Happy Tuesday!
Four days before the federal web accessibility deadline was set to bind, the DOJ handed K-12 districts and colleges another year, pushing compliance for the largest entities to April 26, 2027, with smaller districts now on the hook by 2028. Vendors get the same extension — the rule covers anything districts buy from them, too. The relief is real: a 2025 NSPRA survey found just 14% of districts close to ready, and SIIA's Sara Kloek welcomed the "breathing room." But disability advocates pushed back, with AAPD's Maria Town warning the delay "rewards inaction" while disabled people stay shut out of digital systems that gate access to government services. The cleanest message for school leaders came from Northern Arizona's Jamie Axelrod, past president of AHEAD: "Do not stop the efforts you've been engaged in. Keep the momentum going. The rule's not going away."
Also yesterday: 32 schools across 18 states earned Teach Kindness's inaugural Kind School Designation yesterday. The list includes MLK Jr. Middle in Atlanta, where teachers open every class with a kindness question, and H.L. Harshman Middle in Indianapolis, whose student council partnered with Kiwanis to expand a community food pantry. Across all 32 designees, students drove 800 handwritten notes to local care facilities, 1,080 pounds of donated food, and a sock drive for local shelters.
What stories are catching your eye this week? Let us know!
— Thomas
K-12 Education
Creating Communicators and Critical Thinkers: Soon There Will Be A Test For That - The 74 - April 21, 2026
Poor children still face large resource gaps outside of school, study finds - Chalkbeat - April 21, 2026
Standard-Based Grading Offers a Different Model of Assessing Student Learning - The 74 - April 21, 2026
Kindergartners Aren't Talking Enough in Class. Why That Matters - Education Week (subscription model) - April 20, 2026
Higher Education
Financial aid for students without financial need: How do institutions use it strategically? - Brookings Institution - April 21, 2026
AI is changing how Texas universities teach computer science as job market slows - Texas Tribune - April 21, 2026
Increasing affordable access to higher education for all students in Pennsylvania - Pennsylvania Capital-Star - April 21, 2026
College Enrollment Rises for First Time Since 2012, But Per-Student Funding Hits a Wall - The Edu Ledger - April 21, 2026
Federal Policy & Politics
Education Department rift threatens workforce bill - Politico Pro (subscription model) - April 21, 2026
Trump Administration Proposes New 'Earnings Premium' Accountability System - The Edu Ledger - April 21, 2026
Schools get another year to comply with web accessibility deadlines - K-12 Dive - April 21, 2026
DOJ Extends Website Accessibility Deadline. Will It Help Schools Get Ready? - EdSurge - April 21, 2026
DOJ Extends Web Accessibility Deadline - Inside Higher Ed - April 21, 2026
Supreme Court to review Catholic preschools' bid for LGBTQ exemption - The Washington Post (subscription model) - April 20, 2026
Early Learning & Child Care
LAUSD seeks to expand affordable child care by using spare classrooms, shuttered centers - Los Angeles Times (subscription model) - April 21, 2026
Navy plans 900 new child care spaces on US bases in family support push - Stars and Stripes - April 21, 2026
NYC Mayor Mamdani's newest childcare center opening in Brooklyn - CBS News New York - April 21, 2026
Opinion | You Can't Defend a Nation When Soldiers Don't Have Child Care - The New York Times (subscription model) - April 20, 2026
State & Local News
Colorado | Statewide K-12 funding could increase to $10.2 billion under 2026-27 funding bill - Chalkbeat Colorado - April 20, 2026
Connecticut | House Speaker 'confident' CT schools will get $170M boost this year - CT Mirror - April 20, 2026
Kentucky | Kentucky General Assembly Mostly Restores Higher Ed Funding - Inside Higher Ed - April 21, 2026
Maryland | Instructional coaches coming soon to Maryland elementary schools - Maryland Matters - April 20, 2026
NYC | NYC unveils 2026-27 school calendar: Late September start and a Monday finish in June - Chalkbeat New York - April 21, 2026
Oklahoma | Oklahoma reading reform bill passes Senate, heads to governor's desk - Oklahoma Voice - April 20, 2026
Tennessee | MSCS state takeover bill could affect other Tennessee school districts - Chalkbeat Tennessee - April 20, 2026
Washington | State considers changes to WA high school graduation standards - The Seattle Times - April 21, 2026
Educator Talent & Staffing
Kansas survey points to softening of teacher interest in exiting the profession - Kansas Reflector - April 20, 2026
Louisiana teachers unions back constitutional amendment that increases their pay - Louisiana Illuminator - April 20, 2026
AI & Technology
LAUSD to vote on restricting student screen time, after years of encouraging classroom use - Los Angeles Times (subscription model) - April 21, 2026
4 higher education leaders on AI's biggest benefits and risks - Higher Ed Dive - April 21, 2026
Student Health, Safety & Nutrition
Alaska Senate advances bill to ban certain food dyes in school meals - Alaska Beacon - April 21, 2026
Workforce & Career Pathways
Employers say they struggle to find workers with the right AI skillset - HR Dive - April 21, 2026
School Choice
Tennessee to Expand Voucher Program to 35,000 Students Next Year - Associated Press - April 16, 2026
Tennessee lawmakers to consider major last-minute changes to voucher program in state's largest counties - Chalkbeat Tennessee - April 21, 2026
Kansas opts into voucher-style program, which critics say will help private schools - Kansas Reflector - April 20, 2026
School choice is booming in Cedar Rapids. Are students better off? - NPR - April 19, 2026
Also Reading
Their School Burned Down. Then They Picked Up Their Paintbrushes - Education Week (subscription model) - April 20, 2026
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