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Federal Strong Start for America’s Children Act Supports New Early Learning...
Senator Tom Harkin. In recognition of the critical learning needs of babies and toddlers, Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) has unveiled the Strong Start for America’s Children Act, a bipartisan bill that...
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Library Advocates File Brief to Challenge Arizona’s Ethnic Studies Ban
The nonprofit Freedom to Read Foundation (FTRF), joined by key library and learning advocates, on November 25 filed an amicus brief [PDF] with the United States Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in Arce...
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Colorado School Librarians Hopeful, Yet Wary, After Education Tax Bill’s Defeat
The defeat last month of Colorado’s Amendment 66, a statewide tax bill seeking to raise $950 million for education reform, has had little impact on the day-to-day lives of the state’s media...
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Washington State Representative Introduces Student Privacy Bill
Rep. Elizabeth Scott Washington State Representative Elizabeth Scott (R-Monroe) introduced a state bill, “HB 2133: Maintaining Privacy of Student Education Records,” this week that aims to protect the...
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NYC Welcomes Carmen Fariña as New Public Schools Chancellor
Incoming New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio’s choice of early childhood advocate Carmen Fariña to become the new public schools chancellor is being met with praise by the city’s parents and...
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New York Granted Federal Waiver to Eliminate Double-Testing in Math
The U.S. Department of Education (USDE) has approved New York State’s request for a waiver from the provisions of federal law that currently require students who take Regents exams in mathematics when...
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Free Mackin Ebooks; Qlovi’s Common Core Platform; E-Rate Filing Opens | News...
A Mini-MOOC on Digital Publishing The Z. Smith Reynolds (ZSR) Library at Wake Forest University has announced that it will present a ZSRx Digital Publishing mini-MOOC (massive open online course) that...
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School Libraries May Benefit from Congressional Budget Deal
The $1.012 trillion spending bill unveiled last night by House and Senate leaders, if approved, will restore most of the critically needed federal education funding—including that for Head Start, Title...
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AASL, Head Start Praise Federal Budget’s Focus on Early Learning
The American Association of School Librarians (AASL) and the National Head Start Association (NHSA) are praising the inclusion of significant monies for early childhood education in the $1.012 trillion...
View Article$750 Million ConnectED Pledge Includes $100 Million From O’Reilly Media,...
O’Reilly Media and the digital library Safari Books Online will donate over $100 million in technology education resources to US K-12 schools, according to a press release. The donation is one of...
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Vermont School Librarians Win—And Are Recognized in State Standards Once Again
Vermont librarians have won a battle. They fought to be reintroduced into their state education standards, in writing, and succeeded. The fight started in August 2013, when the Vermont School Library...
View ArticleStephen Krashen to LA School Board: Invest in Libraries
The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) recently approved a new 6.6 billion budget for the strained school system, where 80 percent of attending students live in poverty. Earlier this year,...
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The FCC To Vote on $5 Billion E-Rate Proposal, Librarians Are Speaking Out
Marijke Visser, assistant director at the Office of IT Technology at ALA, has been working with the FCC on how to distribute e-rate funds to libraries. Image courtesy of the ALA. On July 11, the...
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FCC Approves E-Rate Plan to Inject $2 Billion into WiFi for Schools and...
FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler. On July 11, the FCC voted to approve FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler’s revised order of WiFi financing reform through E-Rate—in a narrow 11th hour vote 3-2 amongst the committee...
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Opinion: State Legislation and Parent Advocates Must Bridge Skills Gap
Click image to see NACE 2014 study. Being information literate is one of the top five most important skills to employers, according to ”The Job Outlook for the Class of 2014” report from the National...
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Five Trends That Make 2015 Worth Celebrating| Editorial
The New Year has always been a time of optimism for me, but this winter is different. As we arrive in 2015, I am heartened by positive tendencies in several arenas that will influence our work in...
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OH Department of Education Will Vote to Purge School Librarian Requirement
Ohio educators and district leaders are divided over the recent proposal from the Ohio Department of Education (DOE) to eliminate the “5 of 8” rule. The 30-year-old rule states that at least five of...
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The E-Rate Window Is Wide Open: So What Next?
The window to apply for federal E-Rate funding in 2015 is currently open—and slams shut on March 26. Schools and libraries that rely on E-Rate subsidies for their Internet connectivity—as well as...
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Kansas May Criminalize Educators for Distributing “Harmful Material”
Senator Mary Pilcher-Cook (R-Shawnee) sponsored Senate Bill 56. School teachers and librarians have cause to be alert. If voted into law by the Kansas legislature, Senate Bill 56 (SB56) would amend a...
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Net Neutrality: Why You Should Care About the FCC Vote
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold a vote on February 26 on whether to reclassify Internet broadband services as a public utility under Title II of the Communications Act. Under...
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