Education
CDC study finds racial, regional disparities as schools reopened for in-person learning
WASHINGTON – After last year’s abrupt shutdown of schools due to the coronavirus pandemic, increasing numbers of students returned to in-person learning. But a new study shows that racial and geographic gaps persisted as K-12 students went back to their classrooms – with non-Hispanic white kids more often the ones attending a brick-and-mortar school full-time […]
Schools given option to continue testing for COVID-19
When New Hampshire public school students return to classrooms in August and September, one piece of pandemic life might be sticking around: testing. Granite State schools will have the option to continue testing their students for COVID-19 when they return in the fall, under a voluntary program extending to June 30, 2022. The $20 million, […]
GOP furor over ‘critical race theory’ hits college campuses
Professors say the Republican crusade to root out “critical race theory” is taking a toll on college campuses around the nation – places where academic freedom is supposed to encourage thought, discussion, and analysis. Much of the “critical race theory” uproar to date has centered on teaching in K-12 schools. But several high-profile incidents, combined […]
Donor towns, tax cuts, and the elusive education funding solution
It was supposed to be the report that would help fix New Hampshire’s unequal education system. But when the yearlong, $500,000 Commission to Study School Funding released its final findings in December, one item on its recommendations raised eyebrows: the return of the “donor towns.” For years, the practice of taking excess state property taxes […]
How many families would use ‘education savings accounts’? It’s hard to say
The proposal is closer than ever to reality: “education savings accounts” in New Hampshire. The program would allow parents to withdraw their child from a public school and take the grant money the state provides to that school with them. The money, which would range from $4,000 to $5,000 per year, would be put into […]
House, Senate debate making FAFSA college aid applications a high school graduation requirement
Lawmakers in the House and Senate are at odds over an obscure education debate: whether to require high school students to fill out federal college aid applications in order to graduate. Members of the Senate have voted to introduce the requirement. Voting 24-0 in March, the chamber passed Senate Bill 147, part of which would […]
Commentary: School nurses have a big job – is 1 for every 750 kids really enough?
When many people think of a school nurse, they imagine a person who hands out Band-Aids for boo-boos. But school nurses do so much more. They are school leaders who address the physical, mental, and emotional health needs of students. As the COVID-19 pandemic played out, many school nurses took on even greater responsibilities. These […]
School voucher program added to budget
A controversial proposal to allow New Hampshire parents to use public funds for private school tuition will move ahead next month, after the Senate Finance Committee added the program to the state budget. Voting along party lines Wednesday, the committee attached the proposal, known as the “education freedom account” program, to House Bill 2, the […]
‘Families deserve a remedy’: Bill would allow lawsuits against school districts in bullying cases
The bullying started on the school bus in kindergarten. It continued for years, repeating nearly daily. Shannon Bouchard knew her daughter, who has a speech disorder, was being occasionally teased on the bus by a bully. But she also thought the school had a handle on it. “I thought it would stop,” Bouchard, who lives […]
House lawmakers retain bill on calculation of school adequacy funding
A House committee on Thursday pushed aside an effort to give additional funding to New Hampshire schools after COVID-19, continuing a growing rift between House and Senate lawmakers over how best to help public schools. In a party-line vote, the House Education Committee voted to retain Senate Bill 135, which would have required the Department […]
After a challenging year, educators assess the challenges to come
Ben Lambright could talk about the toll the COVID school year has had on his peers, but he said his teachers aren’t in much better shape. “I have teachers at school who, I like to joke, they have senioritis worse than I do,” the Nashua 12th-grader joked to a panel of education representatives Monday. “So […]
Commentary: Can schools require COVID-19 vaccines for students now that Pfizer’s shot is authorized for kids 12 and up?
With the first COVID-19 vaccine now authorized for adolescents, ages 12 and up, a big question looms: Will students be required to get the vaccine before returning to their classrooms in the fall? As a professor of education policy and law and a former attorney for school districts, I regularly think about this sort of […]