Happy Monday!
My colleagues Ted Eismeier, Noah Sudow, and Alex Davis dug into the Trump administration's 151-page accreditation reform proposal in Friday’s edition of Whiteboard Notes — worth a read, especially with the Education Department's AIM negotiated rulemaking committee kicking off its first session this week.
Cell phone policy continues to dominate K-12 education coverage, with Maine becoming the latest state to enact a ban. I enjoyed this Washington Post piece from a Gen Z developmental psychologist at the Cato Institute who says phones were a lifeline during his most isolated years, and that the science linking social media to the adolescent mental health crisis is weaker than its proponents claim.
Last week, we hosted a discussion with Dr. Angela Duckworth and other experts to dig into the tension around cell phone bans: what the research actually shows and how school leaders can move past reactive policy toward a more evidence-informed approach. If you missed "Beyond the Ban: Rethinking Cell Phone Policies in Schools," the replay is available here.
As always, if you see something we should be reading, hit reply!
K-12 Education
Opinion: What a Hallway Sprint Taught Me About Chronic Absenteeism - The 74 - April 10, 2026
Cell Phone Bans Alone Aren't Enough, Research Warns - District Administration - April 10, 2026
How Mentoring Programs Spur Student Success in a New York District - K-12 Dive - April 10, 2026
Schools and Family Values: A Reboot of a Familiar Debate - Education Week (subscription model) - April 10, 2026
Opinion: Formative Assessments Are Top of Mind for Teachers. They Should Be for Principals, Too. - Education Week (subscription model) - April 12, 2026
Higher Education
More Than a Quarter of Private Colleges Are at Risk of Closing, New Projection Shows - NPR - April 13, 2026
Kansas Governor Signs Bill to Curb Race-Related Instruction at Public Colleges - Higher Ed Dive - April 9, 2026
Students Struggle With College Majors and Rise of AI - The Hill - April 12, 2026
The Looming College-Enrollment Death Spiral - The Atlantic (subscription model) - April 10, 2026
Looking for a College Scholarship on Social Media Sites? Buyer, Beware. - The New York Times (subscription model) - April 11, 2026
Opinion: Too Many Community College Students Never Finish What They Started — and That Must Change - The Hechinger Report - April 10, 2026
Federal Policy & Politics
First Grants Announced Under Labor Dept. Elementary and Secondary Ed Partnership - K-12 Dive - April 10, 2026
The Redirect Ruse: How the Trump Administration Swapped Student Access for One-Time Institutional Checks to HBCUs - The EduLedger - April 9, 2026
Opinion: How Democrats Can Win on Education Again - Washington Monthly - April 9, 2026
Early Learning & Child Care
Why Some Students Don't Raise Their Hands — and How Early Education Can Change That - The 74 - April 12, 2026
Missouri Child Care Subsidy Cuts Could Hit Foster Kids, Low-Income Families Hardest - The 74 - April 11, 2026
The Cost of Raising a Child in the U.S. Just Hit a New High - Fortune - April 12, 2026
Educator Talent & Staffing
This State Invested in Helping High Schoolers Become Teachers. Did It Work? - Education Week (subscription model) - April 10, 2026
When Teachers Can't Afford to Live in the Bay Area, Districts Get Into the Housing Game - KQED - April 13, 2026
To Fill Teacher Vacancies, SC Could Accept Certificates From Other States - The 74 - April 13, 2026
Technology & AI
To Teach in the Time of ChatGPT Is to Know Pain - Ars Technica - April 13, 2026
Opinion: Why Honest Students Fear AI Detectors - The Washington Post (subscription model) - April 13, 2026
'Vibe Coding' Helped a Washington District Save $250K in Ed Tech Costs - K-12 Dive - April 10, 2026
Beyond the Buzz: What OBC Actually Changes in Ed Tech - Government Technology - April 10, 2026
AI Agents Are Coming to Schools - The Atlantic (subscription model) - April 10, 2026
America's Schools Are Caught in an EdTech Trap - Fortune - April 10, 2026
Workforce & Career Pathways
LA needs 100,000 construction workers. Community colleges are racing to train them - Associated Press - April 10, 2026
School Choice
CT Homeschool Families Face Stricter Oversight - WSHU - April 10, 2026
Opinion: The Right School Can Change a Student's Future. Why Idaho's Parental Choice Tax Credit Matters. - Idaho Education News - April 9, 2026
State & Local News
California (LAUSD) | LA Unified School District Walkout Still Looms Despite Two Unions Reaching Deals - KTLA - April 13, 2026
Chicago | CPS Students Are Earning Biliteracy Seals in Record Numbers. For Many, It Brings Pride and Job Benefits. - Chicago Sun-Times - April 13, 2026
DC | D.C. school applications fall amid deportation fears and federal layoffs - The Washington Post (subscription model) - April 12, 2026
Houston | Houston ISD board authorizes reduction in force as district recruits new teachers - Houston Public Media - April 10, 2026
Kansas | Kansas Governor's Veto Stands, Stopping Proposed Changes to Education Assessments - Kansas Reflector - April 12, 2026
Maine | Cellphones will be banned in Maine schools this fall - Bangor Daily News - April 10, 2026
Detroit | Metro Detroit Parents Want More After-School Programs for Their Kids - Chalkbeat Detroit - April 13, 2026
New Jersey | NJ Republicans demand federal and state reviews of ‘fiscal failures’ in Newark schools - New Jersey Monitor - April 11, 2026
NYC | NYC's New 2-K Program Will Run 10 Hours a Day, Year-Round, Mamdani Says - Chalkbeat New York - April 9, 2026
Texas | Texas Students Call for Inclusion in Social Studies Overhaul - Texas Tribune (subscription model) - April 7, 2026
Virginia (Fairfax) | Hundreds of Parents Demand Fairfax County Add More Five-Day School Weeks - WJLA - April 10, 2026
Also Reading
After the Big Bet - Stanford Social Innovation Review - April 13, 2026
In Praise of ‘Difficult’ Kids - The Atlantic (subscription model) - April 13, 2026
Job Opportunities
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