Education in Focus

The mother of a student who was killed outside a Philadelphia football game in 2022 has filed a lawsuit against the school, alleging it should have done more to prevent the shooting, raising questions about the legal responsibility schools have to protect students. Meredith Elizalde says the School District of Philadelphia is liable for the shooting death of her son, Nicolas Elizalde, because it should have done more to protect him, given the crime rate near the school. The district has said in court filings that it is not responsible for crimes committed outside the school. 

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Full story: https://www.chalkboardnews.com/issues/safety/article_e8928ab8-921d-11ef-82d0-6798abcb17e9.html

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A recent report card from the state of South Dakota shows that although most students are completing high school, about half are not proficient in key subjects or ready for college – a juxtaposition the state education agency calls “complicated.” The South Dakota Department of Education released its State Report Card for the 2023-24 school year last week. Despite the 91% high school completion rate, the state's metrics deemed only 54% of students ready for life after graduating high school.

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Full story: https://www.chalkboardnews.com/issues/outcomes/article_bb08ad08-90b4-11ef-a374-1b9da59259a8.html

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A federal court has ruled that a Pennsylvania first-grade teacher violated the rights of parents by teaching them about transgender identity during instruction related to Transgender Awareness Day. The court ruled late last month that teacher Megan Williams violated the law by reading extracurricular books and telling students at Jefferson Elementary School that "when children are born, parents make a guess whether they're a boy or a girl. Sometimes parents are wrong." Leaders of Jefferson and the Mt. Lebanon School District were named in their official capacity in the lawsuit brought by parents with "religious and moral beliefs" that conflict with those posited by the transgender movement, reads the opinion by Judge Joy Flowers Conti.

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Full story: Court: Transgender instruction without warning violates parents' rights

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A new national poll shows many Americans support school choice measures that would allow families to use taxpayer funds to attend a private school. The Center Square Voters' Voice Poll conducted by Noble Predictive Insights found that over two-thirds of the more than 2,200 likely voters polled support giving families choices using public funds. The poll found that 69% of likely voters said they support a federal tax credit program that would allow students to attend a school of their choice, including a private school.

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Full story:  Poll: Americans broadly support federal school choice program

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A renewed focus on math, science, reading and social studies is the best way to improve education in the U.S., a plurality of voters say, according to a new poll. According to The Center Square's Voter's Voice Poll conducted by Noble Predictive Insights, 39% of likely voters said focusing on these core subjects would "do the most to improve public education in America." Paying teachers more came in second.

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Full story: What do voters say will fix the country's schools? 'Focus on core subject areas'

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In a new national poll released this week, voters signaled they are divided over the Biden administration’s Title IX changes to expand gender identity protections ahead of the general election. The Center Square Voters' Voice Poll conducted by Noble Predictive Insights found that voters are almost evenly split on the controversial rule change from the Department of Education. The Center Square, like Chalkboard News, is owned and operated by the Franklin News Foundation. The latest poll of over 2,500 likely voters found 45% said they disapproved of the Biden administration’s equity-focused push to prohibit discrimination because of gender identity, with 40% saying they approve of the changes.

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Full story: https://www.chalkboardnews.com/issues/cultural-issues/article_f0574156-874d-11ef-868a-c7df056d6cd8.html

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Exactly one year after the terrorist attack on Israel, a group of Jewish California teachers is suing state officials and the superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District over regulations they say force them to associate with a union that promotes anti-Israel rhetoric. The federal lawsuit against Alberto M. Carvalho, LAUSD superintendent and the California Public Employee Relation Board argues the teachers in the Los Angeles Unified School District should not be forced to be a part of the teachers union, called the Unified Teachers of Los Angeles, because it "publicly advocates acts violating their deeply held religious beliefs." Kimberly Krieger, Carli Goblin, Anna Kingston, and another Jewish teacher who is unnamed in the complaint say the UTLA "supports calls for the destruction of Plaintiffs' religious homeland, and promotes animosity and violence towards people of Jewish decent."

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The latest test results show more students in Wisconsin's public schools are scoring better at reading and writing, but critics say it's an illusion. The state's Department of Public Instruction on Tuesday released the results from the Forward Exam, for middle and elementary school students, and the ACT for high schoolers. The scores show 51% of Wisconsin children are proficient in reading and 53% are proficient in math. That's up from last year's scores that showed 39% were proficient in reading and 41% were proficient in math.

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Full story: Critics call jump in Wisconsin standardized test scores ‘ludicrous’ 

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During last week's debate between candidates for vice president, the two sparred over school shootings, illustrating the ideological divide between the main political parties. While Republican VP candidate Sen. J.D. Vance from Ohio and Democratic candidate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz maintained a generally civil tone during the portion of the debate, their answers highlight the wide divide on approaches to school safety. When pressed during the debate hosted by CBS News, Walz (D) and Vance (R) took opposite approaches on how to curb shooting deaths that generally reflected their respective party's stances.

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A Michigan mom is appealing a court's ruling that she suffered "minor harassment" at the hands of school leaders for speaking out at board meetings against the COVID-19 policies enacted by her child's school district. Sandra Herndon, the mother of a special needs student formerly enrolled in the Chippewa Valley School District in Clinton Township, Michigan, alleges that school leaders violated her rights by contacting her employer and the Department of Justice for her outspoken oppostition to remote learning. The initial lawsuit alleged that an email referring Hernden to the federal law enforcement agency came immediately after Attorney General Merrick Garland sent an Oct. 4, 2021, memo calling on the FBI to investigate "harassment, intimidation, and threats of violence against school administrators, board members, teachers, and staff."

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