Author: BelieveAgain

Congress approved funding dedicated to English learners in the fiscal 2026 federal budget, but failed to increase the program’s total allocation even as the student population continues to grow, and costs associated with educating them rise.States are responsible for covering the basic education of English learners, even if it involves additional costs beyond that of educating non-English learners. The Title III federal program gives money to states, which in turn give money to districts for supplemental expenses, such as teacher training on serving English learners or after-school tutoring programs for these students.Over the last 15 years or so, the total…

Victor Cifuentes wants to be an engineer.If all goes according to plan, he’ll be a first-generation college student. His parents encourage him to attend college, but “I don’t get much advice from them [about] my career field,” said Victor, 16, a junior at Donald M. Payne Sr. School of Technology, a public high school in Newark, N.J.Instead, Victor has had crucial college and career preparation as one of 43 students in the federally funded Career-Connected High Schools program in the Essex County Schools of Technology district.Through the program, Victor, who’s studying carpentry, enrolled in a writing class, attended financial literacy…

The FBI served search warrants Wednesday at the Los Angeles Unified School District’s headquarters and Superintendent Alberto Carvalho’s home as part of a federal investigation.The nature of the investigation and what allegations were being examined was not immediately clear.Rukelt Dalberis, a spokesperson for the FBI’s Los Angeles field office, confirmed that agents were at the properties to serve warrants but declined to comment further because affidavits laying out details for the basis for the searches were under seal. A third location in Florida was also searched.The district is aware of the searches at the office and Carvalho’s home, it said…

Louisiana will receive modest new authority over how its districts manage federal funding under a waiver from the Every Student Succeeds Act approved by U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon on Feb. 25.The waiver—at least the second approved on ESSA funding flexibility in President Donald Trump’s second term—comes nearly a year after Trump issued an executive order calling on McMahon to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education and “return authority over education to the states and local communities.”In recent months, the Education Department has been encouraging states to ask for waivers from different provisions of ESSA—the nation’s primary K-12 law—and…

President Donald Trump used his most high-profile speech of the year to laud a K-12 artificial intelligence competition spearheaded by first lady Melania Trump, while remaining silent about his work to hollow out the U.S. Department of Education and dramatically expand federal resources for private school choice. Trump’s decision to keep those cornerstone K-12 policies out of the State-of-the-Union spotlight comes at the start of a mid-term election year in which Republicans are expected to struggle to maintain their slim majority in the U.S. House of Representatives.Trump also did not propose any new education policies in the address, leaving his…

More than 1 million K-12 students nationwide are receiving public funds for private education this school year—and as states and the federal government continue to expand eligibility for these subsidies, that number is likely to continue growing.The details of these programs vary considerably. Some are open to any student who applies, while others cap eligibility based on funding availability, household income levels, or previous enrollment in public school. Some supply direct tax credits or funds from state accounts, while others reward taxpayers who donate to scholarship-granting organizations.As the private school choice landscape continues to expand, we’ll continue tracking new and…

Private school choice is surging across the nation—but not without opposition, as many state-level programs are embroiled in court challenges.Judges in several states are currently weighing or poised to weigh the legal and constitutional merits of programs—including vouchers, education savings accounts, and tax-credit scholarships—that fund private education with public dollars. (See our glossary for definitions of each form of private school choice program.)Previous iterations of these lawsuits against state-level programs haven’t always been successful in their goals. Courts have offered a wide range of opinions on private school choice, endorsing some programs while striking down others. In some cases, state…

The U.S. Department of Education on Monday announced it will begin offloading the management of key federal programs for school safety, community schools, educational TV programming, and family engagement as the Trump administration continues its bid to wind down the agency.The department announced Monday afternoon that it’s struck an “interagency agreement” with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to “take a growing role in administering” six grant programs related to K-12 schools.Separately, the U.S. Department of State will take over management of a grant portal that displays foreign gifts to higher education institutions, the department announced on Feb.…

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday struck down President Donald Trump’s tariff policy, ruling in cases brought by a variety of businesses, including a pair of Chicago-based educational toy companies, that the president exceeded his powers under a federal statute.In a 6–3 decision issued Feb. 20, the court held that Trump lacked congressional authorization to impose sweeping tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), the 1977 law his administration cited to justify the policy.Although the education companies’ specific claims were dismissed on jurisdictional grounds, their lawsuit helped produce the broader outcome they sought: invalidating the tariff policy. One…

For years, social media companies have disputed allegations that they harm children’s mental health through deliberate design choices that addict kids to their platforms and fail to protect them from sexual predators and dangerous content. Now, these tech giants are getting a chance to make their case in courtrooms around the country, including before a jury for the first time.Some of the biggest players from Meta to TikTok are facing federal and state trials that seek to hold them responsible for harming children’s mental health. The lawsuits have come from school districts, local and state governments, and the federal government,…