RICHMOND, Va. -- As more workers need training to enter the post-pandemic economy, Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., and President Joe Biden are proposing expanding the Pell Grant program to reach more students in need.

Kaine's Jumpstart Our Businesses by Supporting Students Act (JOBS Act) bill would let students use Pell Grants for short-term certificate programs.

The president's budget plan would increase Pell Grant amounts by $400 and allow DACA students to receive them for the first time.

Dr. Kristen Westover, president of Mountain Empire Community College, said the grants are a major support for her college, and expanding them would give a much-needed boost to students who often struggle to pay for tuition.

"Over two-thirds of our students receive some form of Pell support, and almost that same number are either underrepresented or economically challenged," Westover explained. "And I'm extremely happy that it will fund those DACA students as well."

She believes it is important to expand higher education for undocumented students and, since last year, they've been eligible for in-state tuition in Virginia.

More than 450,000 undocumented immigrants are enrolled in U.S. colleges and universities, and about half are DACA recipients, according to research by the group New American Economy.

Westover pointed out the proposals are part of a national trend to make post-secondary education more widely available. She noted research shows many people who might not attend college are attracted to shorter-term training programs that can lead them to expanded training or a lifetime of learning.

"We know in this day and age that learning is something that we won't be able to get away from," Westover observed. "In terms of the rapid pace of technology increases, and our need for the workforce to keep up with those continually, not just in the beginning of their employment."

But some policymakers oppose using Pell Grants for certificate courses, saying it might track students into programs that lead to low-paying jobs. More than half of employed adults with short-term certificates earned $30,000 or less per year, according to data from the nonprofit New America.

Support for this reporting was provided by Lumina Foundation.

Sourcing & Methodology: This national story about college assistance seemed especially important, given the decrease in college admissions during the pandemic, as well as the learning disruptions and students' diminished opportunities for income through part-time jobs. Our reporter wanted to know how this would affect local colleges and searched for an administrator who can speak to the impact of the proposed changes on their students. While some people oppose any government assistance to undocumented students, it is also the case that many undocumented workers have taxes deducted from their pay, and receive no tax refunds. In this story, we made the choice to focus on the effects, pros and cons of this specific legislation, rather than the larger questions about immigration itself.

Indiana is rolling out a series of new education laws aimed at helping students succeed in and beyond the classroom.

The changes affect everything from attendance and academics to teacher pay and cybersecurity.

Tami Silverman, president and CEO of the nonprofit Indiana Youth Institute, said lawmakers responded to schools' concerns about chronic absenteeism.

"It was exciting to see that the legislature was really listening to the schools," Silverman explained. "Because we've heard, and schools have said repeatedly, that chronic absenteeism continues to be an issue."

New laws require schools to clearly define excused absences, publish attendance policies and offer better student support. High schoolers can now earn an Enrollment Honors Plus seal, combining academics, life skills and work experience. Students who earn it will be guaranteed admission to Indiana's public colleges.

Some educators said the new requirements may strain already limited school resources, especially in smaller districts that face staffing or funding challenges.

Silverman noted the changes are designed to help more students succeed, by doing such things as streamlining applications for college admission, military financial aid and paid internship programs.

"This is really exciting because we do know that sometimes those application processes can be a barrier," Silverman observed. "We want to remove those by setting kids up for success in high school."

Other laws raise the minimum teacher salary to $45,000 dollars, expand access to paid internships and require math screenings in early grades. Cybersecurity upgrades will be phased in by 2027.


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Many Texas students lose nearly 40% of what they learned during the year on summer break.

A new program in Arlington is helping kids avoid the "summer slide" by engaging them with creative projects which extend into the new school year.

Monroe Farbes, a 16-year-old International Baccalaureate participant, recently landed at the top of Amazon's list of young adult poetry with her new book "All I Know." She said the goal she set for herself last summer was to learn how to publish a book.

"Choosing to learn something and creating a product based off of what I learned, it helped me to learn critical thinking skills, research skills, time management skills, communications skills that were really, really useful," Farbes explained.

The International Baccalaureate program aims to prepare students for the future with real-world skills, global awareness and a love for learning, not just memorizing facts. After writing her first 20 poems last summer, the program gave Farbes time during the school day to write 35 more and then complete the formatting, marketing and other challenges involved with self-publishing.

There are many ways parents can help students avoid learning losses over the summer, and the Texas School for the Deaf offered tips. They recommended kids get outside and away from screens and they suggested parents give kids everyday lessons, like asking them to estimate the final bill while grocery shopping.

Farbes encouraged other young people to take on creative projects and to be curious about the world around them. She noted by the time you get to the end of her book, you realize the main character does not know everything.

"And that's OK, she's figuring it out," Farbes stressed. "Sometimes all you know is that you are just on your process to figuring it out. But make sure you remember everything that you learn."

Farbes's collection includes insights into the complexities of biracial identity, the joys of summer and sisterhood and the challenges of gardening. Here she reads her title poem, "All I Know."

"Familiar with myself, is the greatest gift on the shelf. Comfort in my own skin, who I am within, is all I'll have in the end. In that end, past all time, will I still be able to look myself in the eye?"


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Proposed federal legislation would expand school choice options for families to send their students to private schools or home educate them and the move could affect Arizona's current scholarship accounts.

Public school officials are pushing back. While Arizona parents can already get reimbursed for private and homeschool expenses, the Educational Choice for Children Act would create a tax credit for a similar purpose.

Brian Jodice, national press secretary for the American Federation for Children, said the measure is not a voucher program but a donor-driven initiative to provide families with more schooling options.

"It doesn't impact state budgets. It doesn't impact the federal budget. It allows people to donate to these scholarship granting organizations and get a tax credit, so (it) incentivizes the donors to go do that, which we think is a good thing," Jodice explained. "It also incentivizes families to be able to go apply for it and let their students benefit from it."

The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy said at least 138 million people nationwide could be eligible for the tax credit. States must opt in to participate.

Arizona public education officials have said its private school funding comes at the expense of K-12 schools. Demand for the program far outpaced what the state had budgeted in the first year alone and demand has continued to grow.

Maura McInerney, legal director at the Education Law Center, called the national program a tax shelter to benefit wealthy people at the expense of public schools.

"We've seen this occur in other states and there's no accountability for these dollars and how they're spent," McInerney pointed out. "The only criterion for receiving a voucher is actually a high family income limit. So essentially this money will potentially benefit students who are already in private schools."

The nationwide program would cost the federal government at least $100 billion per year.


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