Education

College students are starting spring semester. Here's what it looks like with omicron

5:22pm January 13, 2022

by Elissa Nadworny

While omicron has forced some colleges to delay spring start dates or go virtual, the majority of four-year colleges are starting the spring semester in-person.

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As part of the settlement, the loan servicing company Navient agreed to pay $95 million for states to offer affected borrowers some reimbursement — roughly $260 each to 350,000 borrowers.

Navient reaches a deal to cancel $1.7 billion in student loan debts

4:51pm January 13, 2022

by Cory Turner

The loan servicing giant has agreed to cancel student loan debts owed by roughly 66,000 borrowers as part of a settlement reached with 39 state attorneys general.

More than 1 million fewer students are in college. Here's how that impacts the economy

1:24pm January 13, 2022

by Elissa Nadworny

People are sitting out college in droves. During the pandemic, undergraduate enrollment has dropped nearly 7%. The long-term effects of this decline could have a dramatic impact on the economy.

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Virginia's Gov.-elect Glenn Youngkin, pictured on the campaign trail, speaks with now Lt. Gov.-elect Winsome Sears after a rally in Fredericksburg, Va., Oct. 30, 2021. Youngkin and Sears, both Republicans, won election on Nov. 2, and will be sworn into of

Virginia's first Black woman lieutenant governor says we need to move on from slavery

10:09am January 13, 2022

by Ben Paviour

Winsome Sears, a Republican, will be sworn into office Saturday in Virginia alongside Gov.-elect Glenn Youngkin. Sears ran, in part, on the idea that the country's racial reckoning has gone too far.

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Chicago kids back in class after 5-day standoff between teachers' union and officials

5:43pm January 12, 2022

by Susie An

COVID safety concerns led to a five-day stalemate between Chicago's teachers union and school and city officials. Kids are back in school. Both sides are weighing whether it was the right decision.

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Texas schools ask parents to fill in as substitute teachers

4:58pm January 12, 2022

by Claire McInerny

With many teachers out sick with COVID-19, schools are scrambling to find substitute teachers. Texas schools are having to get creative so that students can continue going to in-person classes.

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Rethinking school safety in the age of omicron

4:55pm January 12, 2022

NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with Dr. David Rubin, primary care physician and director of PolicyLab at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, on how schools should consider navigating the current COVID wave.

A student is administered a coronavirus test at an elementary school in Louisville, Ky.

The White House will distribute 10 million more COVID tests per month to schools

10:53am January 12, 2022

by Alana Wise

President Biden and others in his administration insist schools should stay open, even with the omicron wave making it harder than ever to manage.

After a deal on COVID safety, Chicago public schools open for in-person classes

6:02am January 12, 2022

NPR's Steve Inskeep talks with Stacey Davis Gates, vice president of the Chicago Teachers Union, about the return to in-person learning in the city — following disagreements over COVID-19 safety.

Caroline Tung Richmond of Frederick, Md., with her son, 4, and daughter, 7.

Caroline thought her daughter was doing OK with home learning. Then she got a note

1:40pm January 11, 2022

Omicron is upending schools all across the country. Parents and families are navigating last-minute virtual learning, changing risk assessments and their own positive COVID-19 tests.

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