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College enrollment and graduation rates remain far lower for students from high-poverty high schools.
Texas expands career and technical education programs to create more non-college job pathways.
Phone bans spur a surge in student book borrowing and reading in Kentucky schools.
Research and Practice
JAMA Network Open: School Provision of Universal Free Meals and Blood Pressure Outcomes Among Youths
A new study from the Journal of the American Medical Association measured the blood pressure of children participating in Community Eligibility Provision (CEP), which provides universal free meals to schools. High blood pressure in childhood can lead to medical problems in adulthood, like cardiovascular and kidney diseases. The study used data from 1,052 schools, with the majority adopting CEP policies between the 2013-2014 and 2018-2019 school years. Participation in CEP meals was associated with an 11% decrease in students with high blood pressure over a five-year span. The relationship was only found in elementary school students and was the strongest for children who participated in the program the longest. These findings build upon previous literature that suggests that implementing CPE and high nutrition standards are associated with decreased obesity rates in children. The research indicates that free school meal programs can be a tool for improving child health.
Humanities and Social Sciences Communications: Preschool Education and Non-Cognitive Skills: Evidence from Rural China’s Junior High Students
Researchers examined the impact of preschool education on non-cognitive abilities. Previous literature on the relationship is mixed; some studies show that preschool leads to increased educational outcomes and behaviors, while others only find improvement in cognitive skills. The study utilized data from the China Education Panel Survey, which tracks middle school students across their lives. Non-cognitive abilities were defined across five dimensions: conscientiousness, positive emotion, agreeableness, openness, and extraversion. Researchers controlled for several family characteristics, including parental income and education level. Results indicate that children who attended preschool had increased development in non-cognitive dimensions compared to their peers who did not attend preschool. This relationship was especially true for children’s positive emotions and extraversion tendencies. The study highlights the importance of universal preschool programs that can positively impact child development and yield societal and economic benefits.
Policy
K-12 Dive: Education Department Brings Back Mental Health Grants
The U.S. Department of Education will resume accepting grant applications for programs to support student mental health that were canceled last spring. The $270 million in funding will work to increase the number of school psychologists during a nationwide shortage, through the School-Based Mental Health Services and Mental Health Service Professional Demonstration grants. While the recommended ratio of school psychologists is one for every 500 students, the ratio for the 2023-2024 school year was one to 1,065 students. The money will also bring back school-based services that were eliminated or paused during the start of the school year in accordance with federal priorities. Many educators are pleased with the return of the grants, but they are also concerned that only school psychologists will receive funding through the grant programs. School social workers and counselors are not outlined in the grant, but typically work with school psychologists as part of a student support team.
Ideastream Public Media: Trump Administration Pulls College Mentorship Grants From More Than 200 Schools Over DEI
The Trump administration cancelled grants to fund college mentoring programs for high school students. The funding is through Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP), which was founded in 1998. The $170 million served 200 schools across the country to help students plan for college and careers after high school. The U.S. Department of Education shared that the majority of grants will be continuing, but stated that those suspended use “overt race preferences or perpetuate divisive concepts and stereotypes.” The cut funds will be reinvested into other programs. Four of the nine canceled grants were in Ohio. Akron Public Schools appealed the decision, which went into effect on October 1, and impacted mentors for 1,500 students and seven staff. Many of the students who participated in the program were the first in their families to go to college.
StateScoop: FCC Votes to End E-Rate Funding for WiFi Hotspots, School Bus Connectivity
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted to end discounts for schools and libraries’ internet connections through the federal E-Rate program. The program was founded in 1996 to provide affordable phone and internet access to schools and libraries, which aimed to lessen the digital divide faced by low-income students. In 2024, the initiative provided $48 million to fund Wi-Fi on buses and for 200,000 hotspot connections for students off school campuses. The FCC decided to end the program because it increased unsupervised screen time for children and duplicated other governmental programs. Advocates of the E-Rate initiative shared that the termination of the program will not only affect students long-term but also others who rely on internet access to complete daily tasks; they stated that the disparity “will likely leave those who we care about less prepared to compete and win the jobs of the future.”
Around the Nation
Chalkbeat: Mental Health First Aid: NY Schools Train Teens to Help Each Other
Students in high schools across New York are learning how to provide mental health first aid to their peers. The initiative is run through the National Council for Mental Wellbeing’s Teen Mental Health First Aid program, which teaches students how to spot mental health warning signs and take initial steps, such as involving a trusted adult. Governor Hochul announced $20 million to fund the program, which would train 2,500 adults and teens each year. Early results show that Teen Mental Health First Aid training can improve teens’ confidence in helping others, reduce stigma towards mental illness, and prepare them to act appropriately during a mental health crisis. The new funding will go towards expanding the program to more rural areas in the state that typically have fewer mental health professionals. While mental health support from peers can help fill needed gaps, mental health advocates believe that teens should not feel the burden of providing services, and their support should not be in place of professionals.
WWLP: Massachusetts to Start AI Curriculum Pilot in 30 Districts
Thirty districts in Massachusetts will soon have a new AI program for eighth-grade and high school students. The Massachusetts STEM Advisory Council and the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative are partnering with Project Lead the Way (PLTW), which provides curriculum on STEM subjects. The course on Principles of Artificial Intelligence will teach students foundational concepts of AI through project-based learning, with a focus on how AI can support fields like science and engineering. The pilot program will teach 45 educators and 1,600 students across the state through a semester-long course. State officials created the initiative to ensure that all students, regardless of background, have access to learning opportunities. The president of PLTW shared, “This partnership marks the next step in preparing students for the age of AI and will serve as a national model to help students understand and create safely, ethically, and with purpose, while giving teachers the professional development and materials to implement with confidence.”
See also: At This Rural Microschool, Students Will Study With AI and Run an Airbnb
