Do kids really need a carnivore diet? School lunches are expected to align with a new food pyramid that prioritizes meat. But is that really best for kids and their nutrition?

www.chalkbeat.org/2026/04/13/n...

look at the ear I achieved on my sourdough and then read my story about school lunch, link in next post

look at the ear I achieved on my sourdough and then read my story about school lunch, next post

Do kids really need a carnivore diet? School lunches are expected to align with a new food pyramid that prioritizes meat. But is that really best for kids and their nutrition?

The new food pyramid could reshape school lunch guidelines. But as @lilyalta.bsky.social reports, an unlikely coalition is calling on the Trump administration not to put kids on the carnivore diet. What kids actually need, they say, is more fiber.

www.chalkbeat.org/2026/04/13/n...

This school district gave teachers one week to get rid of screens. Will their pivot pay off? Chromebooks and iPads were getting in the way of learning, according to leaders at this rural school. So, they banned them.

www.chalkbeat.org/2026/03/25/s...

This school district gave teachers one week to get rid of screens. Will their pivot pay off? Chromebooks and iPads were getting in the way of learning, according to leaders at this rural school. So, they banned them.

www.chalkbeat.org/2026/03/25/s...

A viral anti-screen argument is shaking schools. The evidence is more complicated. A neuroscientist’s warning about ed-tech is spreading fast with parents and lawmakers. But the research is more nuanced and up for debate.

"There’s no smoking-gun data showing that ed-tech is at the root of, or even contributing to, recent learning declines. But Horvath’s case should still give schools and educators some pause." - by @mattbarnum.bsky.social www.chalkbeat.org/2026/03/17/j...

Memphis student held in ICE detention since arrest en route to school soccer game The 18-year-old’s lawyer says his case is a direct result of immigration crackdowns by the Memphis Safe Task Force and Trump-era changes to federal policy. He’s been waiting for trial at the West Tenn...

ICE detained a Memphis student on his way to a school soccer game. What will happen next is unclear. www.chalkbeat.org/tennessee/20...

ICYMI
This is a little bit of a "something old is new again" -- states have been wresting control of school districts for decades. But what we're seeing now is overtly political, and a rash of takeovers after what seemed to be a lull

Red states are taking control of school districts: Are state takeovers having a moment? Officials have used poor academic achievement and anti-ICE protests to threaten takeovers of schools. The tactic has a new political tone, particularly in Texas, where the state has announced four sch...

“God, I wish we could get taken over by literally anybody else.” www.chalkbeat.org/2026/03/03/n...

Red states are taking control of school districts: Are state takeovers having a moment? Officials have used poor academic achievement and anti-ICE protests to threaten takeovers of schools. The tactic has a new political tone, particularly in Texas, where the state has announced four sch...

New, from me: State takeovers of school districts have long been a political lever to pull -- to some degree. But the latest crop, and the rhetoric around takeovers, signals something bigger is afoot.
www.chalkbeat.org/2026/03/03/n...

Philadelphia officials just removed these 2 schools from their proposed school closure list Philly district officials announced they no longer plan to close a middle and a high school. The move follows criticism from City Council members.

"He denied that the district played favorites." www.chalkbeat.org/philadelphia...

Trump wants historic sites to glorify America. Students help make sure this site tells the truth. “I think our country is strong enough to understand the history of our nation in its totality, and I think that anything less than that makes us weak,” wrote one Amache visitor.

Next to note cards describing how one person’s mother had to report for removal a week after giving birth ... were the words “WE HAVE LEARNED NOTHING” and articles and photos about “Alligator Alcatraz.” www.chalkbeat.org/2026/02/19/s... by @ericameltzer.bsky.social

Trump wants historic sites to glorify America. Students help make sure this site tells the truth. “I think our country is strong enough to understand the history of our nation in its totality, and I think that anything less than that makes us weak,” wrote one Amache visitor.

“I think our country is strong enough to understand the history of our nation in its totality, and I think that anything less than that makes us weak,” wrote one Amache visitor.

Will teachers pay the price for student ICE protests amid GOP backlash? Walking out of school is a tried and true student protest tactic, but recent protests against ICE seem to have struck a nerve. Some Republican leaders want teachers to face consequences.

A common refrain from opponents of anti-ICE protests: Students should be in school, learning. Teachers unions argue that educators want to be in the classroom, but they also believe the pushback they’re seeing is fueled by political ire, not a concern for education.
www.chalkbeat.org/2026/02/18/s...

Colorado’s ‘first public Christian school’ sues state, alleging religious discrimination Riverstone Academy and the public education cooperative that authorizes the school sued the state Friday, alleging religious discrimination.

It's happening. A school pitching itself as a "public Christian school" has sued Colorado, alleging discrimination.

www.chalkbeat.org/colorado/202...

‘Teaching as You’re Feeling’: St. Paul Teachers Share Their Classroom Realities An elementary and a HS educator on who's in school and who isn't, online learning, the value of friends and routine, kids' fears — and their own.

My latest: What's it like to be a teacher in the Twin Cities? Two educators on the very different experience in their classrooms — and the awful realities that are the common thread.

One reason Minneapolis remains in the world's eye is we have one of the most robust & independent media ecosystems remaining in the country. You all need this...and more! @mprnews.org @startribune.com @sahanjournal.bsky.social @minnesotareformer.com @minnpost.bsky.social @racketmn.com etc.

Why Hospital Policies Matter in States That Ban Abortion Our first-of-its-kind data analysis found that a seismic split emerged in how medical institutions in Texas' two largest metro areas, Houston and Dallas, treated miscarrying patients — and in their ou...

The rate of sepsis in Houston surged 63% after Texas banned abortion.

In the Dallas-Fort Worth area, where hospital leaders empowered doctors to intervene before patients’ conditions worsened, it rose 29%.

(Published May 2025)

In Minnesota, sending a child to school is an act of faith for immigrant families For many immigrant families in Minnesota, sending a child to school each day requires faith that one of the thousands of federal immigration officers deployed around the state won’t detain them.

Kids sent letters to St. Paul Superintendent Stacie Stanley begging her to offer online learning. Her voice shook as she read a letter from an elementary school student: “I don’t feel safe coming to school because of ICE.”

apnews.com/article/minn...

Denver school board could consider policy to protect students and staff from ICE The proposal would prohibit school staff from cooperating with federal immigration agents, allowing students to be questioned, or sharing information about families’ immigration status unless they are court-ordered to do so.

The proposal would prohibit school staff from cooperating with federal immigration agents, allowing students to be questioned, or sharing information about families’ immigration status unless they are court-ordered to do so.

ICE surge news: Minneapolis Public Schools has extended *optional* distance learning until April 6.

McMahon is on a civics tour. This Chicago private school debated whether to host her. Some parents and students oppose the Trump administration and took issue with McMahon’s visit. But the principal wondered if they could set their ideological differences aside.

Some parents and students oppose the Trump administration and took issue with McMahon’s visit. But the principal wondered if they could set their ideological differences aside.

ICE is ‘at the school yard gate.’ Here’s what it means that agents are getting closer. One legal expert said even up until recently, “it would have been pretty unthinkable” for ICE to come onto school grounds like agents did at Roosevelt High in Minneapolis.

In Springfield, Ohio - already at the center of a 2024 controversy where Trump baselessly claimed Haitians ate household pets - immigrants and citizens are worried as it appears ICE is getting closer to schools.

www.chalkbeat.org/2026/02/03/w...

Thanks, Beth! Great work the past month (and always!)

Inbox: The Michigan Senate Civil Rights Committee will have a hearing for a proposal to prohibit immigration enforcement at sensitive locations, including schools, on Thursday.

A 1-year-old boy from Ingham County who was believed to have had measles in April actually was not infected with the virus — even though his initial test was positive, the Ingham County Health Department and the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services say. https://tinyurl.com/228v85bd

Wayne County hiring specialist to monitor its teens on social media to prevent violence Wayne County is hiring a "youth intelligence specialist," a new role targeting youth violence by tracking alarming posts on social media.

For @freep.com: Wayne County is hiring someone to monitor teens on social media. The county says its looking to squash teen "beefs." Anti-surveillance advocates have questions. www.freep.com/story/news/e...