TOP NEWS Daily Journal Starting in the fall of 2019, all eight of Mississippi’s public universities will uniformly award three hours of college credit for a score of three or higher on an Advanced Placement exam. Student scoring a four or five could receive up to six credit hours depending on the subject. Read more>> From DA Magazine Districts of Distinction Since inception, the Fond du Lac School District's STEM Academy and STEM Institute have exceeded expectations or significantly exceeded expectations on Wisconsin school report cards. Read more>> Orlando Sentinel Florida school districts that delayed enrollment in a required civics course for some middle school students did nothing wrong—and may have made an “educationally sound” decision for those youngsters, said the education commissioner. She found no attempt to manipulate the state’s A-to-F school grading system. Read more>> Delaware News Journal Delaware schools are no longer required to report offensive touching or threats to kill and seriously injure public school students or employees to the state Education Department. A notice of the administrative change was published this week. That means schools aren't required to report such offenses to the police, either. Read more>> WUNC North Carolina has a new law to give a school district more flexibility if it has a lot of struggling schools—and the law applies only to Rowan-Salisbury Schools. Almost half of the schools in the district have what's called restart status. Low-performing schools can apply to be a restart school to get the same kind of flexibility that charter schools have. Read more>> Tampa Bay Times Every student in Hernando County will have access to free breakfast and lunch at school through 2022, thanks to an unlikely helper: Hurricane Irma. Because the district was deemed a "disaster area," all schools qualify for the federal Community Eligibility Provision program, regardless of students’ individual economic needs. Read more>> Associated Press via ABC 13 As Ohio seeks to recover over $60 million from the giant ECOT online charter school that closed, the attorney general says the school founder and his two businesses should be on the hook for that public funding. Read more>> OPINION The New York Times High schools and colleges across the country license shows from an enduring catalog of stage favorites. Firing a gun is integral to a surprising number of them. But as school shootings mount, educators face the question of how to portray gunfire on stage amid students’ fears that their school could be next. Read more>> Education Dive One reason why instructional materials are often not the focus of PLC meetings is because in many districts, curriculum and professional development departments are still largely separate. Helping students reach standards and making sure materials are adapted to meet individual needs requires teachers to work at a deeper level with the materials their districts are adopting. Read more>> The Wall Street Journal More students are getting extra help for a range of issues including ADHD and anxiety, data show, with a disproportionate amount of those receiving support attending schools in wealthier districts. The rise in 504 accommodations in grades K12 also correlates with the increase in the number of accommodations given by the College Board for exams like the SAT. Read more>> INDUSTRY NEWS Chegg, Inc. With its acquisition of StudyBlue, Inc., Chegg, Inc. gains access to the company's library of content, which allows students to find an explanation or study support, as well as create their own materials including flashcards and collections of concepts. Read more>> Cambium Learning Group, Inc. Learning A-Z is adding new instructional content and product features to its literacy-focused solutions, including a new avatar builder, incentivizing badges and student interface in the Kids A-Z student portal. Read more>> POWERUP Toys POWERUP Toys is launching a line of Project Lead the Way-certified classroom kits that feature three electronic motors—a battery-charged propeller and two smartphone-controlled motors—that transform students’ paper airplanes into electronic aircrafts. Access to a downloadable teacher’s guide and to FlightDeck, an online lesson community through Workbench, are also included. Read more>> ✭ Visit the District Administration's PR Portal ✭ PEOPLE WATCH Bridgewater Courier News Michelle Vella, who had been serving as acting school superintendent since December, has been named the permanent superintendent of schools for the New Jersey district. She was previously assistant superintendent. Read more>> Times Reporter The Claymont Board of Education has chosen Scott Golec, currently an assistant high school principal at Rolling Hills Local Schools, to be the next superintendent of the school district. He will replace Superintendent John Rocchi, who has taken a job with the East Central Ohio Educational Service Center. Read more>> Fox 17 The Michigan district hired Scott Smith to fill the role of former superintendent Laura Vanduyn. Smith comes to the district from Hudsonville Public Schools where he was the assistant superintendent. Read more>> | 