is rewriting the science standards that guide what students learn from kindergarten through high school. But two topics covered in those 2008 standards, evolution and climate change, are almost entirely absent from the proposed standards, Central Florida Public Media’s Kayla Kissel reports. |
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Community colleges often train people for jobs local businesses need filled. In Las Vegas, that could mean repairing slot machines. In the Florida Keys, it could mean underwater photography.
Right now in Northeast Louisiana, it means learning to build and maintain data centers. At Louisiana Delta Community College in Monroe, Gulf States Newsroom’s Aubri Juhasz observed instructor Fletch Batchelor walking a dozen students through the basics of fiber installation: “Strip, clean and cleave.”
He hands students safety goggles and strippers to let them try. Some are in their 20s, while others are middle-aged. Batchelor makes it look easy, but under an untrained — or just-trained hand — fiber breaks easily.
Since November, 40 people have graduated from Delta's new four-week data center technician program. It’s one of two programs that the school has created since Meta broke ground on what is now its largest data center project, and one of the biggest in the world, in Richland Parish, about 30 minutes away.
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