Morning news brief
The war between Israel and Hamas enters its fifth day. President Biden condemns the attack on Israel as "evil." Maui schools shutdown by the deadly August wildfires will reopen next week.
Education
Study finds the school absenteeism rate is double what it was before COVID
Schools across the country lost track of students at alarming rates during the pandemic. Almost two years into the return of in-person education, schools still struggle with chronic absenteeism.
U.S. universities and colleges face a huge demand for on-campus housing
The housing crisis has prompted many schools to get creative. For example: turning single-occupancy rooms into doubles and doubles into triples, or study rooms into bedrooms.
Audit recommended University of North Carolina mandate training that could mitigate shootings
A 2020 internal audit at the University of North Carolina’s flagship campus — the location of two gun-related lockdowns this academic year — recommended the school consider requiring faculty and staff be trained in how to respond to an active shooter.
Historic federal funding of HBCUs coincides with the rise of state funding shortfalls
NPR's Mary Louise Kelly talks with Tony Allen, Delaware State University president and chairman of the Biden administration's Board of Advisors on HBCUs, about the funding shortfall HBCUs have faced.
Controversial issues to come up in Texas special legislative session
School vouchers and border security are the focus of a special legislative session beginning this week in the Texas Statehouse. Both are key issues for the state's Republican governor.
HBCUs have been underfunded by $12 billion, federal officials reveal
Federal officials have told 16 states that they've been underfunding their Historically Black Colleges and Universities by some $12 billion. (Story aired on All Things Considered on Oct. 16, 2023.)
How kids are making sense of climate change and extreme weather
NPR's Student Podcast Challenge yielded stories about how students around the U.S. are thinking about and responding to climate change. Here are some of their ideas.
Meet the high school sport that builds robots — and the next generation of engineers
The FIRST Robotics Competition has evolved from a fascinating after-school activity to having an impact on the tech and engineering world, involving tens of thousands of teens across the globe.
Today's lesson in AP U.S. Government: What just happened with Kevin McCarthy
The week's turmoil on Capitol Hill was one for the history books — and that has made for some very timely discussions in high school civics classes.