Restorative practices have gained a foothold in Pennsylvania schools as districts look for ways to reduce suspensions and improve their school climate.
Craig Adamson, president of the model programs for the International Institute for Restorative Practices, said his organization works with more than 60 school districts, along with at-risk youths through the juvenile justice and child welfare systems in eastern Pennsylvania.
He explained restorative practices are used as an alternative to suspension, and their peer-mediated small groups give students an opportunity to talk, ask questions and air grievances.
"A lot of our work is about relationships, and working in groups and circles, and working through different issues," Adamson outlined. "The students can return back to their home schools as soon as they can make those transitions."
Adamson pointed out at their Restorative Reporting Center in Bucks County, students participate six days a week in a 20-week program which is an alternative to detention and placement. He added it is an intense program with structured homework time and behavioral interventions resulting in grades improving along with enhancing their social and emotional skills.
Applying restorative practices in Pennsylvania schools is not without its challenges. Proper training and ongoing support for educators are critical for successful implementation.
Keith Hickman, executive director of the institute wears many hats, including building relationships with state education departments and national collaboratives in the education and civic-engagement space. He works closely with school district leaders and school administrators on creating a climate of trust within the school.
"I help them use restorative practices as a way to problem-solve complex issues relevant to the climate and culture of their schools," Hickman noted. "This includes using restorative practices to improve their work climate for staff and learning environment for students."
Hickman argued Pennsylvania schools should become less reliant on punitive discipline because data show disproportionate suspension rates impact mostly Black and brown students.
He emphasized the institute and other organizations in the Pittsburgh area are helping educators, principals and superintendents develop valuable relationships to prevent the overreliance on punitive measures such as suspensions.
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A New York bill would require schools to teach about the Jan. 6 insurrection.
The bill calls for all K-12 students to be taught about the event, with the state determining how best to incorporate the events into history classes. Since 2021, public opinion on the U.S. Capitol attack has dulled because President Donald Trump and his supporters have downplayed it since then
Asm. Charles Lavine, D-Glen Cove, the bill's sponsor, said it is important not to whitewash the facts.
"The problem with whitewashing history is that students in those states are not going to learn to be the critical thinkers that we really need in order to confront the great dilemmas that will face us in the future," Lavine contended.
Though initial polls found people equated the Capitol attack with an attack on democracy, some polls show people approve of Trump's actions. Many groups have teaching tools so educators can accurately answer students' questions about Jan. 6.
While the bill is relatively new, it has garnered positive feedback. It is under review by the Assembly's Education Committee.
The bill comes several weeks after President Donald Trump pardoned everyone prosecuted for participating in the Jan. 6 attack. Polls show most people disapprove of the pardons.
Lavine acknowledged one challenge for the bill is finding an impartial way to teach about a politically polarizing event, adding it will be left to the state's education experts.
"Those are the members of the Board of Regents, in consultation with the state's Education Department, to make the determination about what is taught particularly in subject matters," Lavine outlined. "What this bill simply does is add to a list of major subject areas that should be instructed in our public schools."
Along with the Capitol attack, the bill also calls on teachers to educate students about patriotism, citizenship, civic education, values and America's history with diversity and religious tolerance. Lavine noted one goal of the bill is to ensure children learn about good and bad parts of history, from slavery and the Holocaust to the Irish potato famine.
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With cost at the forefront of prospective students' minds, higher education institutions in North Carolina are rethinking how to overcome one of the biggest barriers to enrollment.
William Peace University in Raleigh has launched its "Peace Pledge," a program offering 100% tuition coverage for qualifying students.
Damon Wade, vice president for enrollment management and marketing at the university, said school officials took a hard look at the enrollment challenges students faced.
"Cost was a major factor in their decision-making for them and their families," Wade observed. "We wanted to do our level best to try to mitigate that and remove cost as a barrier to their education as reasonably as we possibly could."
Qualifying students must be first-time, traditional undergraduate students who reside in North Carolina. They also must come from households with incomes of $75,000 or less, be eligible for federal Pell Grants and have a high school grade-point average of 3.25 or higher.
Other colleges in North Carolina are also offering free tuition, including Duke University, which covers tuition for families with incomes less than $150,000. Wade pointed out colleges are closely considering the cost students face.
"A lot of institutions around the country and then particularly in North Carolina have given thought to the cost associated with education and have come up with different pathways for students to enroll," Wade explained.
Wade added students want to enroll in programs to prepare them for the workforce or graduate school.
"But they want to do it in as cost-effective as possible," Wade emphasized. "We hear that from them and their parents, and they understand that mom and dad or their guardians don't always have the capacity to cover the cost."
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Connecticut education advocates feel Gov. Ned Lamont's 2026-2027 budget proposal continues a history of underfunding education.
While the new budget increases special education spending by $40 million, some feel it's not enough, as Connecticut is in the third year of a statewide teacher shortage.
Kate Dias, president of the Connecticut Education Association, said education funding must change to benefit the whole system.
"What we tend to do is say, 'The costs were $260 million, we'll budget $160', without realizing districts across the state have to absorb $100-million in expenses," she explained.
She added if special education needs $260 million in funding, that's what should be included in the budget.
Another issue includes reviewing the Education Cost Sharing formula which hasn't kept up with the rate of inflation. Dias said adding more dollars to school districts can help retain educators and expand a dwindling workforce.
Underfunding of education has left Connecticut with larger class sizes and lower wages for all educators, making it harder to recruit new teachers. A 2024 survey finds 97% of educators are concerned about burnout because they're wearing many hats. But Dias said proving there's a problem is a challenge to get more education funding.
"One of the challenges we face is, ironically, our educators do a really good job of overcoming some of these barriers. We have teachers who put their own money back into their classrooms. As a result our test scores -- our national ranking if you will -- has not gone into the toilet," she continued.
This comes as federal education dollars are imperiled by President Donald Trump's agenda. Beyond executive orders initiating a total federal funding freeze, his plans to dismantle the Department of Education worry Dias, who believes as Connecticut's budget planning continues, the state of the federal government lurks in the back of her mind.
"Connecticut's not going to be able to cover for the federal government. It will be a loss of services to families and children, and that's the bottom line. In the education space, the loss of federal funds is a reduction in school lunch. We're not going to be able to provide school lunches," she concluded.
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