K-12
Louisiana Special School District to replace superintendent
The board that oversees the Louisiana Special School District (SSD) took action Monday to replace its superintendent. In a unanimous vote, the SSD Board of Directors “opted to go in a different direction with district leadership,” according to a statement. The ouster of superintendent Ernest Garrett III comes amid an investigation of his performance that […]
‘It’s not a religious service’: Are prayers after football games harmless?
The headlines blared and the news was treated as a thunderbolt, something cataclysmic. A ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court backed a Washington state high school football coach who had been fired for participating in a prayer with his team on the field at a public school. The Supreme Court’s conservative wing ruled the coach […]
Gov. Edwards vetoes education savings account, anti-vaccine bills
Gov. John Bel Edwards announced Monday he has vetoed 17 bills from the regular legislative session, his most extensive list of rejections to date. The spurned proposals include two that would have redirected state education money for struggling public school students and others that took aim at the governor’s pandemic policy. Notably not on the […]
Uvalde student testifies she covered herself with another student’s blood to survive
Wearing a sunflower tank top and her hair pulled back into a ponytail, she spoke softly as she answered questions for two minutes on video about what she endured that day in the classroom, just two weeks after she witnessed her friends and teacher die in a deadly school shooting.
Louisiana sees massive increases in education, literacy funding
Louisiana schools will see large increases in funding for literacy, early education programs and public universities, as its Legislature directed money from excess federal COVID-19 relief packages toward education. “We know that we have too many kids who by the second grade are not reading at grade level … and we don’t do a very […]
TOPS candidates may substitute computer coding for foreign language
The Louisiana Legislature signed off on a bill Monday that would allow students to substitute computer coding for a foreign language when being considered for TOPS eligibility. Senate Bill 191, sponsored by Sen. Sharon Hewitt, R-Slidell, would amend the requirements for eligibility for the Taylor Opportunity Program for Students to allow them to count two […]
State money will follow students reading below grade level
Louisiana could soon give parents and guardians of students struggling to read the option to pull them out of public school and provide them money for private school or homeschooling. Money for the subsidies would come out of the state budget. Sen. Sharon Hewitt’s Senate Bill 203, creating the Reading Education Savings Account program, passed […]
Louisiana schools that require COVID vaccine could soon face lawsuits
Public schools and government agencies that require COVID-19 vaccinations could face lawsuits from anyone barred entry for failing to comply, according to a proposal the Louisiana Legislature approved Monday. House Bill 54, authored by Rep. Larry Bagley, R-Stonewall, passed the House and Senate after multiple rounds of amendments. Bagley, a retired educator, chairs the House […]
TOPS eligibility eased for students affected by Hurricane Ida
The Louisiana Legislature passed a bill that would modify eligibility requirements for Louisiana’s free college tuition program. Senate Bill 178, authored by Sen. Cleo Fields, D-Baton Rouge, would waive certain GPA requirements for the state’s TOPS program and extend deadlines for turning in ACT scores to universities. The bill would also prevent students who transferred […]
Author kills Louisiana’s ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill
For now, Louisiana teachers will still be allowed to discuss sexual orientation and gender identity in K-12 classrooms. Rep. Dodie Horton, R-Haughton, author of what’s been labeled Louisiana’s “Don’t Say Gay” legislation, told the Illuminator she has voluntarily shelved her bill for this legislative session. Her bill would have made it illegal for schools to […]
Schools, public agencies that require vaccinations could be sued under Louisiana proposal
Public schools and government agencies that require vaccinations could face lawsuits from anyone who’s barred entry for failing to comply, according to a proposal advancing in the Louisiana Legislature. House Bill 54, authored by Rep. Larry Bagley, R-Stonewall, advanced from a state Senate committee Tuesday by a 4-2 vote. Bagley, a retired educator, chairs the […]
Louisiana lawmakers encouraged to serve as substitute teachers
Louisiana students may soon see their local state representative as their new substitute teacher. The state House of Representatives unanimously passed House Resolution 99 Thursday. It requests each House member to volunteer as a substitute teacher in a public school. “Most of us have been sitting on the bench, and now’s the time when the […]