Kansas governor signs school funding bill ‘to keep our schools open’

by Edward M. Eveld, Kansas City Star

Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback has signed a school funding bill meant to satisfy a state Supreme Court ruling with potentially dire consequences.

The court said in a February ruling that unless a plan was in place by June 30 to fairly distribute state aid to school districts, public schools could be shut down for next school year.

North Alabama school system letting students customize classes

Associated Press via Chattanooga Times Free Press

A north Alabama school system is allowing high school students to customize their education in a way that seemed impossible a decade ago.

The district, Hartselle City Schools, will expand those opportunities next year when it adds a law component to its system of academies, school officials said.

The academies are subject-specific disciplines that offer elective classes students can take to start their freshman year. The academies give students who may not plan to attend college an opportunity to earn certification in certain vocations. For those seeking higher education, it's an opportunity to earn college credit while gaining hands-on experience.

State sued by Detroit school board on students’ behalf

by Shawn D. Lewis, The Detroit News

The Detroit school board has filed a class action lawsuit against Gov. Rick Snyder, former emergency managers and other officials, blaming them for poor financial, academic and building conditions in Detroit Public Schools.

Thomas H. Bleakley, an attorney for the school board, described conditions in DPS as “the Flint water crisis on steroids” during a press conference Thursday at the Fisher Building.