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- Opinion
Fairfax Schools’ Response to Financial Scandal: Denial, Deflection, and Spin
Fairfax County Public Schools’ superintendent, Michelle Reid, refuses to let facts get in the way of her finely tuned narrative. Last Friday afternoon, as the public was growing increasingly aware that district leaders are shuffling resources from classrooms to administrative bloat, she sent an email to the district’s employees, assuring them that FCPS remains a…Stephanie Lundquist-Arora -
- Opinion
When Educational Institutions Drift, Build New Ones
Recently, comedian Rob Schneider posted on X: “I would like to start a CONSERVATIVE TEACHERS UNION as an alternative to the WOKE EMOTIONAL LUNATICS in the @NEA Teacher’s Communist Union…” While those are not the words I would have used, the underlying point resonates: Many educators and parents feel that the nation’s largest teachers unions…Paul Runko -
- Opinion
The Hidden Health Hazard Behind America’s Fertility Crisis
America’s fertility rate has hit a new record low of 1.57 in 2025, well below replacement rate. It’s been on this steep downward trajectory since 2007. The MAHA movement has recently brought much-needed attention to America’s fertility crisis, with Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy calling it a “national security threat.” MAHA…Clare Morell -
- Opinion
Fairfax Schools Fund PhDs for Highly Paid Administrators as Teacher Positions Cut, Class Sizes Raised
After cutting 275 teaching positions and increasing class sizes this academic year, Fairfax County Public Schools has launched a program to fund Ph.D.s for some of its highest-paid district administrators. On Aug. 5, 2025, FCPS Chief of Schools Geovanny Ponce, who earns an annual salary of $289,565, emailed hundreds of district administrators to announce the program. “FCPS…Stephanie Lundquist-Arora -
- Opinion
School Choice Demands Improved Student Transportation
School choice and student transportation have a lot of Venn diagram overlap. A 2009 survey of parents in Denver and Washington, D.C., found that more than a quarter of respondents reported not enrolling their child in the school they preferred due to transportation difficulties. The Heritage Foundation recently released a report on modernizing student transportation for an era of school choice. Currently,…Matthew Ladner -
- Opinion
Corruption Is Part of Why School District ‘Democracy’ Is Rigged and Wasteful
In 2019, the Scottsdale Unified School District in Arizona spent over $20 million to tear down and completely rebuild a school named Pima Elementary. This year, it voted to close the school. Pima Elementary, designed for up to 840 students, reopened at less than 60% of that capacity, and it continued to decline. This fall,…Matthew Ladner -
- Exclusive
Inside the Second Lady’s Effort to Make Reading Great Again
FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—Second lady Usha Vance previewed her future literacy efforts and discussed how reading with her own children inspired her to invest in the literacy of America’s children. The second lady participated in a fireside chat Wednesday afternoon with the Executive Office of the President librarian, Sarena Burgess, in honor of National…Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell -
- Opinion
Foreign Donations Are Buying Influence Over K-12 Schools. Here’s What Parents Need to Know.
Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Education revamped efforts to track foreign donations to postsecondary institutions. State lawmakers have never required the same oversight of international gifts to K-12 schools—until now. Colleges and universities are required to report foreign gifts worth $250,000 or more to the U.S. Department of Education. For 2025, the agency…Rebecca Rose -
- News
‘He Tried to Save Us’: ODU Cadets Recall ROTC Classroom Attack
Cadets from Old Dominion University spoke publicly for the first time since the terrorist attack inside their Army ROTC classroom that left their instructor dead and two students wounded. On March 12, ISIS supporter Mohamed Bailor Jalloh entered the classroom, shouted “Allahu Akbar,” and opened fire, killing Lt. Col. Brandon Shah and wounding two cadets….Reagan Campbell -
- News
Another LGBTQ Controversy? Trump Admin Asked to Investigate Maryland School District
A conservative legal group wants the Trump administration to investigate the gender identity policies of a Maryland school district that lost a Supreme Court case last year over mandating LGBTQ+ books for students. America First Legal asked the Justice Department and the Education Department to investigate Montgomery County Public Schools, alleging that the school district…Fred Lucas -
- News
Texas Education Officials Consider Adding Bible Passages to Required School Reading Lists
Texas education officials are considering adding passages and books from the Bible to required reading lists for students, The New York Times first reported. The proposed reading list from the Texas State Board of Education for seventh grade students includes selections from the Book of Jonah, the story of David and Goliath in 1 Samuel,…Fred Lucas -
- Opinion
Is the GOP the New Education Party?
Democrats, please listen to Rahm Emanuel. Rahm Emanuel, White House chief of staff under former President Barack Obama, stands out as the voice of reason on education and the systemic problems facing his own Democratic Party on this crucial issue. Yes, Rahm Emanuel the progressive former mayor of deeply blue Chicago and longtime President Obama…Steve Cortes -
- Opinion
When Schools Overreach: HB 355 and the Threat to Parents and Students in Virginia
As Virginia’s public schools fail at their core mission—educating children—state legislators are expanding their role in ways that encroach on parental rights. Debra Gardner, a former social worker who was first elected to Virginia’s House of Delegates in 2023, introduced HB 355 in January. Beginning in the 2028–2029 school year, the bill would require Virginia’s…Stephanie Lundquist-Arora -
- Opinion
The End Is Nigh for the Department of Education
Bad news: Tax Day is just one month away. But the U.S. Department of Treasury just announced a rare gift for taxpayers: A dose of sanity on college loans. Today, the U.S. Department of Education and the Treasury Department signed an agreement that helps wind down the education agency, moves more responsibilities over college loans…Madison Marino Doan -
- News
Group That Sets Agenda for 130K School Counselors Pushes Woke Program
FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—The organization that sets the agenda for the 130,000 school counselors across the U.S. just promoted a left-wing activist program that advocates for transgender ideology and critical race theory, according to a new report. “While the American people are actively rejecting the harms of transgender ideology, the invasion of women’s private…Tyler O’Neil -
- News
Iraq-Born Man Released From Jail After Bringing Gun to Texas Elementary School
A naturalized citizen born in Iraq is free from jail after facing charges for entering a Texas elementary school with a gun and tactical gear. Kyle Najm Chris, also known as Muhi Mohanad Najm, 39, allegedly walked into the front office of Zwink Elementary School in Spring, Texas, last Tuesday, wearing a load-bearing vest, a…Tyler O’Neil -
- Opinion
Virginia Shouldn’t Bail Out Fairfax County’s Failing Schools
Hungry dogs run faster, but Fairfax County’s leadership is so bloated that it can barely move. Contrary to what these overfed “dogs” would have you believe, the county’s problems are not the rest of Virginia’s responsibility. On Tuesday, Kyle McDaniel—an at-large member of the Fairfax County School Board currently embroiled in embezzlement allegations—emailed Fairfax families…Stephanie Lundquist-Arora -
- Opinion
What to Know About Connecticut’s Push to Limit Homeschooling
Connecticut lawmakers are concerned about child abuse. Good, that issue should be a priority for parents and policymakers alike. But stripping rights away from all parents in the hope that the state will do a better job raising children is wishful thinking. State lawmakers are considering a proposal that would severely constrict the state’s homeschool…Jonathan Butcher -
- Opinion
SC Lawmakers Seem to Be Allergic to Educational Opportunity
Why do South Carolina lawmakers want to make it more difficult for families to educate their children? Lawmakers are misinterpreting the very law they approved just last year that creates more learning opportunities, and now the state is on the brink of becoming one of the least family-friendly locales in the southeast. Fortunately, other state…Jonathan Butcher -
- News
Medical Schools Now Require Nutrition Courses Combating Chronic Disease
The Department of Health and Human Services is working alongside more than 50 of the nation’s top medical schools to incorporate nutrition classes in their medical school curriculum. “Chronic disease is bankrupting our health system, and poor nutrition sits at the center of that crisis,” said HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “Today, medical schools are committing to change how America trains…Virginia Grace McKinnon
