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INSANE: Ocr | Rare Historical Photos

Hall Pass: Your Ticket to Understanding School Board Politics, Edition #211

Welcome to Hall Pass, a newsletter written to keep you plugged into the conversations driving school board governance, the politics surrounding it, and education policy.

Ballotpedia

Trump Is Gutting the Department of Education, and Critics Warn the Fallout Will Hit the Country’s Most Vulnerable Students First

The administration is shifting oversight of special education and civil rights enforcement to other federal agencies.

The Mary Sue

US health department investigates 13 states that require insurance plans to cover abortion

HHS is looking into the states for ‘alleged disregard of, or confusion about’ the federal Weldon amendment

The Guardian - US

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Trump team now working to save Native American mascots from schools that were told to remove them

Between 2022 and 2023, upwards of 16 schools altered their mascots, according to the National Congress of American Indians

The Independent UK

Probes of racism in Lubbock schools have stalled under Trump

West Texas parents say racist incidents are going unchecked after the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights retreated from investigating schools.

The Texas Tribune

HHS seeks to ban Harvard from federal funding in civil rights case

HHS refers Harvard University to Suspension and Debarment Program over alleged civil rights violations

Axios

Title IX’s effectiveness in addressing campus sexual assault is at risk − a law professor explains why

Most Americans assume that schools are legally required to protect students from sexual harassment and assault under Title IX – the federal law enacted in 1972 that bans sexual discrimination in education.

The Conversation

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University president fires back at Trump’s education department for demanding his apology

An attorney representing Gregory Washington argued that an apology would open the university up to legal backlash

The Independent UK

A-levels and GCSEs need overhaul to keep pace with generative AI, experts say

Oral assessments, tightened security and faster marking could result as use of AI itself becomes core digital skill

The Guardian - UK

Only one in six back reducing or removing coursework to avoid AI misuse – survey

An exam board chief is calling for a co-ordinated national strategy on artificial intelligence.

Evening Standard

‘Unacceptable’ for pupils to use AI to complete coursework, public says

Public support on whether students should use artificial intelligence to improve their writing style in coursework is divided

The Independent UK

A White School Officer Pepper-Sprayed and Kneed a Black Beaumont Student, Complaint Says. Will Feds Act?

Trump's gutting of the Education Department could stymie justice for 17-year-old Ja’Liyah Celestine.

Texas Observer

MAGA is the pushback to public education

Dr. Derek Black: "We as a society will not find our educational promised land anywhere but in our public schools"

Salon

Scrapping GCSE maths doesn’t add up

Letters: GCSE maths is vital, but changes are needed in the way it is taught, argues Jill Duffy. Plus, a reader shares painful memories of their exams

The Guardian - UK

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Texas Observer

‘We’re Not Just Some Bureaucrats’: DOE Employees on How Their Work Helps Texas Students

Department of Education workers and union leaders in Texas say kids will pay the price for Trump’s decision to “break this system.”

The Independent UK

Education Department staff cuts could limit options for families of kids with disabilities

For parents of kids with disabilities, advocating for their child can be complicated, time-consuming — and expensive

The Conversation

Big cuts at the Education Department’s civil rights office will affect vulnerable students for years to come

The U.S. Department of Education cut its workforce by nearly 50% on March 11, 2025, when it laid off about 1,315 employees. The move follows several recent directives targeting the Cabinet-level agency.

Top News

Department Of Education Launches Title IX Investigations In Maine

The Department of Education investigates Maine for Title IX violations related to transgender athletes. President Trump's executive order is central to the...

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The Guardian - US

Trump’s plans to axe US education department put marginalized students most at risk, experts warn

The president can’t fully eliminate the federal agency, but an overhaul could disrupt critical services for students who are of color, low-income or LGBTQ+

The Independent UK

School where Nex Benedict attended failed to protect students from harassment, investigation finds

Owasso Public School district’s inaction ‘rose to the level that the district’s response to some families’ sexual harassment reports was deliberately indifferent to students’ civil rights,’ the federal investigation found

The Independent UK

Calls for major change to GCSEs after exam warning

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has commissioned a Government review into curriculum and assessment

Evening Standard

GCSE results 2024: London students get best grades in country as top marks fall nationwide

Capital only region in England where more than a quarter of papers were awarded a grade at 7 (A) or above as marking restored to pre-pandemic levels

Reason

Federal Intervention in Campus Protests Is Going Too Far

Department of Education settlements with protest-wracked colleges threaten censorship by bureaucracy.

Reason

Apparent Suspension of Student Groups at Wisconsin for Pro-Hamas Chalking

From FIRE's letter sent yesterday to the University of Wisconsin (you can see the citations here); I generally trust FIRE's factual summaries, but if there is any error in the below, I'll of course be very glad to correct it: FIRE is deeply concerned that UW-Madison has suspended two registered…

Evening Standard

When do GCSE exams start in 2024 and which subject is the hardest?

The first exam takes place this week, opening GCSE exam season for schools

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