Education

FL Cultist Seeks To Ban Book In PBS’s “Arthur” Series

The Daily Beast reports: A lone parent filed a complaint to a Florida school district that a book in the Arthur series—yes, the same Arthur from the beloved PBS animated show—contained references to Spin the Bottle, and now it’s possibly on the district’s chopping block. A member of the Clay County School District community filed the challenge on July 12 …

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Teachers Sue Tennessee Over History Lesson Limits

ABC News reports: A teachers association in Tennessee has filed a federal lawsuit against the state education department’s restrictions on curriculum regarding race and gender in public schools. The Tennessee Education Association and five Tennessee public school educators behind the lawsuit believe the Tennessee policy that bans certain concepts from being included in curriculum, programs or supplemental materials complicates how …

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Texas Professor Suspended For Criticizing GOP Lt Gov

The Texas Tribune reports: Joy Alonzo, a respected opioid expert, was in a panic. The Texas A&M University professor had just returned home from giving a routine lecture on the opioid crisis at the University of Texas Medical Branch when she learned a student had accused her of disparaging Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick [photo] during the talk. In the few …

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Florida Democrats Join “Banned Bookmobile” Tour

Florida Politics reports: The Chair of the Florida Democratic Party and state legislators will be in Tallahassee Saturday as part of a “banned bookmobile” gambit. Nikki Fried will be joined by Reps. Angie Nixon and Michele Rayner-Goolsby, activist Thomas Kennedy, and Jen Cousins, founder of the Florida Freedom to Read Project. The event is part of MoveOn Political Action’s first …

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Texas University President Forced Out Over Diversity

The New York Times reports: Texas A&M University said on Friday that its president would retire “immediately” after fallout surrounding political pushback of a new director of its journalism program because of her work promoting diversity, equity and inclusion. The announcement came just days after the school’s faculty senate passed a resolution to create a fact-finding committee to look “into …

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Obama Condemns Book Bans In Letter To Librarians

Axios reports: Former President Barack Obama on Monday denounced the spread of book bans across the country as “profoundly misguided.” Book bans have become a political flashpoint between conservatives and liberals, with several Republicans using them as a rallying cry ahead of the 2024 election. In a letter to the nation’s librarians, Obama praised them for being “on the front …

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Florida Launches Investigation Into University After DeSantis Pick Doesn’t Become Finalist To Be President

The Orlando Sentinel reports: The state will launch a formal investigation into Florida Atlantic University’s presidential search, rejecting the university’s request to end the matter quickly and increasing speculation that the ultimate goal is to place a political ally of Gov. Ron DeSantis into the role. The inspector general for the Board of Governors, the policy-making body for the state’s …

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OK Education Chief: “We Want The Bible In Schools”

“Instead of allowing Biden and the unions to inject their ideology through graphic pornography like ‘Gender Queer’ and “Flamer,’ we want the Constitution, we want the bible in our schools where kids understand our nation’s history and what has made this country great. The reality is that the bible is a foundational document in our country’s history. Read the Founders, …

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Florida Atlantic University Halts Search For President Over Questionnaire Asking If Applicants Are “Queer”

The South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports: Just days before the three finalists for Florida Atlantic University’s next president were set to speak at public forums, the search has been stopped in its tracks. State University System of Florida Chancellor Ray Rodrigues sent a letter to Brad Levine, chairman of both the FAU Board of Trustees and the Presidential Search Committee, citing …

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Oklahoma Schools Superintendent: Don’t Teach That The 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre Was Caused By Racism

The New Republic reports: Oklahoma’s far-right superintendent of public instruction thinks that schools should teach students about the Tulsa race massacre, so long as teachers don’t actually acknowledge that the white supremacist attack was about race. Walters held a public forum Thursday night, during which someone asked him how teaching about the Tulsa race massacre doesn’t violate his ban on …

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Harvard University Sued Over Legacy Admissions Policy

The Hill reports: Harvard is facing a civil rights complaint over the school’s legacy admissions after the Supreme Court ruled against race-conscious admissions practices. “Each year, Harvard College grants special preference in its admissions process to hundreds of mostly white students — not because of anything they have accomplished, but rather solely because of who their relatives are,” according to …

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ABC Poll: 52% Back SCOTUS On Affirmative Action

ABC News reports: On Thursday, the Supreme Court set new limits on affirmative action programs in cases involving whether public and private colleges and universities can continue to use race as one factor among many in student admissions. A little more than half of Americans – 52% — approve of the U.S. Supreme Court decision on restricting the use of …

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SCOTUS Rules Against Biden Admin On Student Loans

NPR reports: At the heart of the question is the 2003 HEROES Act, which passed in the wake of 9/11 and gave the education secretary broad power to “modify or waive” provisions of student loan programs in times of emergency. The Biden administration argues that the COVID-19 pandemic constituted one such emergency. Conservative opponents of the plan, however, argue that …

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Oklahoma Public Schools May Soon Have Daily Prayers

Tulsa World reports: Faith advisers want State Superintendent Ryan Walters to “enforce” a daily full minute of silence in schools, mandate the posting of the Ten Commandments in every classroom and add a Western Civilization course to high school graduation requirements. The recommendations echo Walters’ own headline-making campaign call in 2022 for every Oklahoma history teacher to be trained in …

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DeSantis Sues Feds Over Accreditation Of Colleges

Florida Politics reports: Gov. Ron DeSantis is opening another legal battle against the federal government, this time over the power of private accreditation agencies over state universities. “In America you need to be accountable to somebody, and right now they’re accountable to nobody,” DeSantis said at a press conference in Tampa. “We believe we have a great chance of succeeding …

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Extremists Gain Influence On NYC’s Education System

Chalkbeat reports: Candidates endorsed by a polarizing group that advocates for screened school admissions won the majority of seats on about half a dozen parent councils this year, according to election results released Friday by the New York City education department. Parent Leaders for Accelerated Curriculum and Education, or PLACE, endorsed 147 candidates across the city for local district council …

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College Board Rejects Florida’s Demand On AP Courses

The Hill reports: The College Board released a letter Thursday putting its foot down on further demands from Florida to change any of its Advanced Placement (AP) classes, the latest development in the ongoing feud between the company and the administration of Gov. Ron DeSantis (R). “[College Board] will not modify our courses to accommodate restrictions on teaching essential, college-level …

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Mother Of 6-Year-Old Boy Who Shot Virginia Teacher Pleads Guilty To Using Weed While Possessing Firearm

The Associated Press reports: The mother of a 6-year-old boy who shot his teacher in Virginia pleaded guilty in federal court Monday to using marijuana while possessing a firearm, which is illegal under U.S. law. The federal crime is facing increasing scrutiny as more states legalize the drug. But federal prosecutors in Virginia said Monday that such laws protect communities. …

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LA School Board President Delivers Epic Pro-LGBTQ Rant: How Dare You Make Kids Afraid Because YOU Are

The Los Angeles Times reports: Los Angeles school board President Jackie Goldberg pulled out an oversized children’s book titled “The Great Big Book of Families” and turned a public meeting into story time, her own not-so-subtle statement to critics of LGBTQ+ education. “In real life, families come in all sorts of shapes and sizes,” she read, as the text by …

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ACLU Sues To Block Indiana’s “Don’t Say Gay” Law

NPR reports: The ACLU of Indiana has filed a lawsuit to halt Indiana’s so-called “Don’t Say Gay” law. Court documents said the act’s lack of definitions about “human sexuality” and “instruction” mean teachers don’t know what they can and can’t teach. If found in violation of HEA 1608, teachers could have their licenses suspended or revoked. The lawsuit was filed …

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