Tag: Department of Education

Joe Biden Expected to Name Current Connecticut Education Commissioner to Lead Education Department

Michigan Star Staff

President-elect Joe Biden is poised to select Miguel Cardona, the current Connecticut education commissioner, to lead the Department of Education in his administration, CNN reported.

Miguel Cardona, who has served as head of the Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE) since August 2019, will be President-elect Joe Biden’s choice to lead the federal government’s education department, multiple sources told CNN. Cardona would be the latest Latino to receive a high-ranking position in the incoming Biden administration.

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U.S. Department of Education Opens Investigation of Fordham University Over Punishment of Student Austin Tong

Michigan Star Staff

The U.S. Department of Education has opened an investigation into Fordham University, about two months after student Austin Tong received notification from the New York City private college that his social media posts violated university policy and that he had been placed on probation.

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Guidance for Masks in Schools Varies Widely Across US States

The Associated Press

School districts that plan to reopen classrooms in the fall are wrestling with whether to require teachers and students to wear face masks — an issue that has divided urban and rural schools and yielded widely varying guidance.

The divide has also taken on political dimensions in Iowa, among other places, where Democratic-leaning cities like Des Moines and Iowa City have required masks to curb the spread of the coronavirus, while smaller, more conservative communities have left the decision to parents.

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28 Congressional Democrats Sign Letter Demanding Department Of Education Allow Biological Males in Girls’ Sports

Michigan Star Staff

Twenty-eight congressional Democrats signed a letter Wednesday condemning the Department of Education for ruling that public schools that allow biological males who identify as transgender to play girls’ sports are violating Title IX civil rights legislation.

Democratic Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal joined 27 House Democrats in signing the letter, which charged that the department’s order “discriminates against transgender youth” by restricting girls’ sports to biological females.

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Commentary: Enemies of Homeschooling Are Scared – and They Should Be

Michigan Star Staff

Nearly every family with kids has gotten a taste of homeschooling over the past two months. In an attempt to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, at least 124,000 schools have closed for over 55 million children in the U.S. At the same time, opponents of homeschooling launched several unfounded attacks on the practice. For example, The Washington Post ran an opinion piece claiming “homeschooling during the coronavirus will set back a generation of children,” and a Salon article said that “homeschooling as a result of the pandemic will likely worsen education for students and pose serious problems to the economy and nation’s social well-being.”

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Commentary: Now Is the Perfect Time to Cut Education Spending

Michigan Star Staff

Leftists love to label those who favor cutting education spending as “anti-children,” “anti-public school,” and basically, “anti-education.” That’s because leftists are the ones benefiting most from the increases in education spending that have, until recently, been mandated like clockwork.

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Tlaib Introduces Charter School Oversight Bill, Says DeVos Turning a ‘Blind Eye to Their Failures’

Anthony Gockowski

Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI-13) introduced a bill last week that she says will promote the “same type of accountability from charter schools nationwide that the law requires of traditional public schools.”

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Commentary: Students’ Test Scores Unchanged After Decades of Federal Intervention in Education

Michigan Star Staff

Federal “Highly Qualified Teacher” mandates. Adequate Yearly Progress requirements. Smaller learning communities. Improving Teacher Quality State Grants. Reading First. Early Reading First. The dozens of other federal programs authorized via No Child Left Behind. School Improvement Grants. Race to the Top. Common Core.

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