In this weekâs newsletter:
đ Things look tough as the new school year ramps up.
đ The test letting Florida high schoolers skirt graduation requirements.
đ Why the Fauci hearing is worth writing about.
đ The Washington Postâs Laura Meckler is leaving the beat.
đ Sally the robot is gone, but school shooter drones are coming!
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TOUGH START FOR THE COMING SCHOOL YEAR
The big education story of the week:
Between enrollment losses, higher costs, and summer heat, the big education story of the week is whatâs shaping up to be a tough start to the year for schools in 2026-27, at least from the perspective of the traditional school districts.
Back to school supplies are more expensive (The 19th, TCF, WTOP, Groundwork). A few districts are apparently prohibiting teachers from posting Amazon wish lists (Houston Chronicle).
The weather remains hot â too hot for kids to be in school, some argue (Hechinger Report). The year has already begun in a few places like Jackson, Mississippi â and will open in the South and West over the next two weeks (Herald Tribune, USA Today, We Are Teachers).
But itâs not just the heat and the out-of-pocket expenses. Demographics and deportation efforts have led to family disruptions, last-minute school staff firings â and of course reduced school enrollments even in big cities gaining population (Houston Public Media, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, WBEZ Chicago, RAND, Boston Globe, K12 Dive). As a result, numerous districts are facing budget cuts (Palm Beach Post, San Antonio Report, Georgia Current, Florida Tribune). In places like Los Angeles and Oakland, district finances are a right mess (California Post).
There are at least a couple of bright spots, including booming enrollment in exurban districts and the last-minute news that there wonât be a school banana shortage (Bellwhether, Washington Post). And of course parents and educators who are concerned about technology will see edtech rollbacks and restrictions (see below). But on the whole itâs hard to find much to be excited about just yet.
Other big education stories of the week include the reinstatement of 200 Howard University students (WJLA, Washington Post, AP), additional revelations about sexual abuse of students at the Epstein-affiliated Interlochen School (AP, NYT, Guardian), and the continued backlash against edtech (Stateline, LAist, Summit Daily, The Conversation, Block Club Chicago).
Check out the secret bonus section (below) for commentary, analysis, and features.
THIS NEW TEST ISNâT VERY TESTING
The best education journalism of the week:
đ Hegsethâs âgold standardâ college exam tests middle-school math
The Classic Learning Test is supposed to provide an alternative to the SAT and ACT that focuses on the great thinkers of the Western canon. But the CLT falls far behind its better-known rivals when it comes to rigorously testing math, according to analysis by USA TODAYâs Chris Quintana â making it potentially an easier alternative for Florida students who need to pass one of the exams to graduate high school. The story blends open-record requests, data visualization and even interactive test questions for the reader to try in an investigation thatâs far more engaging than a story about test-taking has any right to be.
In an era of more voucher programs and required Bible readings, the limitations of public spending on religious education are being re-litigated across the country. That makes this investigation from Chalkbeatâs Ann Schimke on a so-called âpublic Christian schoolâ in Colorado all the more important. Using open records Schimke shows that state education officials knew the school had a religious focus before assigning it a public school code that allowed it to collect tax dollars. When pressed, the officials provided an astounding, buck-passing response that it was the job of courts â not state agencies â to litigate the First Amendment issues.
đ Adults have struggled to set rules for AI in school. These teens figured it out
This feature story by NPRâs Cory Turner covers how a teen Senate spent one weekend drafting and passing a bill on tech and AI in schools. They argued about the dangers of AI as opposed to the dangers of not learning to use it properly; the difficulties of adding new obligations to teachers and how to encourage parents to play a role in responsible tech education. The final bill may not have legal authority, but it will be sent to some 10,000 school leaders and reflects an astute debate from the people who are experiencing the spread of AI in real time. The kids may be alright after all.
See also: Students Convene to Hammer Out AI Bill of Rights for Schools
Other stories we like include Sankofa Kings trains Black boys and young men to create, not just consume, AI (Oaklandside), These 400 Philly kids almost didnât make it to the finish line. They collected their diplomas Thursday. (Philadelphia Inquirer) and At summer school garden, Columbia Heights students find place to learn and heal (Sahan Journal).
WHY THE FAUCI STORY IS AN EDUCATION STORY
The latest from The Grade:
Anthony Fauci may not have said much at his Senate hearing this week, but the release of his diaries and the ensuing spectacle provided an opportunity to reflect on Fauciâs many mistakes and deceptions â masks, mortality rates, distancing, prolonged closures, vaccine mandates â and to rebuild trust with readers and the public.
âSchools were among the most-affected parts of American society during the pandemic,â I wrote, arguing in favor of journalists covering the story. âAnd thereâs no place where Fauciâs influence was more apparent than it was on the closing of schools and the ensuing protocols.â
I got some good responses, including from the San Francisco Chronicleâs Jill Tucker, who pushed back on the notion that school shutdowns were all a top-down scam:
âI feel like thereâs a lot of rewriting of history about this,â she wrote. âMarginalized communities saw more deaths/hospitalizations; families refused to send kids to school because they lived with elderly relatives. It was happening in real time w/out scientific certainty of how to prevent spread.â
The Dissident Teacher pushed back on the pushback:
âThe more left-leaning and laptop-classy the community (includes most teachers), the more they bought into the panic because the COST of buying into the panic was low and the social benefits (virtue signaling of âunselfishlyâ following all protocols) were high,â they wrote. âThe working class/middle-middle, skilled trades, etc., didnât have that option.â
What do you think itâs important not to miss in reflecting on Fauciâs legacy?
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THEY LIKE YOU â BUT THEY DONâT READ YOU
This weekâs secret bonus section for paid subscribers:
In this weekâs Secret Bonus Section: Video journalism front and center, wrong on school shootings, popular but little-used, & the weekâs best essays, commentary, and longform journalism. Last weekâs Secret Bonus Section.
PEOPLE, EVENTS, & MORE
đ° People: People: Longtime WaPo education reporter Laura Meckler (above) is moving to the paperâs new Political Enterprise team. âIâve loved covering education so itâs bittersweet but Iâm excited about this new team,â emailed Meckler, who sat for a memorable 2023 interview. Jillian Forstadt has moved to the investigative team at PennLive, taking her education coverage statewide. Congratulations to The 74âs Jo Napolitano for her first-place win in education reporting at NAHJ.
High schooler Ben Mueller was featured in WIRED after his student journalism homework sparked a quick backlash from the school. This obituary for long-time public school teacher Christopher Anne Affleck â perhaps better known as the mother of actor Ben â is worth a read. And if youâre looking for a job, WESA in Western Pennsylvania is hiring an education reporter.
đ° Impact: Senate leaders are pushing the USDOT over school bus safety data following a WBUR / ProPublica report on dozens of fatal crashes missing from federal safety data. If you expected school predator database legislation to pass in California, you will be disappointed.
đ° Numbers: This weekâs database to check out is EdSourceâs list of child deportations from California during the second Trump term. Or you could look at the significant gap between Indianaâs new vouchers and the tuition Indianapolis private schools charge. Among adults, 77% support an in-class ban on cellphones for kids. Chicago will see five uncontested races for its school board this fall after a series of challenges. A new AI edtech company from Andrew Ng is getting a $100 million investment from Coursera. Four states have passed some kind of guidance for schools on the use of AI this year, joining 35 that already have requirements.
đ° Episodes: WHYY has put out a four-part series on how tech is reshaping schools in the Keystone state. The biggest surprise to series reporter Kenny Cooper? âUnderfunded rural and urban schools have more in common than most people think,â he told me in an email. The Education Beat podcast from EdSource continues to clean up at the California News Publishers Association with its fourth Best Podcast recognition in a row. And thereâs always an education angle â even to summer blockbusters, at least according to this episode from NPR.
đ° Quotes
âParents still care deeply about schools, but they experience them through money, safety, technology, honesty, and whether their children can build stable adult lives. Stop asking voters to enter through your issue. Show them how schools touch theirs.â
âFolks whoâve made, eg, Medicare for All a litmus test on health have been shockingly defensive of an education status quo.â
âOn policy merits, blue states refusing to opt in makes zero sense. On political reality, their complete distrust of the current administration makes their hesitation entirely predictable.â
âIt often felt like we were losing their childhood to a digital intruder, a lack of community connection, and a culture where nearly every activity for children was parent-directed, highly organized, and carefully scheduled.â
âWhen I was still in journalism, if you had told me Iâd be reading long-form investigative journalism on my cell phone, I would have given you an arched eyebrow and my best Bill Lumbergh drawn-out âyeah.â But here we are.â
đ° Events: WAMU reporter and Friend-of-The-Grade Jenny Abamu is heading across the pond in September as a speaker at the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism at Oxford for a masterclass in AI, Journalism & Society. This week saw the first of two webinars from the Solutions Journalism Network on spreading solutions journalism through social media â the second session will be on Aug. 12. If youâre reading this at publication time, you may still be able to hop on and catch Chalkbeatâs discussion of data on teacher turnover. And on Aug. 4, EdWeek is hosting a webinar at 2 p.m. Eastern on âUnpacking âTech Backlashâ and What It Means for K-12 Providers.â
đ° Collaborations: Oaklandside brought in 12 public high students as reporting fellows to cover the issues impacting their own schools. And the New York Times is looking for students to share whether â and how â AI is changing their life.
KICKER
Always save the best for last.
What is it with schools trying to put robots in classrooms?
Thatâs all, folks. Thanks for reading!
With research and writing from Abraham Kenmore.