Chalkbeat

Voter guide: Meet the candidates running for the Detroit school board

2026-09-08T21:29:06+00:00

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Thirty-four people are vying for five open seats on the board for the Detroit Public Schools Community District, a pivotal race that could result in multiple new people overseeing the largest district in Michigan.

It’s the largest slate since 2016, the year DPSCD was created and more than 60 people ran to serve on the new district’s board.

This race could be consequential because only two incumbents — Steve Bland and Bessie Harris — are running for reelection. Both were appointed to their seats last year to fill out the remaining terms of members who resigned.

The board’s current leaders — Board President LaTrice McClendon and Board Vice President Corletta Vaughn — are not running for re-election. The fifth open seat belonged to Iris Taylor, who died in July.

Just 19 of the 34 candidates responded to a questionnaire Chalkbeat sent via email and text in July. They have a plethora of ideas of how to address some of the biggest challenges, including fighting high rates of chronic absenteeism, increasing enrollment, and dealing with the pending loss of the funding that allowed the district to hire academic interventionists.

In our voter guide below, you’ll read the candidate bios and their answers to our questions as they wrote them. Chalkbeat did not edit for grammar or punctuation. For more information on voting, go here.

Lori Higgins is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Detroit. You can reach her at lhiggins@chalkbeat.org.

The Marion County Election Board took her off the ballot. Now, she’s challenging that decision in court.

2026-08-21T20:08:39+00:00

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Lindsey Cornett is asking the Marion Superior Court to put her back on the ballot for the Indianapolis Public Schools board of commissioners after she was removed for not meeting criteria to list her party affiliation. She’s also filed as a write-in candidate.

The Marion County Election Board voted to uphold a candidacy challenge against Cornett and remove her from the ballot on Aug. 10 because she wrote on her candidate forms that she’d voted in two Indiana Democratic primary elections when her voter records showed that wasn’t the case. Voting in primaries is one of two ways school board candidates can include a party affiliation on the ballot, something that’s new, but not required, this election.

The election board decided to remove Cornett from the ballot instead of only removing her party affiliation based on guidance from the Indiana Election Division and the bill author’s interpretation of state law. However, Cornett argues the law is being applied incorrectly.

Cornett was one of two candidates for IPS school board District 4, representing the southwestern part of the school district. Typically, the District 4 race wouldn’t be on the ballot until 2028, but former school board member Allissa Impink resigned earlier this year after winning the Democratic primary for State Senate District 46, prompting her IPS school board seat to be on the 2026 ballot. The winner will serve the remainder of Impink’s term.

Chris Bultman, who is currently the only District 4 candidate on the ballot, was appointed by the IPS school board to fill Impink’s seat between her resignation and the election. His party affiliation was also challenged, but the election board rejected it and kept him on the ballot as a Democrat.

Cornett’s petition for judicial review asks the court to examine the election board’s decision to both challenges. She argues that neither candidate should have been removed from the ballot, yet both didn’t meet the standards for including their party affiliations. The review asks for the court to agree, putting Cornett back on the ballot.

“I’m very hopeful about the judicial review process,” Cornett said, adding she’s determined to stay in the race to give voters choices.

Bultman said he trusts the election board’s decision, and his “focus now is representing Dist. 4 to my best ability.”

A ruling is expected no later than Sept. 11, according to court documents. And timing is tight: the first ballots are printed in mid-September. Cornett also filed as a write-in candidate and said she did so to “cover her bases.”

Write-in candidates are not listed on the ballot, and only those who filed will have their votes counted and certified, per the election board.

No other Marion County school boards have candidate challenges or write-in candidates. The deadline for both was noon today.

MJ Slaby oversees Chalkbeat Indiana’s coverage as bureau chief. Contact MJ at mslaby@chalkbeat.org.

Marion County Election Board removes Lindsey Cornett from IPS school board ballot after challenge

2026-08-11T01:25:03+00:00

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The Marion County Election Board removed Lindsey Cornett from the Indianapolis Public Schools school board ballot on Monday because of her voting record but allowed her opponent Chris Bultman to remain in the race, saying his record met the requirements.

Cornett and Bultman, who recently was appointed to the IPS board, were the two candidates running for District 4, representing the southwestern part of the school district. The District 4 seat is on the ballot this year because of the resignation of board member Allissa Impink.

Both Cornett and Bultman filed to run as Democrats and faced challenges saying they didn’t meet the criteria to have the party affiliation listed next to their names on the ballot.

For the first time, thanks to a 2025 law, school board candidates are now allowed to list party affiliation on the ballot, but only if they have voted in two primaries held by that party or have gotten permission from the county party leader. Registered voters can challenge those party affiliations.

The outcome of those challenges is determined by the county election board. The Marion County Election Board’s decision could be one of the earliest decisions by an Indiana elections board regarding partisan school board candidates, setting a precedent for future challenges. Board members cited guidance from the Indiana Election Division as well as the interpretation from the bill author in making their unanimous decisions to remove Cornett but keep Bultman on the ballot.

The challenge against Cornett, filed July 1 by registered voter Bryan Regules, says that it’s questionable that she “voted a democratic primary ballot two primaries.” A Chalkbeat review of her voting history shows that she voted in one democratic primary election since moving to Indiana in 2019.

Cornett conceded that she voted in only one primary, but said she didn’t realize it until after filing her candidacy paperwork. She and her attorney, Nabeela Virjee, argued that while that was grounds to remove her party affiliation from the ballot, she should remain on the ballot because of how Cornett and Virjee interpret state law and that listing her as a Democrat would fulfill the law’s goal of giving voters more information.

Attorney Brad Boswell, who was advising the election board, said the law around school board candidates says what to do in the case of an unsuccessful challenge to party affiliation, but doesn’t list the appropriate step after a successful challenge. And in that case, the state election division said it would defer to the part of state law that’s about candidates in general, which says to remove the candidate from the ballot.

Kate Sweeney Bell, the county clerk and a member of the election board, said the additions about party affiliation for school board are “as clear as mud” yet impact “real issues with real people.”

Cornett also faced challenges around the timing of her filing and the number of signatures she received. However, since the board voted on the party affiliation first, it did not make a determination on the other challenges.

Cornett said after the meeting that she was disappointed and frustrated and felt the law had been applied unfairly. She said she’s still committed to running in November.

Anyone who disagrees with the board’s decision has 30 days to seek judicial review of the outcome. But the timeline is tight, as the first ballots are printed in mid-September.

Cornett plans to file a judicial review and is also looking into being a write-in candidate. The deadline for write-in candidates is Aug. 21.

Which primary elections meet the candidate qualifications

The challenge to Bultman’s candidacy, filed July 24 by registered voter Isaiah Tworek, argues that the interpretation of the law is that the candidate should have voted in the last two primaries held by the party as stated in the school board portion of the law, not voted in any two of that party’s primaries, like the broader law and election division says.

According to Indiana Code regarding nomination for school board office, as well as Senate Enrolled Act 287 from 2025, the law that allows partisan school board elections, the candidate must have voted in the two most recent primary elections held by that party.

A section in Indiana Code regarding local and state candidates overall says the candidate must have voted in two primaries held by their party without voting in another party’s primary in between. That same language is on the Indiana Election Division’s CAN-34 form, aka the Petition of Nomination and Consent for School Board Office, and is the interpretation by the state election division.

In Bultman’s case, voting records show he voted in Democratic primaries in 2026 and 2020, fulfilling the latter interpretation, which the county election board agreed with.

Bultman said he was excited to move forward with his candidacy and noted his respect for Cornett. He added that the challenges show there’s a need for clarity around the new law.

The winner of the district 4 race in November would serve the remainder of Impink’s term until 2028.

MJ Slaby oversees Chalkbeat Indiana’s coverage as bureau chief. Contact MJ at mslaby@chalkbeat.org.

Frey, Harris elected to Memphis-Shelby County school board

2026-08-07T03:11:27+00:00

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Memphis voters have elected longtime lawyer Tanya Frey and anti-violence program leader T.L. Harris to serve on the Memphis-Shelby County school board, according to unofficial results from the August 6 election.

In the district’s first partisan school board election, Harris and Frey ran as Democrats in the Districts 6 and 8 races against independent challengers. Two Democratic incumbents — Michelle McKissack in District 1 and Joyce Dorse Coleman in District 9 — ran unopposed.

No Republicans were on the ballot.

New board members take office on Sept. 1 and will inherit a significant legal battle over control of the district. The local officers could be constrained by a nine-member oversight board that Tennessee Republicans appointed under a state takeover law passed this spring.

The state-appointed board is temporarily blocked by a federal court order pending a decision on a Memphis-Shelby County Schools lawsuit challenging the takeover law as unconstitutional.

If reinstated by the court, oversight board members would have final approval over MSCS budgets and vendor contracts. They could also choose a new superintendent and close local schools.

Harris won the District 6 Democratic primary in the spring by fewer than 200 votes. He’s lived in the Whitehaven neighborhood for more than 30 years and spent three years leading community centers for the Memphis Gun Down summer program.

Harris pleaded guilty to a federal drug charge in 2006 while working as a Memphis police officer. He served time in federal prison and later had his voting rights, and right to hold public office, restored. Harris said that background makes him more able to connect with local youth facing poverty and other hardships. Chalkbeat was unable to confirm his current place of employment.

Harris said literacy is the most important issue for the MSCS board to address, with less than a third of Memphis students passing state reading tests.

He will replace District 6 incumbent Keith Williams on the board.

Frey runs Terra Firma Consulting, an organization that advises nonprofits on leadership decisions. She worked as a lawyer for 21 years for companies including Autozone and ALSAC, the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital.

She said she’ll be focused on improving board governance during a year when the district has to respond to state audit findings that revealed ineffective operations and potential spending abuse.

Frey will replace current board member Amber Huett-Garcia, who was elected on Thursday to serve on the Shelby County Commission.

Bri Hatch covers Memphis-Shelby County Schools for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Reach Bri at bhatch@chalkbeat.org.

What do you think about your school district’s ballot request for a property tax increase?

2026-07-30T11:00:00+00:00

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A record number of Indiana school districts are asking voters to approve property tax increases this November.

We want to know: How will this impact you?

Indiana’s school districts are facing financial strain on multiple fronts. Enrollment, which influences how much state revenue they receive, is declining. The costs of running a district, officials say, are increasing. And lawmakers last year passed property tax reform that is expected to cost districts millions of dollars in lost revenue.

Under state law, property taxes are capped at 1% of a home’s gross assessed value. But districts can seek out revenue beyond that by asking voters to approve a referendum on the ballot.

Those referendums ask voters to provide additional funds to schools for a specific need, such as operations, construction, or safety. The funding is on top of property taxes already allocated to schools along with state and federal funding.

Starting this year, districts may only ask voters for these increases during the state’s general election in November.

We want to hear from residents about what they think of school referendums and the impact it may have on their household budget. Your answers may help shape our future reporting on this year’s elections. Share your thoughts on questions below:

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Amelia Pak-Harvey covers schools for Chalkbeat Indiana. Contact Amelia at apak-harvey@chalkbeat.org.

Confusion on partisan school board law puts two IPS candidates’ spots at risk

2026-07-27T23:00:06+00:00

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This story was originally published by WFYI.

A new Indiana law that lets school board candidates run under a political party is now threatening to knock the only two candidates for an Indianapolis Public Schools board seat off the November ballot.

Both candidates running for the District 4 seat — Lindsey Cornett and Chris Bultman, who already holds the seat after being appointed in June — are now being challenged, in part because they both filed to run as Democrats.

One challenge filed against Cornett on July 1, argued she should be disqualified for various reasons, including questions about her ability to run as a Democrat on the ballot.

Bultman is also now facing a challenge, filed late Friday afternoon, that similarly centers on his eligibility to run as a Democrat.

The concerns around party affiliation for school board candidates all stem back to a 2025 state law that now allows school board candidates to run as a Democrat, Republican, Libertarian or choose not to affiliate with any party at all.

The Marion County Election Board was set to hear arguments on Cornett’s challenge during its Monday meeting. But once the second challenge against Bultman was filed, the legal counsel for the election board advised them to consider both challenges at the same time.

Brad Boswell, an attorney with Faegre Drinker advising the election board, also explained that conflicting language in state election law and the language in the new school board candidate law complicates both of these challenges.

The main issue lies in the fact that the new law concerning school board candidates identifying with a political party says that if the candidate wants to affiliate with one of the state’s major political parties, they must show that they voted in that chosen party’s last two primary elections “held by the party with which the candidate claims affiliation.”

However, the state’s candidate guide says that a candidate must have voted in the chosen party’s primary in the “two (2) most recent Indiana primary elections that the candidate voted in.”

Both the new law and the state’s candidate guidance also allows for candidates to get approval from their chosen party’s county chairman to earn affiliation with the party.

After explaining the conflicting language, Boswell advised the election board to delay consideration on both candidates’ challenges until further guidance is given on how to interpret the new law.

If the Marion County Election Board determines that the candidate’s party affiliation should be judged by the law’s stricter standard, both Bultman and Cornett could be disqualified from running.

Voter registration records for both candidates, obtained by WFYI, show they’ve only ever voted in Democratic primaries in Indiana and only in the 2026 primary; neither voted in 2024.

That raises a bigger question the board will have to answer: If both candidates are found ineligible to run as Democrats, are they removed from the ballot entirely, or would they remain on the ballot as unaffiliated candidates?

Indiana’s Election Administrator’s Manual states that if a candidate is successfully challenged based on their party affiliation, the county election board can remove them from the ballot. However, school board candidates who choose to affiliate with a minor political party, or claim to be an independent or choose not to affiliate with any party, can’t be challenged based on their party affiliation.

Boswell said that the Marion County election board is likely the first board in the state that will have to make decisions for candidate eligibility under the new law.

“First, thank you General Assembly, because this seems clear as mud,” said Marion County Clerk Kate Sweeney Bell during Monday’s meeting.

The three-person election board agreed unanimously to delay considering the candidate challenges.

According to records from Indiana secretary of state’s office, around half of the 1,034 school board candidates that have filed to run in the November general election haven’t listed any party affiliation.

Bultman and Cornett are currently the only candidates filed to run for the District 4 seat, which was previously held by Allissa Impink, who then resigned from the position after winning the primary race for Indiana State Senate District 46.

Bryan Regules filed the challenge against Cornett. Isaiah Tworek filed the challenge to candidacy and notes it’s only about party affiliation and not eligibility to be a candidate.

Aug. 21 is the final day to challenge any school board candidates who have filed to run through the normal process. Ballot language and candidates must be confirmed for the ballot by the middle of September.

A date has not been set for the Marion County Election Board’s next meeting.

The general election is Nov. 3.

Contact WFYI Government Reporter Caroline Beck at cbeck@wfyi.org

Memphis school board election comes as legal battle continues over state takeover

2026-07-17T10:00:00+00:00

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Early voting is underway for the Memphis-Shelby County election that will seat two new local school board members as the legal battle over district control continues.

Voters will head to the polls on Aug. 6. Two incumbents, Michelle McKissack in District 1 and Joyce Dorse Coleman in District 9, are running unopposed after winning the Democratic nomination in MSCS’ first partisan school board primary in May.

But the Democratic nominees for the District 6 and District 8 seats, T.L. Harris and Tanya Frey, will each face an independent challenger. Local pastor and former teacher Frederick Tappan is running against Harris, and MSCS librarian Leigh Ann Scarbrough will face Frey.

Harris, who led a youth violence prevention program for three years, beat four other Democratic candidates by fewer than 200 votes. He was convicted on a felony drug charge 20 years ago while employed as a Memphis police officer. Frey, a longtime Memphis lawyer, won her race against one other candidate by a wide margin.

It’s unclear what the newly elected members’ role will look like after they assume office on Sept. 1. The state takeover law passed this spring by Nashville Republicans authorizes a new oversight board to seize control of key district decisions, including approval of the budget and school closures.

A federal judge temporarily blocked the state-appointed board two weeks ago, an early win for MSCS and Shelby County leaders who are suing over the takeover law. But earlier this week, Tennessee officials filed a request to lift that block, challenging the district’s claims of unconstitutionality.

As the lawsuit plays out in court, find out which local school board district will appear on your ballot, and learn about candidates’ stances on key issues below. Early voting ends on Aug. 1.

Bri Hatch covers Memphis-Shelby County Schools for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Reach Bri at bhatch@chalkbeat.org.

15 candidates for 5 seats: See who’s running for school board at IPS and other Indianapolis area districts

2026-07-15T20:32:18+00:00

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Update, July 15: Tiffani Flick, Jayia McCray and Christopher Williams have withdrawn from their respective school board races since this article was published.

Update, June 26: This story was updated to reflect that Lindsey Cornett was added to the ballot as a District 4 candidate for IPS school board.

Fifteen candidates are running for five seats on the Indianapolis Public Schools board this November, including an influential charter school advocate and an Indiana Democratic Party leader.

Candidates had until noon June 18 to be on the November ballot, and the list is a first look at who could lead IPS during a time of change for the city’s schools. This was the first time candidates could include their political affiliations.

Of the 59 candidates competing for 31 seats on 10 school boards across Marion County, more than half decided to list a party affiliation, with 23 Democrats and 9 Republicans. Seven candidates are Independents and 20 chose to be nonpartisan. For IPS, 13 listed Democrat and two are Independents.

This election is pivotal for the IPS school board. After two resignations this year, five of the board’s seven seats are on the ballot. It’s also the first election since state lawmakers created the mayor-appointed Indianapolis Public Education Corporation.

IPEC holds key powers for IPS and charter schools in the city including including the ability to ask voters for a tax increase to provide additional funds to schools. The elected IPS board previously had that power, and this year’s possible referendum comes as the district faces critical financial challenges. Per state law, three of the nine members of IPEC are also IPS board members.

Of the five races for IPS school board, the most crowded are for District 3 and the at-large seat with four candidates for each. The District 3 race is especially notable with Hope Duke Star, the current IPS board president and a member of IPEC, and Derek Redelman, who is considered an architect of the state’s 2001 charter school law, both on the ballot.

Alexander S. Nyirendah, the vice chair of the Indiana Democratic Party, is running for an at-large seat and Chris Bultman is running in District 4. Bultman works at Concept Schools, a nonprofit charter management organization and was recently appointed to join the IPS board.

The IPS board members who have terms ending in 2026 are all running for re-election.

School board candidates statewide were previously nonpartisan, but they now have the ability to list a political party affiliation, identify as an independent, or be nonpartisan. Because there are no primary elections, multiple candidates can have the same party affiliation.

Here’s a look at who’s on the ballot. Incumbent candidates are noted with an asterisk.

Candidates for IPS school board:

See the map of school board districts here.

District 2

Bryan Duarte, Democrat
Hasaan Rashid, Democrat*

District 3

Loren Eugene Heger, Democrat
Hope Duke Star, Democrat*
Derek Redelman, Independent
Daqavise D. Winston, Democrat

You’re invited: Hear about the changes for schools this election and what they mean

District 4

Chris Bultman, Democrat*
Lindsey Cornett, Democrat

District 5

Nicole Carey, Democrat*
Yuri Smith Sr., Democrat
Pearl Taylor, Democrat

At-large

Heather Houston, Independent
Angelia Lois Moore, Democrat*
Alexander S. Nyirendah, Democrat
Sacha Nicole Sharp, Democrat

Candidates for school boards across the Indianapolis area:

Beech Grove City Schools

Three at-large seats are on the ballot.

Brian Downard, nonpartisan*
Tiffani Flick, Democrat
Jannis King, Independent*
Madison West, nonpartisan

MSD of Decatur Township

Three at-large seats are on the ballot.

Randi Berryman, nonpartisan
Teresa A. Burns, nonpartisan
Judith Collins, Republican*
Dale Henson, Republican*
Steve Jacobi, nonpartisan
Patrice Johnson, nonpartisan
Chase Lyday, Republican*
Kristyn D. Stoddard, Independent

Franklin Township Community Schools

At-large

Komal (Komal Kaur) Chohan, Independent
Dawn Downer, nonpartisan*
Antonio DeWayne Key, Sr, Democrat
Tim McVey, Republican
Christopher Williams, Republican

Northeast District

Zachary Smith Howard, Republican*

Southeast District

Matt Morgan, Republican
Larry J. Walker, Republican*

MSD of Lawrence Township

At-large

Maria Bertram Cartagena, nonpartisan
Jessica Dunn, nonpartisan*

District 2

Larry Brown, nonpartisan
Craig J Willey, nonpartisan

Perry Township Schools

Three at-large seats are on the ballot.

Chris Lewis, Republican*
Brianna Bible, Democrat
Lee Shively, Independent*

MSD of Pike Township

Three at-large seats are on the ballot.

Alonzo Anderson, Democrat*
Wayne Moore, Democrat*
Sherie Latoya Scott, Democrat
Terry A. Webster, Sr., Democrat*

MSD of Warren Township

Three at-large seats are on the ballot.

Terri Amos, nonpartisan*
Rachel M Burke, nonpartisan*
Jerry Crites, nonpartisan
Samantha Douglas, nonpartisan
Kevin S. Humphrey, Sr, nonpartisan*
Steve (Coach) Tutsie, Independent

MSD of Washington Township

At-large

Leslie Bowles, nonpartisan
Jayia McCray, nonpartisan

District 2

Jocelyn Sisson, nonpartisan

MSD of Wayne Township

Four at-large seats are on the ballot.

Brandon Bowman, Democrat*
Mikeal Gordon, Democrat*
Raimeka Graham, Democrat*
Benjamin Wakefield, nonpartisan*

Speedway Schools is not included in this list because the school board is appointed by the town board, not elected.

MJ Slaby oversees Chalkbeat Indiana’s coverage as bureau chief. Contact MJ at mslaby@chalkbeat.org.

More Republicans than Democrats file for school board races in central Indiana

2026-07-01T11:00:00+00:00

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A plurality of school board candidates in central Indiana did not declare a party affiliation ahead of the general election in November, when school board races across the state will be partisan for the first time.

But those who did declare a party tended to declare themselves Republican, with about one-third of candidates identifying with the GOP in candidate filings.

In the nine-county region, about one-third of the 211 candidates are Republicans, while roughly 13% are Democratic and 9% are independent. About 45% of candidates did not declare a party affiliation. Incumbent candidates were more likely to identify as Republican or not have a party listed. Only incumbents in Marion County identified themselves as Democrats.

The filings for central Indiana could shed light on how political partisanship affects school board races. In Marion County, Democratic candidates outnumber Republican candidates. Yet in the more conservative counties that surround the state’s capital, Republican candidates outnumber Democratic ones.

State lawmakers approved partisan school board races last year despite significant opposition from educators and advocates who argued that partisan politics would disrupt inherently nonpartisan activities left to the school board, like selecting a superintendent and approving an annual budget. But some Republican lawmakers who backed the legislation said it would help voters support candidates who align with their values.

The new state law allows candidates to include a political party after their name, leave their political affiliation blank, identify as independent, or state that they do not identify with a party. But candidates who identify as Democrats or Republicans could gain a key advantage.

Under a state law adopted this year, the party whose candidate received the most votes in the county in the most recent election for secretary of state will be listed first on ballots. The party with the second-highest number of votes for that office will be listed second, followed by independent candidates or those affiliated with parties that did not have a secretary of state candidate. Finally, candidates who do not disclose any political affiliation will appear last.

That means in Democratic-leaning Marion County, for example, Democratic school board candidates will be listed before their Republican opponents. But elsewhere in the state, Republican school board candidates will be first on the ballot — which some research suggests could give them an advantage over other candidates.

The move toward partisanship comes as national political polarization has begun to affect state and local races that have typically been less partisan, said Michael Wolf of the Mike Downs Center for Indiana Politics at Purdue University Fort Wayne. In K-12 education, this shift has fueled divisive debates over book bans and mask mandates.

The change could have upsides and downsides, Wolf said. While fewer candidates may be interested in running in partisan races, more voters may cast a vote for school board candidates if they’re aware of the candidate’s party.

“One of the benefits, certainly, of partisan elections is that you probably would have more participation at least in people not skipping that race when they’re voting,” he said.

Party affiliation could bring ballot advantage

Some incumbents say voters have often wanted to know what political party school board candidates belong to.

When Zachary Smith Howard knocked on doors in his first bid for the Franklin Township Community School Corporation board in 2018, the most common question people asked him was his party affiliation, he said.

“I would tell people, ‘This is a nonpartisan race, but I identify with the Republican Party,’” said Howard, who is on the board of the Indiana School Boards Association but spoke to Chalkbeat in his personal capacity. “Most people don’t do the homework on the school board elections, they just don’t.”

Howard is seeking his third term as the sole candidate for the northeast portion of the district. But this time, he filed as a Republican.

Howard considers his Republican affiliation as just another piece of information for Marion County voters in Franklin Township to consider. But he also wishes voters would do more research on what candidates stand for, he said, because there’s more to a candidate than a partisan label.

“My fear is that people will just look at the label and that’s how they’ll make a decision,” he said.

In Westfield, the partisan school board law spurred Gabriel Crawford-Paree to run as a Democrat for the at-large seat on the Westfield Washington school board — even though he opposed making school board elections partisan.

“Filing as a Democrat is my shorthand way to signal to the likely many voters I won’t be able to reach during my campaign that I do support public education,” he said.

His opponent in Hamilton County, Republican incumbent Amber Huff Willis, said she’s seen voters struggle to understand why the school board races are nonpartisan when she’s run for her seat in the past.

Although she declared a party affiliation, she said lawmakers shouldn’t have introduced political partisanship into school board races because it shouldn’t matter.

“I would say nine out of 10 times if you’re involved in a community, you probably understand who does what and who falls where,” she said.

The general election is on Nov. 3.

Amelia Pak-Harvey covers schools for Chalkbeat Indiana. Contact Amelia at apak-harvey@chalkbeat.org.

Indianapolis Public Schools board taps Chris Bultman to represent District 4

2026-06-26T01:07:53+00:00

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Chris Bultman will be the newest member of the Indianapolis Public Schools Board of Commissioners. He will represent District 4, the southwest part of the school district.

The IPS school board voted 5-1 on Thursday to appoint Bultman, the regional director of external affairs at Concept Schools, a nonprofit charter management organization that works with Indiana Math and Science Academies. The board interviewed him and finalist Lindsey Cornett in a public meeting on Wednesday.

Bultman will serve through January, when the newly elected District 4 representative will be sworn in.

Both Bultman and Cornett are running for District 4 in November. Bultman’s appointment means he will have some time on the board ahead of the election, unlike newcomer Cornett. He’ll also have to balance joining the board and campaigning.

Bultman is on the ballot for November. Cornett will be added, said the Marion County Clerks’ Office on Thursday. She was originally denied due to what she said was confusion about whether she met the deadline to file.

Board president Hope Duke Star said she voted for Bultman as a decision aimed at the future, adding that “a year from now, we will need some stability on the board.”

The District 4 seat became vacant when former Commissioner Allissa Impink resigned earlier this month after winning the Democratic primary for Indiana State Senate District 46. During public comment on Wednesday, Impink spoke in support of Cornett.

IPS board members Star, Angelia Moore, Deandra Thompson, Ashley Thomas and Hasaan Rashid voted for Bultman. Board member Nicole Carey voted for Cornett.

Carey said she is concerned about the professional conflict Bultman could face as an IPS board member who also works for a charter organization that aims to enroll students living within the IPS district boundaries.

Star said that even when there is a gray area, she expects all IPS board members to prioritize IPS when they are in their board seats, including Bultman.

Bultman joins the board at a critical time, with five of the board’s seven seats on the ballot in November. It is also the first school board election since the creation of the mayor-appointed Indianapolis Public Education Corporation, which holds key powers for IPS and charter schools.

Voters will also be asked to decide whether to approve a tax increase, or referendum, that would provide funding for IPS and charter schools that opt in.But even if it passes, IPS is still expected to make $20 million in cuts by the 2027-28 school year.

In his Wednesday interview, Bultman said has experience working with students facing challenges outside of school and with helping families make decisions about where to attend school.

He said his priorities would be improving student outcomes and the district’s financial health while also making IPS a destination for families. Bultman said the referendum is also a key challenge facing the district. He also called for collaboration across Indianapolis’ school types with a focus on improving student outcomes.

Bultman will be sworn in during the school board’s next agenda review meeting at 6 p.m. July 28 at 120 E. Walnut St.

MJ Slaby oversees Chalkbeat Indiana’s coverage as bureau chief. Contact MJ at mslaby@chalkbeat.org.

IPS school board interviews 2 applicants for District 4 vacancy

2026-06-25T00:39:15+00:00

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In public interviews, two applicants to be the next member of the Indianapolis Public Schools Board of Commissioners stressed their experience working with students and a desire to engage families and the community with the district.

On Wednesday, the IPS school board interviewed Chris Bultman and Lindsey Cornett to fill the District 4 vacancy ahead of a Thursday vote. The interviews were also a preview of the upcoming campaign season as both finalists said they are running for the District 4 seat in the November election.

The seat representing the southwest part of the school district is vacant after former Commissioner Allissa Impink resigned earlier this month. Impink, who won the Democratic primary for Indiana State Senate District 46, resigned from the school board before the general election, so the IPS District 4 seat would be on November’s ballot.

The appointee will serve until January, when the newly elected member is sworn in. That person will serve the remainder of Impink’s term through the end of 2028.

Bultman is the sole candidate on the ballot, but Cornett said she plans to run as well. She is currently considering appeal options or running as a write-in candidate after her candidate paperwork was denied due to what she said was confusion about whether she met the deadline to file.

Whomever is selected in the meantime will join the school board at a critical time. Five of the board’s seven seats are on the ballot, and voters will also decide whether to approve a tax increase, or referendum, that would provide funding for IPS and charter schools that opt in.

The IPS school board used to have the power to put a tax increase on the ballot, but that’s now under the purview of the mayor-appointed Indianapolis Public Education Corporation, which was created by state lawmakers earlier this year.

This week, IPEC members decided to ask voters for a property tax increase of 37 cents per $100 of assessed value. Even if it passes, IPS is still expected to make $20 million in cuts by the 2027-28 school year.

Meet the applicants for District 4 IPS school board member

Chris Bultman

Bultman is the regional director of external affairs at Concept Schools, a nonprofit charter management organization that works with Indiana Math and Science Academies. He previously worked as a teacher and on the culture team at Indiana Math and Science where he worked with students facing challenges outside of school.

If appointed, he said his priorities would be improving student outcomes and the district’s financial health while also making IPS a destination for families. He also noted that the referendum is a key challenge facing the district.

Bultman said this moment calls for strong collaboration across Indianapolis’ school types and that disagreement is OK as long as the main focus for all schools working together is improving student outcomes.

Lindsey Cornett

Cornett, a writer and editor for congregation engagement at Englewood Community Development Corporation, described herself as a fierce advocate for IPS. She’s also a former Florida public school teacher and mother of three IPS students.

If appointed, Cornett said she would do her part to get the referendum passed and “offer stability, representation, and camaraderie with the residents of our district” during IPS’s time of transition.

She added that channeling the community’s energy and love for Indianapolis and individual IPS schools is a great opportunity for the district. The biggest challenges are finances and holding IPEC accountable, Cornett said. Going forward, she said the focus needs to be on data-driven decisionmaking for student outcomes and making sure schools have the resources they need before new ideas are launched.

Impink attended the meeting and spoke in support of Cornett during public comment.

This is the second time this year the IPS board has filled a vacancy due to a resignation. Hasaan Rashid was appointed to the board in March.

MJ Slaby oversees Chalkbeat Indiana’s coverage as bureau chief. Contact MJ at mslaby@chalkbeat.org.

Marion County school board elections: Tell us what you want to know

2026-06-24T17:36:29+00:00

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The 2026 elections could be critical for school districts across the Indianapolis area and the state.

It’s the first time school board candidates can declare a political party affiliation on the ballot. It also could bring a record number of requests from school districts to increase property taxes, as schools across the state struggle with declining enrollment and a loss in revenue from property tax reforms that state lawmakers implemented last year.

And school districts continue to navigate other challenges such as how to implement artificial intelligence in schools and a bell-to-bell cellphone ban for students.

The people elected to school boards will help guide these key decisions including what budget cuts may be necessary if voters reject a proposed property tax increase on the ballot.

We want to hear from Marion County voters about their most pressing issues and questions for prospective school board candidates in the 10 districts across Indianapolis with elected school boards. What do you want to know from the candidates? What challenges do you want to see them address?

Your answers will help shape our upcoming voter guide for Marion County school board elections in partnership with Mirror Indy and WFYI. Let us know what you’d like to know from your candidates below:

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Amelia Pak-Harvey covers schools for Chalkbeat Indiana. Contact Amelia at apak-harvey@chalkbeat.org.

How should Michigan’s next governor improve education? We want to hear from you.

2026-06-23T13:21:31+00:00

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Education has become a critical issue in the race for Michigan’s next governor, an election that will determine who has the power to shape policies that improve learning for the state’s 1.3 million public school students.

But how should the winner do it? That’s a question we have for Michigan residents.

Chalkbeat Detroit and the Detroit Free Press are collaborating this election season to cover education issues that are key in the gubernatorial contest. To help shape our coverage, we’re asking you to take a few minutes to fill out the survey below. Your feedback is critical to ensuring we understand what issues are important.

This is a difficult time for education in Michigan. On the National Assessment of Educational Progress, just 24% of Michigan fourth graders who took the exam were considered proficient in reading, compared to 30% nationally.

Meanwhile, in 2025, just 38.9% of Michigan’s third graders were proficient in English language arts on the Michigan Student Test of Educational Progress.

Math performance has been just as troubling.

Gubernatorial candidates have their own ideas about what it will take to improve Michigan schools, ranging from paying teachers more to replicating what other, more successful, states like Mississippi have done.

What do you think Michigan should do?

Lori Higgins is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Detroit. You can reach her at lhiggins@chalkbeat.org.

IPS seeks applicants to fill vacant District 4 school board seat

2026-06-16T19:33:38+00:00

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Applications are open to fill a vacancy on the Indianapolis Public Schools Board, with the board selecting an appointee next week.

The school board’s District 4 seat, which represents the southwest part of the school district, is vacant after Commissioner Allissa Impink’s resignation took effect June 15. Impink won the Democratic primary election for Indiana State Senate District 46 in May. She resigned before the general election so the school board seat would be on November’s ballot, reducing the time an appointed member will be on the board.

The appointee will serve on the board until January when the newly elected member is sworn in. That person will serve the remainder of Impink’s term through the end of 2028.

The November election is a critical one for the IPS board, with five of seven seats on the ballot. It also comes as the district faces financial challenges and after the board lost some authority to the new Indianapolis Public Education Corporation. Established by state lawmakers earlier this year, IPEC now holds key powers over district and charter schools, including school accountability, buildings, transportation, and some financial matters.

To qualify for appointment to the IPS board, applicants must live in District 4 and have lived within the IPS school district for at least a year. They also must not have a felony conviction unless it was pardoned, reversed, vacated, or set aside.

Applications and resumes are due by 5 p.m. on June 23, and the school board will meet in executive session that day to select three finalists.

Finalists will have public interviews at 6 p.m. on June 24 at the district central office, 120 E. Walnut St. The board will vote on an appointment during its action session at 6 p.m. on June 25, and the appointee will be sworn in that evening.

It’s possible that whoever is appointed could also run for election in November. Potential school board candidates have until noon on June 18 to file. As of Tuesday afternoon, no candidate has filed to run in District 4, according to the Marion County Election Board’s candidate list.

Due to resignations, school board seats representing District 2 — which is now represented by Hasaan Rashid, who was appointed by the board in March — and District 4 are on the November ballot. Also on the ballot are three IPS board seats slated for election: District 3, currently represented by Hope Duke Star, District 5, represented by Nicole Carey, and an at-large seat held by Angelia Moore.

See the application for IPS District 4 commissioner here.

MJ Slaby oversees Chalkbeat Indiana’s coverage as bureau chief. Contact MJ at mslaby@chalkbeat.org.

Why this Indianapolis-area district is changing the start and end times for school days

2026-06-15T17:14:27+00:00

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When students in Decatur Township head back to class this August, they’ll start and end their days at new times.

The changes, which come with benefits for students and staff such as more sleep for middle school students and time for teacher professional development, are also in part, due to financial pressures schools face.

Changing start and end times means going from six different schedules to three, allowing for fewer bus routes and more savings to the district. School leaders said they are still implementing changes, but expect “impactful savings” to the district’s roughly $6.7 million transportation budget for this calendar year.

The priority is always how to best support students, said Scott Collins, superintendent of the Metropolitan School District of Decatur Township. Additional benefits to the time changes are for high schoolers to end their day earlier and to align schedules for grade levels.

Yet, Collins also acknowledged that the money aspect can’t be untangled from those decisions.

Decatur Township schools are not alone in responding to less property tax funding due to changes at the state level and wanting to show fiscal responsibility to voters ahead of a potential tax increase, known as a referendum, vote in November.

School leaders in Decatur anticipate $3 million less in property taxes this year due to property tax reform. And additional state changes also mean the district is considering putting a tax measure on the ballot a year earlier than planned.

“We’re trying to save dollars now so we don’t have to ask for as much money in the future,” Collins said. “We want to be good stewards.”

And a big part of that for Decatur is busing – a key service that more than 70% of students in the district use daily during the school year. Plus, more than 1,100 of the district’s roughly 6,500 students use the bus each week for after-school activities like athletics, band, and clubs, Collins said. He added that buses are crucial for Decatur schools due to limited access to public transportation and limited ability to have walk zones for students.

Currently, the district uses a portion of its referendum dollars to pay for transportation costs, including salary and benefits for bus drivers, monitors, and mechanics. Without referendum funds, Collins said the district would have to consider additional busing changes such as walk zones and cutting after-school buses.

The district is considering a tax measure rate of roughly 27 cents per $100 of assessed value that would replace the current rate of roughly 29 cents starting in January if approved by voters.

In order to be on the ballot in November, the school board must approve and send the ballot question to the state Department of Local Government Finance no later than July 22.

MJ Slaby oversees Chalkbeat Indiana’s coverage as bureau chief. Contact MJ at mslaby@chalkbeat.org.

Voter guide: Where the 2026 Colorado Republican Party gubernatorial candidates stand on education

2026-06-12T21:44:46+00:00

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Where do Colorado’s gubernatorial candidates stand on education issues?

Chalkbeat Colorado analyzed the education records of the candidates ahead of the primaries on June 30. The field includes two Democrats and three Republicans.

Read about each of the three Republican Party candidates below:

State Rep. Scott Bottoms

What is Bottoms’ record on education?

Bottoms, 55, has served as a Colorado state representative since 2023. The Colorado Springs resident is pastor of the Colorado Springs Church at Briargate and a U.S. Navy veteran.

Bottoms called the state’s education system “broken” in an interview with KUNC.

During his three years as a state representative, Bottoms has sponsored three bills related to transgender youth, including one that would have banned the participation of transgender students in gendered sports unless they were co-ed. All three bills failed.

Voter guide: Where the 2026 Colorado Democratic Party gubernatorial candidates stand on education

In a Colorado Sun questionnaire, Bottoms has said he supports Initiatives 108, 109 and 110.

Initiative 108 would require a person convicted of trafficking a child for sexual servitude to serve life in prison. Initiative 109 would require student athletes to participate on teams that match their sex assigned at birth. And Initiative 110 would prohibit surgeries for children under age 18 that alter their biological sex characteristics.

The Bottoms campaign did not respond to requests for an interview before deadline, or say whether he would enroll Colorado in the new federal education tax-credit program.

What is Bottoms’ platform for education?

Supporting parents’ right to direct their child’s education.
Offering tax incentives for stay-at-home parents and caregivers.
Pushing for curriculum transparency and allowing for school boards to reject “state-imposed ideologies.”
Protecting kids from politicized content, boosting online safety, and ensuring students can only compete in gendered sports based on their sex assigned at birth.
Reforming family courts, education, and healthcare, as well as addressing grandparents’ rights, after-school programs, and parental issues.

State Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer

What is Kirkmeyer’s record on education?

Kirkmeyer, 67, is a Weld County resident who has a bachelor of science in education from the University of Colorado Boulder. She’s spent most of her career working as a dairy farmer and small business owner.

Kirkmeyer’s first year in the Colorado Senate was in 2021, and she has served on the Senate Education Committee. She also spent four years on the powerful Joint Budget Committee, which helps craft the state budget.

Kirkmeyer has been an active member of the state legislature, filing over 300 bills. Many have involved education.

Kirkemeyer sponsored bipartisan laws to create a task force to study the statewide K-12 education accountability system, establish a grant program to help schools affected by the mineral and gas industry create park-like environments at schools, and allow high school students to take four-year university courses off campus.

She’s often talked about the need to protect state education funding through difficult budget cuts, although she’s against tax increases.

This year, she was part of a group of lawmakers that filed the state’s School Finance Act ahead of the state budget. The school funding bill didn’t get considered until after the state budget, but district leaders said the early filing allowed them to provide more feedback on their needs before its passage.

Kirkmeyer has said she will vote yes on Initiatives 108, 109 and 110.

In a Colorado Public Radio interview, Kirkmeyer highlighted that she helped end the budget stabilization factor, which allowed lawmakers to divert money away from education for other priorities. Lawmakers ended the practice in 2024, though Kirkmeyer said the state still underfunds education.

Kirkmeyer’s campaign didn’t respond to requests for an interview before deadline, and didn’t answer a question about her position on the new federal education tax credits.

What is Kirkmeyer’s platform for education?

Requiring at least 65% of state funding to be spent in the classroom.
Ensuring programs are backed by evidence before funding can continue.
Supporting district efforts to ban cellphones in classrooms.
Ensuring every high school has a police officer on site.
Equipping schools with camera systems that have artificial intelligence weapons-detection systems to speed up threat detection and public safety officials’ reaction times.

Victor Marx

What is Marx’s record on education?

Marx, 60, is the founder and CEO of All Things Possible, a nonprofit humanitarian ministry. The Colorado Springs resident is also an author who has written two books about his life.

In interviews, Marx has focused on his leadership experience as a political outsider. He has little documented experience with education issues and hasn’t said much about them in interviews.

In an interview with Colorado Public Radio, Marx said he wants to make it easier for families to pay for childcare. And in campaign videos, Marx has said he wants to help young people stay in Colorado after they’ve gone to college.

Marx said in a Colorado Sun candidate questionnaire that he supports Initiatives 108, 109 and 110.

Marx’s campaign didn’t respond to requests for an interview, and didn’t say what his position is about the new federal tax credits for education.

What is Marx’s education platform?

The one major mention of an education policy on his campaign website calls to direct the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment to expand apprenticeship programs, as well as create workforce pipelines in construction, technology, energy, and other fields.

His website says Marx wants to provide incentives to employers that sponsor apprenticeships through tax benefits and recruitment support. He also wants to guarantee that apprentices have pathways to enter various fields.

Jason Gonzales is a reporter covering higher education and the Colorado legislature. Chalkbeat Colorado partners with Open Campus on higher education coverage. Contact Jason at jgonzales@chalkbeat.org.

Voter guide: Where the 2026 Colorado Democratic Party gubernatorial candidates stand on education

2026-06-12T21:42:10+00:00

Sign up for Chalkbeat Colorado’s free daily newsletter to get the latest reporting from us, plus curated news from other Colorado outlets, delivered to your inbox.

Where do Colorado’s gubernatorial candidates stand on education issues?

Chalkbeat Colorado analyzed the education records of the candidates ahead of the primaries on June 30. The field includes two Democrats and three Republicans.

Read about each of the Democratic Party candidates below:

U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet

What is Bennet’s record on education?

Bennet, 61, who resides in Denver, has served as a United States senator since 2009. Education has been a pillar of his political career, including during an unsuccessful 2019 presidential campaign.

Bennet’s education experience started in 2005, when he was hired as superintendent of the state’s largest school district, Denver Public Schools.

Under Bennet, Denver Public Schools shut down low-performing and underenrolled schools, expanded school choice, and allowed more charter schools to operate in the district. The changes he made helped improve student academic achievement, but some remain controversial to this day.

Voter guide: Where the 2026 Colorado Republican Party gubernatorial candidates stand on education

Bennet left Denver Public Schools when he was appointed to fill an open U.S. Senate seat in 2009. In Congress, he helped usher in the Every Student Succeeds Act, which succeeded the No Child Left Behind Act and is the primary federal law governing K-12 education.

He serves on the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, and notably voted against the appointment of Betsy DeVos to be U.S. education secretary in 2017.

Bennet has said Colorado needs to make childcare more affordable, including by creating a dedicated funding source and using underenrolled schools to house early childhood programs. He also said he believes Gov. Jared Polis’ focus on kindergarten and early childhood has been a success.

Bennet’s campaign said he doesn’t support private school vouchers or public funds going to private or religious schools.

But Bennet believes rejecting a federal program that would provide tax credits for donations to scholarship-granting organizations “could be short sighted and put millions of dollars that could help kids in Colorado at risk.” He believes Colorado should wait until rules for the programs are finalized before making a decision, his campaign said.

What is Bennet’s platform for education?

Raising wages for Colorado educators.
Increasing the number of educator training programs, including apprenticeships.
Improving statewide resources and training for teaching math and reading.
Tackling student mental health challenges, curbing violence in schools, and creating more opportunities for kids to get outdoors.
Making Colorado the first state where every student will earn a living wage after high school by increasing the number of career training and college classes offered in high school, and boosting access to apprenticeships and industry credentials.

Bennet said he wants to be an education governor

In an interview, Bennet said he would be an education governor who understands that school district officials need state funding and support.

He highlighted his record in Denver Public Schools, where he said he helped raise academic achievement, improved graduation rates, and curbed the dropout rate. A 2024 study by the University of Colorado Denver’s Center for Education Policy Analysis backs up some of his claims.

Bennet said he still believes that the state’s education system needs changes.

“I think in Colorado we have the opportunity for the whole country to pursue quality at scale, pursue rigor at scale, and give teachers and school districts the support they need to be able to deliver for our kids,” he said.

Attorney General Phil Weiser

What is Weiser’s record on education?

Weiser, 55, who lives in Denver, has served as the state’s attorney general since 2019. As attorney general, Weiser has focused on school safety and student mental health.

Weiser’s office leads the state’s Safe2Tell program, which allows students to anonymously report violent threats. He’s also helped oversee the program’s expansion.

Weiser issued grants to help curb student cellphone use in schools, even before state lawmakers required districts to create policies about it.

He also oversees the Office of School Safety and the Office of Gun Violence Prevention and sought to provide training to teachers and school administrators as gun laws have evolved.

Weiser recently backed a state law that requires school districts to publicly display how they help at-risk students and issued grants to combat youth vaping.

He’s also said that technical education should expand to more districts. He backed the creation of youth apprenticeship program CareerWise Colorado a decade ago.

Weiser has been active in suing the Trump administration, including several lawsuits related to education and childcare.

And Weiser has said he would not participate in the federal tax credit program if elected. He said he believes it would take money away from public education.

What is Weiser’s platform for education?

Preserving funding for effective prenatal and early childhood programs.
Creating strategies for childhood mental health.
Increasing funding for childcare access to make it more affordable.
Increasing funding for teacher pay.
Expanding apprenticeships, career and technical education, and low-cost job training options.

Weiser wants to support schools and student safety

In an interview, Weiser said the state is not spending enough money to help students.

He said kids are struggling with mental health issues, a lack of access to early childhood education, and scant career and technical educational offerings.

Weiser said he would fund new education programs through changes to the Taxpayer Bill of Rights. These shifts would require taxpayer approval.

As governor, he hopes to also increase the number of mentorship opportunities that benefit kids.

“When I’m governor, I’m going to make a full-throated commitment to invest in our kids’ future from cradle to early childhood education to career workforce skills,” he said.

You’re invited: Hear about the changes for schools this election and what they mean for students

2026-06-09T19:44:27+00:00

Sign up for Chalkbeat Indiana’s free daily newsletter to keep up with Indianapolis Public Schools, Marion County’s township districts, and statewide education news.

School board elections won’t look the same in Indiana this year.

At the ballot box, voters could see new partisan labels for school board candidates. More voters than usual could be faced with a decision on whether they should approve a tax increase, known as a referendum, for their local schools. And before Election Day, candidates and school leaders also have decisions to make about their campaigns.

The outcomes in November could have a lasting effect on students and schools.

Join us on Wednesday, July 8, at 6:30 p.m. at the Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana History Center for a panel discussion on these issues.

We’ll dive into the changes around school decision-makers and school funding to ask: What’s at stake for students and families across the state?

Moderated by Chalkbeat Indiana reporter Aleksandra Appleton, the panel includes:

David Roof, director of the Center for Economic and Civic Learning at Ball State University
Terry Spradlin, executive director of the Indiana School Boards Association
Ashley Thomas, member of both the Indianapolis Public Schools board and the Indianapolis Public Education Corporation.

The event is in partnership with the Indiana Historical Society and is free, but RSVP is encouraged. Get your ticket here.

Doors open at 6 p.m. The panel starts at 6:30 p.m. Food and childcare will be provided. Free parking is available in the Indiana Historical Society lot off of New York Street.

Update, July 1: This story was updated to clarify that parking will be free for panel attendees.

MJ Slaby oversees Chalkbeat Indiana’s coverage as bureau chief. Contact MJ at mslaby@chalkbeat.org.

The Voting Rights Act reshaped school boards. What will happen after the Supreme Court weakened it?

2026-05-26T12:59:58+00:00

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The Voting Rights Act has for decades given parents and others a pathway to change the institutions that have the most day-to-day control over American schools: their local school boards.

But the Supreme Court’s April decision in Louisiana v. Callais, which has kicked off a rush of partisan redistricting that threatens Black representation in Congress, could make it harder to demand changes in how school boards are organized going forward.

The impact of that law has been sweeping. More than 320 Voting Rights Act complaints between 1982 and 2024 dealt with school board elections, according to a database created by Chris Seaman, a law professor at Washington and Lee University.

School boards accounted for more than a fifth of all Section 2 voting rights cases during that time period, Seaman found.

Many of those challenged at-large elections — which allow everyone in a community to vote for every seat on a board. This setup can make it difficult for communities of color to elect their preferred candidates, especially in places where a white majority votes in a bloc.

Some 3.6 million children currently attend school in a district shaped by one of those challenges, a Chalkbeat analysis found. But at-large elections remain the most common school board structure in the United States.

Legal experts agree that it will be more difficult now to claim that a particular electoral system violates the rights of minority voters. In the aftermath of Callais, conservative legal groups are gearing up to challenge state voting rights laws that have provided additional tools to reshape school boards. Some even see an opening to challenge past settlements — especially in cases where school districts voluntarily made changes to improve racial representation.

The Supreme Court’s weakening of the Voting Rights Act will likely lead to “a decrease in minority representation, and school boards will not be exempt,” Seaman said. Most public school students are children of color, while most school board members are white. While the Voting Rights Act does not guarantee the election of candidates of color, it has given minority communities the opportunity to elect candidates responsive to their concerns. Limited research has shown school board members of color make a difference in student discipline, superintendent hiring, and academic outcomes.

But unfair student discipline or low test scores don’t create Voting Rights Act violations, said J. Christian Adams, a conservative election lawyer and former Justice Department official who served on President Donald Trump’s failed 2017 voter-fraud commission.

There’s nothing fundamentally better or worse about single-member or at-large school board districts, said Adams, now president of the Public Interest Legal Foundation. But under the Callais ruling, “if a school district says we’re going to single-member districts to elect minority representatives, that would violate the constitution. That’s over. That’s done.”

Callais focused on partisan redistricting in legislative races. The Supreme Court’s conservative majority said party considerations — wanting Republicans or Democrats to win more seats — could justify drawing maps that dilute minority voters’ voice.

That could mean the decision has less impact in nonpartisan school board races. It will take time and more lawsuits to fully understand the effects.

“To the extent that the Voting Rights Act has any vitality left after Callais, I think it’s likely to be in these local races like school boards,” said Justin Levitt, an election law expert and professor at Loyola Marymount University.

How racism fueled at-large school board elections

At-large school board elections are a legacy of Progressive-era reforms that sought to reduce the power of machine politics and cronyism over education governance.

In northern cities, these changes reduced the political power of immigrant enclaves. In the Jim Crow South, they prevented Black communities from electing their own school board representatives, when those residents could vote at all.

As Memphis schools takeover looms, city faces further voting power struggle

Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, first passed in 1965 and repeatedly amended, provided grounds to challenge at-large elections for local government offices that potentially dilute the votes of minority groups.

A handful of attorneys in Texas and Alabama filed dozens of challenges to at-large school board elections in the 1980s and 1990s, accounting for the majority of cases. Often, school districts agreed to settle when faced with just the threat of a lawsuit.

These challenges changed who decided to run for office, who won seats on school boards, and how resources were allocated in districts across the country.

“There are really important decisions that impact students of color that benefit from the perspective of school board members of color,” said Carrie Sampson, an associate professor of educational leadership at Arizona State University who studies school boards.

And these challenges continue in the modern era.

Just last year, Wicomico County on Maryland’s Eastern Shore agreed to replace its hybrid system, which included at-large and single-member districts for both county council and school board, with seven single-member districts, two of which are majority Black. The changes occurred in response to a 2023 lawsuit by Black voters supported by the Maryland branches of the ACLU and the NAACP.

The lawsuit described a long history of discrimination and racially polarized voting that blocked Black candidates from winning at-large seats. When the governor appointed members, the Wicomico school board often had two Black members. After switching to an elected board in 2016, the board has only had one Black member at a time — always elected in the single majority-Black district.

“They kept claiming that we didn’t need to sue them, that they would have done it if we just asked nicely,” said Deborah Jeon, legal director of the Maryland ACLU. “But we had been asking nicely for two decades. It was only once we sued that they came to the table.”

School boards might defend at-large seats creatively

Whether school districts will continue to come to the table or instead fight to maintain at-large elections is an open question.

Even in communities with hard-fought, racially polarized school board elections, those divisions may not fall neatly along party lines. That means advocates can still make arguments about vote dilution and other unfair practices.

But Levitt, who advised the Biden administration on voting issues, said he expects more school districts to find other race-neutral justifications for their electoral systems, for example that at-large elections produce candidates who will look out for the interests of all students.

“I think you’ll see a lot of creativity,” he said.

Callais also requires “a strong inference that intentional discrimination occurred” in setting up a particular voting system, and not just a discriminatory effect or outcome.

Colorado lawmakers reject attempt to move away from at-large school board elections

Adams said school boards that might have settled in the past could now open themselves up to counterchallenges that they drew districts designed to advantage one racial group. He reads Callais as allowing such a remedy only when a court finds recent evidence of discrimination in voting.

“A school district would be very foolish to think that a settlement will bring them peace, because the next people they’ll hear from will be suing over an illegal racial gerrymander,” he said.

Even school districts that discuss racial balancing during regular redistricting processes, as Denver did in 2024, could open themselves to a lawsuit, he said. The meeting minutes would be “gold” in proving racial motives.

Challenges to school board elections confront new standard

Two decades ago, Hazleton, Pennsylvania, made national headlines for adopting sweeping anti-immigrant legislation as new arrivals transformed the demographics of the coal country city. Those laws were found to be unconstitutional, but Hispanic residents say they continue to face discrimination, including in school.

In 2024, Aleida Aquino and Brendalis Lopez filed a lawsuit challenging the Hazleton Area School District’s at-large election system with support from the University of California Los Angeles Voting Project.

Hispanic voters account for some 40% of registered voters in the district, according to the lawsuit. Two-thirds of students are Hispanic. At least six Hispanic candidates have run for school board since 2019, yet no Hispanic candidate has won a seat on the nine-member board.

The Supreme Court’s voting rights decision could reshape local government across Texas

Moving to single-member districts could allow the Hispanic community concentrated in the city of Hazleton to elect a representative who might be more responsive to their concerns about unfair discipline practices, limited translation services for parents, and other disparities, the lawsuit says.

But unlike many school districts in this situation, Hazleton hasn’t settled and is fighting to maintain its at-large elections. Now the lawsuit will be heard under the higher standard created by Callais.

Neither Superintendent Brian Uplinger nor the school board president responded to a request for comment from Chalkbeat. In a statement issued when the lawsuit was filed, Uplinger defended the district’s record of serving Latino students.

Bernadette Reyes, senior counsel with the UCLA Voting Project, said Callais runs counter to the history of the Voting Rights Act and congressional action. The ruling has made the road ahead more difficult for lawsuits like the one in Hazleton.

“But it’s important that these challenges continue,” Reyes said. “Those folks challenging it need to adapt to the higher standard.”

Erica Meltzer is Chalkbeat’s national editor based in Colorado. Contact Erica at emeltzer@chalkbeat.org.

Allissa Impink to resign from IPS board, leaving 5 of 7 board seats up for election on November ballots

2026-05-19T23:00:00+00:00

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Allissa Impink will resign as an Indianapolis Public Schools commissioner in June, teeing up a November election where a significant majority of the IPS school board seats are on the ballot.

Impink, who won the Democratic primary for Indiana State Senate District 46 earlier this month, announced on Tuesday that she plans to resign from the school board effective June 15. Tuesday is also the first day that candidates can file to run for school board this November.

With Impink leaving her seat early, five of the seven seats on the IPS school board will be up for election on Nov. 3. It is shaping up to be a key election for the board as the district faces financial challenges and a loss in power due to the new Indianapolis Public Education Corporation or IPEC.

Impink called serving on the school board “one of the greatest honors of my life,” and said resigning before the November election allows her to ensure “the community retains its voice” in who replaces her on the school board. It’s highly likely that Impink will be unopposed for state senate.

Impink, a former IPS teacher, was elected to the school board in 2024 to represent IPS school board District 4, the southwest part of the district. The IPS board has seven members who serve staggered four-year terms.

If a board member resigns, the board must appoint someone by majority vote within 30 days to fill the position until the next school board election. Voters will then select someone to finish the term if needed.

By resigning ahead of the election, Impink ensures her seat will be on the ballot in November, shortening the time for an appointed board member to a few months and an elected replacement would serve until 2028. If she waited to resign until after the November election, the appointed member would serve until 2028, the next school board election year and when Impink’s term was slated to end.

“As a strong supporter of the democratic process, I am encouraging qualified, passionate community members to file to run for school board so that IPS families have a direct say in who leads them through the remainder of the term ending in 2028,” Impink said.

Impink is the second IPS board commissioner to resign this year. Gayle Cosby, who represented District 2 and was also elected in 2024, announced her resignation in March, citing ongoing health challenges. The board appointed Hasaan Rashid to fill the vacancy until this year’s election.

This means both District 2 and 4 will be on the ballot in November along with the three IPS board seats already slated for election in 2026: District 3 currently represented by Hope Duke Star, District 5 represented by Nicole Carey, and an at-large seat represented by Angelia Moore.

Guide: How to run for school board

The election comes at a time when the IPS board is navigating a substantial loss in power under a new law that created IPEC, which has key powers for district and charter schools including school accountability, buildings, and transportation as well as some finances. Three members of the IPS school board are also members of IPEC, per state law. Those are Star, Ashley Thomas, and Deandra Thompson.

This year is also the first year that school board candidates can add their party affiliation to the ballot if they choose to do so. Potential school board candidates have until noon June 18 to file.

Impink won the primary election for state senate handily with 68.46% of the vote in a three-candidate race, per election results. No Republican candidates ran in the primary election. However it is still possible for a challenger to file to run in the general election.

District 46 includes downtown, the near eastside, and southern parts of Indianapolis and is currently represented by Andrea Hunley, a former IPS principal, who is running for Indianapolis mayor in 2027.

Impink said she looks forward to using her “strong and passionate voice for IPS and public education throughout Indiana at the state level.”

“I will use every tool available to me to protect and strengthen public schools across Indianapolis and the state of Indiana,” she said.

Voter registration for the November election is open through Oct. 5. You can register or check your status here.

MJ Slaby oversees Chalkbeat Indiana’s coverage as bureau chief. Contact MJ at mslaby@chalkbeat.org.

Memphis 2026 school board primary election: live updates

2026-05-06T04:56:39+00:00

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Incumbent Joyce Dorse Coleman is holding on to her District 9 seat on the Memphis-Shelby County school board by a lead of fewer than 30 votes, according to unofficial results from the Shelby County Election Commission posted Tuesday.

It’s the tightest race in the first Democratic primary election for the MSCS board. T.L. Harris, who was convicted of a felony drug conviction 20 years ago while employed as a Memphis cop, is poised to secure the District 6 Democratic nomination by fewer than 200 votes.

The unofficial election results still need to be certified. But both incumbent candidates are in the lead for their seat nominations, with Michelle McKissack holding over 65% of the District 1 votes and Dorse Coleman holding around 32% of the votes.

Longtime lawyer Tanya Frey holds the lead for District 8 with more than 60% of the vote.

The May 5 election pales in significance compared to previous years because of the Republican-led state takeover that will restrict the locally elected board’s power. Top GOP leaders will soon appoint a nine-member oversight board that will have final say on key budget and staffing decisions in MSCS, including hiring and firing the superintendent. The takeover measure still must be signed into law by Governor Bill Lee.

That state-appointed board must be appointed by July 1, before new local school board members assume office on Sept. 1. Harris and Frey each have to face an independent challenger in the Aug. 6 general election to earn their spots on the local board.

All but one candidate, Damon Curry Morris in District 9, said they opposed a takeover in a Chalkbeat survey. The majority of candidates said they would work collaboratively with the oversight board to prioritize student success.

There’s still a chance MSCS will file a lawsuit against the state takeover legislation — the board voted to hire a lawyer in early April and the county commission passed a resolution to fund that legal action Monday. That’s because the governor signed into law a bill that blocks the district from using public funds to pay for the lawsuit.

Republican lawmakers have long said they’re modeling MSCS’ takeover after a 2023 state intervention in Houston, where one of the first decisions made by state education leaders was to replace the superintendent. The new Houston leader overhauled district curriculum, cut 1,500 central office positions, and implemented a teacher pay model based on test scores.

District 1 board election: Here’s what you need to know

McKissack is running against two MSCS teachers, one with decades of experience and the other in her early career.

Dolores Missy Rivers served as a district teacher for 26 years, and spent the last year as the interim director of the Memphis-Shelby County Education Association. Hailey Marie Thomas started teaching in 2021 and now works as a literacy instructor at MSCS charter school Beacon College Preparatory.

McKissack has been on the board since 2018. She was one of three members to vote against firing former Superintendent Marie Feagins in January 2025.

Here are the unofficial election results, as of 11 p.m. Tuesday:

McKissack, 65.4%
Rivers, 17.9%
Thomas, 16.3%

District 6 board election: Here’s what you need to know

Five Democratic candidates are running to fill the MSCS board seat being vacated by former teacher union leader Keith Williams.

Marinda A-Williams is a former private school and Germantown teacher, while Juliette Eskridge taught in MSCS for 20 years. Stacey Kelly works as a college advisor for the Tennessee Higher Education Commission.

Harris, the current frontrunner, led a youth violence prevention program for three years. Contessa Humphrey, the final candidate, did not respond to Chalkbeat’s survey.

The primary winner will face independent challenger Frederick Dewayne Tappan in the Aug. 6 general election.

Here are the unofficial election results, as of 11 p.m. Tuesday:

A-Williams, 27.9%
Eskridge, 24.6%
Harris, 29%
Humphrey, 6.3%
Kelly, 11.7%

District 8 board election: Here’s what you need to know

Two Democratic candidates are vying to fill the District 8 seat being vacated by Amber Huett-Garcia. The winner will face MSCS school librarian Leigh Ann Scarbrough, an independent candidate, in the Aug. 6 general election.

Frey, the current frontrunner, worked as a Memphis-based lawyer for over 20 years and now runs Terra Firma Consulting, an organization that advises nonprofits on leadership decisions.

Ayleem Connolly taught high school Spanish in MSCS from 2015 through 2023 and chaired East High’s language department for two years.

Here are the unofficial election results, as of 11 p.m. Tuesday:

Connolly, 38.5%
Frey, 60.9%

District 9 board election: Here’s what you need to know

Dorse Coleman, a longtime MSCS board member, is facing four Democratic candidates for the District 9 seat.

Jonathan Carroll doesn’t have any business ties to MSCS, but he’s led local and state parent-teacher associations. Incumbent Dorse Coleman has been on the board since 2018 and served as the chair last year.

Tamara Jordan taught in local charter school networks for 15 years and served as the dean of Freedom Preparatory Academy. Curry Morris is the only 2026 candidate in favor of the state takeover of MSCS and worked closely with Nashville lawmakers to develop the bill.

Louis Morganfield III is the building engineer at Ida B. Wells Academy, a beloved MSCS school that will close at the end of this year.

Here are the unofficial election results, as of 11 p.m. Tuesday:

Carroll, 21.1%
Dorse Coleman, 32.3%
Jordan, 31.8%
Morganfield, 6.7%
Curry Morris, 7.5%

Bri Hatch covers Memphis-Shelby County Schools for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Reach Bri at bhatch@chalkbeat.org.

Indiana State Senate District 46 primary election: IPS board member Impink wins

2026-05-06T03:22:43+00:00

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Indianapolis Public Schools board member Allissa Impink is the unofficial winner of the Democratic primary for Indiana State Senate District 46, which could likely tee up a vacancy on the school board.

Unofficial election results with 100% of vote centers reporting showed that Impink had 68.46% of the vote, Sam Glynn had 12.02%, and Clif Marsiglio had 19.52% in the Democratic primary. Results are unofficial until May 15, after provisional and military ballots are counted. The Marion County Election Board will certify the results on May 18.

In a victory statement, Impink promised to focus on community voices, including “parents who are juggling their jobs, childcare, and paying their bills.”

“As I’ve said from the very beginning, the challenges we face are not separate issues. They are deeply connected,” she said. “And for far too long, families have been left to navigate systems that don’t work together.”

No Republican candidates ran in the primary election for the seat that includes downtown, the near eastside, and southern parts of Indianapolis. But it is still possible for a challenger to run against Impink in the November general election. If she wins that race, it would create an opening on the IPS school board. Impink’s current school board term ends in 2028. Board members would appoint a new member to finish her term, and the seat would be up for election in 2028.

Board members recently did the same process to fill the District 2 seat after Gayle Cosby announced her resignation in March. The board appointed Hasaan Rashid to fill the vacancy.

Impink, also a former IPS teacher, was elected to the school board in 2024 to represent District 4, the southwest part of the district. She previously told Chalkbeat that if elected in November, she “will be still carrying that baton of valuing public education.”

On her campaign website, Impink said she supports a moratorium on new charter schools and fully funding public schools, as well as supporting educators and making sure “every student has the opportunity to succeed.” She added that she wants to make sure that IPS is “fully reimbursed for transportation, facilities, and special education services provided to innovation schools.”

Transportation and facilities for district and charter schools are within the purview of the Indianapolis Public Education Corporation. The new body appointed by the mayor will provide state lawmakers with an update on plans for both in November before fully taking over management of transportation and buildings in the 2028-29 school year.

State Senate District 46 is currently represented by Andrea Hunley, a former IPS principal, who is running for Indianapolis mayor in 2027.

Four seats on the IPS school board are up for election in November: Hope Duke Star’s District 3 seat, Nicole Carey’s District 5 seat, Angelia Moore’s at-large seat, and the special election for District 2 represented by Rashid.

MJ Slaby oversees Chalkbeat Indiana’s coverage as bureau chief. Contact MJ at mslaby@chalkbeat.org.

Indianapolis high school students spend school day as poll workers during Primary Election

2026-05-05T20:17:28+00:00

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Cuylen Roberson slept through his 4 a.m. alarm on Tuesday — but he had three more set, just in case.

The Lawrence North High School senior woke up excited to serve as a poll worker on Primary Election Day, despite the rain that fell as he and four other students made their way to the high school to set up the voting site in the gym.

“I was nervous about it, but I was also excited,” Roberson said, recalling the legal aspects of the training he completed. “It just felt nice to do something to help where I’m needed.”

State law allows 16- and 17-year old high school students to serve as a clerk for an election, and lets minors with a GPA of at least 3.0 to do so, with the permission of their school principal and a parent or guardian. Like adult poll workers, these students also get paid for their time and can earn up to $180 for the day in Marion County.

Election offices across the state have used the law to help fill critical election roles. As a poll clerk, students can help set up voting sites and check voters in to receive their ballot. The job is a civic-minded way for students to get paid.

At Lawrence North, senior Alia Massey waved residents through the check-in process with the confidence of someone who has been working elections for years. She credits her civic engagement to her mother.

“Every chance that I get, my mom always pulls me in her room or she just stops and talks about something,” said Alia, who plans to join the military after graduating in May. “She’s like, ‘Okay, you need to watch this, because you need to actually know what’s going on.’”

Though Alia and most of the other student workers at the high school are already 18, they found out about the opportunity to work a poll site through a visit from the League of Women Voters to their school.

At the other end of the check-in table, Lawrence Central High School junior Jameon Gibson listed acceptable forms of identification to voters who trickled in.

“Is it going smoothly?” one woman asked him as she showed her identification.

“It is,” he said.

Lawrence North senior Kylie Atkinson said she wanted to experience what it would be like to assist in the voting process. Often, she said, it feels like she and her peers can’t be politically involved because of their age.

“If I get the experience myself, I can explain it to other people and explain how to do it to other people,” she said. “But I think it’s really important that you have all demographics represented in any kind of democracy.”

Amelia Pak-Harvey covers Indianapolis and Lawrence Township schools for Chalkbeat Indiana. Contact Amelia at apak-harvey@chalkbeat.org.

Newark’s low turnout in school board elections might be sending the wrong message to city leaders

2026-04-23T20:00:16+00:00

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A tiny fraction of Newark residents control the outcome of its school board elections every year. And they keep picking the same people.

Moving Newark Schools Forward, the mayoral-backed slate that has dominated every Newark school board race since 2016, is slated for another win this year. And low voter turnout may be contributing to the lack of change and sending the wrong message to school board members about accountability.

This year, roughly 3% of Newark voters turned out for the April 21 election. And just 2% of Newark’s new 16- and 17-year-old voters — 36 people — showed up to the polls, according to unofficial counts from the Essex County Superintendent of Elections office on Wednesday.

Low turnout in school board elections is something “every community in the state” deals with, said Micah Rasmussen, the director of the Rebovich Institute for New Jersey Politics at Rider University. But in Newark, where the mayor’s slate has won every election in the last 10 years, Rasmussen says disengaged voters might be sending a signal to board members that they don’t have to answer to anyone.

“When the public is checked out, and the public’s not interested, then I think it says to school board members, you don’t have to answer to the public,” Rasmussen said. “And I think that’s a real problem. It’s not the message the public should want to be sending.”

Historically, voter turnout in Newark’s school board election has been low, with participation hovering around 3% to 4%. Last year, overall turnout was 3.47%, slightly lower than the 3.94% rate among the city’s youth, with only 73 showing up to vote in the first year of teen voting.

That’s a problem for Newark’s school community that fought hard for local control of its schools and continues to demand more transparency in district decisions. The question isn’t just which candidate wins, but whether Newark’s school community can create meaningful change if voters don’t show up to the polls.

“The bottom line is, when more voters are opting not to participate than to participate, I think it sends a really bad signal to the people that you want to hold accountable,” Rasmussen said.

Members of the Moving Newark Schools Forward slate have been largely silent on specific plans to address issues in New Jersey’s largest school system. The slate, which includes current board president Hasani Council, Quamid Childs, Mark Comesañas, and Jordy Nivar, has broadly focused on improving student mental health and expanding existing district policies.

At a teen-led candidate discussion hosted by the Youth Power Action Coalition in March, the mayoral-backed contenders committed to supporting, listening to, and engaging with Newark’s students.

Since the city lowered the voting age in school board elections to 16, Newark teens have been pressing board members to get more student feedback. The youth coalition of Newark students had previously urged board members to work with them and proposed increasing student oversight over policies around mental health and school facilities. But the school board rejected their proposals in February.

Students who attended the Youth Power Action Summit on April 11, 2026 heard from Newark school board candidates during a youth-led discussion. From left to right: Amanda Ebokosia, founder of The Gem Project, school board candidates John Farrell, Lisa Gray, Quamid Childs, Jordy Nivar, and Mark Comesañas.

Even among the few teens who tried to vote this year, the process wasn’t easy, and some encountered confusion at polling sites, questions about their voting eligibility, and jammed machines. Research shows that those who are voting at 16 are more likely to vote later in life than their peers, but negative experiences can hinder their likelihood to participate in elections.

Yolanda Johnson, who launched a write-in campaign this election cycle, understands why the community may not want to turn out for the school board election

“People are saying that their vote doesn’t count. That their vote doesn’t matter. Like, we have an entire school board right now that’s the mayor’s slate, and it’s wrong. That is not what democracy looks like,” said Johnson, a four-time school board candidate and education advocate who fought for Newark’s control of schools.

Johnson said she had no plans to run in the 2026 race until community members asked her to. She launched her write-in campaign after the deadline to secure a spot in the April race and urged city voters to write her name in on the ballot. Those ballots are still being counted, so it’s not clear how much support she received from voters.

But when it comes to boosting overall turnout, especially among new teen voters, Johnson added that board members need to listen and engage with residents so they feel part of the process.

“If you make the students feel like they’re heard and empower them and educate them, provide them with the tools, you’ll get more students involved. And you’d get the adults too,” Johnson said.

Rasmussen, the political expert, agrees and adds that for Black and Latino communities like Newark, “it’s even more important” that voters show up for school board elections, especially as research shows that higher turnout in those elections is associated with better student outcomes.

“People are skeptical about the power of voting and the impact of voting,” Rasmussen said. “But I promise you that the way that anybody in this country is taken seriously is by voting.”

Jessie Gomez is a reporter for Chalkbeat Newark, covering public education in the city. Contact Jessie at jgomez@chalkbeat.org.

Newark’s teen voters were eager to cast a ballot. But they had to fight to actually participate.

2026-04-22T18:26:20+00:00

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Teenager Fatoumata Bah joined her peers on Tuesday to vote in the Newark school board election, where the city’s 16- and 17-year-olds could participate for a second year in a row.

What the 17-year-old didn’t expect was how much time and effort it would actually take to vote.

“I thought I was at the right location, but I was told that I wasn’t. And then when I was finally at the right place to vote, the machine jammed when I tried to scan my ballot,” said Bah, a senior at Science Park High School.

Meanwhile, 16-year-old Cidell Torto was told by a poll worker that she was too young to vote.

“She literally told me you’re 16, you can’t vote,” said Torto, a junior at Science Park, who had to have an adult intervene to vouch for her voting right.

As Bah and Torto tried to cast their ballots on Tuesday, they were met with confusion at polling sites, questions about their voting eligibility, and jammed machines. The two teens, along with their Youth Power Action Coalition peers, had been busy knocking on roughly 3,000 doors in the lead up to the Newark Board of Education election to inform their community about the upcoming race –– but they hadn’t counted on encountering those barriers.

A Science Park High School junior holds her "I Voted" sticker after voting for the first in the Newark school board election.

The youth coalition of more than 200 Newark students spent weeks raising awareness about the election, getting their peers registered, organizing a civic engagement event for teens, learning and educating other youth about the role of school board members, and hosting virtual civic workshops to engage young voters. The teens had previously urged board members to work with them and proposed increasing student oversight over policies around mental health and school facilities. But the school board rejected their proposals in February.

The mayoral-backed Moving Newark Schools Forward slate appeared headed to victory on election night. The slate, made up of current board President Hasani Council and his running mates Quamid Childs, Mark Comesañas, and Jordy Nivar this year, has won every election since 2016. Their win would mark the second year the nine-member Newark school board is made up entirely of candidates who ran under the slate.

Less than 3% of the city’s registered voters participated in the Tuesday election as of April 21 , according to unofficial results posted online that do not include provisional ballots.

Two years ago, city leaders celebrated making Newark the first city in New Jersey to lower the voting age for school board elections. But when it came to welcoming young voters like Bah and Torto to the polls on Tuesday, that energy didn’t last long.

After a high-profile push to register 16- and 17-year-old voters last year, teen registration has dropped, with 1,524 signed up this year – down from last year’s 1,772 in 2025, according to the Essex County Superintendent of Elections on Tuesday. Newark Public Schools also launched a Vote 15+ campaign last year, the first time teens could vote, to register student voters and hosted state and city officials to encourage teen participation. This year, state, city, and district officials made no visible effort to register teen voters or promote youth participation.

Buses parked outside Bethany Baptist Church to take Newark’s 16- and 17-year-olds to their polling site on April 21, 2026 in Newark, N.J.

“There is just so much that people don’t see about getting youth to the polls,” said Amanda Ebokosia, founder and CEO of The Gem Project, a nonprofit organization that aims to strengthen youth civic engagement.

She, along with student leaders, organized a “Ride to the Polls” event on Tuesday to ensure young voters had transportation to get to their voting site. That effort in itself took days to coordinate, as they had to get parental consent for students to ride buses and ensure students were fed and knew what to expect in the voting process.

The group of roughly 20 students that participated in “Ride to the Polls” dealt with other challenges at voting sites, such as teens having a hard time obtaining provisional ballots and dealing with poll workers who were misinformed about the youth vote, Ebokosia said.

Ebokosia said she was thankful for the adult volunteers who tagged along to help teens vote since they were able to advocate for them. She said at least one teen in her group did not receive a ballot ahead of the April 21 election.

Jessie Gómez is a reporter for Chalkbeat Newark, covering public education in the city. Contact Jessie at jgomez@chalkbeat.org.

Newark school board election 2026: Teens encounter voting challenges as mayoral-backed slate leads Tuesday

2026-04-22T02:27:05+00:00

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Incumbent Hasani Council and his running mates Quamid Childs, Mark Comesañas, and Jordy Nivar appeared headed to victory on Tuesday night in the Newark Board of Education election, according to preliminary election results.

The four candidates are part of the Moving Newark Schools Forward slate, a political group backed by Mayor Ras Baraka, Senate Majority Leader M. Teresa Ruiz, and other state and local lawmakers. Council, Childs, and Comesañas would serve three-year terms, while Nivar would serve a one-year term.

Among all nine candidates, Council led with 3,160 votes, or 25% of total votes; Childs with 2,675 votes, or 21%; Comesañas with 2,674 votes, or 21%; and Nivar with 1,956 votes, or 47%, according to the official results.

If the leading candidates hold onto the win, the nine-member Newark school board will be composed entirely of members who ran for elections under the Moving Newark Schools Forward slate for a second year in a row.

As of 9:23 p.m. Tuesday, Lisa Gray, a former Newark Public Schools employee with over 20 years of experience as a school social worker, and John Farrell, a charter school teacher, trailed behind the mayoral slate for a three-year term with nearly 12% of votes, according to the results. Both were followed by Tawheed Peters, a Newark parent, who received 8% of the votes.

Latoya Jackson, a four-time school board candidate, was closely behind Nivar for the one-year term and received nearly 37% of the votes. She was followed by Tammy Hollaway, who received nearly 16% of the votes, according to Tuesday results.

Newark teens voted for the second time in a school board election

On Tuesday evening, a few students told Chalkbeat they had trouble voting. Students reported issues with getting provisional ballots or being redirected to other polling locations, and one had to remind poll workers that 16-year-olds were allowed to vote.

Newark students gathered at Bethany Baptist Church to catch a ride to their polling locations on Election Day in Newark, N.J. on Tuesday, April 21, 2026.

After school on Tuesday, roughly 20 teens showed up at Bethany Baptist Church to catch a ride to the polls, an initiative sponsored by the Youth Power Action Coalition.

Preston Beckham, a 16-year-old sophomore at Bard High School Early College, said he was nervous to vote for the first time in an election. He wasn’t sure what the process would be like, but he was glad to be joined by his peers and Newark adult volunteers.

“I want to see how my vote can impact schools. This is my first time officially voting for anything so I’m just nervous but really excited for this experience,” Beckham said.

Newark Public Schools students weren’t the only ones voting in Tuesday’s election.

Aaron Meighoo, a 16-year-old junior at the Essex County Donald Payne School of Technology, was also excited to vote, although he knows the Newark school board doesn’t make decisions for his school. His siblings attend Newark Public Schools, and as a former public school student, Meighoo said he was voting to ensure his siblings have a better school experience than he did.

“I can say that from when I was in Newark Public Schools in middle school, there were a lot of things I personally didn’t like and things I don’t agree with. And if I can’t make any change for me, at least I can help my little brothers,” Meighoo said.

Qawy Drayton, also a 16-year-old junior at the Essex County Donald Payne School of Technology, said he also has siblings who attend the public schools and hopes that his vote can help them have a better experience.

“My brother is in high school, he is a sophomore and he’s told me so many things about his school that he doesn’t like. So I want to make change for him,” Drayton said.

Those teens were joined by Malcolm X Shabazz high school seniors Shayla Zachary and Brenda Checo, who said they did not make the deadline to register to vote but wanted to show their support for the teen voting experience.

“I’m going to come back next year to vote, so I wanted to see the process in action,” Zachary, 18, said. “If you really want to make a change, like the school food, the building infrastructure, then I would tell my peers to vote. Don’t complain — just vote.”

Election Day got off to a slow start

On Tuesday morning, Newark’s bustling Broad Street in downtown was business as usual, with no campaign signs posted on lamp posts or outside City Hall as in previous years. If you didn’t stumble upon a polling place with signs reading “vote here” in English and Spanish, you’d be hard-pressed to find any sign of an election.

At 10:30 a.m., poll workers at the Old First Presbyterian Church said they had not seen a voter since doors opened at 7 a.m. Schools are in session, but they hope to see a few more people after school and closer to the end of the day.

At a school board debate in March, the nine candidates in this year’s race have pledged to revise and expand on district policies such as mental health, boost academic achievement, draw more community feedback on district decisions, and improve district transparency.

Overall, 161,585 Newark residents are registered to vote in this year’s April school board election. That’s a pattern advocates say limits how much of a say community voices have in district decisions.

Last year, Newark Public Schools launched a Vote 15+ campaign to register student voters and hosted state and city officials to encourage teen participation. This year, the district made no visible effort to register teen voters or promote youth participation for the April 21 election.

While the election energy is low, that silence is stark in contrast to what’s at stake.

The Newark school board plays a key role in shaping New Jersey’s largest school district and makes decisions that impact more than 41,000 Newark Public Schools students.

On Monday, dozens of Great Oaks Legacy Charter High School students marched to Newark City Hall to cast their mail-in ballots.

But where the public school district felt short, some charter school students stepped up. On Monday, dozens of Great Oaks Legacy Charter High School students marched to Newark City Hall to cast their mail-in ballots, while others marched in solidarity despite not yet being eligible to vote. That march reflected months of student-led civic engagement at the charter school driven by the school’s Student Advocacy Club, and initiatives led by the Youth Power Action Coalition, convened by The Gem Project.

“This was a proud moment for our school and for Newark,” said Jared Taillefer, CEO of Great Oaks Legacy Charter School and a Newark resident who also casted his vote Monday morning. “Our students are learning that their voice matters right now.”

For advocates, the dip in teen registration is also concerning because students are directly affected by school board decisions, but historically have had little say in them. Amanda Ebokosia, founder and CEO of The Gem project, said getting youth to the polls isn’t just about enthusiasm, but it’s about cultivating a tradition of civic participation from an early age.

“You have to show up more than once, and you have to want to prioritize it more than once, not when it’s hot and shiny,” Ebokosia said. “It’s also about having a commitment to young people, and I think that more could have been done, definitely when it comes to prioritizing the youth vote.”

Adding to the city’s low political engagement, the Board of Elections website still listed polling locations from the prior year on Election Day.

Parents, students, and advocates say they want their new board to improve school lunches, add more translation services to the district and board meetings, and hold Superintendent Roger Leon accountable for his spending decisions, among other demands.

But advocates say it’s been a challenge to boost voter turnout around school issues in Newark. Historically, voter turnout in the Newark school board election has been low, with participation hovering around 3% to 4%. Last year, just under 4% of city residents voted in the election, with only 73 teens showing up to vote.

Tuesday’s election may also be falling victim to voting fatigue. In the runup to the school board election, state and national political attention was focused on the April 16 special election to fill Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s seat in the 11th Congressional District, which includes parts of Essex County. Locally, Newark’s May 12 municipal race has been front and center in the landscape, with candidate posters and signs displayed across the city.

That flood of political activity may be drowning out the school board race entirely.

Jhamar Youngblood, a Newark mayoral candidate, said it doesn’t feel like an election is happening today, with few people talking about it. Youngblood believes the city could do more to promote the school board race, but he also feels it’s a strategy to keep residents disengaged “so they can do whatever it is they want.”

“We just need more courageous people to talk about what’s happening, because that’s the only way, historically, that we’ve seen some type of accountability in our city,” Youngblood said.

Ebokosia, the founder of The Gem Project, thinks teen voters can be the courageous voice the city needs to enact change. But for that to happen, leaders need to work together to create consistent efforts to boost teen voter turnout and remove the barriers that limit them from voting, including a lack of information about the school board election.

”We have to make an honest assessment as to who we are actually making this a priority for. If we’re not making it a priority, how can we work together to ensure that as many young people know about this election?” Ebokosia said.

Polls closed at 8 p.m. Tuesday.

Jessie Gomez is a reporter for Chalkbeat Newark, covering public education in the city. Contact Jessie at jgomez@chalkbeat.org.

Voter guide: Here are the Democratic Memphis school board candidates running in District 6

2026-04-16T22:57:40+00:00

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Five candidates are seeking the Democratic nomination for the District 6 seat on Memphis-Shelby County’s school board this May, as state lawmakers continue to push for a district takeover that would usurp local authority.

All are running to fill the seat held by former teachers union leader Keith Williams since 2022. Five candidates will compete in the district’s first political primary on May 5. The winner of that race will go up against independent candidate Frederick Dewayne Tappan, a longtime pastor at Eureka Truevine Baptist Church, in the Aug. 6 general election.

Early voting in the primary begins on April 15.

Marinda A-Williams is a former private school and Germantown teacher who has experience in state-level politics. Juliette Eskridge taught in MSCS for 20 years, and Stacey Kelly works as a college advisor for the Tennessee Higher Education Commission. T.L. Harris, who served prison time for a felony drug conviction, led a youth violence prevention program for three years and now advocates for cameras in MSCS classrooms. Contessa Humphrey, the final candidate, did not respond to Chalkbeat’s survey.

District 6 covers 28 schools and around 12,000 students in Southwest Memphis, a region that MSCS leaders say will likely be targeted for school closures in the next few years due to chronic underenrollment and aging buildings.

At most schools, Black students make up more than 95% of the student population, and almost 70% of students are considered economically disadvantaged.

Students in District 6, which includes Whitehaven High School and Havenview Middle School, test slightly below MSCS’ districtwide averages on state reading and math tests. That ranges from a 60% proficiency rate for both subjects at John P. Freeman Optional to a 6% proficiency rate at Geeter K-8.

Use our interactive map to see if you’ll be voting in this district based on your home address. And read full responses from District 6 candidates to a Chalkbeat survey here:

Marinda A-Williams

A-Williams is a former teacher assistant and educator in local private schools and the Germantown suburban school district. She represented Memphis on the Tennessee Democratic State Executive Committee when she was 23 years old, setting policies and goals to manage local parties.

A-Williams ran for a position on the Memphis City Council in 2019, but did not win the seat. She believes there should be a third option between a state takeover of MSCS and complete local control. Her collaborative governance model mirrors a local accountability plan passed by current board members in March.

“The state should allow potentially newly elected leadership the opportunity to demonstrate improvement and reconsider any takeover after elections so the community has a voice in the future of its schools,” A-Williams said.

She also believes the district should expand its career and technical education programs to boost student attendance by establishing a connection between school and future jobs.

Most important MSCS issue to address: Literacy and public trust

“Too many students are not reading at grade level, and families are concerned about transparency, contract oversight, and the responsible use of resources. I would prioritize evidence-based literacy instruction starting in early grades, expand tutoring and targeted support, and align curriculum investments with proven learning science. At the governance level, the board must enforce strong financial transparency and contract oversight.”

Juliette Eskridge

Eskridge taught in MSCS for around 20 years, serving as a teacher and project manager for multiple schools including Hamilton Elementary and Mitchell High.

She now works at Project STAND, a school-based mentoring program for at-risk students established in 2017 that operates in MSCS.

“I’m such a team person,” Eskridge said. “My ambition would be (the board) as a team, and being cohesive and wanting to work through whatever our challenges are.”

Eskridge says she wants the board to be proactive in seeking feedback from parents and the community before making decisions and be more transparent about issues early on.

Most important MSCS issue to address: State takeover

“The most important thing right now, and I think that’s being missed from the state level, are the students. That’s what this needs to be about: making sure our children are equipped. I haven’t really heard any deep concern or details about our students. And I’m concerned because the state has had opportunities to take over our schools before, and they sent them back to us. And they didn’t really improve anything.”

T.L. Harris

Harris has lived in the Whitehaven neighborhood for over 30 years. Federal court records show that in 2006, he pleaded guilty to a felony drug charge while working as a Memphis police officer. He’s since qualified to run for office after having his civil rights restored.

For three years, Harris led five community centers for the Memphis Gun Down summer program in neighborhoods such as Frayser and Raleigh. He was in charge of providing the entertainment and security for those gathering places in an effort to reduce youth crime rates.

“I know what it feels like to not have anything. I understand the mindset of those individuals,” Harris said. “You have to have a candidate that’s not afraid to walk in some of the roughest parts of Memphis and go there with intention to say, ‘Let’s pull these children out. Let’s give them an opportunity.’”

Harris previously told Chalkbeat that he works as the chief financial officer of Wallhaven Family Healthcare. But that business does not have an online presence, and Chalkbeat has been unable to locate any related records.

Harris wants to pilot putting cameras in MSCS classrooms to increase school security and identify “blind spots” in teaching practices.

“Why wouldn’t you have a camera in the classroom if you want to know what’s really going on?” he said. “Because fights do happen in classrooms. We all know this. People get hurt in classrooms; people steal stuff.”

Most important MSCS issue to address: Literacy

“Too many children are leaving third grade without strong reading skills, and when students cannot read well, every subject becomes harder. To address this, I support strengthening early literacy instruction, expanding tutoring and intervention programs, and providing teachers with the resources and training they need to help struggling readers.”

Contessa Humphrey

Humphrey did not return Chalkbeat’s candidate survey in time for publication.

Stacey Kelly

Kelly has nearly 14 years of experience working in the corporate sector for First Tennessee Bank and another 14 years working as a third-party partner in MSCS schools.

She served as project manager for RISE Memphis, facilitating financial education classes for middle and high school students across five local schools. Then she became a college advisor at Overton High School, her alma mater, to help students with FAFSAs and applications through the Tennessee Higher Education Commission, work she still does.

“Working within the school system for 14 years, I’ve been able to see the gaps,” Kelly told Chalkbeat. “I’ve been able to see things that students may need, that the faculty and staff due to budgeting are not having.”

Kelly said she’s also seen the need for more transparency between school system leadership and staff, plus the community at large.

Most important MSCS issue to address: Academic achievement

“Too many of our students are not reading on grade level or performing at proficiency in math, which directly impacts graduation rates, college readiness, workforce development, and long-term economic stability in Memphis.”

Note: This story has been updated to include information about T.L. Harris’ 2006 federal drug conviction and inconsistent employment information.

Bri Hatch covers Memphis-Shelby County Schools for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Reach Bri at bhatch@chalkbeat.org.

Memphis school board candidate pleaded guilty to a federal drug charge 20 years ago, court records show

2026-04-16T22:26:57+00:00

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A candidate for the Memphis school board was convicted on a felony drug charge while serving as a city police officer two decades ago, court records show.

T.L. Harris, who is running in the Democratic primary to represent District 6 on the Memphis-Shelby County School Board, pleaded guilty to attempting to possess with the intent to distribute at least five kilograms of cocaine in 2006. Federal court records show that Harris, who was 32 at the time, was sentenced to 51 months in federal prison.

The Shelby County Election Commission confirmed that Harris qualified to run for office after having his civil rights restored in a local court. Harris says he is a candidate dedicated to student safety with a history of working with at-risk youth at local nonprofit organizations.

“Every time I tell my story, I feel like I’m saving a young Black male or female,” Harris told Chalkbeat. “Because I’ve been in the belly of the beast, and I’ve come out of it, and that’s where I am now.”

Harris posted a video to social media this week discussing his criminal history after details of the federal case were posted on social media. While Harris told Chalkbeat he has long been open about his criminal history, he has not mentioned it in his campaign materials and called the resurfacing of his 2006 conviction a “campaign smear.”

Federal investigators began probing Harris’ financial records in 2004, when he was a Memphis Police officer, after receiving tips from Shelby County jail inmates about alleged narcotics trafficking, according to federal court records.

Harris was indicted by a federal grand jury on three counts in February 2006 after being caught helping a federal informant deliver a cocaine purchase in a sting operation, court records say. In October 2006, Harris pleaded guilty to a single count of attempting to possess with the intent to distribute at least five kilograms of cocaine after helping federal prosecutors build a case against another Memphis cop.

Federal court records show that Harris was sentenced in 2007 to serve 51 months in prison and 60 months on supervised release after his prison sentence. His supervised release term was terminated early in 2013 after a supportive report from probation officials, who said Harris posed “no identifiable risk to public safety,” according to court records.

Harris says that voters in his district “respect and understand redemption.” Since he’s been out of prison, Harris said, he’s dedicated his life to serving children who grew up in poverty and facing hardships like he did.

“I can speak to these kids that are thinking about committing crimes, or they have committed crimes, to say, ‘Let’s get you back on track with your life,’” Harris said. “Who else can talk about that?”

Chalkbeat reporting also revealed inconsistencies in information Harris has provided to media and voters about his professional background and campaign endorsements.

While Harris initially told Chalkbeat he works at Walhaven Family Healthcare, he has alternatively called the business Whitehaven Family Healthcare and Memphis Family Healthcare in interviews and campaign posts on social media.

On Wednesday, Harris declined to provide details about the community healthcare center he says he leads as the chief financial officer. Businesses by those names do not have an online presence, and Chalkbeat has been unable to locate any records. Harris has not responded to follow-up questions.

Harris’ campaign has been endorsed by the teachers group Memphis-Shelby County Education Association, city council member Pearl Eva Walker, and labor union Memphis AFSCME Local 1733.

Maurice Spivey, a senior staffer at the local union, told Chalkbeat that Harris did not discuss his criminal conviction in interviews with AFSCME before receiving the endorsement. Charlotte Fields, president of M-SCEA, said the same. Walker did not reply to Chalkbeat’s requests for comment.

Harris’ social media campaign accounts also cite an endorsement from Keith Williams, the incumbent District 6 board member who is not seeking reelection. In a video posted last week on Facebook, Williams called Harris his “successor” at a campaign event. But Williams told Chalkbeat in a call Thursday that he hasn’t endorsed any candidate in the race.

Chalkbeat Tennessee Bureau Chief Melissa Brown contributed to this story.

Bri Hatch covers Memphis-Shelby County Schools for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Reach Bri at bhatch@chalkbeat.org.

Newark gave 16-and 17-year-olds the right to vote two years ago. They are still learning their power.

2026-04-15T21:45:00+00:00

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Judah Ancion, a 16-year-old junior at Essex County’s Donald M. Payne School of Technology, found out he could vote in Newark’s school board election from a teacher’s offhand comment last month — only a few weeks before the April 21 election.

Over the weekend, Denisha Kotey, a 19-year-old freshman at the New Jersey Institute of Technology, just learned that there’s even a school board election happening in her city.

Their realizations come two years after Newark’s 16- and 17-year-olds got the right to vote in school board elections, becoming the first city in the state to do so. That historic move prompted former Gov. Phil Murphy, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, an award-winning rapper, and other elected officials to rally students at the city’s School of Data Science and Information Technology to pitch youth voting as a model for the rest of the state.

But even with the push, only 73 teens voted in their first school board election last April, in a city where nearly 7,300 teens are eligible to vote and overall turnout already hovers around 3% to 4% every year.

This year, that momentum has faded even more, overshadowed by the city’s May municipal race and Newark school funding debates. But for the second year in a row, student organizers and other advocates are pushing to turn new voting rights into real participation and prove that student votes can shape decisions in Newark schools.

Assatta Mann, community organizing manager for the New Jersey Institute of Social Justice, said building the youth vote in Newark will take time. She called it “a muscle that needs to grow” while pointing to the barriers keeping students from the polls, including limited access to voting sites and a lack of understanding about the school board’s role.

“Many of the young people who are registered and who do know about the election want to take advantage of this right to vote. But their polling locations are not at their schools, where they’re spending a lot of their time at,” Mann said. “There’s also no in-person early voting, for example, so it’s not even like, young people could then go and use the weekend to vote.”

Both Ancion and Kotey said they only began to understand the role of the Newark Board of Education at Saturday’s Youth Power Action Summit, which brought together more than 50 students for a day-long event organized by a student coalition to boost awareness of teen voting rights and civic participation. The group convened by The Gem Project, a nonprofit organization focused on strengthening youth civic engagement, has spent months alongside teens canvassing, hosting virtual civic education workshops, holding voter registration competitions, and informing 16- and 17-year-olds about their right to vote.

Students who attended the Youth Power Action Summit on April 11, 2026 also heard from Newark school board candidates during a youth-led discussion. From left to right: Amanda Ebokosia, founder of The Gem Project, school board candidates John Farrell, Lisa Gray, Quamid Childs, Jordy Nivar, and Mark Comesañas.

They are one of the few groups working to get students to the polls for the April school board election.

“Oh my gosh, there’s so many things going on. [The city] is finally letting students vote for stuff, they’re the majority, and they’re finally letting this happen,” Kotey said. “But people are not as involved as they should be.”

For students like Ancion and Kotey, that gap is playing out in real time. Newark’s nine-member school board makes decisions that affect more than 41,000 students on issues from curriculums to funding priorities. Teens with the Youth Power Action Coalition have urged board members to work with them and have proposed increasing student oversight over policies around mental health and school facilities. But their proposals were rejected by the city school board.

While Newark expanded voting rights to give teens a voice in those decisions, low turnout has so far limited how much weight that voice carries.

Kanyinsola Oreoluwa Owolabi, a 16-year-old junior at Science Park High School, said she attended Saturday’s Youth Power Action Summit to encourage her peers to vote, even though she can’t vote herself because of her citizenship status.

“Even if you believe that it won’t be impactful, for me, it’s more like getting a view of whom you’re letting run your society,” Oreoluwa Owolabi said.

That message resonated with Collins Esubonteng, also a 16-year-old junior at Science Park High School. He said the summit made him feel included in civic discussion around the upcoming school board race, and it was something he had never experienced in school before.

“It was a lot of fun, but for the most part, it was very informative. We’re all learning. We all learned about the system,” Esubonteng said, “I feel like there was just a lot for us here today. We’re going to see a lot of people voting.”

The Youth Power Action Summit held on April 11, 2026 brought together more than 50 students for a day-long event organized by a student coalition to boost awareness of teen voting rights and hear from Newark school board candidates.

The Youth Coalition is also working to give young people ages 16-24 free rides to polling places. The challenge remains in reaching those young voters.

Ancion, the junior at Essex County’s Payne Tech, wasn’t able to register to vote in time before the March 31 deadline. But after leaving the summit on Saturday, he feels inspired to lead his own voting initiative next year and bring change.

“So it’s just understanding how it all works and just gaining that basic expertise so I can apply everything I learned outside of here,” Ancion said.

Jessie Gómez is a reporter for Chalkbeat Newark, covering public education in the city. Contact Jessie at jgomez@chalkbeat.org.

Early voting is underway for Memphis’ first partisan school board primary

2026-04-15T11:00:01+00:00

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Memphis voters begin choosing today among 15 Democratic candidates vying for four open school board seats in the district’s first political primary.

Early voting has started for the May 5 primary race in Districts 1, 6, 8, and 9. No Republican candidates qualified to run this year, but two independents will challenge the Democratic nominee in Districts 6 and 8 in the Aug. 6 general election.

That means the Memphis-Shelby County Schools representative for Districts 1 and 9 will be decided by the Democratic primary. Both elections include incumbents who have been on the school board since 2018: Michelle McKissack and Joyce Dorse-Coleman, respectively.

The other candidates, ranging from seasoned MSCS teachers to a local lawyer and parents’ rights advocate, are joining the pool during a time of looming shifts in district leadership.

Senate Republicans are expected to take the next step in advancing their state takeover plans for MSCS in the coming days. Republican leadership appears set to adopt a version close to Rep. Mark White’s 2025 proposal that would create a board of managers that would take away key responsibilities from the local board, including budget and superintendent decisions.

Republican lawmakers launched the takeover effort last year after the controversial firing of former Superintendent Marie Feagins last January. Current board members voted unanimously to hire Roderick Richmond, a 30-year district employee, as the new permanent leader late last month.

Check out our interactive map tool to find out which MSCS board district you’ll be seeing on your ballot. And before casting a vote, read all about the candidates in our comprehensive profiles here:

With so much at stake, we want to hear from you about who you’re voting for and why. What do you think is important about these elections? What questions do you still have that we can help answer?

Bri Hatch covers Memphis-Shelby County Schools for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Reach Bri at bhatch@chalkbeat.org.

Voter guide: Here are the Democratic Memphis school board candidates running in District 8

2026-04-14T14:43:36+00:00

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Two Democratic candidates will compete for the Memphis school board District 8 nomination in the first district political primary this spring.

Ayleem Connolly, a former MSCS teacher and language department chair, and Tanya Frey, who’s spent over 20 years as an employment and nonprofit lawyer, will appear on the May 5 primary ballot. A third independent candidate, MSCS school librarian Leigh Ann Scarbrough, will challenge the Democratic nominee in the Aug. 6 general election.

Early voting in the primary begins on April 15.

The District 8 seat will be vacated by Amber Huett-Garcia as she makes a bid for county commissioner. The winning candidate will likely face the effects of an impending state takeover led by Tennessee Republican lawmakers to strip the local school board of its main responsibilities.

District 8 covers 10 schools, including the White Station and Kate Bond buildings, that serve around 9,500 students. Less than half of those students come from low income families, which is a rarity in Memphis-Shelby County Schools, and less than 60% are Black.

The region is split in two, encompassing East Memphis and Shelby Farms along with the Northeast corner of the county above Bartlett and Lakeland. Its schools significantly outperform district averages in reading and math proficiency at around 40% proficient for each. Only one school, the Dexter School, falls below the district proficiency averages by a few percentage points.

Use our interactive map to see if you’ll be voting in this district based on your home address. And read full responses from District 8 candidates to a Chalkbeat survey here:

Ayleem Connolly

Connolly taught in MSCS from 2015 through 2023 as a Spanish teacher in Oakhaven, Trezevant, and East high schools. She served as East High’s language department chair for two years.

As someone who grew up in the Dominican Republic before moving to Memphis in 2014, Connolly is passionate about expanding access to postsecondary education, especially for immigrant students and families.

“A lot of students approached me as a teacher looking for secondary education, but because they were undocumented, they didn’t have access to it,” she said.

Connolly wants to make a comprehensive guide listing scholarships and programs that support immigrant families. She also wants to invest more in student support services, including mental health interventions, and expand paid parental leave for teachers from six to 12 weeks.

“It personally affected my family. It put financial constraints,” she said. “You need to use your sick days and disability to cover for the remaining time.”

Most important MSCS issue to address: Student well-being

“I would focus on serving the children: improving children’s personal well-being, including nutrition, mental health services, and protection from overzealous federal law enforcement. Teachers cannot teach a child who is in distress — and psychological distress is all too common today.”

Tanya Frey

Frey has worked as a Memphis-based lawyer for 21 years, with time spent at Autozone and ALSAC, the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital.

She now runs Terra Firma Consulting, an organization that advises nonprofits on leadership decisions. That means she advises boards in her daily role.

“And I’m advising CEOs on how to hold members of boards accountable, build their boards to make them better,” she said. “Those are skills that matter when you are serving on a board, particularly of this capacity.”

Frey has three sons who went to Richland Elementary school, one of whom is a junior at East High. The eldest graduated from Middle College High School, and the youngest attends a Germantown public school called Houston High.

She says it’s important for the school board to set clear academic goals and funnel money into the classroom.

“Every decision should come back to one question: Does this lead to better outcomes for students?” Frey said.

Most important MSCS issue to address: Board governance

“We have strong educators and real progress, but not enough clarity or consistency across the system. The board’s role is to set clear priorities, align resources, and stay focused on what

improves results for students.That’s the work I do every day — helping boards stay focused, make clear decisions, and staying accountable to the organizations they serve.”

Bri Hatch covers Memphis-Shelby County Schools for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Reach Bri at bhatch@chalkbeat.org.

Voter guide: Here are the Memphis school board candidates running in District 9

2026-04-14T14:43:27+00:00

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The five candidates running for Memphis’ District 9 school board seat range from a longtime incumbent and former board chair to the sole state takeover advocate on the 2026 ballot.

All are running in the district’s first school board Democratic primary on May 5 to fill the seat held by current vice chair Joyse Dorse Coleman since 2018. This election comes as state lawmakers are moving to create a board of managers that could take away local authority and key board functions.

Early voting begins on April 15.

The five District 9 candidates include Coleman, a former board chair, and Damon Curry Morris, a vocal parent advocate and pro-state takeover candidate. Jonathan Carroll is a local Democratic party leader running as a school system outsider, and Louis Morganfield is the building engineer at Ida B. Wells Academy. Tamara Jordan has more than a decade of experience teaching in and leading local charter schools.

District 9 covers around 12,000 students and their families living between Memphis’ Cooper Young neighborhood and Germantown. The 24 schools, including Overton High and Colonial Middle, educate a student group that is 60% economically disadvantaged. Around one in three students is Hispanic, and 65% are Black.

Elementary students in District 9 slightly exceeded MSCS average math proficiency rates on the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program, or TCAP, last year. But they lagged behind the district average for literacy by a few percentage points.

Use our interactive map to see if you’ll be voting in this district based on your home address. And read full responses from District 9 candidates to a Chalkbeat survey here:

Jonathan Carroll

Carroll has served on the executive committees of the Shelby County and Tennessee Democratic Party since 2013 and 2022 respectively. He’s the four-year president of the neighborhood association in Normal Station, where he’s lived since 1995, and works for an apartment safety nonprofit called SafeWays.

Carroll doesn’t have any ties to MSCS, a distinction that he says separates him from his running mates.

“I have never taken a paycheck directly or indirectly from the school system or worked for a contractor that does,” Carroll told Chalkbeat. “I can bring that outsider perspective and look at things and see how they can be improved.”

Caroll led his son’s Parent-Teacher Association at Middle College High School for over three years and volunteered on the statewide PTA as the legislative affairs chair for one year. He’s a graduate from the University of Memphis.

In the face of an impending state takeover of MSCS, Carroll says it’s important for school board members to commit to working together and put vendettas aside.

Most important MSCS issue to address: Lack of public trust

“I would work to rebuild that trust by working with disparate groups across the city, holding multiple town halls with other school board members and city and county leaders where we will listen to the needs of the parents and students, and showing that the school system we deserve is here for them.”

Joyce Dorse-Coleman

Dorse-Coleman has a long-running tenure on the Memphis-Shelby County school board, beginning in 2018 as a member and serving as the chair last year. She also introduced the resolution to fire former Superintendent Marie Feagins last January, which sparked backlash from community members and state leaders.

She says she sticks around on the board to counter false perceptions of the district and its leaders.

“We have amazing people in our district,” Dorse-Coleman said. “We just also have a few naysayers that make things seem like we’re the worst of the worst. And I know that’s not true.”

She grew up in Orange Mound and attended Melrose High School, which is part of District 9. Dorse-Coleman is an advocate for local, state, and federal education leaders to help fund school initiatives including teacher recruitment and retention.

Most important MSCS issue to address: Lack of funds

“If we had more funding, we wouldn’t have to worry about closing schools. Buildings could be fixed up…We would be able to hire more teachers and pay the teachers that we have, because they seriously deserve more.”

Tamara Jordan

Jordan has been an educator for 15 years, working in charter school systems including Gestalt Community Schools, which participated in the now defunct, state-run Achievement School District. Gestalt was the first network to pull out of the state-run ASD in 2017 by closing the two schools it managed.

She also taught at Freedom Preparatory Academy, and eventually served as dean through 2023.

Jordan says she wants to run an audit on MSCS’ curriculum to make sure it’s aligning with state standards and assessments. That could help better reflect students’ literacy abilities, she said.

“Think about a student that’s been taking tests and doing work all year, and they get a test that they‘ve never seen, like they don’t know how to answer the questions,” Jordan said. “We’re not teaching to the test, but we do want (students) to be familiar with the test.”

Most important MSCS issue to address: Facility deficits and state takeover

“I would address the facility deficits by pushing for a proactive approach to the deferred maintenance budget. An audit of all assets with fidelity would need to happen, so that repairs can be prioritized based on risk ROI. Also, I would push for routine inspections of critical systems: such as, HVAC and plumbing. As far as the State takeover threats, I would suggest pushing a plan that is catered to each individual school to present to the Tennessee General Assembly.”

Damon Curry Morris

Morris is the only candidate across all four district races who’s in favor of an impending state takeover of MSCS. He says he’s advocating for parents and students who support the intervention and has met with the Republican lawmakers sponsoring these efforts in Nashville throughout the last year.

“I was heavily involved in it, and no other candidate can say that,” he told Chalkbeat. “My strength is diplomacy. Once they fired (Feagins), the only thing that the district continued to do, the board members continued to do, was fuel the fan of those fights. Now my job was to go up there to minimize the impact.”

Morris is a regular speaker at Memphis school board meetings, often criticizing decisions that he says lead to a lack of trust in the district. In August, Morris was arrested outside of the school board building, The Daily Memphian reported, for allegedly violating a restraining order against him by current member Stephanie Love.

Morris called the incident a “ploy” to keep him from running on the school board.

“Let’s be fair here, I’m not the most popular candidate amongst the elite, the people who have been [in the district] for 20 or 30 years,” he said.

Morris told Chalkbeat that the restraining order is still active, but Love, the Shelby County Public Defender, and Morris’ lawyer did not respond to requests for confirmation.

Morris worked as a substitute teacher in Memphis City Schools starting in 1999. He also was a behavioral specialist at Treadwell Middle School in 2005 for 12 years and now home-schools and tutors students.

Most important MSCS issue to address: Lack of public trust

“We have to be real about how we got here and the contributing factors. The enrollment has plummeted because of some of the board’s actions and this opened the door for a state intervention.”

Louis M. Morganfield III

Morganfield serves as the building engineer for Ida B. Wells Academy, a beloved school in South Memphis that board members voted to close at the end of this year. He told Chalkbeat Tennessee that the school should serve as a model for the district because of its small class sizes, which he says could help improve the district’s low literacy rates.

“You can’t continue to do the same thing over and over again that you have been doing for the last 30 years, and scores only improve by an inch or a half an inch at a time,” Morganfield said. “With small class sizes, you’re able to meet the children where they are.”

He said reducing class sizes would mean hiring more teachers and assistants, an issue that MSCS already struggles with.

“We need to change the culture,” Morganfield said. “We need to listen to our teachers.”

Most important MSCS issue to address: Literacy

“We can’t do what we want to do to raise the scores if you don’t engage with the parents, to teach the parents how to help their children.”

Bri Hatch covers Memphis-Shelby County Schools for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Reach Bri at bhatch@chalkbeat.org.

Voter guide: Here are the Memphis school board candidates running in District 1

2026-04-14T14:43:21+00:00

Sign up for Chalkbeat Tennessee’s free newsletter to keep up with statewide education policy and Memphis-Shelby County Schools.

The three candidates running to represent District 1 on the Memphis school board have deep ties to the school system as teachers and key leaders.

All will be on the May 5 primary ballot as Democrats, including incumbent Michelle McKissack, who’s been on the board since 2018. Dolores Missy Rivers, former head of a local teachers union, and Hailey Marie Thomas, an early career educator, are running as challengers.

Early voting begins on April 15.

This is the first political primary election for the Memphis-Shelby County school board and the last chance for members elected in 2018 to serve again under new term limits. The 2026 race also comes as Republican lawmakers in Nashville push forward a state takeover of MSCS that would strip the board of some key responsibilities.

District 1 spans downtown Memphis and Cooper Young, covering 24 schools with more than 10,500 students. At most of the schools, Hispanic students and English learners are less than 5% of the student body. And while the district’s literacy and math proficiency rates slightly exceed MSCS averages, there’s a wide range of school performance.

Only 7% of A.B. Hill Elementary students achieved proficiency on last year’s Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program, or TCAP, and less than 5% did the same for math. But at Idlewild Elementary, those proficiency rates were 71% and 62% respectively.

Use our interactive map to see if you’ll be voting in this district based on your home address. And read full responses from District 1 candidates to a Chalkbeat survey here:

Michelle McKissack

McKissack has served on the Memphis school board representing District 1 since 2018. She was one of three members who voted against the controversial firing of former Superintendent Marie Feagins in January 2025.

McKissack is a graduate of White Station High School, as are her three sons. Her daughter is a ninth grade student there.

“And so I’ve just got all of this positive association with our public school system,” she told Chalkbeat. “I did debate whether I would continue for one more term. But I felt there was more work to do … I wasn’t ready to pass the torch.”

McKissack started her advocacy in 2003 as a parent at Downtown Elementary, where she wrote the bylaws for the school’s Parent-Teacher Organization. She currently serves as the vice president of the Tennessee School Board Association.

“I was in the trenches as a regular person, as a parent, just wanting to give back,” she said. “But then I didn’t stop there. I didn’t stop with our local school board. I wanted to see how things were happening across the state of Tennessee.”

Most important MSCS issue to address: Literacy

“My biggest concern is continuing to stay student-focused and improving literacy among our students, especially ensuring that students are reading on grade level by the end of third grade.”

Dolores Missy Rivers

Rivers started her work in MSCS as a teacher on a provisional license at Doubletree Elementary School. She stayed in the district as an educator for 26 years, spending most of those years at Ross Elementary, and retired in 2023.

Rivers then served a one-year term that ended in February as the interim director of the Memphis-Shelby County Education Association, one of two teachers groups in the district.

“People understand my work and they know my work in the community,” she said. “Teachers know what I have done. I didn’t just wake up and just say, ‘Hey, I’m gonna run for school board.’ I’ve always done this work.”

Rivers is an advocate for increasing teacher pay and offering tuition support, especially to Memphis students, to become educators. She thinks MSCS should expand its Innovation Zone approach, which targets low-performing schools by placing strong principals in struggling schools and providing more practical teacher training.

Most important MSCS issue to address: Teacher recruitment and retention

“When teachers are paid fairly and feel respected for their profession, districts are better able to attract strong candidates and retain experienced educators who know how to help students succeed. However, pay is only part of the solution. We must also improve working conditions by protecting instructional time, reducing unnecessary testing and paperwork, and ensuring teachers have the resources and support they need in their classrooms.”

Hailey Marie Thomas

Thomas is an early career educator who started working at Larose Elementary, a District 1 school, in 2021. She’s now a literacy instructor at MSCS charter school Beacon College Preparatory.

Thomas says she has a realtime perspective into what teachers and students need to succeed, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I’m seeing the issues that are impacting people daily,” she said. “All of the issues that educators have been complaining about for years have stayed the same, but with this group of children, all of those issues have been exacerbated.”

Thomas says teachers need better pay and more support in handling classroom discipline. She’s also against school closures and consolidations because class sizes are too big and unmanageable already.

Most important MSCS issue to address: Low enrollment

“A lot of our money from the public schools are being transferred to the charter schools when our numbers go down. And a lot of parents want to go to charter schools. They want to go to private schools, because they’re not satisfied with the results that MSCS is providing. Once we do things to improve our numbers, we get access to more funding.”

Bri Hatch covers Memphis-Shelby County Schools for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Reach Bri at bhatch@chalkbeat.org.

Newark will elect a new school board in less than 2 weeks. Here’s what parents, students, and others want.

2026-04-13T18:00:00+00:00

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Newark voters head to the polls on April 21 to elect four members to the city’s Board of Education, which makes key decisions for New Jersey’s largest school district.

But what does the community want those new board members to prioritize once they take their seats?

At a debate last month, the nine candidates vying for four seats pledged to tackle several issues, including fixing aging school buildings; expanding student mental health resources; improving transparency; and including parents, teachers, and students in district decisions.

This year’s school board race is the second time the city’s 16- and 17-year-olds will cast their vote in the election. Last year, only 73 teens voted in the April election despite targeted efforts to get the city’s more than 7,000 eligible youth voters to the polls.

Chalkbeat asked parents, students, teachers, and advocates the same question: What should the new board focus on first?

Their answers touch on some of the most pressing challenges for the district, which serves more than 41,000 students across 65 schools and will run on a $1.6 billion budget next school year. Nearly six years after regaining local control of schools, community members say they still want more input in decisions that shape education in Newark.

Here’s what members of the city’s education community told Chalkbeat what they want to see from the incoming school board members. They have been edited for length and clarity.

Emmanuel Adeola is also a member of the Youth Power Action Coalition in Newark.

Emmanuel Adeola

Junior at Bard High School Early College

Get student feedback

“Students are the school district’s consumers. It makes sense to want to get student feedback because it’s just requiring that you listen to our concerns. And also, there has to be a better way to talk to students. I know sometimes students may not want to listen to adults, but a lot of us can vote now, so how can board members help us understand what’s happening and also listen to us?”

John Abeigon was first elected as president of the Newark Teachers Union in 2015.

John Abeigon

President of the Newark Teachers Union

Boost teacher collaboration with principals and district leaders

“What I would be hoping to get from whoever the new elected board members are, is that we continue to work towards strengthening the collaboration that we’re already creating between teachers and the public school district. We want teachers to be the ones creating the instruction happening in classrooms. Unified instruction, unified learning, unified teaching.”

Alexander Schuetz

Alexander Schuetz is the Chair of the Newark Education Workers Caucus.

Chair of the Newark Education Workers Caucus

More investment in student needs

“We’re an enormous district with a really wide variety of needs. We are really leaning in both words and in cash into the top performing students. We are building these hyper-specialized high schools. We are building evermore, it seems, gifted and talented approaches and internship opportunities, which I don’t have any problem with, of course. But I do not see that same energy being put into our students with the most needs.”

“Our students whether they have a disability or not, or come from another country, so many of our students are just on the back foot from the start, based on the resources they have access to. I would like to see a board that can sort of pause in this victory lap of expansion and take a look at the larger masses of students who feel like they’re being left behind.”

Deborah Smith Gregory urged Newark residents to vote in the upcoming city elections during the 2026 NAACP Newark school board candidate forum.

Debra Smith-Gregory

President of the NAACP Newark

Holding the superintendent accountable

“I want the incoming school board members to work with the current board members to ensure that the best interests of students are put first and that means holding the superintendent accountable for his decisions. I think a prime example is their intent to spend nearly $500 million leasing a building for young people in the East Ward, a building the district will not own until after 30-years. Board members should be asking questions about that.”

Inés Aguilera's daughter is a student at Hawkins Street School located in the East Ward of Newark, New Jersey.

Inés Aguilera

East Ward mom of a third grader at Hawkins Street Elementary School (translated from Spanish)

Fix school lunches

“My daughter tells me she doesn’t have enough time to eat her lunch. Sometimes she brings home the entire lunch I packed for her, or sometimes with only a bite into her sandwich. I also think that the quality of school food isn’t good and the fruits are not good, that’s why I pack my daughter’s lunch every day. And it’s also important to make sure that younger students, especially those whose teeth may be growing in, have their fruits cut up for them. Many of them can’t bite into those hard apples.”

Ade’Kamil Kelly

Ade’Kamil Kelly ran under the "Prioritizing Newark's Children" slate in the 2025 Newark school board election.

Two-time Newark school board candidate

Transparency and fiscal responsibility

“I really would like the board to focus on fiscal responsibility, especially because we’re looking at a budget that just got approved that cuts 30 teachers. Can we tighten up our fiscal responsibility, because all eyes are literally on Newark right now? And I really hate that we constantly have to have the same conversation year after year about the same fundamental things. Even when you look at how the new, proposed Riverfront Elementary School for the East Ward went before everybody, it wasn’t a transparent process that everyone can feel good about. So it’s just a lot of continuous missed opportunities for the school board to just say things clearly to the public.”

Rafael Chavez works with Spanish speaking parents in Newark.

Rafael Chavez

Organizer for New Labor, a Newark-based immigrant rights group

Translation services during Board of Education meetings

“The biggest issue is the lack of translation at board meetings. That’s why some of the parents, actually, maybe most of the parents who don’t speak English don’t really go to those meetings because they don’t understand them. They don’t have a translation there. They throw ridiculous barriers at us, and Spanish-speaking families can’t participate.”

Chesha Hodge

Chesha Hodge leads the Coalition for Healthy Food in Newark Schools, a Greater Newark Conservancy Initiative.

Director, Coalition for Healthy Food in Newark Schools, a Greater Newark Conservancy Initiative

More student involvement in school food decisions

“Students are starting to understand and learn that their voice matters, especially here in Newark, where 16- and 17-year-olds now get to vote in the school board elections. We want to make a way for students to not just have these really basic food conversations, but we also want them to be included in these higher-level conversations that are taking place on the local and state level. Let’s just tap into the power that is our youth right now.”

Jessie Gómez is a reporter for Chalkbeat Newark, covering public education in the city. Contact Jessie at jgomez@chalkbeat.org.

Why there are no education elections on your primary ballot

2026-04-07T18:50:17+00:00

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Early voting is underway for the Indiana primary elections, but there are no education-specific items on the ballot.

In previous years, referendums — where school districts ask voters for extra funding through property taxes — could appear on primary ballots. But lawmakers changed that last year. Lawmakers also changed school board elections from nonpartisan to partisan but didn’t add primary elections for those positions.

Here’s what’s different at the ballot box and what to expect:

Partisan school board elections don’t include primary races

After years of attempts to make school board elections partisan, lawmakers approved the change that allows candidates to have a party affiliation but didn’t include primary races.

Instead, school board candidates will choose if they want to select a political party, identify as an independent, or be nonpartisan in the general election. School board elections are not included in straight party voting, and multiple candidates could have the same affiliation.

The change faced opposition from people who said partisan politics would be a distraction from the school board’s duties. Supporters countered by saying politics already influence schools.

While there aren’t any primaries, a candidate’s affiliation can be challenged and removed from the ballot if the candidate didn’t vote in the last two primary elections or get written certification from the county party chairman that the candidate is a party member. Candidates across the state can file to run from May 19 to noon on June 18.

This November will be the first for partisan school board elections. School boards statewide, including in Marion County, will have seats on the ballot. Each school board determines the number of seats and if the seats represent areas within the school district’s borders or are at-large. For Indianapolis Public Schools, four seats are up for election, including one special election to fill a seat after a board member resigned.

Fewer opportunities for schools to ask voters for tax increases

School districts can ask voters to approve tax increases for specific needs such as operating costs, construction, or safety measures through referendums. These dollars supplement the local property tax dollars that schools receive along with state and federal funding.

In the past, school districts could ask voters to approve increases during the primary or general election of any year. In 2025, lawmakers changed the rule to be only the general election of a statewide election year after the November 2025 election.

There could be more referendums on the ballot this November given the limits on timing as well as funding constraints on districts, including property tax reform and sharing those funds with charter schools.

Whether or not to put a referendum on the ballot is determined by school districts, except in Indianapolis where the new Indianapolis Public Education Corporation will decide. IPS’s current operating referendum expires this year, and without that funding, the district could be out of money by next year, per IPS documents.

School boards must send their ballot questions no later than July 22 to the state Department of Local Government Finance. The department then has until noon Aug. 1 to decide if it’s approved.

What to know about voting in 2026 Indiana election

Early voting for the primary elections started on April 7 and ends at noon on May 4. Primary election day is May 5, and polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. local time.

For the general election, voter registration opens on May 19 and ends Oct. 5. Early voting starts Oct. 6. On election day, Nov. 3, polls are open from 6 a.m .to 6 p.m. local time.

You can check your voter status and register to vote as well as look up polling places and sample ballots at indianavoters.in.gov.

This article was updated to include deadlines for putting referendums on the November ballot.

MJ Slaby oversees Chalkbeat Indiana’s coverage as bureau chief. Contact MJ at mslaby@chalkbeat.org.

Voters will choose between newcomers and city leaders in Newark’s April school board election

2026-03-17T21:00:00+00:00

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Nine candidates will pit experience against fresh energy as they face off for four seats in this year’s Newark Board of Education election.

One is an incumbent running to keep his board seat, two are returning challengers, and six are newcomers bringing a mix of city-held leadership positions, educational experience, and parent perspectives to the race.

In the April 21 election, voters will elect three candidates to serve a three-year term and one for a one-year term.

The winning candidates will be responsible for deciding policies in New Jersey’s largest school district, which serves more than 40,000 students, and managing the district’s more than $1.5 billion budget. The city’s public school board is also tasked with holding the superintendent accountable.

The nine-member board also reviews and approves policies that address academic recovery efforts, support for the district’s vulnerable students, fixing old school buildings, overcrowding, youth mental health, and new cellphone bans, among others.

The board has recently faced criticism from parents, advocates, students, and teachers who say they want more transparency and input in decisions about the city’s schools in the district, which officially returned to local control in 2020. In October, the Newark school board’s sudden decision to flip a member’s vote to extend Superintendent Roger León’s contract raised ethical questions about board procedures. The proposal to extend Leon’s contract initially failed in September after parents and advocates raised concerns about district issues.

This year’s school board race is also the second time the city’s 16- and 17-year-olds will cast their vote in the election. Last year, only 73 teens voted in the election despite targeted efforts to get the city’s more than 7,000 eligible youth voters to the polls.

The Newark Board of Education race is one of two Essex County school board elections held in April, when turnout typically hovers around 3% to 4%. The school board has the authority to move the election to November when voter turnout is typically higher.

This year’s “Moving Newark Schools Forward” slate includes incumbent board president Hasani Council, two newcomers, and a returning candidate:

Council was first elected to the city school board in 2020 and is also the chief of staff for his father, South Ward councilman Patrick Council.
First time candidate Mark Comesañas, is a Newark parent, former educator, principal, and the executive director for My Brother’s Keeper Newark.
Newcomer Quamid Childs, a Newark parent, is the vice chairman for the Newark North Ward Democrats, member of the Essex County Democratic Committee, and former commissioner on the city’s supplemental zoning board.
West Ward district leader and returning candidate Jordy Nivar has also joined the slate after running in the 2025 election.

Council, Childs, and Comesañas are vying for three-year terms while Nivar is running for a one-year term.

The “Moving Newark Schools Forward” slate has won every election since 2016, and eight current board members were part of that group. The slate typically garners support from state and local politicians, including Mayor Ras Baraka and state Senate Majority Leader M. Teresa Ruiz.

The slate is up against three first-time candidates, each running independently for a three-year term on the board:

John Farrell is a social studies teacher at Phillp’s Academy Charter School.
Tawheed Peters is a city parent and Rutgers University Newark alum.
Lisa Gray is a school social worker with 20 years of experience working in the district’s Office of Early Childhood.

The remaining two candidates will battle Nivar for the one-year term seat on the board. Returning candidate Latoya Jackson, who founded the nonprofit T.O.Y.A, Through Obstacles You Adapt, is running for the fourth time this year after running in the 2023, 2024, and 2025 elections. Nivar and Jackson will compete against newcomer Tammy Hollaway, a member at-large for the New Jersey PTA Board of Directors.

Candidates discuss policies they would enact as board members

The nine candidates gathered at Bethany Baptist Church in Newark last Thursday for the city’s first school board debate hosted by the NAACP Newark. During the debate, the candidates discussed district policies they would revise and expand, plans to boost academic achievement, and issues they would champion as board members.

Community members watch as the nine Newark Board of Education candidates participated in the NAACP Newark branch candidate debate on March 12, 2026, at Bethany Baptist Church in Newark, New Jersey.

Council, a Newark Public Schools alum, said he is currently working with board members to develop the district’s new cellphone policy after former Gov. Phil Murphy signed a law requiring all New Jersey school districts to adopt new restrictions on the use of cellphones and other internet-enabled devices in K-12 schools. Council added that he is running for school board again because he wants to make sure that “our students are receiving an equitable education.”

Childs, who is running with Council on the “Moving Newark Schools Forward” slate, said he wants to expand the district’s mental health resources by providing more counselors for students and offering mental health support for parents.

Nivar wants to strengthen the connection between teachers and parents and improve school lunches after experiencing poor quality lunches himself as a Newark student years ago.

Slate member Comesañas proposed to work with local organizations and city departments to “maximize philanthropic dollars” meant to help students succeed academically. In his role as executive director for My Brother’s Keeper Newark, Comesañas collaborates with community organizations to expand opportunities for youth. He also wants to see bilingual guidance counselors in schools to help students from all backgrounds.

Jackson, the four-time school board candidate, agreed that the district should work with organizations with similar goals to improve education and direct money to boost student civic learning. An advocate with the South Ward Environmental Alliance, Jackson added that “there are a lot of grassroots groups” working to help students and families.

Gray, who noted that her experience in education is rooted in community and the classroom, said she feels that students, parents, and educators “don’t have enough of a voice in what’s happening” in the district. During Thursday’s debate, she said she champions a model called a “support sandwich,” with “parents on top, students in the middle, and educators at the bottom,” to draw in community feedback before district decisions are made.

Hollaway wants to improve the district’s transportation policy following recent winter snowstorms that interrupted public bus service. She also proposed strengthening student-to-teacher pipelines and the district’s anti-bullying policies after being bullied as a young student.

Peters agreed that the district’s anti-bullying policies need improvement and said his youngest daughter came home crying after dealing with a bully. He believes school board members need to work with schools to “fix the culture” and help students understand that people come from different backgrounds.

Farrell said he wants to see the district improve its transparency and “meet people where they are at.” He added that the district’s old school buildings need repairs and should take priority over buying or leasing new ones. Farrell added that he is running to do his “very best for kids” in Newark.

Jessie Gómez is a reporter for Chalkbeat Newark, covering public education in the city. Contact Jessie at jgomez@chalkbeat.org.

Which Memphis school board candidates will be on your 2026 ballot? Use our interactive map to find out.

2026-03-02T12:00:00+00:00

Sign up for Chalkbeat Tennessee’s free newsletter to keep up with statewide education policy and Memphis-Shelby County Schools.

Memphis voters will choose from a pool of 17 candidates to serve on the local school board next year, starting with the first ever partisan primary on May 5.

Two races, for Districts 1 and 9, will be decided with the primary since all registered candidates are Democrats. Districts 6 and 8 will vote in a general election on Aug. 6 between the Democratic primary winner and an independent candidate. No Republicans qualified to run.

To find out which school board candidates will be on your ballot this year, plug your home address into our interactive map below.

While the MSCS board votes on decisions as a group, each elected member represents one of nine specific regions in the district. And some are more likely to face changes in the coming years, including 10 more potential school closures.

Memphis residents vote on the school board seat that corresponds with their home address, which could be different from the district where your school is zoned. You can use the map to see which board member is responsible for your school by searching its name.

Here’s a full list of candidates who will appear on the ballot:

District 1

Incumbent Michelle McKissack (Democrat)
Dolores Williams Rivers (Democrat)
Hailey Thomas (Democrat)

District 6

Juliette Eskridge (Democrat)
Terrance Harris (Democrat)
Marinda A-Williams (Democrat)
Contessa Glorianna Humphrey (Democrat)
Stacey Kelly (Democrat)
Frederick Dewayne Tappan (independent)

District 8

Ayleem Connolly (Democrat)
Tanya Frey (Democrat)
Leigh Ann Scarbrough (independent)

District 9

Incumbent Joyce Dorse Coleman (Democrat)
Jonathan Carroll (Democrat)
Damon Curry Morris (Democrat)
Louis Morganfield (Democrat)
Tamara Debrand Jordan (Democrat)

The 2026 election has gone through a series of lawsuits and redesigns since the summer. County commissioners originally pushed through a mega-election that would have put all nine seats on the ballot in May. But a Shelby County judge ruled that move unlawful on Feb. 9, stopping five district races that would have cut short current board members’ terms.

MSCS board members still face an uncertain future as Republican lawmakers advance a bill to establish a state-appointed board of managers that would take over the district. That board could take over key responsibilities from the local board, including setting the budget and hiring superintendents.

Bri Hatch covers Memphis-Shelby County Schools for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Reach Bri at bhatch@chalkbeat.org.

Memphis’ first partisan school board election draws no Republican candidates

2026-02-23T21:23:01+00:00

Sign up for Chalkbeat Tennessee’s free newsletter to keep up with statewide education policy and Memphis-Shelby County Schools.

Memphis Democrats will choose from a crowded candidate pool for the first partisan school board primary in May, but no Republicans will be in the race.

After months of back-and-forth votes and legal debates, the could’ve-been mega-election for the school board is no longer. Only four races will be on the ballot after the Shelby County Chancery Court ruled on Feb. 9 that putting all nine seats up for election, as the county government intended, is against state law.

The open board seats for Districts 1 and 9 will be decided by the May 5 primary, since only Democratic candidates met the qualifying petition deadline last Thursday. Districts 6 and 8 each have one Independent challenger, meaning voters will have to choose between them and the Democratic candidate in a general election on August 6.

The Shelby County Republicans voted last spring to usher in a partisan primary, hoping to capitalize on growing frustration with the current school board. Vice Chairman Luke Cymbal said in the fall that he expected to win at least two board seats by backing candidates who supported the state takeover of MSCS.

It’s still unclear what authority the Memphis-Shelby County school board will hold over the district next year. Tennessee Republicans are continuing to push for a state takeover of MSCS that would establish a state-appointed board in charge of key decisions on the budget and superintendent hirings.

Candidates for districts 1, 6, 8, and 9 had until Thursday at noon to submit qualifying petitions with 25 valid signatures. Once the Shelby County Election Commission officially certifies those petitions, candidates will officially be in the May 5 race.

As of Monday, the election commission gave initial approval to 17 candidates:

District 1

Incumbent Michelle McKissack (Democrat)
Dolores Williams Rivers (Democrat)
Hailey Thomas (Democrat)

District 6 (Incumbent Keith Williams will not be running for re-election.)

Juliette Eskridge (Democrat)
Terrance Harris (Democrat)
Marinda A Williams (Democrat)
Contessa Glorianna Humphrey (Democrat)
Stacey Kelly (Democrat)
Frederick Dewayne Tappan (independent)

District 8 (Incumbent Amber Huett-Garcia will not be running for re-election.)

Ayleem Connolly (Democrat)
Tanya Frey (Democrat)
Leigh Ann Scarbrough (independent)

District 9

Incumbent Joyce Dorse Coleman (Democrat)
Jonathan Carroll (Democrat)
Damon Curry Morris (Democrat)
Louis Morganfield (Democrat)
Tamara Debrand Jordan (Democrat)

Candidates who no longer wish to run in the school board race can withdraw their names by noon on Thursday.

Bri Hatch covers Memphis-Shelby County Schools for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Reach Bri at bhatch@chalkbeat.org.

Deputy chancellor for family engagement is stepping down. Will a broader reshuffle follow?

2026-02-18T21:48:16+00:00

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As New York City school insiders eagerly await to see how the new chancellor reshuffles top brass, the Education Department has its first high-profile departure.

Cristina Meléndez, the deputy chancellor of family, community, and student empowerment, is leaving her post on Feb. 27, she wrote in an email to parent leaders on Wednesday, thanking them for their work.

“The most important thing you can do is stay engaged in your schools and keep building your child’s confidence day by day, conversation by conversation, and moment by moment,” she wrote. “That steady belief you offer your child becomes their strength.”

She did not say where she planned to head next. Education Department officials did not respond to questions about her replacement or whether the departure is related to a broader cabinet shakeup.

“We look forward to sharing more soon,” Education Department spokesperson Nicole Brownstein said in a statement commending Meléndez for her service.

Meléndez assumed her role as deputy chancellor more than a year ago, after serving as the executive director of the Education Department’s Office of Family and Community Empowerment, known as FACE, which among other things, oversees the Community Education Council elections.

The elections have had notoriously low turnout, with roughly 18,000 households, or just 2% of eligible families, casting ballots in 2025. A 2023 Chalkbeat investigation highlighted numerous concerns in how FACE conducted the election process, uncovering how the office was gripped internally by turmoil and factions, potentially affecting the election process. A New York City comptroller report called on the Education Department to implement a series of changes in the voting process, but the participation rate remained unchanged.

“It’s indefensible what happened with the election,” said Robert Murtfeld, a former Community Education Council member in Manhattan’s District 1, who runs an advocacy committee at The Neighborhood School.

Given Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s pledge to include families in governance of the nation’s largest school system, Murtfeld suggested there’s an opportunity to find someone who can engage not only the estimated 1.6 million current parents in the system but also include millions more alumni.

“It needs to be someone who is inspiring,” he said. “It can’t be a bureaucratic robot.”

Meléndez took over at FACE in January 2022 after serving as a lead on the education transition team for former Mayor Eric Adams.

A former bilingual education teacher in the Bronx and assistant principal, Meléndez earned a doctorate in education from the University of Pennsylvania in educational leadership. While there, she wrote a thesis entitled “Dominican parenting across generations” and examined difficulties the city had engaging Black and Latino parents.

Before that, Meléndez served as a district supervisor for the city’s controversial renewal initiative aimed to turn around failing schools, according to her LinkedIn profile.

Amy Zimmer is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat New York. Contact Amy atazimmer@chalkbeat.org.

Four Newark school board seats are up for election this April. Residents who want to run can apply.

2026-02-12T19:15:11+00:00

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The Newark school board race is officially underway.

The annual Newark Board of Education election is scheduled for April 21, and residents interested in running can begin submitting nominating petitions to secure their spot on the ballot.

Candidates have until 4 p.m. on March 2 to collect 25 signatures from city voters and file their nominating petition packet with the district’s board secretary, Nancy Deering. Only Newark residents are eligible to run.

This year, four seats are up for election. Three seats come with full three-year terms, while one is for an unexpired one-year term. A drawing on March 11 will determine the order of names appearing on the April ballot, subject to final approval by the Essex County Clerk’s office.

The seats currently held by Hasani Council, Allison James-Frison, Vereliz Santana, Josephine Garcia, and Melissa Reed are up for election. The board members have not yet publicly announced if they plan to seek reelection.

Newark’s nine-member school board decides policies in the state’s largest school system, which is home to over 40,000 students across 65 schools. The board is also tasked with holding Superintendent Roger León accountable, approving district contracts, and passing the budget. Last year, the board approved a $1.57 billion budget amid federal uncertainties.

This year’s election comes six years after the district regained local control of its schools, as it continues to navigate financial and academic challenges.

The winning candidates will be tasked with finding ways to fix the district’s old school buildings, provide support for English language learners and students with disabilities, manage district finances, improve equity in schools, implement new cellphone policies and state literacy initiatives, and boost student performance.

The 2026 school board race is also the second time the city’s 16- and 17-year-olds will cast their votes after winning the right to vote in 2024. In 2025, only 73 teens voted for the first time in a school board race. Overall, only 3.47% of Newark voters participated in the 2025 election, slightly below the 3.94% turnout rate among the city’s youth voters – and about average for school board elections, in which 3% to 4% of voters typically participate.

Last year, 11 candidates ran for three seats on the school board. The “Moving Newark Schools Forward” slate, which typically gains support from state and local politicians, including Mayor Ras Baraka and state Senate Majority Leader M. Teresa Ruiz, won the 2025 election.

New voters, including youth who will be 16 or 17 by the April 21 election, can register to vote by March 31. Residents can vote at their designated polling location or by mail if they register for that option by April 14. Newark and Irvington school boards are the only ones holding April elections in Essex County.

Jessie Gómez is a reporter for Chalkbeat Newark, covering public education in the city. Contact Jessie at jgomez@chalkbeat.org.

Rahm Emanuel has a plan to fix schools and the Democratic Party. Will it work?

2026-01-22T15:40:00+00:00

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Rahm Emanuel — who once said, “you never want a serious crisis to go to waste” — sees two crises at the moment.

One is the well-documented learning decline plaguing American students. The other is the similarly declining favorability of the Democratic Party with voters. Emanuel has an answer to both: Democrats need to embrace reform-minded education policies to boost achievement, while pivoting away from what he sees as an overemphasis on race- and gender-related topics.

“We weren’t worried about what was going on in the classroom or the corridor,” Emanuel, the former Chicago mayor and White House chief of staff, said in an interview. “We were worried about a bunch of ancillary issues.” He was fresh off of a high-profile trip down to Mississippi, where improvements in fourth-grade test scores have drawn national accolades.

Emanuel is openly considering a run for president. If he takes the plunge, education will be core to his campaign, he says.

Already, though, his media blitz has reshaped the conversation about schools. Most other prominent Democrats have consigned education to the veritable kids’ table of issues. Although some of Emanuel’s pronouncements are up for dispute, he’s stepped in to fill a large void within his party. “I’ll say this: He’s talking about schools. That’s a good thing,” said Joshua Cowen, an education professor at Michigan State University, who briefly ran for Congress as a Democrat.

Emanuel cut his teeth in a different political era when leading Democrats were eager to talk about overhauling public schools. As Barack Obama’s chief of staff, he helped design Race to the Top, which promoted charter schools and the use of test scores to judge teachers. Then as Chicago mayor he pushed for a longer school day and closed 50 schools amid declining enrollment.

Emanuel acknowledges the bitter disputes over these policies. Race to the Top helped spur a nationwide backlash to testing. School closures in Chicago unleashed widespread anger from teachers and parents in the city, imperiling Emanuel’s reelection, although he ultimately won a second term. “My life would have been a hell of a lot easier had I left those schools open, even though parents were fleeing,” he said, after rattling off statistics about improvement in the city school system.

Whatever the flaws of the prior reform era, Emanuel says, at least Democrats had a clear agenda. Now he dings his party for extended virtual schooling during the pandemic and for allowing Republicans to own education issues. “You know that the Republicans are for vouchers. You can’t tell me what the Democratic calling card is,” said Emanuel, who served as ambassador to Japan under Joe Biden.

Indeed, while Trump campaigned on a far-reaching education platform, including closing the Education Department and getting “wokeness” out of schools, Biden and later Kamala Harris didn’t emphasize the issue. The Biden administration also quietly dropped an early proposal to create a Race to the Top-style innovation fund for schools.

Emanuel is alarmed that relatively few leaders from either party have made recovering from historic test scores declines a major priority. “Nobody’s going to break a sweat trying to solve it,” he said.

Some of Emanuel’s other claims are questionable, though. One of his key talking points is that Democrats have lost their edge on education with voters. This isn’t backed up by most recent polling. Well, he counters, the Democratic advantage is smaller than it used to be.

One long-running survey shows Democrats with a 10 to 15 point edge on education, which is smaller than the high points of 2007 and 2008, but comparable to many other times in recent decades.

As for COVID school closures, it’s not at all clear this is dragging Democrats down. Most voters say that, looking back, these closures were “largely necessary,” according to one recent poll.

And although Emanuel refers to identity issues as distractions, they’re quite resonant with students who are transgender or conservative parents critical of policies to accommodate trans students. (For voters particularly concerned about this issue, Emanuel is blunt: “If I run for office, I’m not your guy.”)

Yet Emanuel’s strategy of using education to try to redefine the party brand has historical precedent. George W. Bush campaigned as a “compassionate conservative” who would improve schools for disadvantaged children. Before him, Bill Clinton promised to be a “New Democrat” who would reform failing schools and stand up to “special interests,” including labor unions and gay rights advocates. Both men were elected in part thanks to their approach.

Today, even if Democrats still have an edge on education, they do have a problem with voters who see them, fairly or not, as too focused on social issues. To address this, Emanuel is trying to rerun the New Democrat playbook that worked in the ‘90s. “It’s a sense of deja vu,” said Patrick McGuinn, a Drew University political scientist who has studied how education plays out in national politics.

Asked about specific policies, Emanuel ticks through ways he’d like schools to improve. He wants more to adopt the Mississippi model — which includes phonics-based instruction and holding back struggling readers — and he wants high schools to require students to have a clear plan for when they graduate. He also suggests addressing low attendance rates by cutting funding to schools where too many students are absent.

The president doesn’t control schools like a mayor or a school board. They can leverage federal money to push schools to make changes, though doing this effectively is not easy. Emanuel has floated the idea of a new Race to the Top-style program.

If he does run for president, Emanuel will face skepticism and perhaps outright opposition from public school interests and teachers unions, which are major Democratic funders.

Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers whose local Chicago chapter frequently clashed with Emanuel, agrees Democrats need to lean in on education again. “There are pieces of Rahm’s agenda — such as boosting literacy and investing in Pre-K — that are foundational, but so are neighborhood public schools, which Rahm closed en masse as mayor of Chicago,” she said in a statement.

Cowen, the Michigan State professor, who is a leading critic of school vouchers, says that aside from Emanuel, though, national Democrats have largely failed to sketch out a clear vision on education. “Improving public schools is part of defending public schools and vice versa,” he said.

Matt Barnum is Chalkbeat’s ideas editor. Reach him at mbarnum@chalkbeat.org.

Memphis school board sues Shelby County Commission over 2026 election reset

2026-01-21T17:47:48+00:00

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The Memphis-Shelby County school board is now suing the county commission in its fight against the 2026 election that could cut short five board members’ terms.

The MSCS board filed an initial lawsuit against the Shelby County Election Commission in December, blaming the local entity for unconstitutionally shortening terms by putting all nine board seats on the May 2026 ballot. That original filing didn’t mention the Shelby County Commission, which voted in September to enact the state law that allows for the election reset in the first place.

Commissioner Michael Whaley, who sponsored the final version of the reset bill, said then that he hoped omitting an official start year in the bill language would protect the county commission from a lawsuit.

But the MSCS lawyer filed an amended complaint last week with the Shelby County Chancery Court, saying the commission acted “wholly outside the scope of the local government’s authority” by enacting the September resolution.

“The Shelby County Board of Commissioners has no authority under the Tennessee Constitution to remove any elected school board member or to abridge their terms of office by any means,” the Jan. 15 amended complaint states.

A 2024 Tennessee law permitted local governments to realign election cycles to put school board races on the same ballot as other county offices. But it did not “expressly authorize” the Shelby County Commission to remove “duly elected, qualified and acting school board members” from office or shorten their terms, the lawsuit says.

A spokesperson for the Shelby County Commission said the body does not comment on ongoing litigation. The county attorney’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.

The revised lawsuit also claims that board member Tamarques Porter, who represents District 4, will suffer “unique harm that will be immediate and irreparable” by being forced to run again in 2026. Porter works as a federal employee in the Department of Treasury, which means he cannot participate in partisan elections under the Hatch Act.

The local Republican and Democratic parties voted this year to make the May 5 school board primary a partisan race for the first time.

Porter is the only member among the five facing shortened terms – including Board Chair Natalie McKinney, Stephanie Love, Sable Otey, and Towanna Murphy – who did not vote to fire former Superintendent Marie Feagins in January. Board members have called the election changes retaliation for that decision, a claim the lawsuit echoes.

The Shelby County Chancery Court issued a temporary restraining order to pause 2026 candidate petitions in the five contested districts – 2, 3, 4, 5, and 7 – earlier this month, marking an early win for the MSCS board.

A hearing is set for Jan. 26.

Bri Hatch covers Memphis-Shelby County Schools for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Reach Bri at bhatch@chalkbeat.org.

The Memphis school board election looks different this year. Here’s why it matters.

2026-01-05T18:47:42+00:00

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Memphis voters will choose an all-new school board this year in an unprecedented mega-election that comes as state lawmakers push to dilute the power of the locally elected board.

For the first time, the 2026 ballot will include candidates for all nine Memphis-Shelby County school board seats. And those vying for the open positions will also compete in a partisan primary in May.

These changes are part of what some state and local officials say is a plan to increase voter turnout and school board accountability. But others argue the moves are unconstitutional and retaliatory.

The MSCS board filed a lawsuit in December against the local election commission to stop it from holding races for Districts 2, 3, 4, 5 and 7. Those races would cut short five members’ terms, a move the lawsuit calls “legislative punishment masquerading as election reform.”

Memphis school board members have faced heavy backlash from some parents and community leaders, in addition to government officials, since voting to fire former Superintendent Marie Feagins last January. Some say the 2026 election changes are a reaction to that decision.

But there’s much more at stake, including school closures and a new superintendent hire. And in the midst of the district’s upheaval, the board’s own authority could be usurped by the state in the coming months.

Here are four reasons why the 2026 board election is so important.

For some, it’s a long-awaited reckoning for Marie Feagins’ ouster

During months of back-and-forth votes from the county commission, some MSCS parents and community members testified that the school board needed to be held accountable for abruptly firing Feagins, who they say was making good progress.

Board members have said the mega-election is retaliation for that decision. Four of the five members who will lose two years of their elected terms voted to oust the former superintendent.

Others say Feagins is a factor in the election upheaval, but not the driving force.

“The firing of Feagins is a symptom of the problem, but it was not the only problem, and it wasn’t necessarily the triggering problem,” said Luke Cymbal, vice president of the Shelby County Democrats. Cymbal said it’s more about low literacy and high absenteeism rates in the district, academic underperformance issues that have long plagued the district.

Mauricio Calvo, a former MSCS board member and director of Latino Memphis, said Feagins’ firing sparked a lot of anger in some parents.

“People were really upset, but they didn’t care enough to go and vote last year,” he said. “Suddenly they’re like, ‘I want to recall board members; they should be fired,’ and that’s not a thing.”

Rep. Torrey Harris, a Democrat from Memphis, has already filed a bill that would allow voters to recall local elected officials — including school board members — in the upcoming legislative session.

Significant state intervention could be coming

Two Republican Tennessee lawmakers, Rep. Mark White and Sen. Brent Taylor, say they will revisit an effort to establish a state-appointed board of managers in MSCS. If White and House GOP leaders get their way, the board would have significant decision-making authority, diluting the power of the elected school board.

The results of an independent financial audit of the district, also pushed forward by state lawmakers last year, are expected to come out in 2026. An early report should be released at the beginning of the year, White said in December.

While Taylor’s Senate bill last year established an oversight body with limited authority over district decisions, White and other House leaders are adamant the group needs voting authority on major school board decisions like budget creation and large purchases.

Local Republican leaders are hopeful that support for a takeover could propel some conservative candidates to win MSCS board seats. Regardless, debates about how best to work with the state on MSCS issues will likely play a major role in the 2026 elections.

MSCS leadership decisions are coming

MSCS is due for a new superintendent at the end of July. Interim Superintendent Roderick Richmond said he wants the permanent role, but it’s unclear if the MSCS board will conduct a formal search. The last superintendent search took over a year and stalled multiple times because of board infighting.

Board members kicked off an informal review of Richmond’s 10-month performance in November. They’re expected to discuss results from anonymous staff surveys and give their input in January.

Meanwhile, Feagins’ lawsuit against MSCS in which she seeks to be reinstated as the district’s top leader is still ongoing. The Daily Memphian reported that she also recently announced a bid for the 2026 Shelby County mayoral race.

School closures and building upgrades are on the way

In February, the current MSCS board is set to vote on a proposed list of four school closures and the transfer of one elementary school to a neighboring district starting next year. Up to 10 more schools could be closed by 2028, according to a long-term facilities plan released in December.

The new plan didn’t name which schools will be suggested for closure in the next few years. But it did say most recommendations will be concentrated in the Northwest and Southwest districts, where chronic underenrollment and facility conditions are at their worst.

In town halls this fall, parents raised concerns about teacher relocation and student safety, especially at schools that could merge students from different grade levels. But the long-term plan suggests leaning even more on K-8 or 6-12 schools.

The next school board will be in charge of approving the 2027 and 2028 closures and directing the first wave of needed building upgrades and repairs. That includes securing funding, such as asking the Shelby County commission for a $750 million bond for the next 10 years.

Bri Hatch covers Memphis-Shelby County Schools for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Reach Bri at bhatch@chalkbeat.org.

Have Democrats lost voters’ trust on education? Not according to most polls.

2025-11-18T16:04:16+00:00

Chalkbeat Ideas is a new section featuring reported columns on the big ideas and debates shaping American schools. Sign up for the Ideas newsletter to follow our work.

Democrats are in disarray on education — according to a growing chorus of Democrats.

A variety of left-leaning journalists, politicians, and advocates have all recently claimed that voters have become disillusioned with the party’s approach to schools. Often, these commentators cite anger over pandemic-era closures and argue that Democrats need to embrace tougher academic standards or school choice.

“For decades, when pollsters asked voters which party they trusted more on education, Democrats maintained, on average, a 14-point advantage. More recently that gap closed, then flipped to favor Republicans,” wrote former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel last month.

Is this emerging conventional wisdom true, though? This assertion has typically relied on one or two surveys, rather than a comprehensive look at the data. So I compiled all publicly available polls I could find that asked voters which party they preferred on education.

The verdict was clear: In more than a dozen surveys conducted this year by eight different organizations, all but one showed Democrats with an edge on education. This ranged from 4 to 15 points. Among all 14 polls, the median advantage was 9 points. Although Democrats appear to have briefly lost this edge a few years ago, voters again now tend to trust Democrats on the issue of education, broadly defined.

The narrative that Republicans had wrested the issue of education from Democrats emerged in 2021, after Virginia’s Glenn Youngkin won a come-from-behind victory in the governor’s race after campaigning on parents’ rights.

Long-running data from the Winston Group, a political consulting firm, showed that in late 2021 and early 2022 Republicans really had eroded Democrats’ lead on education. The parties were even briefly tied for the first time since the early 2000s, when former President George W. Bush was championing No Child Left Behind. Polling commissioned in 2022 and 2023 by Democrats for Education Reform, a group that backs charter schools and vouchers, also showed Democrats falling behind on education.

Since then, though, Democrats appear to have regained their edge. In the run-up to the 2024 presidential election, the party held at least a 10-point lead, according to Winston Group. Other polls from last year also found that more voters preferred Democrats’ approach on education, even as the party lost the presidency.

Emanuel pointed me to polling from 2022. “Democrats have not gained ground as much as Trump has cost GOP gains they have made,” he says when asked about the more recent surveys.

This year in Virginia, Democrat Abigail Spanberger easily won in her bid to replace Youngkin. Education was one of her stronger issues, according to a Washington Post survey.

Some argue that these election results disprove the idea that Democrats are losing on schools. “That’s not what panned out at all,” says Jennifer Berkshire, a progressive author who writes and teaches about education. She notes that the Republican governor candidate in New Jersey also tried to make schools an issue and lost badly.

The Winston poll shows Democrats’ advantage is currently below its peak between 2006 and 2009 but is comparable to many other periods, including the tail end of the Obama administration and part of the first Trump administration.

Keep in mind: These surveys ask about education broadly, not just K-12 schools. When given the option, a good chunk of voters don’t endorse either party’s approach. For instance, a YouGov survey found Democrats up 39%-32% on education with another 29% saying they weren’t sure or that the parties were about the same.

The one public poll in which Democrats did not have an advantage came from Blue Rose Research, a Democratic-aligned firm. Ali Mortell, its head of research, says different survey methodologies can lead to different results.

Regardless, she wants to see Democratic politicians lean into the issue more. “Say they do have that trust advantage right now, [education] is still not something that they’re really talking about a lot,” Mortell says.

One of the top messages that resonates with voters focuses on addressing teachers’ concerns about stagnant pay and large class sizes, Blue Rose polling finds.

Democrats’ lead on education doesn’t appear to have grown much over the last year, according to surveys from Winston, YouGov, and Ipsos. That’s somewhat surprising since Trump’s approval has sunk generally and is low on education specifically.

Jorge Elorza, the CEO of Democrats for Education Reform, points to a survey it commissioned showing the two parties tied when it comes to making sure schools emphasize academic achievement. “Democrats should be focused on delivering results,” he says. “When we ask voters about that, it’s a toss up.” A separate DFER poll found the party with only a 1-point lead on who voters trust to ensure “students are prepared for success after high school.”

Democrats’ overall polling advantage on education does not necessarily speak to the substantive merits of their policies, however. One analysis found that Democratic-leaning states have seen bigger declines in student test scores in recent years. At a national level, Democrats have not offered a particularly clear message on K-12 education, unlike Trump.

“For the last six years there’s [been] no proactive agenda for Democrats on educational excellence,” says Emanuel.

The party’s approach to schools has clearly lost a segment of America’s political tastemakers including center-left nonprofit executives, political strategists, and even some Democratic politicians. Yet, despite insistent assertions otherwise, regular voters don’t seem to share this view, at least at the moment.

I relied on the following polls from this year, with Democrats’ lead in parentheses: Blue Rose Research (February, tied); Fox News (July +15); Ipsos (February +6, April +4, October +7); Napolitan News Service (August +9, October +6); Navigator (August +9); Strength in Numbers (May +11, October +15); YouGov (May +7); Winston (April +15, June +14, August/September +11). To find these surveys, I conducted my own search and asked a variety of large pollsters, as well as a number of advocates. Differences in results between polls can come from random error, as well as differences in sampling and question wording. Although the precise wording varied, each poll asked voters which party they preferred on education.

Matt Barnum is Chalkbeat’s ideas editor. Reach him at mbarnum@chalkbeat.org.

Voters in 5 of 6 Indiana communities, including Avon, approve school referendums

2025-11-05T21:30:10+00:00

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Volunteers and district leaders wearing school colors stood outside the Avon United Methodist Church, a popular polling place in the Hendricks County town, handing out information about the only item on Tuesday’s ballot: a referendum for Avon Community Schools to pay for maintaining smaller class sizes, extracurriculars, and competitive teacher pay.

Nearby, members of the Avon High School orchestra played Christmas carols, and a steady stream of people arrived to cast their vote.

One hundred and seventy-three jobs, mostly teachers, were on the line. The vote was six months earlier than planned, due to changes made at the statehouse. And Lt. Gov Micah Beckwith went to Avon less than two weeks earlier to showcase his opposition to school referendums.

Avon Community Schools was one of six school districts with a referendum vote on Tuesday, an election watched by many as a test case for future school property tax measures due to multiple changes by lawmakers.

Unofficial results showed five districts – Avon, Cannelton City Schools, Duneland Schools, Hanover Schools, and Lake Central Schools – passed their referendums, all renewals of previous ones. Northwest Allen Community Schools, the only district with a new referendum, did not.

“We don’t take that support lightly and I’m excited to see all the many ways our students and educators will thrive in the coming years thanks to our community’s support,” Avon superintendent Scott Wyndham wrote in his victory message.

State law allows school districts to seek this additional revenue as a supplement to the local property tax dollars they receive, as well as state and federal funding. Referendums can be for construction, safety, or operating expenses. All six this year were operating referendums meaning they were to fund salaries and programming.

Members of the Avon High School orchestra perform for voters on Tuesday. The school district referendum was the only item on the ballot.

Earlier this year, state lawmakers passed measures to lower property taxes, which many expect to lower operating revenue for schools, increase how much of that funding some districts must share with charter schools, and restrict referendums to only general statewide elections, rather than during any primary or general election. This year was an exception for school boards that passed a resolution before June 30 to place a referendum on the November ballot.

“Indiana is now a referendum state and it’s only going to become more and more the case,” Wyndham said, adding that school leaders and educators are there to teach kids and provide the best schools possible. “Yet Indiana has put us in a situation where for the last three months we’ve been running a campaign.”

School referendum campaigns are ‘full-time job’

In Avon, the referendum was a renewal of the 2018 referendum, but at a lower rate, and campaign volunteers aimed to share what was at stake with the community.

One example was the orchestra playing outside the polls. Before the 2018 referendum, elementary schools shared teachers for “specials” like art, gym, and music. After the referendum, each school has a dedicated teacher for those classes, and the music program has grown. Avon now has the largest orchestra program in the state with over 1,000 students in grades six to 12 participating, per the district.

While referendum support was generally positive, Avon school leaders said misinformation also caused challenges.

Sarah Parent, an Avon school board member, said the district’s political action committee put in a lot of time and effort, equating it to a full-time job. “And many of us already have full-time jobs.”

Parent, who has three children in the district, added that she thinks referendums are divisive and wants to see more school funding from the state legislature so that schools don’t have to do them, eliminating ”one extra thing that’s dividing the community right now.”

Both Parent and Wyndham encouraged people in Avon to stay involved with the schools and do their research, especially if they have questions about the district or voted against the referendum.

“Win or lose,” Parent said, “there are a lot of big decisions to be made.”

Indiana school referendum election results

Below are unofficial results for the November 2025 Indiana school referendums:

Avon Community School Corporation, Hendricks County: Passed. 64.58% voted yes.
Cannelton City School Corporation, Perry County: Passed. 71.5% voted yes.
Duneland School Corporation, Porter County: Passed. 61.9% voted yes.
Hanover School Corporation, Lake County: Passed. 52.71% voted yes
Lake Central School Corporation, Lake County: Passed. 59.51% voted yes.
Northwest Allen Community Schools, Allen County: Failed. 53.99% voted no.

Chalkbeat Indiana reporter Aleksandra Appleton contributed to this story.

MJ Slaby oversees Chalkbeat Indiana’s coverage as bureau chief. Contact MJ at mslaby@chalkbeat.org.

Election 2025: Voters OK additional funding for CTE programs in Washtenaw County

2025-11-05T17:55:59+00:00

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Career and technical education programs in Washtenaw County will get a big boost after voters approved a tax increase to add a new funding stream for the programs.

The passage of the special tax proposal may be a good sign across Michigan, given that 41% of schools have limited CTE opportunities for students. The Michigan Department of Education describes these areas as CTE deserts, because data show participation in career tech programs is lower than expected. Tax measures like the one that passed Tuesday in Washtenaw County mean the career programs will have a steady stream of funding.

The proposal passed with 35,947 votes in favor and 29,676 opposed.The tax measure will last 10 years, at which voters would have to approve renewing it.

“This investment by our community will help shape a generation of hope,” said Ryan Rowe, the career and technical education director for the Washtenaw Intermediate School District.

“Our goal is for every student to cross the stage at graduation with an informed and inspired plan for what comes next, whether it’s college, an apprenticeship, the military, or a high-skill career,” Rowe said. “This funding allows us to build stronger pathways, connect learning to the real world, and help students see their future within reach.”

The outcome wasn’t as good for school districts that are part of the Cheboygan-Otsego-Presque Isle intermediate school district in northern Michigan. A similar career and technical education tax proposal failed, according to the Cheboygan Tribune. It would have allowed for the expansion of CTE programs and for funding to allow students to travel to and from school districts in the three counties to take CTE classes.

CTE is particularly limited in Washtenaw County. A report from the University of Michigan’s Youth Policy Lab said access in the county is inequitable, and that students from low-income homes and Black and Hispanic students “have less overall access to CTE programming compared” to more affluent and white students.

At Ypsilanti Community High School, Principal Chelsea Harris-Hugan told Chalkbeat last month that the school would add more CTE programs based on student interest if the measure passes.

“The millage is incredibly important to our students and to our community,” she said. “It provides a bigger pathway and a better opportunity for our students.”

Officials from the Washtenaw Intermediate School District, which will oversee the funding from the tax measure, told Chalkbeat recently that the additional money will allow the ISD to sustain current programs across the county, expand those with waitlists, and create new regional programs. Much of the initial efforts will expand access in Ypsilanti and Whitmore Lake school districts, because they have significantly fewer CTE opportunities than other districts.

Lori Higgins is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Detroit. You can reach her at lhiggins@chalkbeat.org.

Mary Sheffield is Detroit’s next mayor. Can she influence education?

2025-11-05T14:39:22+00:00

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Detroit City Council President Mary Sheffield won the race for Detroit mayor by a wide margin Tuesday.

The vote totals were 88,229 for Sheffield and 25,725 for Solomon Kinloch, the pastor at Triumph Church.

Her big win was also historic, with Sheffield becoming the city’s first female mayor.

She referred to the historical significance of her victory during an acceptance speech late Tuesday, noting that in the city’s 324-year history, there have been 75 mayors and “not one of them has been a woman.”

“But tonight, Detroit, we know that changes. And you changed it Detroit,” Sheffield said.

Sheffield will be the city’s first new mayor in about a dozen years. Current Mayor Mike Duggan didn’t run for reelection and instead is running in next year’s governor’s race.

Now that Sheffield has been elected, the attention will turn to whether she’ll deliver on her campaign promises. And for those who care about education in the city, the big question is whether she will be effective in partnering with the city’s schools to improve student outcomes.

Kinloch and Sheffield both said they intended to play a key role in helping address the issues that make it difficult for children to show up for school and learn. Sheffield won the August primary and led polls since then.

Detroit mayoral candidate Solomon Kinloch, center, lost Tuesday's election to Mary Sheffield. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)

The mayor of Detroit doesn’t have any control over the operation of schools in the city but can still have an influence.

Sheffield said Tuesday that her administration will be more involved in education in the city by creating coordinated transportation and investing in after-school programs and wraparound services. The goal, she said, is that every child can succeed.

“We know that when our youth rise, Detroit rises,” Sheffield said.

In interviews with Chalkbeat during the campaign, community leaders and education advocates offered these ideas for what the mayor could do:

Transportation: Many high school students take the city’s public buses to get to and from school. Many students say that the bus system isn’t reliable, buses are often late, and sometimes, buses pass them up. Students have also expressed concerns about safety while waiting at bus stops and on buses. The mayor can work with the Detroit Department of Transportation to improve reliability of bus service, including wait times, address safety concerns, and ensure bus stops are located in areas that are convenient for students.

Housing: Many Detroit families are struggling with housing insecurity, and the number of children experiencing homelessness is on the rise. Two Michigan State University political science professors wrote earlier this year that rising rents in the city are playing a role in housing challenges. About 59% of families with school-aged children are renters in Detroit, according to this fact sheet from Wayne State University researchers. The city has invested a lot in creating affordable housing, but concerns were raised during the campaign that the affordable housing isn’t affordable enough for the average Detroit resident. Meanwhile, evictions can create instability for children attending school.

What can the mayor do? Push for affordable housing that works for families with school-age children, while also ensuring that affordable housing is placed in areas that make it easier for parents to get their children to and from school.

Partnering with schools: The city’s mayor can create a more cohesive education system by bringing district and charter schools together and ensuring students who attend both have access to important resources such as after-school programming.

What Sheffield promised on education

Here’s what Sheffield told Chalkbeat this summer when asked what role the mayor could play:

“I understand my role to be a solutions-oriented advocate on behalf of parents, teachers, students and community members. In my opinion, it does very little good to point fingers or blame entries or people for current issues, especially when many times, whole systems need to be addressed to reach real solutions,” Sheffield said.

“Instead, I will establish deeper collaborative ties with DPSCD first and foremost, acknowledging that a strong school system means a strong Detroit. Everything from Detroit’s public safety to workforce to small business and entrepreneurship have direct ties to our educational system. So as a goal, we will understand the gaps and create solutions together. I am willing to commit significant resources towards improving the areas impacting education that the City of Detroit oversees: Infrastructure, quality of life for students and families, safety, and in some cases, funding advocacy. I will do this in collaboration with residents and with DPSCD partners.”

During an October debate, when confronted with a question about how the mayor can address low academic performance and high rates of chronic absenteeism, Sheffield replied:

“My administration will have a liaison working directly with our DPSCD and charter schools on a consistent basis. We will ensure that we have robust after school programming within a two mile radius of every school, focusing in on literacy. We will provide the wraparound service and address the social deterrents that prevent and impact our families and our students, like mental health and housing and having support in the schools and on the grounds to support our families and students. And lastly, as a mayor, I can ensure that we have safe routes to school and fixing the infrastructure around our schools and providing more coordinated transportation to reduce absenteeism and get our students back in school.”

Lori Higgins is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Detroit. You can reach her at lhiggins@chalkbeat.org.

Colorado voters pass Proposition MM by a wide margin

2025-11-05T05:28:00+00:00

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Colorado voters said yes Tuesday night to pumping more money into the state’s free school meals program by raising taxes on households that make more than $300,000 a year, election returns showed.

The Associated Press called the race in favor of Proposition MM, which asked voters to raise taxes for a second time in three years to help fund the state’s Healthy School Meals for All program.

The program provides free breakfast and lunch to students at participating schools. The proposition is one of two that wanted voters to increase program funding. Proposition LL also passed.

The program has become more popular and therefore more expensive than expected. Money from Proposition FF, the 2022 ballot measure that created Healthy School Meals for All, hasn’t raised enough annual revenue to keep up with expenses.

Advocates on Tuesday night said the passage of the measures is a victory for children’s well-being. They said the money will help combat uncertainty around the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, which helps provide food assistance to families and was cut back by Congress.

Ana Bustamante, whose organization Save the Children Action Network supported both measures, said no student should have to be hungry at school. She said the approval of MM means Colorado could have extra money to help with the federal SNAP cuts.

In a news release, the Keep Kids Fed campaign said the victory means better grades, higher graduation rates, and better outcomes for Colorado students. The organization lists 110 organizations across the state as part of its committee, including hospitals, county governments, churches, teachers associations, and community advocacy organizations.

Anya Rose, director of public policy at Hunger Free Colorado and a member of the Keep Kids Fed campaign, said the victory is a win for students and families.

“While we celebrate this victory for Colorado kids and families, we also cannot ignore that, for thousands of Colorado families, this remains a time of deep economic hardship and food insecurity, made worse by USDA’s refusal to provide full funding for SNAP and the devastating cuts to SNAP Congress approved this past summer,” she said.

Proposition MM is expected to raise $95 million more for the Healthy School Meals for All program. The money could also be used to administer the SNAP program.

The ballot measure would affect an estimated 200,000 Colorado households, or about 6% of households, and raise their taxes by an average of $486 more a year.

Without the money generated from the two ballot measures, about 382 of the 1,803 schools participating would have been unable able to serve free meals starting in January. Families at those schools would have needed to either pay for meals or fill out federal forms to get free or reduced price meals.

Colorado voters overwhelmingly approve Proposition LL

2025-11-05T05:15:50+00:00

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Colorado voters have overwhelmingly approved of Proposition LL, which would help fund the state’s universal free school meals program.

The Associated Press called the race in favor of Proposition LL. The ballot measure is one of two that will increase funding for the Healthy School Meals for All program, which provides free breakfast and lunch to students at participating schools. Proposition MM also passed.

Proposition LL will allow Colorado to keep millions in excess revenue raised for the program instead of providing refunds to certain taxpayers.

The free meals program has become more popular and therefore more expensive than expected. Money from Proposition FF, the 2022 ballot measure that created Healthy School Meals for All, hasn’t raised enough annual revenue to keep up with those expenses.

Advocates on Tuesday night said their passage is a victory for children’s well-being.

Ana Bustamante, whose organization Save the Children Action Network supported both measures, said no student should have to be hungry at school. She said the funding will help sustain the program’s long-term success and ensure schools can continue to offer meals that fuel student learning.

“Not only are we making sure students eat healthy, fresh meals,” she said, “but we’re also supporting Colorado farmers and ranchers.”

Colorado Democratic Party Chair Shad Murib said in a statement that Colorado voters sent a message that no student should have to learn on an empty stomach.

“Voters chose compassion, common sense and Colorado values while saving families money,” he said.

Since Proposition FF passed in 2022, the state has collected millions more than budget officials have estimated, triggering refunds to households that make more than $300,000 a year.

Lawmakers placed Proposition LL before voters to exempt money for the school meals program from the state’s Taxpayer Bill of Rights, or TABOR, which requires Colorado to provide tax refunds if money collected from a voter-approved ballot measure exceeds state estimates.

For example, state officials had estimated Proposition FF would collect $100.7 million for the program in the 2023-24 year. Instead, the state collected about $112 million, or about $11.3 million more than expected.

Instead of refunding the money from that tax year, lawmakers asked permission through Proposition LL to keep that $11.3 million, plus $1.1 million in interest, to help fund the free school meals. Proposition LL would also affect future year tax collections and rebates subject to TABOR.

Without the money generated from the two ballot measures, about 382 of the 1,803 schools participating wouldn’t have been able to serve free meals starting in January. Families at those schools would have needed to either pay for meals or fill out federal forms to get free or reduced price meals.

What a Mikie Sherrill gubernatorial win means for education

2025-11-05T03:24:04+00:00

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Democrat Mikie Sherrill will be New Jersey’s next governor, delivering a sharp rebuke to Republicans who hoped to uproot the state’s school funding formula, expand the charter school sector, and launch a private school voucher program.

The Associated Press called the race for Sherrill Tuesday evening.

“I hear you, Newark. I’m going to work with communities from the ground up so all of our neighbors thrive,” Sherrill said late Tuesday evening. “I’m going to make sure our kids are safe online and schools have the resources they need to address the mental health crisis.”

Sherrill, a U.S. congresswoman since 2019 whose district includes Essex County, has pledged to invest in tutoring, student mental health, and equity in schools, largely echoing policies laid out by Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy.

But notably, she and her opponent, Republican Jack Ciattarelli, both vowed to expand the state’s Interdistrict Public School Choice Program, which allows students to attend a public school in a different district. That expansion could mean Newark may participate for the first time.

With more than 84% of ballots counted, the unofficial election results as of 10:15 p.m.:

Democrat Mikie Sherrill: 56.3% (1,549,432 votes)

Republican Jack Ciatarelli: 43.1% (1,187,437votes)

On the campaign trail, Sherrill did not make education issues central to her agenda, and her positions did not stray much from those of her predecessor, Murphy. Her election likely means Newark Public Schools will continue to enjoy the degree of local control they wrested back from the state five years ago.

The Newark Teachers Union endorsed Sherrill and president John Abeigon said he hopes she’ll further some of Murphy’s initiatives, such as the creation of teacher taskforces and boosting teacher pensions.

Sherrill has also said she would modernize the state’s school funding formula, originally written in 2008. Newark, the state’s largest school district, has historically been one of the most underfunded. This school year, 84% of the district’s budget came directly from state aid, and any changes in funding or policy could affect teacher hiring, tutoring programs, and support for the district’s most vulnerable students.

Abeigon thinks updating the formula is a good idea, but said he would urge the state to bring in teachers to the conversation.

“If they take a look at the formula with nothing but politicians at the table, then don’t bother sitting down,” Abeigon added.

Sherrill has also floated the idea of requiring some of the state’s smallest school districts to merge as a cost-saving mechanism.

In addition, Sherrill supports a statewide ban on cellphones in schools. In Newark Public Schools, the current policy allows electronic devices and cellphones in school, but students may not use them to make calls or take photos or videos from within the school building unless they receive permission from a school administrator.

This story is part of the NJ 2025 Reporting Fellowship, which collaborates with 15 local and community news organizations, the Center for Cooperative Media at Montclair State University, and NJ Spotlight News. The stories in this collaboration focus on immigration, education, healthcare, the economy, and the environment, highlighting the perspectives of diverse communities in New Jersey.

Jessie Gómez is a reporter for Chalkbeat Newark, covering public education in the city. Contact Jessie at jgomez@chalkbeat.org.

Carly Sitrin is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Philadelphia. Contact Carly at csitrin@chalkbeat.org.

New Jersey gubernatorial election: Next governor could reshape education

2025-11-04T17:17:25+00:00

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Democrat Mikie Sherrill and Republican Jack Ciattarelli head into Election Day in a tight race for New Jersey governor that could have major implications for schools across the state.

Education issues, such as reforming the state’s school funding formula and providing more school choice for families, have been key to both campaigns. The candidates have also agreed on limiting the use of cellphones in schools, expanding the state’s stalled choice program, and helping schools boost student achievement.

Despite the similarities, the two candidates offer starkly different visions on how to shape education.

Beyond funding and school choice, the candidates have also weighed in on curriculum and parent involvement, echoing national debates over what schools should teach and how the state should intervene.

The candidates are looking to succeed Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat, who cannot seek a third consecutive term because of term limits.

Ciattarelli, a former state lawmaker who’s received President Donald Trump’s endorsement, wants to create a “Parents’ Bill of Rights” requiring districts to post K-12 curriculum at the beginning of each school year and end a state law that allows schools to accept students’ asserted gender identities without notifying parents. His policies echo many of the Trump administration’s education priorities and would represent a significant shift to the right.

Meanwhile, Sherrill, a U.S. congresswoman who received an endorsement from former President Barack Obama, has said she would invest in student mental health and tutoring and make efforts to reduce inequities between affluent districts and those in areas like Newark and Camden.

New Jersey’s next governor must also address urgent decisions on student academic recovery, teacher shortages, and equity in schools amid the state’s ongoing school segregation lawsuit.

For Newark Public Schools, the outcome of this year’s governor’s race could have lasting impacts on how the state supports its largest school district. While Newark has regained local control after 25 years of state oversight, it still heavily depends on state aid. City residents are also watching how each candidate approaches expanding charter schools and school choice. Superintendent Roger León has opposed charter school growth and has vowed to regain school spaces occupied by them.

The race between the candidates remains close, with recent polls showing the candidates separated by just a few percentage points.

On Tuesday, bomb threats forced several polling locations across seven counties to close or relocate, but law enforcement officials said the threats were not credible, according to NJ.com. Newark police said they investigated the origin of bomb threats in the city that were later unfounded. No polling locations are closed in Newark as of 9:30 a.m.

Polls across New Jersey open at 6 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. on Tuesday. You can also drop off your mail-in ballot at a county drop box or at your county’s Board of Elections office by 8 p.m. on election night. Ballots left after that will be considered late and won’t be counted. Find a ballot box and your local office by visiting vote.nj.gov.

Check back later for updates and results after the polls close.

Jessie Gómez is a reporter for Chalkbeat Newark, covering public education in the city. Contact Jessie at jgomez@chalkbeat.org.

Interdistrict Public School Choice Program could expand with bipartisan support amid funding, equity hurdles

2025-11-03T18:51:20+00:00

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In a race defined by radically different approaches to education, school choice may be one of the few things New Jersey’s gubernatorial candidates agree on.

Both Democrat Mikie Sherrill and Republican Jack Ciattarelli say they support expanding the state’s Interdistrict Public School Choice Program, which lets some students attend public schools outside their home district. Sherrill says the program could be used to integrate New Jersey’s persistently segregated school system, while Ciattarelli wants to pair it with a Florida-style private school voucher program.

The candidates’ focus could bring life to a program that’s been stalled for more than a decade because of lack of funding. It could also mean that Newark and other districts in Essex County might participate for the first time since the program’s inception in 1999.

There are currently 119 so-called “choice districts” and about 5,000 students who participate in the program, with another 2,500 students on a waitlist, said Wells Winegar, executive director of the New Jersey Policy Institute think tank, who worked under former Gov. Chris Christie. He added that expanding the program could help districts that are facing enrollment declines while giving families more school options.

“It was designed to help families find public schools that fit their child’s needs,” Winegar said, while providing parents “an overall kind of better environment for their child without having to pay private school tuition.”

No Essex County districts currently participate in the program as receiving districts, but if the state’s next governor provides the first serious push in years to expand it, that could change, potentially affecting Newark’s enrollment and transportation costs.

Supporters — including many from New Jersey’s Republican policy circles — say that the program helps keep kids in public schools while boosting enrollment in districts that have lost students. They also note that it gives students access to schools with stronger academic programs, art, sports, and music classes. But skeptics warn that expanding the program could worsen funding gaps and make it harder to distribute resources fairly across districts.

What is the Interdistrict School Choice Program?

The program started as a small five-year pilot in 1999, hailed by then-Republican Gov. Christie Whitman as a way to give parents more choice while improving the public school system statewide through increased “competition.”

It’s not a charter or voucher program. Instead, it allows traditional public school districts to opt-in as choice districts, opening seats to students who live outside district boundaries. Typically, choice districts have experienced declining enrollment, financial strain, or are looking for new funding to launch new programs or strengthen their academic offerings. If there are more students requesting admission to a school than there are available openings, state law requires a district to hold a lottery to determine which students are admitted.

The choice program is budgeted for $62 million, Winegar said. To fund it, the state provides the receiving district with money to cover the cost of educating the student. But paying for students isn’t the same everywhere because of differences in tax levies across cities and towns, according to Danielle Farrie, research director at the Education Law Center. The state provides categorical funding in the amount equal to the tax levy per pupil in the receiving district, Farrie added, but depending on where students are transferring to and from, the costs could add up.

“So essentially, the state is covering both sides. Normally, there’s the state and the local share. But now the state is also picking up the local share,” Farrie added.

Though the program has been around for more than two decades, there’s little data available about how it is currently working, which students are participating, and the financial impact on sending and receiving districts. As of publication, a spokesperson for the state Department of Education said they would “look into” making such data available to Chalkbeat.

A 2005 Rutgers University report on the program found it was having some positive results. Increased choice revenue allowed some participating districts to increase enrollment, hire additional staff, reduce class sizes, offer new programs, and avoid tax increases and program cuts.

Farrie, the research director at ELC, said if the program were to expand, equity should be at the forefront. Early analyses of the pilot showed that participating students were overwhelmingly white. Black and Hispanic students, as well as students with disabilities, were not served quite as well as others, the Rutgers researchers found. A few receiving districts reported that their student body became more diverse because of the program.

But to understand the impacts of the choice program and potentially, help desegregate schools as Sherrill has proposed, the state has to provide data “to analyze which students are leaving which districts, going to which districts, is that improving segregation, is making it worse by either race or income,” Farrie said.

“We don’t really have the answers to those questions right now,” Farrie added.

In 2012-13, Gov. Chris Christie’s administration capped the program at 5% growth, which some participating superintendents said left it underfunded and incapable of meeting the demand for seats.

Former Glassboro Superintendent Mark Silverstein said the state cap prevented his district from growing the program. During his tenure, about 200 students from neighboring school districts participated in the choice program. That program helped boost student achievement and strengthen academic programs, Silverstein said.

In the program’s first year, Silverstein said, the district’s valedictorian was a choice student who came from outside Glassboro.

“That’s how I thought about school choice — it provides increased academic opportunities and maybe forces districts to provide programs they would have not done,” Silverstein said.

A 2023 review of the program determined there was little evidence to say whether students’ academic experience was improved.

Because funding follows the student, sending districts lose state aid for every student who participates, as they are no longer counted in the district’s enrollment. Those districts must also pay for up to 20 miles of a student’s transportation to their new school. After 20 miles, parents must cover the cost to send their child to school, causing more concerns over who can participate, Farrie added.

“Not everyone can do that. Some people need bus stop close to their house to get around,” Farrie said.

What would expanding the school choice program do?

Supporters of the program have signaled that an expansion into Essex County could be next, and growing attention from Sherrill and Ciattarelli may make that more likely. Researchers and experts have also said expansion and an increase in funding could improve the program and allow it to serve students more equitably.

But if the program were to expand, Farrie says the state should think about providing compensation to school districts that may experience a significant enrollment loss or higher transportation costs.

In their fiscal analysis of the program, NJPI experts lay out a scenario where roughly 5% — approximately 4,230 students — in “alleged highly segregated districts” (East Orange, Irvington, Newark City, Orange City, New Brunswick, and Perth Amboy) would move into new choice districts within Middlesex and Essex counties.

That could have implications for Newark’s enrollment and funding. Newark’s enrollment is on the upswing. Over the past 5 years, Newark Public Schools have added over 7,000 students. But experts warn that expanding the choice program could strain district budgets, especially those like Newark, where state aid makes up 84% of its budget this school year.

Farrie added that if the state’s next governor chooses to expand the program, they should look at who has the opportunity to change school districts and ensure those opportunities are distributed more equitably across communities.

“If we are going to expand it, it needs to be done in a much more careful way to make sure that it’s realizing the goals of what we want New Jersey public education policy to actually look like,” Farrie added.

Jessie Gómez is a reporter for Chalkbeat Newark, covering public education in the city. Contact Jessie at jgomez@chalkbeat.org.

Voter guide: Where the NYC mayoral candidates stand on the future of education

2025-10-24T20:40:06+00:00

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New York City’s next mayor will oversee the nation’s largest school system: more than 1,600 schools serving roughly 900,000 students with about 150,000 employees.

Its $40 billion budget makes it the largest city agency.

And yet, the candidates have not made education a central theme.

Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani’s affordability agenda includes free child care, but he has a slim K-12 platform. He’s offered some hints that he’d want to focus on the system’s most vulnerable children, including students with disabilities and the growing number of homeless students. A record high of the city students — 154,000 — lived last year in shelters or doubled up in homes with friends or family.

Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who is running as an independent, has positioned himself as the champion of selective admissions, calling for doubling specialized high schools and expanding gifted and talented programs — both of which serve a fraction of the city’s students and disproportionately enroll white and Asian American children.

And Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa vowed to slash $10 billion from the Education Department’s budget, roughly 42% of how much the city spends on schools. (Mamdani has also called for tackling wasteful department spending.)

Perhaps the most consequential education idea Mamdani has espoused about the city’s school system: having less control over it.

Here’s a closer look at some of the educational issues that have come up on the campaign trail.

What might the future of mayoral control look like?

Ever since Michael Bloomberg won sweeping control over the school system in 2002, including the power to appoint the schools chancellor, every mayor has lobbied state lawmakers to keep this governance model in place.

Mayoral control’s supporters say it creates a clear line of accountability: The buck stops with the mayor, who wields enormous influence over the Education Department’s budget.

Mamdani has vowed to “end” mayoral control, embracing a longstanding critique that it gives little say to parents and educators on decisions that directly affect them. The frontrunner has promised a system of “co-governance” with existing parent councils and school-level leadership teams, though has offered scant details on how that would work.

At the same time, he has said, the mayor should still be held accountable for the public school system — raising questions about how much power he is willing to relinquish.

“I remain opposed to mayoral control, and I also believe that the mayor is accountable for that which happens in this city,” Mamdani said in this week’s debate.

Both of Mamdani’s opponents support mayoral control.

Cuomo recently said it would be a “terrible mistake” to roll it back.

“That’s probably been the most dramatic educational reform in 40 years,” Cuomo said. “We’d go back to the old system that had local school boards, which were corrupt patronage mills.”

Whoever is elected must soon negotiate with state lawmakers over mayoral control, which is up for renewal in 2026. (It’s typically extended every couple years.)

How will the city meet the challenges to shrink classes?

Over the next two years, all New York City public school classrooms must be capped between 20-25 students under a state law. That will require thousands of new teachers, billions of dollars, and thorny tradeoffs at overcrowded campuses.

Mamdani, who was endorsed by the United Federation of Teachers, recently unveiled a plan to recruit 1,000 teachers a year by offering tuition assistance in exchange for a three-year teaching commitment. The $12 million plan won’t be enough to fully staff smaller classes, Mamdani acknowledged. To speed up the process of building new classroom space, he has also called for filling vacancies at the School Construction Authority, the agency overseeing such projects.

During the primary, Cuomo expressed support for the class size law, though he cautioned it would be difficult to implement without an infusion of new funding from the state. In recent weeks, however, the former governor’s tone has shifted considerably. In a town hall meeting with parent leaders last month, he decried the law as “detached from reality” and “reckless.”

“It is an impossibility without funding,” Cuomo said. Sliwa shares that position.

What will happen to Mayor Eric Adams’ curriculum mandates?

Mayor Eric Adams’ main educational agenda has focused on overhauling reading and math instruction. All elementary campuses must now use city-approved reading curriculums. High schools transitioned to a standard Algebra 1 program. A growing number of middle schools must use city-approved literacy and math programs, too.

In a rare instance of agreement, the candidates have said they generally support the reading curriculum changes. Cuomo has raised concerns about whether the mandated math curriculums are as strong. Mamdani said teachers should have more control over how the curriculums are implemented.

Yet in a recent debate, Mamdani took a more pessimistic tone on the reading curriculum changes — and the school system more broadly.

“We are not even on track to ensure greater literacy levels across those schools, despite the strides that have been taken with NYC Reads,” Mamdani said. (Reading scores ticked up on the latest state tests, though it’s unclear to what extent the curriculum changes are responsible for those improvements.)

Mamdani has not laid out a detailed vision for improving instruction, but in a meeting with business leaders over the summer, he suggested artificial intelligence could be a useful tool in crafting lesson plans and reduce the number of employees at the Education Department, the Wall Street Journal reported. More recently, he walked back some of those comments, saying AI should supplement rather than replace staffers.

How can NYC fix its failing schools?

Mayors have taken widely different approaches to the city’s lowest-performing campuses. Bloomberg closed many large high schools and opened new, smaller ones in their place. His successor, Bill de Blasio, flooded campuses with social services and academic support, viewing closures as a last resort.

Cuomo has indicated he would shutter schools in the bottom 5% of reading and math performance on state tests, or those with graduation rates below 60%. In their place, the city should open new programs, including charters or high schools that offer students early college credits, he said. (Opening new charter schools would require approval from state lawmakers who have generally been hostile to the sector.)

Mamdani has not outlined a clear plan for improving schools, which Cuomo seized on in the final weeks of the campaign. The Democratic nominee indicated that he is more in line with de Blasio’s vision and said he would support a network of more than 400 community schools that provide wraparound support, pointing to mental health services, tutoring, and other social services.

“While the research on large-scale school improvement initiatives is limited, it is critical to implement strategies that are grounded in data,” Mamdani wrote in response to a Chalkbeat questionnaire, pointing to some encouraging evidence on the community school model.

He has also expressed reservations about the charter sector, which enjoyed support under Bloomberg, arguing they siphon resources from traditional public schools and has vowed to audit them.

What might happen to gifted programs, specialized high schools?

Debate over the city’s gifted and talented program heated up again after Mamdani indicated he wanted to eliminate the classes that start in kindergarten and keep the program starting in third grade. Cuomo and Sliwa both said they would expand gifted programs with kindergarten entry.

Adams had opened dozens of new programs for third graders in underserved areas, a way to address a thorny issue vexing the city’s gifted system: It admits disproportionately few Black and Latino students compared to their share of the population citywide.

For kindergarten gifted and talented classes, students win seats based on prekindergarten teacher recommendations. Though acceptance no longer relies on testing 4-year-olds, a much criticized process, educators still have concerns about sorting kindergartners. Many of the new third grade programs, however — which invite students to apply based on their report cards — are failing to attract applicants.

While Mamdani has expressed interest in curtailing certain gifted programs, he has backed away from his previous stance calling to eliminate the Specialized High School Admissions Test, which serves as the sole basis of entry for eight schools including Stuyvesant, Brooklyn Tech, and Mamdani’s alma mater, Bronx Science. Many integration advocates have blasted the test as fueling the lack of offers to Black and Latino students. He previously told Chalkbeat that he would analyze the test for gender and racial bias.

Cuomo called for expanding the number of specialized high schools to 18 and said he would consider bringing back more selective admissions for other schools. Sliwa has also expressed support for increasing the number of specialized schools.

Who will be the next schools chancellor?

One of the most significant personnel decisions the next mayor will face is who to appoint to lead the nation’s largest school system.

Mamdani has said little about how he will make the decision or if he will conduct a national search. He has indicated that he is open to keeping Melissa Aviles-Ramos, the current schools chancellor appointed by Adams, which would represent a break from previous mayors who have appointed their own schools chief.

It’s also unclear whether he would be willing to give up any of his power to appoint a schools chancellor, a major element of mayoral control.

Cuomo declined to say who he would select when asked during a recent debate. Sliwa said he would appoint Robert Holden, a Queens City Council member.

Alex Zimmerman is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Alex atazimmerman@chalkbeat.org.

Amy Zimmer is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat New York. Contact Amy atazimmer@chalkbeat.org.

NJ governor election: How would Mikie Sherrill and Jack Ciattarelli shape education in Newark?

2025-10-20T14:42:50+00:00

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In the increasingly tight New Jersey governor’s race, education has become a key issue, with Democratic U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill and Republican former state lawmaker Jack Ciattarelli offering starkly different visions on how to shape the state’s public school system.

If elected, Sherrill, a congresswoman since 2019 whose district includes Essex County, has pledged to invest in tutoring, student mental health, and equity in schools, largely echoing policies laid out by Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy.

Ciattarelli, who has been endorsed by President Donald Trump, has outlined a conservative platform that echoes many of the Trump administration’s education priorities and would represent a significant shift to the right. Among his proposals is the expansion of charter schools and voucher programs.

Both candidates secured their party’s nomination in June’s historic primary election, which saw the highest voter turnout in a primary election in recent years. The Nov. 4 election – one of two gubernatorial races in the country this year – has gained national attention in part because it may serve as a test of Trump’s policies in a blue-leaning state like New Jersey.

A rightward shift could have a major impact on the future of Newark Public Schools and carries significant weight for the district, especially as it marks five years since it regained local control of its schools. The district has seen progress in recent years, but student achievement, outdated school buildings, and funding remain persistent challenges.

The next governor’s policies may also determine whether the progress of the city’s 41,000 public school students continues or stalls. Measures such as graduation rates and student performance have improved, and chronic absenteeism is trending downward. But Newark’s students have faced ongoing academic challenges following the COVID-19 pandemic, with younger students suffering the biggest declines.

Last school year marked the third year in a row that third grade English language arts state test scores remained the lowest of any grade.

Here’s where the candidates stand and what that could mean for classrooms in Newark and across the state.

Jump to: Student achievement | Charter schools | Funding formula | Infrastructure | Cell phones

What are the plans to boost student achievement?

When it comes to improving students’ reading skills, Ciattarelli says he has plans “to do something on day one.”

In response to a Chalkbeat question during last month’s Newark Today episode on WBGO radio, the Republican candidate said he would implement a “high-impact curriculum,” a set of research-based teaching strategies and learning practices that align with state standards and help boost student achievement. He pointed to Louisiana and Mississippi’s high-impact reading curriculum that has gained national recognition for improving state test scores, particularly in literacy.

Ciattarelli also noted that school districts with low state test scores, like Newark, where only 34% of students passed their English language arts test this spring, need the most support. He also said the state needs to invest in high-impact tutoring to help struggling students.

“We have to get back to the basics and make sure all our kids can read and do math at grade level. A child who cannot read well will find it hard to succeed in life,” Ciattarelli told Chalkbeat this week.

The Republican candidate added that his administration would use metrics similar to those in the state’s current evaluation system for public school districts, known as NJQSAC, to “tell us if a school system is failing.” This year, Newark received a high-performing designation from the state based on its evaluation system.

Ciattarelli would also implement a “Parents’ Bill of Rights” that would require school districts to post K-12 curriculum sources online at the beginning of each school year, according to his campaign website. The Republican candidate would also mandate that schools create “age-appropriate” sexual and “social education” instruction for all grade levels.

At an August rally for Moms for Liberty, a right-wing organization that has lobbied to restrict access to gender-affirming care for transgender youth, ban LGBTQ-focused books and curriculum, and limit teaching about race, Ciattarelli said he would end a state law signed by former Gov. Chris Christie in 2017 that allows school districts to accept students’ asserted gender identities without notifying parents.

Sherrill’s approach to help improve student performance focuses on high-impact tutoring, the Democratic candidate said in response to a Chalkbeat question on last month’s Newark Today episode. That tutoring consists of small-group sessions lasting at least half an hour, three times a week, with the same tutor each time. Research has shown it to be an effective method to combat learning loss.

Newark schools implemented high-impact tutoring with the help of an infusion of federal COVID relief dollars, which the district said was its “saving grace” in expanding programming. The district in 2023 also received a state grant to fund the tutoring work.

During the Newark Today episode, Sherrill also said she is “working hard to drive down costs” in the state and that her administration would evaluate what programs are working and prioritize support for those.

“As governor, [high-impact tutoring] is something I’m going to ensure we are funding in the budget and ensuring that we are getting that into schools, especially those schools that need it most,” Sherrill said.

The Democratic candidate also believes the state has a role in setting academic standards but said school districts should have flexibility in implementing them.

“Teachers and local school leaders know their students best. They understand the needs of their communities, and they should be trusted to tailor lessons, choose materials, and innovate in ways that make learning engaging and relevant,” Sherrill said to Northjersey.com in an interview this month.

Where do candidates stand on charter school expansion and school choice?

Ciattarelli has been clear about his plans to expand charter schools and provide vouchers, and offer more school choice for New Jersey’s families. His plans differ from Newark Superintendent Roger León and the district, who have asked the state to stop the expansion of charter schools in the city and work to regain school spaces taken by them.

The Republican candidate told Chalkbeat this week that he would not “buckle to pressure from anyone” trying to block charter schools in Newark. He added that the city’s charter schools are exceptional, “not only among the best charter schools in the country, but some of the best public schools ever created.”

With record-high charter school applications in Newark for this school year, Ciattarelli said he would “answer that demand by getting students off of wait lists and supporting the growth of high-performing charter schools.” Similarly, Ciattarelli has previously said that by creating a voucher program, which uses tax dollars to cover the cost of student tuition at private schools, families would have more school choice.

When it comes to funding charter schools, Ciattarelli said Newark’s $1.5 billion budget has “enough funding for district and charter schools to share.” But León and other district officials have raised concerns about rising charter school costs year over year. This school year, charter school payments made up the district’s largest expenditure, totaling $401 million, a $47.2 million increase from the 2024-25 school year.

He added that his administration would work with Newark Public Schools “to ensure that every decision, every dollar, every program is laser-focused on improving outcomes for children.”

The Republican candidate believes the state’s Education Department should “get off the back of higher-performing districts” while focusing on underperforming ones, according to his website.

“Local control should empower the district, but, in turn, the district must demonstrate an unwavering commitment to student success and be held accountable when it falls short of this goal,” Ciattarelli said.

Sherrill has not specifically stated her position on expanding charter schools but has expressed support for merging school districts, adding that mandatory consolidation could be considered.

“I’d start by offering the carrot to help the areas that want to consolidate, but when there are areas that are not putting enough money into students, into educators, into the buildings, and then they are taking a lot of money in property taxes and from the state level, then we’ll have to start to look at compulsory movements,” Sherrill said during September’s gubernatorial debate.

The state is home to more than 500 school districts, but 16 are non-operating districts, which have a Board of Education but send their students to schools in other districts. Sherrill, during last month’s debate, said those districts could be the first to merge.

“We have some school districts who have the whole administrative cost, all of the buildings, and yet they’re not even running a K-12 school system, so we do need to merge some of these school districts,” she said.

The Democratic candidate has also said she would expand the state’s Interdistrict Public School Choice Program, which allows students to attend a public school in a different district. That solution would also tackle segregation in schools, Sherrill said to Northjersey.com earlier this month

“I believe that part of the solution should include new regional magnet schools that enroll a diverse group of students from both urban and suburban communities,” Sherrill said.

Will New Jersey’s school funding formula change?

Both candidates have said they would reform the state’s school funding formula, but have dueling approaches.

Newark has historically been one of the most underfunded school districts based on the funding formula, which uses a weighted student formula to give districts financial support in addition to local taxes. The school year, Newark Public Schools received an additional $75 million in funding from New Jersey, making up 84.2% of the district’s budget. City taxes make up 9.1%, an excess fund balance makes up 5.8%, and other local and federal aid make up the remaining 0.9%, according to the budget.

During the September gubernatorial debate, Ciattarelli promised a new funding formula that would reduce property taxes but provided no details about his plans.

“I have a very specific plan on how to lower property taxes. We need a new school funding formula. A more equitable one will help lower the property tax,” Ciattarelli said during the debate.

The Republican candidate also told Chalkbeat this week that he would hold Newark Public Schools accountable for how it spends its money. He pointed to Newark’s misuse of funds after a state investigation revealed a $44,000 “staff fun day” violated laws on how school boards can spend taxpayer money.

“That kind of spending is unacceptable and underscores the need for transparency and accountability,” Ciattarelli said.

Sherrill is also interested in updating the funding formula to lower costs and ensure more equity among school districts. But she is focused on getting federal funding for education back from the Trump administration.

“At almost every level, the federal government right now has limited the money that they’re sending back to New Jersey for education. And as a state that sends so much money to the federal government, that’s offensive.” Sherrill said during October’s gubernatorial debate.

Will a new governor fix old school buildings?

Newark school leaders have long raised concerns about the district’s aging buildings, which are among the oldest in the state. The district has said it would take more than $2 billion to fully repair and update schools.

Ciattarelli told Chalkbeat this week that the state “must make significant and sustained investments in school construction and modernization.”

“These projects are not only essential for student safety and educational outcomes, but they also represent a smart economic investment, creating thousands of family-sustaining construction jobs that strengthen local economies,” Ciattarelli said.

But to make those investments, the next governor must work with the legislature to determine a long-term funding plan for the state’s Schools Development Authority, which oversees construction projects in Newark and 30 other high-poverty school districts. By law, the state must pay for Newark’s school construction.

Ciattarelli said the SDA “needs additional reform” and “should be more transparent in how it selects and prioritizes school construction projects.”

Additionally, charter schools can benefit from facilities funding once the Charter School Facilities Loan Program is funded, Ciattarelli added.

Sherrill has also said that New Jersey has some of the nation’s oldest school infrastructure and updating those facilities is critical and expensive. In Congress, Sherrill has backed bills that include investments in school infrastructure.

During the September gubernatorial debate, the Democratic candidate highlighted the need to fix the state’s school buildings. She pointed to a stairway that fell at a high school in Montclair and a ceiling collapse at an elementary school in Paterson that caused some students to miss school.

“We have to address it, but unfortunately, so much of the money is going to administration right now. We need to move that money into the places that we want to address,” Sherrill said.

Last year, the state agreed to replace 13 of Newark’s oldest school buildings, but that deal leaves out 20 schools in dire need of updates. New Jersey also said it would build the district a new high school, but those plans are stalled until the Schools Development Authority receives more funding.

Where do the candidates stand on cell phones in classrooms?

Both candidates agree that cellphones should not be allowed during class time but differ on the approach.

The state’s Commission on the Effects of Social Media Usage on Adolescents in September recommended a “bell-to-bell” ban on cellphones in schools. State lawmakers are considering a Murphy-backed plan to ban cellphones in classrooms, but the bill has yet to receive a vote in the state Assembly.

If approved, it would require the state’s Education Department to create guidelines on the use of cellphones and social media during class time. It would also require school districts to create guidelines in line with the state.

In Newark Public Schools, students are allowed to bring cellphones into classrooms but the devices must remain on silent or vibrate settings at all times, according to district policy. Students may not use them to make calls, take photos, or videos from within school buildings and parents must sign a user agreement acknowledging that the district assumes no responsibility for any loss or damage to the phone.

Ciattarelli opposes a statewide ban and suggests school districts should work with parents to set their own policies on cellphones in schools.

Sherrill said she supports a statewide ban on cellphones in schools, which is in line with her campaign’s push to raise awareness about the dangers of social media and their effects on youth mental health.

Jessie Gómez is a reporter for Chalkbeat Newark, covering public education in the city. Contact Jessie at jgomez@chalkbeat.org.

Shelby County mayor vetoes 2026 school board election reset

2025-10-07T17:22:48+00:00

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Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris vetoed a resolution Monday from county commissioners that would have put all nine Memphis school board seats up for election in 2026.

The controversial measure to reset school board election dates would have also cut short five current board members’ terms. In a two-line memo sent to commissioners Monday, Harris cited that effect as the reason for his veto.

“Absent an emergency or in the case of criminal misconduct, I do not believe that the terms of elected officials should be shortened,” Harris wrote in the memo obtained by Chalkbeat.

The Shelby County Commission could override the mayor’s veto with eight votes from its 13-member group within the next 30 days. Commissioners voted 7-5 to approve the measure on Sept. 22, but one commissioner was absent during the original vote, according to The Daily Memphian.

Even if the mayor’s veto stands, changes are still coming for school board elections next year. Candidates will face a partisan primary for the first time and new term limits approved by the county commission in August.

MSCS school board members have faced intense scrutiny since voting to oust former Superintendent Marie Feagins in January. Some members have called recent election changes discriminatory and a form of retaliation.

On top of all the local changes, two Tennessee lawmakers are expected to renew their efforts to establish a state-appointed board to take over the district in the spring.

Bri Hatch covers Memphis-Shelby County Schools for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Reach Bri at bhatch@chalkbeat.org.

6 takeaways from an interview with Zohran Mamdani’s favorite high school teacher

2025-08-20T21:37:39+00:00

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Ask Zohran Mamdani which educators influenced him the most, and one name comes up again and again: Marc Kagan.

“He’s a fantastic teacher,” Mamdani said in an interview eight years ago.

The high school social studies teacher stuck with him. During a January forum in the thick of the Democratic mayoral primary, Mamdani spotted Kagan in the audience. A short time later, Mamdani posted pictures with Kagan, writing on X that he was “one of the best teachers I’ve ever had.” Kagan “taught me the value of excellence and hard work,” Mamdani continued.

Mr. Kagan was one of the best teachers I’ve ever had.

He taught me the value of excellence and hard work.

Thank you Mr. Kagan, and thank you to the many Mr. Kagan’s in classrooms across our city. pic.twitter.com/Gi0afIPvcT
— Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@ZohranKMamdani) January 24, 2025

Kagan, now 68, taught Mamdani twice at the Bronx High School of Science, one of the city’s vaunted specialized high schools, including an advanced world history course. At the time, Kagan was not a veteran teacher. He spent years working for the city’s transit system, first as a mechanic and later as a union activist and leader for the Transport Workers Union local.

After a falling out with the union’s leadership, he joined a city program that quickly trains career changers to fill hard-to-staff roles in public school classrooms. At 47, Kagan began his teaching career at A. Phillip Randolph Campus High School in Harlem. Two years later, he transferred to Bronx Science.

“I thought that I could do something useful and productive in the world” by becoming a teacher, Kagan said in an interview with Chalkbeat.

Mamdani is not Kagan’s first brush with a high-profile government figure. His sister is U.S. Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan, a connection he largely avoided mentioning with his students because he felt it would be a distraction.

After nearly a decade in the classroom, Kagan retired from the city’s public schools in 2014 and went on to earn a doctorate in history from the CUNY Graduate Center; he now teaches as an adjunct professor at CUNY.

Chalkbeat recently caught up with Kagan about his impressions of the teenage Mamdani, a noteworthy interaction with Mamdani’s father during a parent conference, and his favorite history lesson. Here are six takeaways from that conversation.

Mamdani’s father worried about his son’s (very high) marks

When Mamdani was a student in Kagan’s 10th grade global history course, his father, Mahmood Mamdani, arrived at a parent conference frustrated with his son’s performance.

“He was grousing [that] Zohran was getting just a 95,” Kagan recalled. “Like, ‘Why isn’t he working harder? He could be doing better than this.’”

Kagan chalked up the concern about Mamdani’s grades to an immigrant family “striving for their child to do well at Bronx Science and to do well in life.” At the time, he didn’t know that Mahmood Mamdani was a professor at Columbia University who was known for his scholarship on post-colonialism.

Kagan tried to reassure the dad that Mamdani was deeply engaged with the coursework.

“I told him, ‘Never mind about the grade because the wheels are spinning in your son’s head,’” Kagan said. “And that was like the perfect answer … and he just kind of floated out of the room.”

Kagan saw echoes of the teenage Mamdani during the mayoral primary campaign

Kagan said he was impressed with Mamdani’s energetic mayoral campaign and was unsurprised that Mamdani appealed to so many voters during the Democratic primary. The democratic socialist candidate became known for distilling his platform down to easy-to-remember slogans centered on affordability — including free child care and bus service.

“I think you can see that wheel spinning in his head in the current-day Zohran,” Kagan said, echoing what he told the elder Mamdani years earlier.“ He was able to articulate the issues that he wanted to articulate in a way that people grasp and could understand and identify with.”

Although Mamdani unsuccessfully ran for student body vice president at Bronx Science, Kagan said he had little inkling that the teen would one day have big political aspirations.

He thinks the teachers union should take a stronger stand against Trump

When the United Federation of Teachers endorsed Mamdani for the November general election, Kagan tried to use the moment to push the union to be more proactive in countering the Trump administration. He tried to introduce an amendment that would require the union to hold a meeting about the issue.

“I look around even at the anti-Trump demonstrations that have occurred in New York, and I don’t really see the UFT there,” he said. “I’m not sure that I know exactly what they should be doing, but I know we’re not doing much.”

Michael Mulgrew, the union president, ruled Kagan out of order before he could introduce the amendment because the retired teacher had already spoken on the topic, Kagan said.

UFT spokesperson Alison Gendar countered that the union is pushing back against Trump.

“The UFT is fighting the overreach of the Trump administration in the courts and in the streets,” Gendar wrote in an email. “Protests, legal action, and union solidarity are the tools the UFT and its state and national affiliates have used seeking to block and dismantle the White House’s attacks on public education, workers, and immigrant students. “

He bristles at accusations that Mamdani’s criticism of Israel is antisemitic

Mamdani has long been a critic of Israel and supporter of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement, which calls for cutting financial ties to the country due to its unequal treatment of Palestinians. During the primary campaign, Mandani responded to questions about whether Israel has a right to exist as a Jewish state by saying it has a right to exist “as a state with equal rights.” He also characterized Israel’s war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip as a genocide.

Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who lost to Mamdani in the Democratic primary and is now running as an independent, attempted to link Mamdani’s positions on Israel to antisemitism. And in the wake of the union’s decision to endorse Mamdani in the general election, some Jewish educators threatened to withhold their dues over the decision. (Mamdani has vowed to vigorously fight antisemitism if elected.)

Asked what his message is to educators who are skeptical of Mamdani’s positions on Israel, Kagan was blunt.

“There are people in New York City, in the UFT, that believe … criticism of Israel is antisemitic,” Kagan said. “They’re wrong.”

A favorite lesson probes the tradeoffs of civilization

In a unit focused on societies like the Iroquois and Maya and how they developed before European settlers arrived in the Americas, Kagan set up a debate about how students would structure society if it was up to them.

The unit “was a really interesting couple of days because people had to grapple with this idea of what is civilization? What do I like about it? What don’t I like about it?” he said. Kagan said his students often advocated for adopting current societal structures, not because they worried about access to iPhones or video games but because they worried about being conquered by other civilizations with more modern technology. Those arguments often surprised him.

“We’re just going to become victims of civilizations,” he said his students argued. “So we have to do it almost as a method of self-protection, rather than as something we necessarily want to fully embrace.”

Teachers should have more opportunities to learn from each other

At the beginning of his teaching career at Bronx Science, Kagan said he got some of his most valuable insights about the craft from informal conversations with other educators in the social studies department.

“I just sat at their feet and picked their brains and learned so much,” Kagan said.

The Education Department has made some efforts over the years to create opportunities for teacher mentorship and share best practices across schools, but Kagan said his main piece of policy advice would be for the system to deepen those efforts by giving teachers time to reflect and talk with each other by lightening their course loads after a couple years.

There is often little time to ask questions such as “What am I doing well? What am I not doing well? What can I teach to others?” he said. “It’s just hard to do that when you’re teaching 170 students.”

Alex Zimmerman is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Alex at azimmerman@chalkbeat.org.

School funding, expand charters: Where New Jersey governor hopefuls stand on education

2025-06-13T10:00:01+00:00

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In the election for New Jersey’s next governor, the major party candidates have diverging priorities on key local education issues, which may get overshadowed by President Donald Trump’s looming presence in the race.

The contest may also be upended by a pending lawsuit that alleges the state is responsible for fixing its racially and socioeconomically segregated public school system, which studies have found to be among the most segregated in the nation for Black and Latino students.

Democratic nominee U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill, whose district includes Essex County, and Republican candidate Jack Ciattarelli, a former state lawmaker, agree on a couple of areas: The state’s school funding formula needs to change and school-to-workforce programs should be expanded. But they differ in how to get there and why, and are even farther apart on other issues such as the state’s LGBTQ curriculum requirements.

For Ciattarelli, who’s endorsed by Trump, near the top of his education platform is to support charter school growth in New Jersey and to use Florida’s school voucher program as a model. For Sherrill, supporting high-quality tutoring, mental health services for students, and regional magnet schools to help address the state’s de facto segregation found in its schools are among her top priorities.

Sherrill and Ciattarelli won their respective party’s nomination in the Tuesday primary, which had the highest voter turnout in years, based on the latest unofficial primary results.

Voters selected from a pool of five candidates on the Republican side and six on the Democratic ticket, which included Newark Mayor Ras Baraka. Baraka ran a more progressive campaign to Sherill’s moderate views and received the second highest number of votes.

Gubernatorial election could make history

New Jersey’s gubernatorial election is one of two statewide elections in the country this year — Virginia, too, is electing a new governor. Political experts usually look to these races, which immediately follow a presidential election, as indicators of how voters are responding to national politics.

Considered a “blue state,” New Jersey’s roughly 2.5 million registered Democratic voters far outnumber its 1.6 million registered Republicans, but 2.4 million unaffiliated voters create unpredictability in statewide elections. In November 2024, Trump lost to former President Joe Biden by six percentage points in New Jersey, tightening the margin from his 2020 loss in the state of 16 percentage points.

The winner of this November’s election will succeed Gov. Phil Murphy, who’s in his second consecutive term, the limit set under state constitution. Not since 1970 has New Jersey elected a Democrat to the helm for more than two consecutive terms. If Sherrill wins, she would make history by becoming the first Democratic governor who’s a woman.

New Jersey is also known for having among the highest property taxes in the country and often ranked as having among the best schools, though standardized test scores show a majority of students statewide struggle to meet grade-level proficiency in reading and math.

The governor has a consequential role in laying out the state’s public education priorities and how school aid is distributed, with the authority to appoint members to the state school board and an education commissioner to lead the state’s education department.

How will candidates respond to potential federal cuts to education?

This year, federal policy may also play an outsized role in determining the education issues facing the next governor.

“In New Jersey, the cost of education in terms of taxes and the allocation, has always been a hot button issue,” said Kelly Ditmar, a political science associate professor and the research director at the Center for American Women in Politics at the Eagleton Institute at Rutgers University. “I would expect that to be true yet again this year, but with this added layer of complication given the Trump administration’s attack on public education.”

The Trump administration has taken steps to dismantle the federal Education Department and created uncertainty in state and local budgets as some federal funding for K-12 and colleges has already been cut or put at risk. A federal budget proposal for 2026, backed by Trump and making its way through Congress, would include additional cuts to social programs, public health, and preschool.

Murphy’s proposed $58.1 billion state budget, a record high spending plan, includes $22.2 billion for pre-K-12 education for fiscal year 2025-26. Political experts say there’s little to no room in the state’s budget to cover any losses from federal funding cuts.

“Neither candidate is going to want to talk about how Trump is hurting schools because then the follow-up question is, ‘What are you going to do about it?’ and the answer is, well, ‘We don’t have any solutions because we don’t have any money to fill that gap,’” said Dan Cassino, government and politics professor at Fairleigh Dickinson University and the executive director of its polling center.

School segregation case could ‘throw a bomb’ in the race

In the backdrop of this election, the state is fighting a lawsuit that alleges its public education system is racially and socioeconomically segregated due in part to longstanding residential rules that require students to attend schools in their hometown. Plaintiffs in that case, a coalition of social justice groups and families, recently filed for the case to be reviewed by the state’s appellate court. The state argued against that motion, saying the case should go back to trial court after attempts to reach a settlement in mediation failed earlier this year.

Should a judge make a consequential decision in that case within the next few months, it could be a wild card in the gubernatorial election, Cassino said.

“This has the potential to throw a bomb into this election,” he said in a phone interview on Wednesday. “We’ve got candidates who are going to do their best to talk around the issue of racial segregation in schools but that issue is going to keep coming up.”

In a voter guide published by The Jersey Bee, Sherrill was asked about school desegregation.

“I believe part of the solution should include new regional magnet schools that enroll a diverse group of students from both urban and suburban communities,” she said in her response.

On Ciattarelli’s campaign website, he mentions the state’s interdistrict public school choice program, which allows districts to opt in on a list of districts that accept students from across municipal boundaries. The program has been cited as a way to address school segregation, though Ciattarelli’s aim would be to use it as a ramp to create a private school voucher program. Those programs use public dollars to pay for a student’s private school tuition, shifting those funds from the public school district.

“Jack will expand charter schools and loosen restrictions on the interdistrict public school choice program to allow parents real choices in the schools their children attend — modeling it after Florida’s school voucher program,” the website states.

Candidates take on issue of parental rights

In recent years, under Murphy, New Jersey has adopted statewide curriculum standards that include teaching students about the historical contributions of LGBTQ people.

“Parents have a right to opt out of a lot of things but this is not an area where they should be opting out,” Sherrill, a U.S. Navy veteran, said in a primary debate when asked about whether she would support parents who want to “opt-out” their students from those lessons. “This is an area of understanding the background of people throughout our nation and right now we see, for example, in the [U.S.] Naval Academy, an erasure of history.”

In his response on a separate debate panel with the Republican candidates, Ciattarelli said, “I don’t believe we need an LGBTQ curriculum and that doesn’t mean I’m not an inclusive guy.” He added that children should be taught to “respect people and show tolerance” for people who are different from them.

Catherine Carrera is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Newark. Contact Catherine at ccarrera@chalkbeat.org.

Dad and former teacher DJ Torres is running to represent central-east Denver on the school board

2025-06-09T21:47:05+00:00

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A former Denver Public Schools teacher who worked on districtwide equity initiatives and whose son is a DPS student is running to represent central-east Denver on the school board.

DJ Torres, who described himself in an interview as “super pro-union” and “extremely pro-public education,” is vying for the District 3 seat currently held by school board President Carrie Olson. Olson is barred from running for reelection due to term limits.

Torres, 40, taught special education at Montbello High School before DPS closed it in 2010 for low test scores. (It has since reopened.) Torres also taught special education at DPS’ Florence Crittenton High School, which serves pregnant and parenting teen mothers.

After earning a Ph.D. in California, Torres returned to Denver and took an equity-focused job in DPS’ central office, where he helped write and implement a 2020 school board resolution to make the district’s curriculum more inclusive of Black, Latino, and Indigenous history.

Torres left DPS to work on equity initiatives for former Denver Mayor Michael Hancock’s office. His most recent job was with Sandy Hook Promise, a national gun violence prevention nonprofit started by family members of victims of the Sandy Hook school shooting.

Torres said he was inspired to run for school board by the current political moment, which he described as “a time of national political unrest, where public education is under attack,” and by his son, who attends the family’s neighborhood school, McMeen Elementary.

“The really specific and unique charge of having a son who’s daily impacted by the ways we’re doing this work as a district, I thought now is a perfect time for me to want to run and be a systems-level changer,” Torres said.

Four seats on the seven-member Denver school board are up for grabs in November. Board members backed by the Denver teachers union currently hold the majority of board seats. But that could change in the Nov. 4 election, which comes at a key time for DPS.

Declining enrollment has led to more than a dozen school closures in the past two years, and the superintendent has put in place a policy for low-performing schools that could result in more closures. DPS has found itself in the crosshairs of the Trump administration over an all-gender high school restroom, and it has sued the federal government to protect immigrant students.

DPS achieved its highest-ever graduation rate last year, but some students are still recovering from pandemic-era learning loss. Many teachers are mad they were denied higher cost-of-living raises while the superintendent got a bonus. And the school board recently ordered an investigation of one of its members over allegations of racial discrimination.

Torres identifies as Latino and openly queer. When he and his partner adopted their son, Torres said they felt strongly about wanting to enroll him in DPS.

If elected, Torres said he would focus on improving school safety through “softening” measures such as expanding mental health services for students and helping them feel connected to their school community, which he said lessens the likelihood of school-based violence.

Torres said he’d also advocate for better teacher pay and equity in class sizes, both of which are major issues for the Denver Classroom Teachers Association.

“How do we say we’re an equity district when some students are one of 35 and some students are one of 20?” Torres said.

Torres said “supporting immigrant, refugee, and vulnerable populations is really key,” and he’d work to improve services for English language learners and students with disabilities.

The Denver school board recently voted to close or partially close 10 schools due to declining enrollment. Torres said he recognizes the student population is shrinking, but DPS can do more to include the community in the decisionmaking process.

“I don’t think anyone wants to be dealt hard news in a transactional way,” he said. “They want a role.”

Torres said he opposes closing schools based solely on student test scores.

The school board is responsible for hiring and firing the superintendent. Torres said that while many voters have asked if he supports Superintendent Alex Marrero, he doesn’t believe it’s constructive for new board members to step into the role with their minds made up.

“I’m committed to being a very good employer to what I hope will be a very good employee,” he said.

Melanie Asmar is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Colorado. Contact Melanie at masmar@chalkbeat.org.

New Jersey 2025 primary voters guide: What the gubernatorial candidates had to say on school funding

2025-06-09T21:12:26+00:00

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Editor’s note: This story was originally published by NJ Spotlight News as part of its 2025 Primary Voters Guide. This portion of the guide, focused on a question about school funding, is shared as part of a content-sharing agreement between Chalkbeat Newark and NJ Spotlight News.

This year, voters will choose a new governor for New Jersey. The state constitution prohibits Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat, from seeking a third consecutive term.

Both the Democratic and Republican parties have contested primaries to get on the general election ballot for the four-year term.

New Jersey’s voter rolls lean Democratic: More than 38% of all registrants are Democrats, compared with almost 24% who are Republicans. Most voters are not affiliated with any party.

Six Democrats are vying for their party’s nomination. They are Newark Mayor Ras Baraka; Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop; Congressman Josh Gottheimer, whose district includes mostly Bergen County; Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill, whose district includes Essex County; New Jersey Education Association President Sean Spiller; and former state Senate President Steve Sweeney.

Five Republicans are on the GOP ballot: Justin Barbera of Southampton, state Senator Jon Bramnick, whose district includes Middlesex County; former Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli; former Englewood Cliffs Mayor Mario Kranjac; and former talk radio host Bill Spadea.

On education, the eleven candidates were asked about the state’s school funding formula, which has been a key issue in the state’s annual budget. Here’s what the candidates said to NJ Spotlight News.

What changes, if any, would you make to the state’s school funding system, and how would you pay for them?

Baraka: New Jersey’s education funding system is broken. We have more school districts than municipalities and more superintendents than mayors. It’s inefficient and inequitable. We need to move toward unified school districts to lower administrative costs and redirect resources where they belong – into classrooms. I’ll support district consolidation and provide incentives for school desegregation, ensuring every student has access to a well-funded, diverse, and high-quality public education.

Fulop: I propose revising the School Funding Reform Act to ensure equitable distribution of resources, confronting segregation, and promoting district consolidation to reduce costs. We’ll cap state college tuition increases at 2% annually and increase investments in community colleges. Funding will come from restructuring tax brackets to ensure the wealthy contribute their fair share, redirecting funds to where they’re needed most.

Gottheimer: We have some of the best schools in the country and I want to make sure every student, no matter where you live, gets the best education possible. As Governor, I’ll fully fund Universal Pre-K and full-day kindergarten for every child in Jersey. I’ll work to fix the school funding formula so every school gets the resources they need, and I’ll fight Trump’s gutting of the Department of Education. I’m the only candidate with detailed, expert-backed plans to cut taxes and lower costs, including a 15% property tax cut and rebates for renters, that meet our pension obligations, fund our schools, tackle our structural deficit, and are fully paid for without cutting the important programs and services Jersey families and seniors rely on.

Sherrill: We need to ensure all our students have a fair shot at success. The bulk of the formula was written in 2008 and I would work to modernize it so that we are meeting the latest standards and best practices, and helping students overcome challenges like learning loss and mental health. It needs to account for districts that have a higher percentage of students with special needs. We also need to stabilize the formula to address the wild year-to-year fluctuations we see and ensure districts have the resources needed to maintain the programs and quality of education a student receives.

Spiller: The candidate did not respond to the questionnaire.

Sweeney: We must fully fund our public schools. Any changes must align with the State Constitution’s mandate to provide thorough and efficient education. I’ve advocated for regular review of the formula to ensure it reflects the needs of students. After COVID-19, learning loss remains a challenge. The state must provide targeted funding to help students who are behind. We also need to fully fund extraordinary education. The current approach leaves both students and school districts under-supported. Thanks to the current administration, public school funding has increased by billions. To ensure these funds are used wisely, we must require all districts to be K–12, and explore regionalization to create more efficient, better-resourced school systems.

NJ Spotlight News hosted a forum with Republican candidates running to be New Jersey’s next governor, including state Sen. Jon Bramnick, former Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli, and former radio personality Bill Spadea.

Barbera: Barbera’s administration has proposed a 3 fold plan to fund NJ educational system. First, he aims to investigate potential corruption within the NJ teacher union. Second, Barbera plans to review election funding caps to prevent election tampering from the teachers unions to elect offices that will further their left wing agenda in the schools. Third, his administration intends to consolidate district schools for efficiency while increasing corporate tax rates on global companies, requiring them to contribute more towards local education. Simultaneously, he proposes reducing taxes for seniors and residents without children in New Jersey, aiming for a balanced approach to taxation and educational funding.

Bramnick: I would fully fund our schools, lessening the reliance on property taxes by dedicating our income tax revenue to school funding. This would restore all funding to schools that have seen a reduction in state aid and reduce property taxes by an average of $800 in the first year alone.

Ciattarelli: I will set a statewide standard on per-pupil spending, create a more equitable distribution of funds by setting a reasonable spending target for all districts, and allow money to follow the student. I would achieve this by providing a base amount (“x”) for every English-speaking student and additional funding (“y”) for English language learners, recognizing different educational needs. I also support the state taking over Special Education costs and relieve local districts of that burden. Last, but not least, I will hold districts accountable for how tax dollars are spent and ensure that funding is tied to academic results and end the practice of pretending all problems are solved by just throwing money at them.

Kranjac: We’ll implement a fair school funding formula where the money follows the child and where parents and students have radical choice in education. We’ll eliminate the County Superintendent system that is utterly wasteful and unaccountable. We’ll end the forced-busing scheme that radicals on the State Board of Education are working to advance and permanently hold the State Board of Education accountable by electing them on the ballot.

Spadea: The candidate did not respond to the questionnaire.

To view NJ Spotlight News’ full gubernatorial primary election coverage, click here.

As the primary approaches, here’s where Newark Mayor Ras Baraka stands on key education issues

2025-06-09T08:00:00+00:00

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Newark Mayor Ras J. Baraka’s gubernatorial campaign has garnered headlines for his fervent defense of undocumented immigrants. He was arrested for allegedly trespassing at a detention facility on charges that were later dropped and then subsequently filed a lawsuit against a Trump-appointed federal prosecutor over the fiasco.

As a former Newark Public Schools student, teacher, and principal, Baraka’s rhetoric around schools on the campaign trail has also been notable and fiery.

A public education advocate, he has declared the state school funding system “broken,” criticized local charter schools, and championed school desegregation initiatives as he seeks to win the Democratic party’s ticket in the Tuesday primary. With a self-described “heavy hand” in the way Newark schools have been run since the state takeover of the district ceased, his education track record in the city could provide insight on how he would influence education on a statewide scale.

Baraka is one of six candidates vying to be the Democratic nominee. On the Republican side, five candidates are running to become their party’s nominee in the race for New Jersey’s next governor. Gov. Phil Murphy, in his second term, can’t run for another, per the state constitution.

When the Newark school district was in the process of regaining local control, residents voted to have an elected board instead of one appointed by the mayor, a choice Baraka staunchly favored. Today, the board is run by the candidates he’s backed year after year with his powerful endorsement — a show of his continued sway over city schools.

The mayor has been behind several significant educational endeavors in the city, from a literacy action plan to reengagement centers and community schools. Still, a majority of Newark students are struggling to perform on grade level in reading and math, and the district was placed on a state-approved improvement plan due to low state test scores.

Those persistent issues, he says, should be discussed within the context of the systemic challenges that Newark schools face.

“But when the state is hit, Newark is hit harder because of the deep, systemic inequities in our communities,” Baraka said in an emailed statement on Saturday. “That’s why any conversation about learning loss must also confront poverty, segregation, underfunding, and disinvestment.”

Among his commitments as governor, he added, would be to ensure “that the zip code a child is born in doesn’t determine the quality of education they receive.”

Here are three takeaways on Baraka’s approach to key statewide education issues and how he has been influential in Newark.

Revoking charters and ‘broken’ school funding formula

In a recent radio interview on WNYC while campaigning, Baraka attempted to balance his Newark views and a statewide perspective when answering a question that was critical of charter schools.

“At the end of the day, there are some charters in Newark that are doing a great job, and that’s just clear,” said Baraka, who has been decisively against the further expansion of charter schools in the city.

But, he said, the state has a process to review charter schools and “weed out” those that are poorly managed, including some in Newark “that are horrible, that are bad, that are doing a terrible job, in fact. Those schools, their charters need to be revoked. The state cannot be shy in that.”

In an emailed statement to Chalkbeat, Baraka acknowledged that traditional public schools are also struggling with some measures.

“Some charter schools in Newark are succeeding, and others are falling short, just like some traditional public schools,” he said. “What matters most to me is accountability, transparency, and equity, no matter the governance structure. We need strong public oversight to ensure that every school serves every child.”

Under the Murphy administration, charter school growth slowed down in Newark, with many charter school expansion requests denied. Baraka’s position on this would seem to take a more critical lens on charter schools, which are publicly funded but privately managed.

Charter school funding gets dispersed through the host district where the charter school resides. Public school advocates and administrators have taken issue with that funding process in addition to the funding not being reimbursed to the district if a student decides to return to the local school district mid-school year.

Baraka, in the WNYC interview, reiterated a longstanding position that state funding needs to change for charter schools and traditional public schools.

“New Jersey’s education funding system is broken,” Baraka said in a voter guide published by NJ Spotlight News. “We have more school districts than municipalities and more superintendents than mayors. It’s inefficient and inequitable.”

Baraka proposes incentivizing school desegregation

Baraka wants to incentivize school desegregation efforts that would bolster diversity, equity, and inclusion practices, which stands in stark contrast to the Trump administration’s efforts to undo policies that support DEI.

“I’ll support district consolidation and provide incentives for school desegregation, ensuring every student has access to a well-funded, diverse, and high-quality public education,” Baraka said in Spotlight’s voter guide.

Consolidating school districts, he adds, would result in cost savings and more resources. In an interview in The Jersey Bee, he noted that his approach to desegregating schools would allow for families to send their children to schools across municipal boundaries.

New Jersey has been in the courts for seven years battling a lawsuit that alleges it’s responsible for its racially and socioeconomically segregated school system.

In Newark, a highly segregated district with 90% of its student population identifying as Black or Latino, issues of racial diversity and inclusion have surfaced through the years. At the Newark School of Global Studies, for example, Black students raised allegations of racism that led to public outcry and a leaked draft report that detailed their experiences.

Baraka held a “unity” event in response to the students’ stories as a forum to discuss racial tensions in their communities. After the report leaked, he noted that efforts to resolve these issues “takes a lot more than holding forums and events. This work is an ongoing historic and cultural transformation that relies on continued curriculum focus and the student dialogue it spurs.”

What has Baraka done to improve academic outcomes in Newark?

Nearly 70% of Newark students in grades 3-9 are falling short of literacy benchmarks, around 82% aren’t meeting math standards, and 93% of fifth graders are below grade level in science, according to 2024 state test scores released in December.

The results showed limited increases over 2023, highlighting Newark’s slow recovery from pandemic-era learning upheaval.

New Jersey’s overall 2024 state test results weren’t much better than Newark’s, which would mean the next governor would face similar challenges and scrutiny.

About 47.8% of students statewide did not meet reading standards, and 60.4% were below grade level in math, state test scores showed.

With the overwhelming majority of students not meeting reading benchmarks, Baraka convened a news conference in the summer of 2023 to announce the city’s 10-point approach to the youth literacy crisis.

“It is all our responsibility to make sure that our kids are reading on grade level,” Baraka said at the time.

That plan focused on developing literacy opportunities in all city programs, improving access to books that reflect cultural and ethnic backgrounds, encouraging expectant parents to read to their children, even during the prenatal stage, and providing tutoring for students during the school day, among other points.

The city’s action plan also called on parents to enroll young children in free pre-K3 and pre-K4 programs in district or charter schools or programs led by community-based providers. The district later reported its preschool program saw a bump in the 2023-24 school year enrollment by 300 students.

Catherine Carrera is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Newark. Contact Catherine at ccarrera@chalkbeat.org.

Newark rallied teens to vote in historic school board election. Only 73 did.

2025-05-09T09:00:00+00:00

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Only 73 teen voters – out of 1,851 who had registered – turned out for Newark’s historic school board election despite weeks of targeted efforts to get the city’s 16- and 17-year-olds out to the polls.

The April 15 election was the first since the city lowered the voting age for school board elections to 16 – and Newark leaders had hoped a new wave of teen voters would boost turnout.

But, overall, only 3.47% of Newark voters participated in the election, slightly below the 3.94% turnout rate among the city’s youth voters – and about average for school board elections, in which 3% to 4% of voters typically participate.

At the beginning of February, local organizations and school leaders launched campaigns, hosted voter education events, and promoted registration drives to mobilize young voters who gained their right to vote in Newark school board elections in 2024. The efforts also drew Gov. Phil Murphy, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, and other elected officials, who visited a Newark high school to reinforce their support for the teen vote in school board elections statewide.

This year’s youth voters also faced challenges in getting to the polls, registering to vote, and understanding who to vote for.

Turnout in local elections can be half or even less than that of presidential elections, according to Nonprofit VOTE. In Newark, turnout for school board elections may be dampened because they are held in April.

The Newark Board of Education has the authority to move the election to November, when voter turnout is typically higher due to the general elections. Such a move could also save money because the cost of November elections are typically covered by the county.

Paul Brubaker, the district’s communications director, and Hasani Council, the school board’s president, did not respond to questions about this year’s turnout, the idea of moving the election to November, or whether they discussed other options to boost participation.

Despite the low turnout, Assatta Mann, senior community organizer for the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice, said this year’s election laid the foundation for future 16- and 17-year-old voters. The learning curve for youth and the short time frame to register teens, coupled with existing voter challenges, impacted the teen vote this year, Mann said.

“I do think that going forward in future elections we will see the turnout rise, and hopefully, in part because some changes will be made to make voting easier and accessible, especially for this group of voters,” Mann added.

Newark’s youth faced voter hurdles in this election

Newark became the first city in New Jersey last year to lower the voting age to 16 for school board elections. But the youth vote was delayed until the 2025 election due to voter registration issues, city officials had said.

The decision to lower the voting age posed challenges for advocates who began registering voters on Feb. 1 and ahead of the March 25 deadline. They also faced challenges in ensuring teens were educated on the candidates to cast an informed vote on April 15.

Some teen voters faced the same problems adults faced when they showed up to vote on election day, Mann said. Some found out they weren’t registered to vote, while others found it difficult to get to the polls due to transportation issues, jobs, and after-school activities, Mann added. Additionally, Newark Public Schools students were not allowed to leave class during the school day to vote unless their school was their designated polling place.

Newark’s teens had also said they were eager to participate in the school board election, but had basic questions about the functions of a city school board and what board members do. Organizations such as The Gem Project hosted civic training sessions to educate Newark’s teens, and the NAACP Newark held a candidate forum along with city teens. The district had launched a Vote 15+ voter registration campaign where they held registration drives in high schools, but local organizations were not part of the effort.

“In spite of all these challenges, we still saw youth come out at 4%, which was higher than the adult vote,” Mann added. “Long term, it’s a good sign for civic engagement. And the possibilities for democracy, youth power building.”

Under state law, school districts are required to provide eligible voters with registration forms, a summary of voter registration eligibility requirements, materials describing the role of a citizen, and information that highlights the importance of voting, but they are not required to provide information about local elections.

What can help boost voter turnout in school board elections?

Advocates like Mann said local leaders could adopt new measures to boost turnout and increase access to the polls. New initiatives such as same-day voter registration and early voting for school board elections could help increase participation, Mann said.

Students being able to vote during lunch, civic education in schools, and allowing residents to vote at any polling place could also help, Mann added.

“I think going forward, more school-wide events, assemblies, initiatives like that, that promote this opportunity for young people to participate in our democracy will go a long way towards making sure that they do,” Mann said.

Despite their importance, local elections are often held at odd times of the year and usually receive less attention, but switching the school board election to November’s general election could help.

“All of the towns that still have school board elections in April usually have lower turnout rates than those in November,” Mann added.

Before 2012, all school board elections in New Jersey were held in April when residents voted for board candidates and the district’s budget. But in January 2012, former Gov. Chris Christie signed legislation that allowed districts to move their elections to November. Roughly 527 school districts have since moved their board elections to November, according to an estimate from the New Jersey School Boards Association. Across the state, 14 districts still hold April elections.

One of the reasons for keeping these elections in the spring was to continue to allow residents to vote on the district’s annual budgets. But in 2024, Murphy signed legislation that eliminated the requirement for certain school districts to hold a vote on their budgets in April unless their proposed budgets are above the 2% tax levy cap. The legislation also allows districts that hold November elections to ask voters to approve additional funds or to issue school bonds in an April election.

It’s unclear why Newark continues to hold elections in the spring, which come at a cost for the district.

The county covers the costs of elections held in November, according to an official at the Essex County Clerk’s Office. That could be a financial incentive to move elections since the cost of holding a school board election in April could be upwards of $30,000, according to Marc Zitomer, a partner at the Schenck, Price, Smith and King law firm.

There’s still a long way to go to boost turnout in the school board election and encourage teens to participate, Mann said. But she also believes there was a missed opportunity to create partnerships between local organizations and schools to create greater efforts to reach teens and all voters.

“I would encourage the district and the charter schools to look at some of the local organizations as partners,” Mann added. “I think we’re all working with the same goal to support young people and make sure they have the opportunity to vote.”

Jessie Gómez is a reporter for Chalkbeat Newark, covering public education in the city. Contact Jessie at jgomez@chalkbeat.org.

‘Technical issues’ take NYC parent council elections offline on first day of voting

2025-04-25T19:22:27+00:00

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Just hours into the first day of voting for New York City’s elected parent councils, Education Department officials took the system offline to fix “technical issues,” a spokesperson said.

It wasn’t immediately clear what officials were fixing. But on Friday multiple parents reported glitches and mistakes in the online voting system, including parents appearing on ballots for seats for which they are not running.

As of early Friday afternoon, a message on the online voting page said “voting has been paused, as there are updates being made to the site. We are hopeful to resume this afternoon.”

The setback was frustrating for some Community Education Council candidates who said they’ve been working hard to remind parents to vote and help them troubleshoot, and worry that the technical glitches Friday will make an already complicated process that much more difficult.

“It’s just extremely disappointing because we’ve been working so hard to have our school parent community be involved in this process,” said Alejandro Epifanio Torres, an elementary school parent running for the council in District 1 on the Lower East Side of Manhattan.

During the last election cycle in 2023, only 19,000 parents — or 2% of eligible voters — cast their ballots in the council election. A 2023 Chalkbeat investigation found mismanagement of both outreach and voting administration during the last council elections.

Department spokesperson Onika Richards said a vendor was addressing the “technical issues” with voting. “In the interest of ensuring a fair and accurate process, we have temporarily paused voting,” Richards said. “We are working diligently to resolve any issues by this afternoon, and we expect to resume voting promptly thereafter.”

Debbie Kross, the parent of a high school student in the Bronx who is running as the Bronx borough representative for the Citywide Council on High Schools said when she logged in to vote this morning, she discovered that her name appeared on both the Bronx and Brooklyn ballots.

“I wrote to them immediately and said, ‘remove me,’” she said. Kross said she hadn’t heard back as of early Friday afternoon.

Even though she’s technically eligible to be a Brooklyn representative since she has a child in school there, Kross said she didn’t indicate that she wanted to run there and doesn’t “know anything about Brooklyn schools … I don’t think I would be a good representative.”

Gavin Healy, a council member in Manhattan’s District 2, said he heard widespread complaints from parents about the voting process.

The advocacy group Parent Leaders for Accelerated Curriculum and Education, known as PLACE, sent a press release just before 10 a.m. Friday urging the city to pause the voting process because of “incorrect ballots.”

The Education Department emailed parents shortly after 10 a.m. to notify them the elections were paused — just minutes after sending a reminder to vote, according to screenshots obtained by Chalkbeat.

Education Department officials didn’t immediately say how many parents voted before the site was taken offline and whether they would have to recast their ballots.

Voting remains open until May 13, though it wasn’t immediately clear whether the Education Department would extend that window. Parents vote through their New York City Schools Account, or NYCSA, and can cast ballots for up to three candidates.

Votes for the city’s district-based Community Education Councils and its citywide councils are held every two years. The elected volunteers on the councils have few formal powers outside of voting to approve rezoning proposals, but play an important role in communicating with district officials and representing parents in policy debates.

In recent years, the councils have waded into charged political issues, passing advisory resolutions on sports policy for transgender students and protections for students against President Donald Trump’s executive orders.

Friday’s voting snag comes after critics have repeatedly raised concerns about the city Education Department’s management of the elections. Last November, city Comptroller Brad Lander issued a set of recommendations to improve the election process by shoring up outreach and setting clearer rules for campaigning.

Fivel Rothberg, who until recently worked as an outreach consultant supporting the CEC elections, said the entire concept of relying on NYCSA accounts for voting was “doomed to fail” regardless of glitches because some parents struggle to access them.

“Parents and guardians already have so much on their plate,” he said. “The NYCSA system created one more twisted maze for everyone to navigate in an already complex bureaucracy.”

Healy said the fact that problems continued at the start of this election cycle was unsurprising.

“I do wish at some point they would send this to the Board of Elections,” he said. The Education Department’s Family and Community Engagement department “isn’t really able to do this kind of project, so send it to someone else,” he added.

Michael Elsen-Rooney is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Michael at melsen-rooney@chalkbeat.org.

Amy Zimmer is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat New York. Contact Amy at azimmer@chalkbeat.org.

Meet Newark’s first Gen Z school board member who aims to bridge the gap between generations

2025-04-24T19:11:28+00:00

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At just 23, David Daughety is the first Generation Z member — and among the youngest people — elected to the Newark Board of Education, but he is no stranger to the work it takes to support city youth.

Daughety, a 2020 Arts High School graduate, has been a youth program coordinator, commissioner on the city’s civilian complaint review board, and Rutgers University student, who has experience revising Newark Public Schools policies and working with city organizations to develop youth programming.

In his first few months as a board member, Daughety plans to visit schools, gain district knowledge, and listen before he tackles any issues, he told Chalkbeat last week.

“I want to talk to the staff, the principals. I want to actually go and not just introduce myself, but actually put my ear to the ground,” Daughety said. “I know about the work that [board members] do, but I want to be able to actually see what’s going on for myself.”

Daughety ran on the Moving Newark Schools Forward slate, a ticket backed by Mayor Ras Baraka and other powerful Democratic lawmakers, alongside his running mates, incumbent Kanileah Anderson and city firefighter Louis Maisonave. Daughety’s winning team is part of a slate that has won every school board election since 2016 and, traditionally, makes few attempts to push back on Superintendent Roger León’s policies and ideas during board meetings.

The new member and his running mates secured the lead on April 15, earning them three-year terms on the nine-member school board. They take their oaths of office at a reorganization meeting on May 1.

David Daughety, a former Arts High School student who now attends Rutgers University, advocated for students to be included in policy decisions while attending Newark Public Schools.

On social media, former board members and city leaders praised Daughety for his win and pointed to his work with youth and education, which stems back to his time as a student at Arts High School. Daughety joins the ranks of other young board members – including former board members Marques Aquil-Lewis, first elected in 2009 when he was 21, and A’Dorian Murray-Thomas, who was elected in 2019 at 23.

New generation of leaders enters state, local politics

Gen Z — defined as the generation born between 1997 and 2012 — grew up amid the rise of smartphones, social media, and a global pandemic, but now is running for elected offices at the local, state, and national levels. The rate of young people ages 18 to 25 who seek elected seats has increased in the past 10 years, and more than 20% of youth say they would consider running for office, according to a 2022 study from Tufts University’s Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement.

Among the best-known Gen Z elected officials are U.S. Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.), the first Gen Z in the U.S. Congress, Maryland state Del. Joe Vogel (D-Montgomery County), and vice chair of the Democratic National Committee David Hogg, a Parkland High School shooting survivor aiming to unseat longtime lawmakers in upcoming primaries.

In New Jersey, a new fundraising political action committee known as Gen Z for New Jersey was launched with a mission to uplift and empower young leaders across the state to run for office and fund their campaigns.

In Newark, Daughety’s election marks the start of a new generation becoming civically engaged, said Murray-Thomas, the youngest woman elected to the Newark Board of Education. She said Daughety is a prime example of the power of Gen Z because he is “someone who is willing to speak truth to power at a time when it is needed.”

“Our young people, their families, and our communities are under attack at every angle,” Murray-Thomas said. “Now more than ever, we need leaders, we need truth-telling leaders on the board of education, and David is that type of person.”

As board members, the candidates elected this month will be tasked with holding Leòn accountable, reviewing district finances in light of looming federal cuts, and addressing recent criticism from the community over transparency in addressing racism in schools.

The Newark school board has rarely challenged León’s policies.

Recently, León and the board tried to unseat a six-year board member after her daughter filed a legal claim against the district, alleging that she experienced racial harassment during her time as a student. Both the board member and her daughter had been vocal about the racial discrimination that students and teachers said they faced at the Newark School of Global Studies. León has also said the district will not cover the attorneys fees of two former board members at the center of ethics complaints initiated by a Newark principal.

Gen Z board member plans to center youth in policies

Daughety said he understands there is information that’s public and “privy to the board itself” and wants to understand legalities and statutes around board members’ roles before carving a path forward.

“I know a lot of information will be accessible to me as a board member and I’ll be able to actually say, okay I know this, and I know the public knows this much, how can we bridge that gap of information and transparency and come together to put a solution forward, for accountability to be held, but also for healing to take place,” Daughety added.

During his time as a student in Newark Public Schools, Daughety attended First Avenue Elementary School and then Arts High School, where he served as student body president for three years, senior class president, National Honors Society vice president, debate captain, student representative to the Board of Education, and co-chair of the Newark Students Union. In 2021, Daughety wrote a policy amendment that established the district’s first Student Governance Committee.

At a school board candidate forum last month, Daughety said his two main priorities are protecting essential student support services and expanding public-private partnerships, a goal based on his community-oriented mindset. He added that mental health services, especially after-school programs and special education support “must remain priorities.”

Daughety believes it’s important to create partnerships with local businesses, universities, and community organizations to support funding for career training so students who do not want to go to college are prepared.

“I believe coming from the perspective of knowing we operate locally will allow me to be able to influence the rest of the board, or at least attempt to have conversations with them about how we fully step into our authority as a fully authorized locally controlled board,” Daughety said.

Elected to the board at 23, Murray-Thomas also said her unique perspective is a superpower that she shares with Daughety. But young elected officials also have to “build on what’s been done before us” and set an example for generations to come, Murray-Thomas added.

The role “is such a unique privilege and responsibility because when the young people, the students, see you, they really see what is possible for them,” Murray-Thomas said. “It is rare for young people, especially young Black people, young Latinos, folks of color in general, to see enough reflections of themselves reflected in positive ways.”

Daughety’s win on April 15 came as Newark’s 16- and 17-year-olds voted for the first time in a school board election. Nearly 1,800 teens registered to vote and advocates and organizers spent weeks getting students registered and vote ready. City leaders also hoped youth voters would impact the school board election, which historically has drawn around 3% to 4% of registered voters, but overall turnout in this year’s election hovered around 3% while turnout among the registered 16- and 17-year-olds was just under 4% according to unofficial results.

Daughety said voter turnout could increase if the school board elections were moved to November’s general election. He also wants to expand the youth vote next year and civic engagement efforts across the district.

“You can’t have high expectations for young people if the adults themselves aren’t living up to theirs in the election,” Daughety said. “Because to me, that’s the most important election in the city of Newark, local elections, the school board election.”

Jessie Gómez is a reporter for Chalkbeat Newark, covering public eetucation in the city. Contact Jessie at jgomez@chalkbeat.org.

Indiana bill to allow party affiliation in school board elections heads to governor’s desk

2025-04-24T16:00:27+00:00

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A proposal to allow school board candidates in Indiana to declare a party affiliation is heading for the governor’s desk after some uncertainty about the final language of the bill.

Under changes approved by the House, Senate Bill 287 allows school board candidates to state a party affiliation, identify as independent, or remain nonpartisan in general elections. In Indiana, school board elections are currently nonpartisan.

But lawmakers have tried to change that for several years amidst increased tensions over COVID-related school closures and mask and vaccine policies, as well as subsequent fights over curriculum and teaching.

Up until now, the idea has failed. The proposals have faced significant opposition from educators and advocates who expressed concern that partisan politics would detract from a school board’s primary duties to choose a superintendent, approve a budget, and set policies.

But supporters of the bill this year said politics already influence how schools operate, and that allowing candidates to declare a party would provide more information about their values to voters. Some lawmakers supported the idea that the bill would help more conservative candidates win school board seats.

The bill allows county parties to challenge candidates’ stated affiliation if they did not vote in that party’s two most recent primary elections, or obtain written certification from the county party chairman that they are a member of the party.

It also provides raises to school board members to an amount not more than 10% of the lowest starting salary of a teacher in that school district. That salary is currently set at $2,000.

Initially, the bill as passed by the Senate would have required candidates to state an affiliation and go through the primary election process, just like other candidates.

Senate lawmakers initially planned to agree with the House’s changes. But that concurrence was withdrawn, and the bill was sent to a conference committee, which is tasked with finding a compromise between the two versions.

The conference committee briefly met Monday and discussed reverting the bill to its Senate version. But on Tuesday, lawmakers appear to have changed their minds again, filing another concurrence on the bill as passed by the House. The concurrence prevailed on Thursday.

It’s not clear what lawmakers disagreed on, nor how the dispute was resolved.

Republican Sen. Gary Byrne, the bill’s author, did not immediately return a request for comment.

The bill is now on its way to the desk of Gov. Mike Braun. If Braun signs it, it would take effect in July. However, there are no school board elections in Indiana this year.

Aleksandra Appleton covers Indiana education policy and writes about K-12 schools across the state. Contact her at aappleton@chalkbeat.org.

Mortician and dad Jeremy Harris challenging incumbent to represent northeast Denver on school board

2025-04-23T21:31:07+00:00

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A mortician and father of a third grader who thinks Denver Public Schools is headed in the wrong direction is challenging school board member Michelle Quattlebaum for a seat representing northeast Denver.

Jeremy Harris said his views and those of Quattlebaum, who is running for a second term in District 4, are “night and day.” His campaign slogan is “a new era in education.”

“I get asked, ‘What does that mean?’” Harris said of his slogan. “It means we’re getting back to what works: safe, structured schools; strong academics; and a school board that is accountable to the people, not distracted by politics.”

Harris, 33, owns Harris Funeral Directors in Aurora. He and his family live in the Central Park neighborhood of Denver, where his son attends Swigert International elementary school. In addition to serving on the PTA at Swigert, Harris said he volunteers to read with students once a week at Stedman Elementary with the nonprofit organization Partners in Literacy.

“One of the priorities in my campaign is that most of the kids aren’t reading on grade level,” Harris said. “I’m seeing it firsthand in the classroom.”

Declining enrollment has led to more than a dozen school closures in the past two years. DPS has also found itself in the crosshairs of the Trump administration over an all-gender high school restroom, and it has sued the federal government to protect immigrant students.

DPS achieved its highest-ever graduation rate last year, but some students are still recovering from pandemic-era learning loss. Many teachers are mad that they were denied higher cost-of-living raises while the superintendent got a bonus. The school board’s reputation also took a hit during a period of public infighting, which has since calmed down.

School safety has been a hot topic following a string of high-profile gun incidents. Harris said he supports the decision to return armed school resource officers to Denver schools, which Quattlebaum voted against. Harris said he also supports finding alternative settings for disruptive students; he suggested an in-school suspension room staffed by teachers.

“I don’t believe safety has to come with handcuffs, but in certain situations, resource officers are needed at schools,” Harris said. “Teachers shouldn’t have to break up fights; teachers shouldn’t have to be security. Teachers should teach.”

Harris is calling for DPS to focus on the “core academics” of reading, math, science, and civics. On his website, he says DPS should promote “appreciation for American values.” He said he is firmly opposed to teaching elementary and middle school students about LGBTQ+ issues or critical race theory, a catch-all term for lessons about race and racism.

“Classrooms should not be used for political or ideological agendas,” Harris said. Students, he said, “should not be made to feel guilty” because of their background.

Lessons about racism or discussions of transgender rights are more appropriate for high school students, Harris said. He added that “we shouldn’t be focused on kids choosing their gender when they can’t read or write.”

If elected, Harris said he would push to cut the salaries of top central office staff to hire more math, reading, and behavior interventionists. He’d also support getting rid of stipends for school board members. Current policy allows board members to be paid up to $33,000 a year.

“You should do this work because you want to do this work,” he said.

The board has come under scrutiny for meeting in closed-door executive sessions to discuss topics such as the superintendent’s contract. Harris said that if he’s elected and the board votes to go into an executive session, “I’m going live on my phone. I’m always going to make sure District 4 knows what’s going on.”

State law requires school board members to sign an affidavit stating that they will comply with executive session confidentiality requirements and restrictions.

Since announcing his candidacy earlier this month, Harris said the question he gets most often from voters is whether he supports DPS Superintendent Alex Marrero.

“If we are seeing continued dysfunction, lack of transparency, and no academic gains, it’s absolutely fair to consider new leadership,” Harris said. “Our students can’t wait any longer.”

Melanie Asmar is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Colorado. Contact Melanie at masmar@chalkbeat.org.

Newark school board election 2025: Moving Newark Schools Forward slate had substantial lead on Tuesday night

2025-04-16T02:30:00+00:00

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Incumbent Kanileah Anderson and her running mates Louis Maisonave Jr. and David Daughety appeared headed to victory Tuesday night in the Newark school board election according to preliminary results that didn’t include mail-in ballots.

The three candidates are part of the Moving Newark Schools Forward slate, a contingent that has historically been heavily backed by Mayor Ras Baraka and other powerful Democrat lawmakers. The slate has won every school board election since 2016.

Among all 11 candidates, Anderson led with 2,915 votes, or 22% of total votes, Daughety received 2,499 votes, or 19%, and Maisonave Jr. received 2,442 votes, or 18%, according to the official results.

If the leading candidates hold onto the win, the nine-member Newark Board of Education will continue to be composed entirely of members who ran for election as part of the Moving Newark Schools Forward slate.

As of 9:17 p.m. Tuesday, candidates on the Prioritizing Newark’s Children slate were trailing behind the mayoral-backed slate. Returning candidate Ade’Kamil Kelly received nearly 8% of the votes, according to preliminary results, and his running mates Shana Melius and Nathanael Barthelemy received roughly 6% of the votes each.

The two slates were joined by returning candidates Latoya Jackson and Yolanda Johnson and newcomer Elaine Asyah Aquil, who received about 5% of the votes each. Jordy Nivar received 3% of the votes, and DeWayne Bush just under 2% of the votes.

The winning candidates will decide policies for the district, which is home to about 40,000 students across 64 schools.

Newark youth become the first in state to take historic vote

On Tuesday, Gabrielly Ferreira started her day like any other: getting ready for school, going to classes, catching up with friends, and taking tests. But in the back of her mind, the 16-year-old student at Science Park High School knew it was a historic day for Newark’s youth.

After school, Ferreira’s mom took her to Hawkins Street School in the city’s Ironbound neighborhood, where she would cast her ballot in an election for the first time. As she walked inside the school’s gym, Ferreira noticed only one other person voting, but she was still excited to participate in the election.

The sophomore student was greeted by poll workers who checked her ID, verified her information, and handed her a ballot marking a milestone moment in her civic journey.

“It was pretty simple, and they were really friendly, actually. I knew who I was voting for, so it only took a couple of minutes. All teens who can vote today should do so,” said Ferreira, who spent weeks preparing to vote and helped organize a school board candidate forum last month.

Ferreira joined hundreds of Newark’s 16- and 17-year-olds who were the first of those ages in New Jersey to vote in a school board election. City residents chose from 11 new and returning candidates running for three seats on the Newark Board of Education.

The winners will serve a three-year term and be tasked with deciding policies, holding the superintendent accountable, approving a budget, and overseeing New Jersey’s largest school district.

Gabrielly Ferreira, 16, a sophomore at Science Park High School in Newark, voted for the first time in the city's school board election on April 15, 2025.

More than 90 churches, senior centers, and schools across the city’s five wards opened their doors from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on election day to serve as polling places.

By midday Tuesday, polling places at East Side and University high schools were quiet, with just a trickle of voters coming in after school. At Science Park, a poll worker said there were roughly 200 16- and 17-year-olds registered to vote at that location, but the worker had yet to see a teen voter by 3:30 p.m. Newark Public Schools students were not allowed to leave class during the school day to vote.

City leaders, organizers spent weeks getting students vote ready

This year, city leaders spent weeks working to get new youth voters registered and ready to vote in the historic election.

Nearly 1,800 teens registered to vote, but that number fell short of the 7,257 eligible to sign up, based on estimates from the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice. Newark Public Schools Superintendent Roger León previously said he aimed to register at least 3,000 students before the March 25 deadline.

City leaders hoped youth voters would impact the school board election, which historically has drawn around 3% to 4% of registered voters.

Charter school students such as Domonique Bateman hope city teens will increase the historically low turnout. A senior at North Star Academy’s Lincoln Park High School, Bateman feels it’s just as important for charter students to vote in the April election because under state law, school districts must provide charter schools with at least 90% of per-pupil funds for students who live in the district.

Bateman wants the winning candidates to focus on providing more bus tickets for students, since many rely on public transit to get to school. She also wants to see more funding for extracurricular programs such as the arts and STEM.

“I know that the funds that [the district] give us go towards our lunches, go towards our extracurricular programs, and help with our students that have special needs and require other educational services. So, I think it’s really important that the people who are directly impacted by this money have a voice in who is elected,” said Bateman on Tuesday.

Science Park senior Tahiyah Williams, 18, said she wasn’t able to vote during the school day on Tuesday despite her polling place being at her school. She plans to vote with her mom later in the day, because she wants to “improve the school system for the kids that are coming” after her.

Tahiyah Williams, 18, a senior at Science Park High School in Newark, voted in the school board election on April 15, 2025.

Jibola Omotoyinbo, a senior at North Academy’s Washington Park High School, also voted to improve the conditions in Newark schools. She wants to have a say in the people that will represent her on the city school board.

“Being able to prioritize education for all and equal education for all is something I do hope, that, like, somebody in office would be able to do,” Omotoyinbo said.

Newark became the first city in New Jersey last year to lower the voting age to 16 for school board elections. But the youth vote was delayed until this election due to voter registration issues, according to city officials in 2024. This year’s youth vote also sparked school and local efforts to ensure teens were ready for Tuesday’s election.

In February, Newark Public Schools launched the Vote 15+ voter registration campaign to get students registered. Nonprofit groups such as The Gem Project held civics trainings for new young voters, where they said they want to see younger school board members represent them, improve school lunches, and adopt a curriculum that reflects their experiences. The Newark branch of the NAACP also held a forum to hear about candidates’ positions on school policies, funding, and looming federal cuts.

Newark Public Schools also welcomed Gov. Phil Murphy, Lt. Gov. Tahesha Way, Baraka, and other officials in March to the Newark School of Data Science and Information Technology to encourage youth to vote in the school board election.

East Side High School in Newark was one of 90 polling sites for the school board election on Tuesday

The winning candidates must also contend with recent criticism from the community over transparency in addressing racism in schools, the school board’s attempt to remove one of its longest serving members, the district’s decision to roll back on paying board members’ attorneys fees in their fight against an ethics complaint initiated by a high school principal, and the board’s approval of thousands of dollars for a staff fun day that the state’s education department deemed an inappropriate use of funds.

In Essex County, Newark joined Irvington in holding April school board elections.

On Tuesday, young voters throughout the city, including Ferreira, were seen wearing “I voted today” stickers to mark the first of many votes they will cast throughout their civic journey.

“Our voice actually does matter even though we may feel like it doesn’t,” Ferreira added.

This story has been updated with official results from the Essex County Clerk’s Office.

Jessie Gomez is a reporter for Chalkbeat Newark, covering public education in the city. Contact Jessie at jgomez@chalkbeat.org.

Michelle Quattlebaum is running for reelection to represent northeast Denver on the school board

2025-04-15T01:48:28+00:00

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Denver school board member Michelle Quattlebaum announced Monday that she will seek reelection in November.

Quattlebaum, 54, was first elected in 2021 to represent District 4, which encompasses northeast Denver. A Denver Public Schools graduate whose three children also graduated from DPS, Quattlebaum was endorsed by the Denver teachers union when she ran for her seat in 2021.

Union-backed board members continue to hold the majority of seats on the seven-member board. That could shift in November, when four of the seven board seats are up for election.

“There’s still work for me to do,” Quattlebaum said, “and I want to be able to do that work.”

In announcing her candidacy, Quattlebaum said one of her key accomplishments was voting to raise the minimum wage for DPS employees to $20 an hour. She also highlighted her advocacy for immigrant students and her “commitment to dismantling the school-to-prison pipeline.” In board discussions, Quattlebaum often asks her fellow members to think about equity.

Quattlebaum’s campaign website notes that DPS’ graduation rate is now the highest it’s ever been. Last spring, 80% of DPS students graduated within four years of starting high school, up from 70% seven years ago. In an interview, Quattlebaum said she’s most proud of a board mandate to screen students for dyslexia. But, she said, “we can’t end there.”

“The conversation has to be, ‘What is the data telling us? What percentage is that? What demographic?’ So then we can begin doing something with it,” she said.

If reelected, Quattlebaum said she would focus on expanding mental health resources, diversifying the teacher workforce, and “cultivating educational environments that prioritize cultural responsiveness, inclusivity, and holistic safety.”

More specifically, she has been pushing for DPS to assign special education staff to schools based not on how many students at a school have disabilities but on the number of service minutes those students need.

Denver school board members serve four-year terms and can be paid up to $33,000 per year. Quattlebaum has not been eligible for that higher pay rate because it was adopted after she was elected. In addition to serving on the board, Quattlebaum works as a community engagement manager at a community-based mental health center in Denver.

The past four years have been tumultuous at times for the Denver school board. Quattlebaum’s tenure began at a time marked by personality conflicts and power struggles among some board members, though she was not involved in most public disagreements.

The board has been more congenial in recent years. Quattlebaum said disagreements still happen “because we have diversity of thought.” But “it’s just not done publicly,” she said.

“I do have the ability to see all sides,” Quattlebaum said. “It doesn’t mean I agree with one, the other, or any of them. But I can understand different perspectives and then it’s figuring out, ‘Well, where’s the commonality? What’s the thing that we can come together and work on?’”

School safety has been a top concern for the board and community after a string of high-profile gun violence incidents. Quattlebaum was not on the board in 2020 when it voted to remove police officers from schools. But she was on the board in 2023 when it voted 4-3 to bring them back. Quattlebaum was one of three board members who voted no. She said her vote was informed by a diverse group of students who said they didn’t want school resource officers.

Declining enrollment and school closures have also been hot topics. The Denver school board has voted to close or partially close 13 district-run schools due to low enrollment in the past two years. Nearly all of the votes were unanimous, and Quattlebaum voted yes on all of them. The board also voted to close a charter school because of low test scores.

Quattlebaum has also voted against school closures. She was among five board members who rejected a recommendation to close a different charter school with low test scores. And she voted against an initial recommendation to close two district-run schools with low enrollment because she felt the district hadn’t done enough community engagement.

“Community is important to me: community input, community voice,” Quattlebaum said.

Recently, Quattlebaum proposed pausing school closures until the closures that are underway are executed. The board is expected to vote on the pause next month.

Quattlebaum is the first incumbent to announce a reelection bid. The seats held by Scott Esserman, Xóchitl “Sochi” Gaytán, and Carrie Olson are also up for election. Olson can’t run again due to term limits. Esserman and Gaytán have not said whether they will seek reelection.

Melanie Asmar is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Colorado. Contact Melanie at masmar@chalkbeat.org.

Roughly 25% of eligible Newark teens registered to vote for the April 15 school board election

2025-04-14T10:00:00+00:00

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Roughly a quarter of eligible 16- and 17-year-olds have registered to vote in Tuesday’s Newark Board of Education election, but that number leaves out thousands of teens who could have signed up to vote for the first time.

According to the Essex County Superintendent of Elections Office, 1,772 teens have registered to vote in the April 15 school board election. That falls short of the 7,257 who could have signed up, based on estimates from the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice.

The final count of registered teens follows weeks of efforts by local organizations and school leaders to get Newark’s 16- and 17-year-olds signed up and ready to vote in the historic election, the first since Newark lowered the voting age to 16 for school board elections. Newark Public Schools Superintendent Roger León said he aimed to register at least 3,000 students before the March 25 deadline.

This year, voters will choose three out of 11 candidates to serve a three-year term on the Newark school board. City leaders also hope the lower voting age for youth could boost voter turnout for school board elections, which historically have seen around 3% to 4% of registered voters participating.

But advocates shouldn’t feel discouraged about the number of registered young voters because “voting awareness is something that takes time to set in,” said Micah Rasmussen, director of the Rebovich Institute for New Jersey Politics at Rider University. New election rollouts, such as voting by mail and in person, took years before they were adopted and properly implemented, Rasmussen added.

“It takes several years of elections for people to get used to something new,” Rasmussen said. “These teens are the pioneers, the early adopters, the ones who are going to have this experience and tell their friends about this, their siblings. And that’s going to spur the next group of people to try it.”

Of the 1,772 registered youth voters, 994 are 17-year-olds, 776 are 16-year-olds with some turning 17 by election day, and two are 17-year-olds turning 18 on election day, according to the Essex County Superintendent of Elections Office.

The three winning candidates will decide policies in New Jersey’s largest school system, which is home to around 40,000 students across 64 schools. The Newark school board is also tasked with holding León accountable, addressing student issues, improving schools, and approving a budget, among other tasks. City youth have also said they are interested in seeing younger school board members represent them, improve school lunches, and adopt a curriculum that reflects their experiences.

The decision to lower the voting age posed challenges for city leaders tasked with registering new voters by the deadline and educating them enough to cast an informed vote.

In February, Newark Public Schools launched the Vote 15+ voter registration campaign to get students registered. León said he visited high schools to discuss the importance of voting, and hosted a three-day civics course for high school students. The district also welcomed New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, and other elected officials in March to encourage the city’s teens to register and participate in the school board election.

Organizations such as the Institute for Social Justice, The Gem Project, and Youth Media Symposium have been canvassing, hosting voting events, and training sessions to ensure city youth know what’s at stake in a school board election and how it impacts them. City educators have also held class discussions about the upcoming election, but some said they found it hard to find information on the school board candidates when planning lessons.

With a day until the election, the question is how many teens and residents will show up to vote because “it won’t be 100% of them,” Rasmussen said.

“I hope that the first teen voters have a good experience,” Rasmussen added. “I hope they feel like these new officials on the school board are accountable to them, that, like other voters, they feel they have the same right to pick up the phone and reach out to them and email them and enjoy the place they have in the process now.”

Jessie Gomez is a reporter for Chalkbeat Newark, covering public education in the city. Contact Jessie at jgomez@chalkbeat.org.

Newark Board of Education 2025 election: Meet the candidates

2025-04-02T20:16:42+00:00

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As Newark residents prepare to vote on April 15 to fill three seats on the Board of Education election, Chalkbeat Newark has put together a guide so voters can learn more about the candidates.

The guide includes what each candidate says about who they are, where they stand on key issues, and why they should be elected.

In total, 11 candidates are running in this year’s election — a historic one, as it will be the first time 16- and 17-year-olds in the city and state vote in a local school board election. Each of the seats up for election has a three-year term.

The sole incumbent, Kanileah Anderson, is running on the “Moving Newark Schools Forward” slate with newcomers Louis Maisonave Jr. and David Daughety.

Returning candidate Ade’Kamil Kelly, on the “Prioritizing Newark’s Children” slate, is also running alongside two newcomers, Shana Melius and Nathanael Barthelemy.

Five other candidates are running independently, including Elaine Asyah Aquil, Dewayne Bush, Yolanda Johnson, Jordy Nivar, and Latoya Tucker-Jackson.

For voters planning to vote by mail, the deadline to apply for a main-in ballot is April 8 if applying by mail and April 14 if applying in person. (Vote by mail applications are available in English and Spanish.)

There’s also a deadline of April 15 — the day of the election — to submit the mail-in ballots by mail or in-person to the Essex County Board of Elections or at an authorized ballot drop box.

For voters planning to vote in person on April 15, polling locations are listed here in English and Spanish.

To better understand each candidate’s views on key issues, Chalkbeat Newark sent them a few questions, including two submitted by readers. All of the candidates responded except for Dewayne Bush.

Here’s what they said in their own words. Responses were lightly edited for clarity and length, not grammatical errors.

‘You are now historic’: NJ officials encourage Newark students to vote in school board election

2025-03-18T22:29:52+00:00

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The voter registration drive at Newark’s School of Data Science and Information Technology had pizza, a DJ blasting music throughout the school’s gym, and a surprise appearance by award-winning rapper and recording artist A Boogie With da Hoodie.

It also included elected officials – from New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy to Newark Mayor Ras Baraka – encouraging the city’s 16- and 17-year-olds to register to vote and students excited about participating in a school board election for the time.

What the Tuesday event didn’t have was information about the 11 candidates running for a spot on the Newark Board of Education.

Kaiden Gigante, a 16-year-old junior at Data Science, said it was easy to register during the voter registration event. But when it comes to knowing who to vote for, Gigante said he has to read up on the candidates.

“I don’t know who I’m voting for but I know I am voting,” Gigante said while pointing to his “I got registered to vote” sticker.

His friend Kai Toolsee, also a 16-year-old junior at Data Science, said he hopes his school will have a morning announcement with more information about the candidates running for school board or that his teachers will mention something about it.

“I think we’ll get more information at some point,” Toolsee added.

The event at Data Science was designed to support Newark Public Schools’ efforts to get 16- and 17-year-olds registered to vote ahead of the April 15 school board election. This year, three seats are up for election on the nine-member Board of Education.

“Having 16- and 17-year-olds voting for school board elections is historic,” said Murphy to Data Science students. “It is so historic, Mayor, we want to do this all over the state.”

Lt. Gov. Tahesha Way, First Lady Tammy Murphy, U.S. Rep. LaMonica McIver, Assemblywoman Cleopatra Tucker, and Newark Superintendent Roger León were also at the nonpartisan voter registration drive, with more than 100 students in attendance.

Gov. Murphy also reinforced his support for a bill before a Senate and Assembly committee that would allow 16- and 17-year-olds to vote in local school board elections statewide. Way underscored the historic moment for students by reminding them that the first African American person to vote in a U.S. election was Thomas Mundy from New Jersey in 1870.

“You are now historic, you are special, and you are following in his footsteps,” Way said.

New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy visited a voter registration drive at the Newark School of Data Science and Information Technology on Tues., March 18, 2025.

Tuesday’s voter registration drive comes a week before the March 25 deadline to register to vote and less than a month until the school board election. Organizations such as the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice and The Gem Project are working to give young voters an understanding of the school board’s function but are not partnering with Newark Public Schools to host voter registration drives.

The district has said it’s manning its own voter registration efforts and, in a press release on Monday, announced a new partnership with the Victoria Foundation to award three city high schools a cash prize for driving the highest level of student-led civic engagement, such as voter registration drives, assemblies, student-led initiatives, and other nonpartisan civic engagement efforts. León said the goal is to register at least 3,000 students before next week’s deadline.

First place will receive $15,000, second place will receive $12,000, and third place will receive $10,000. The funds can be used for any school-related purpose that supports civic involvement and student growth, according to the district’s press release.

Newark Mayor Ras Baraka greets DJ Wallah, a DJ on HOT 97, during a voter registration drive event at the Newark School of Data Science and Information Technology.

The Newark city council voted last January to become the first city in New Jersey to lower the voting age to 16 for school board elections. That decision has sparked a mix of enthusiasm among young voters and challenges for city leaders and educators tasked with educating the young, first-time voters about the election.

Last month, León said the district launched a Vote 15+ voter registration campaign to get students ready for the election. On Tuesday, Léon said he’s been visiting high schools to discuss the importance of voting and the district also hosted a three-day civics course for high school students. León also said they are working on a new middle school curriculum that incorporates civics learning “to really impress upon our young students the importance of what’s happening right now.”

“It’s not good enough to just register to vote, but it’s extremely important to actually vote. So, we want our young people to influence their classmates across the city schools,” León told Chalkbeat on Tuesday.

Assemblywoman Tucker, one of the sponsors of the bill to allow young adults 16 and up to vote in school board elections statewide, said on Tuesday that she will be visiting polling sites on election day to ensure young people are voting.

Alissa Maynard, a 17-year-old junior at Data Science and one of the students who registered to vote on Tuesday, said she also hasn’t heard anything about the candidates running for school board but her teachers and principals have been telling students to get registered.

Maynard said she is going to vote because “we need to make sure our voices are heard.”

Jessie Gómez is a reporter for Chalkbeat Newark, covering public education in the city. Contact Jessie at jgomez@chalkbeat.org.

Newark candidates discuss policies, funding, and accountability at NAACP school board forum

2025-03-14T19:52:08+00:00

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This year’s Newark school board candidates faced off at the city’s first public forum to discuss their positions on teacher recruitment, federal funding cuts, and district policies, among other topics.

During the two-hour forum on Thursday, candidates answered questions about Newark Public Schools policies they would revise, the board’s role in holding the superintendent accountable, and how they would manage the district’s $1.5 billion budget, and other questions asked by audience members at the annual event organized by the Newark branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

Eleven candidates are running for three seats on the nine-member board, including one incumbent running to keep her board seat. Three are returning candidates and seven are newcomers, the largest number of first-time contenders in recent years. Louis Maisonave, a city firefighter on the “Moving Newark Schools Forward” slate, was the only candidate not in attendance.

This year’s election on April 15 is also a historic moment for Newark’s 16- and 17-year-olds, who will vote for the first time in a city school board election. Deborah Smith Gregory, president of the Newark NAACP, on Thursday stressed the importance of getting teens registered and educated to vote. She also emphasized the need for all Newark residents to vote in the school board election, which has historically seen around 3% to 4% of registered voters participating.

“We have to do better with getting voter turnout,” Smith Gregory said. “We have to get better.”

Here are four takeaways from the forum held in a full room at Bethany Baptist Church and moderated by Linda McDonald, former head of the paralegal department at Essex County College, Ali McBride Jr., chair of the civic engagement committee of the Newark NAACP, and three Newark high school students.

Candidates discuss revisions to harassment, disciplinary policies

Kanileah Anderson, a school board member since 2024 and member of the Moving Newark Schools Forward slate, said she wouldn’t revise any policies but would “drill down” on parent and family engagement policies because she doesn’t think the district is using it to “its fullest potential.”

Nathanael Barthelemy, a first-time candidate and member of the Prioritizing Newark’s Children slate, wants to address the district’s harassment, intimidation, and bullying policy, an issue his slate is championing. He said the policy and consequences for breaking it should be a reflection of state law that protects children in schools. Barthelemy’s running mate, Ade’Kamil Kelly, added that the policy isn’t properly enforced, particularly in light of complaints of racism and harassment in the district.

“So I say all that to say, our students go to school to learn not to be bullied, harassed and or racially attacked,” Barthelemy said.

Latoya Jackson, a two-time school board candidate running under the slogan “I got you,” said she wants to amend the district’s disciplinary policies and “stop treating our children like criminals.” She believes that change starts with improving relationships between teachers and students.

Jordy Nivar, a newcomer candidate and west ward district leader, said he wants to address policies that support student learning, particularly in literacy. Nivar added that “a lot of our kids are not reading up to grade level,” and he wants to “better engage with them, their parents, and their teachers” to build better communication.

Candidates share their plans to tackle funding cuts

The Trump administration’s vow to dismantle the Department of Education, as well as the end of federal COVID relief funds that supported summer programs and tutoring, were also major topics of discussion.

Shana Melius, a first-time candidate and member of the Prioritizing Newark’s Children slate, said her main issue regarding school funding is accountability and ensuring funds are used to support reading and math instruction.

Yolanda Johnson, an education advocate and three-time school board candidate, said she would support budget decisions that provide money for teachers to pay for classroom supplies. She also said that the district should invest in better curriculums because “we are not even capable of competing at a global level, let alone local level.”

David Daughety, a first-time candidate running on the Moving Newark Schools Forward slate, said his two main priorities are protecting essential student support services and expanding public-private partnerships. He added that mental health services, especially after school programs and special education support “must remain priorities.” Daughety also said that it’s important to create partnerships with local businesses and universities as well as organizations to support funding for career training so students who do not want to college are prepared.

“Let’s get one thing straight. Cuts at the federal level or any level of government should not impact our babies,” Daughety said. “Our students are off the table. Newark is not for sale.”

Anderson, a board member also on the Moving Newark Schools Forward slate, said the district needs to ensure that it’s never in a situation where teachers could be laid off. She added that programming expanded through federal COVID relief dollars should also continue.

Newark NAACP president Deborah Smith Gregory encourages the audience to vote in the April 15 school board election

Newark students ask about accountability, board power dynamics

Science Park High School seniors Breanna Campbell, Nathaniel Esubonteng, and Devin Mitchell each posed one question to the candidates during the forum. They also solicited questions from the public and asked audience members to vote for their favorite questions using an interactive live poll.

Campbell asked the candidates how they would maintain a proper balance or power between the board and Superintendent Roger León to ensure students' needs remain a top priority.

Anderson, who sits on the board, said things are “topsy-turvy” among members, referring to the school board’s attempt to remove one of its longest-serving members and decisions to roll back on paying board members’ attorneys fees, among other issues. She said she wants to see a new board that owns their power and united positions “to really hold the superintendent to task to run this district efficiently.”

Kelly, on the Prioritizing Newark’s Children slate, said the city needs board members who are courageous and aren’t afraid to “just tell it how it is.” He added that he’s running for school board because he hasn’t seen that courage from other members. He’s seen board members “wanting to be friendly with the superintendent and such instead of actually taking charge and demanding better,” Kelly said.

Dewayne Bush, a first-time contender running alone, also said the priorities should remain around children and ensuring the board and the superintendent represent the truth.

Elaine Asyah Aquil, a local chiropractor and grandmother of Newark Public Schools students, said the board should make decisions based on children’s needs, but also include their parents in those decisions.

Johnson, a community advocate, said the board will have to ask León to “relinquish his power over the board.” Board members must also recognize that “we are no longer under state control, but we are and we do have local control,” Johnson added.

Jackson, a former beauty salon owner turned full-time advocate, said it’s important for her to see board members who will “speak candidly” about the issues” and hold the superintendent, district attorneys, “and whoever else we need to hold accountable for the success of our children.”

Candidate priorities: mental health, hunger, parent engagement

Barthelemy, on the Prioritizing Newark’s Children slate, said he aims to support mental health and social-emotional learning and advocate for increased mental health services and trauma-informed education.

“Our students are suffering out here in the worst way. They don’t have the skills to cope … so they choose violence because it’s an easy expression to convey,” Barthelemy added.

Daughety, on the Moving Newark Schools forward slate, emphasized the need to address the root causes that prevent students from learning, such as hunger and housing instability, to strengthen schools and expand community involvement.

“If we don’t strengthen the community, we can’t strengthen our schools,” Daughety added.

His running mate, Anderson, who currently sits on the program and instruction committee, said she wants to continue supporting student learning in areas such as math and literacy.

Johnson, who’s running independently, said she wants to focus on creating more parent engagement opportunities and highlighting the importance of community input for student success.

“We all know that parents and the community members that drive a school district,” Johnson added.”

New voters, including youth who will be 16 or 17 by the April 15 election, can register to vote by March 25. Residents can vote at their designated polling location or vote by mail if they register for that option by April 8. Ballots must be postmarked no later than April 15 and must be received that day before polls close.

Residents can watch the NAACP Newark candidate forum in full on the organization’s Facebook page.

Jessie Gómez is a reporter for Chalkbeat Newark, covering public education in the city. Contact Jessie at jgomez@chalkbeat.org.

First-time candidates join returning contenders in this year’s historic Newark school board race

2025-03-07T11:00:01+00:00

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Newark voters will choose from a mix of returning and new candidates in next month’s school board election, including one incumbent running to keep her board seat, three returning candidates, and seven newcomers, the largest number of first-time contenders in recent years.

The 11 candidates are running for three seats on the nine-member Board of Education and are divided between two three-member slates – “Moving Newark Schools Forward,” a city-backed group that has won every election since 2016, and “Prioritizing Newark’s Children,” a new group formed by a former school board candidate – and five candidates running independently. The three winning residents will serve a three-year term.

A drawing on Wednesday determined the order of names appearing on the April 15 ballot. It is subject to final approval by the Essex County Clerk’s office on Friday.

This year’s school board race is also a historic moment for the city’s 16- and 17-year-olds who will cast their votes for the first time. City and school leaders are already working to get youth registered and ready to vote.

Newark leaders have also raised concerns about voter turnout in the annual school board election that has historically seen around 3% to 4% of registered voters participating. But this year, 7,257 16- and 17-year-olds in Newark have the right to vote and influence this year’s election, according to data from the New Jersey Institute of Social Justice.

The winning candidates will decide policies in New Jersey’s largest school system, which is home to just under 40,000 students across 64 schools. The board is also tasked with holding the superintendent accountable, approving district contracts, and last year, approved a $1.5 billion budget.

The candidates will have to work to gain the support of new young voters and address the public school’s most pressing issues such as managing district finances, transportation, facilities needs, academic recovery efforts, implementing federal and state policies, and supporting its growing number of multilingual learners and students with disabilities, among other needs.

They must also contend with recent criticism from the community over transparency in addressing racism in schools, the school boards attempt to remove one of its longest-serving members, the district’s decision to roll back on paying board members’ attorneys fees in their fight against an ethics complaint initiated by a high school principal, and the board’s approval of thousands of dollars for a staff fun day that the state’s education department deemed an inappropriate use of funds.

First-time candidates join incumbent on city-backed slate

School board member Kanileah Anderson is running for reelection along with newcomers Louis Maisonave Jr. and David Daughety on the “Moving Newark Schools Forward” slate.

Moving Newark Schools Forward

Anderson was appointed to the board last year and ran unopposed last April in her bid to complete a one-year term. Known for her community and advocacy work with Newark students, Anderson has rallied around education issues and recently advocated for more resources for special education students in the district. Before running in last year’s school board race, she was appointed to fill a vacant seat left by former board president Asia Norton, who abruptly resigned.

First-time school board candidate Maisonave is a Newark firefighter and president of the Hispanic Firefighters Association of Newark. Maisonave also brings his experience working with city leaders and local organizations to the Moving Newark Schools Forward slate.

Daughety is also a first-time candidate, Newark Public Schools alum and Youth Impact Program Coordinator at the Center for Justice Innovation. He is also a 2020 Arts High School alum and during his high school years, wrote a policy amendment that established the district’s first Student Governance Committee.

All nine current board members were on the “Moving Newark Schools Forward” slate during their elections. The slate garners support from state and local politicians, including Mayor Ras Baraka and state Senate Majority Leader M. Teresa Ruiz, every year.

Former school board candidate forms new slate

Returning candidate Ade’Kamil Kelly is running alongside a duo of newcomers, Shana Melius and Nathanael Barthelemy, on the “Prioritizing Newark’s Children” slate. Kelly brings his experience of running in the 2023 school board race and recruited Melius and Barthelemy, who come from educational, political, and community-oriented backgrounds.

Prioritizing Newark’s Children

Kelly is a program director at the Boys and Girls Club of Newark and has worked as a mentor for the Big Brothers, Big Sisters organization of Essex County and as a volunteer basketball coach in Newark. According to his biography online, Kelly “embodies community service and personal growth, influenced by family values.”

Melius previously worked for the late Rep. Donald Payne Jr. and served as his digital coordinator and constituent services staffer. Last year, she ran for public office for the first time to fill the 10th Congressional District seat left vacant by Payne Jr. but lost the election.

Barthelemy has never run for public office but brings community-based work experience as a program manager at the Unified Vailsburg Service organization and speaks Haitian Creole.

Five independent candidates vie for seat on board

The two slates are joined by community advocates and returning candidates, Latoya Jackson, a two-time school board candidate, and Yolanda Johnson, a three-time candidate.

Jackson, a first-time candidate in 2023, founded the nonprofit T.O.Y.A, Through Obstacles You Adapt, after losing her bid for a school board seat that year. She is a hair stylist and mother of a Newark Public School student focused on special education issues and empowering parents.

Johnson ran for school board in 2018, 2019, and 2021. In 2014, she started the Eagles Parent Teacher Student Association (PTSA) at George Washington Carver and Bruce Street School for the Deaf under the National Parent Teacher Association, where she was the president.

The candidates are also joined by newcomers Elaine Asyah Aquil, a mother, grandmother, and local chiropractor with over 29 years of experience, Jordy Nivar, West Ward district leader, and city resident DeWayne Bush.

Jessie Gomez is a reporter for Chalkbeat Newark, covering public education in the city. Contact Jessie at jgomez@chalkbeat.org.

Have a question for the 2025 Newark school board candidates? Help us build a voter guide.

2025-02-27T23:16:52+00:00

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The 2025 Newark school board election on April 15 will be a historic one as the city’s 16- and 17-year-olds will get to exercise their newly established right to vote — a first for the city and New Jersey.

Ahead of the election, Chalkbeat Newark wants to know what questions the school community has for the 12 candidates, including one incumbent, who have submitted their bid to compete for three three-year seats on the board.

The questions will help build Chalkbeat’s 2025 voter guide, a digital tool with essential information about the candidates’ positions to help voters make informed decisions this spring.

Newark’s nine-member board of education establishes district policies and goals, and holds Superintendent Roger León accountable for his responsibilities, which entail leading and guiding the district and staff members in accordance with those policies and goals. The board oversees the district’s $1.5 billion dollar budget, approves curriculum, and serves as the bridge between the community and the school system.

In recent years, the board’s focus has been on improving student performance on literacy, math, and science state exams as the district is currently under a state-approved improvement plan.

Board members Crystal Williams and Daniel Gonzalez, whose seats are up for grabs this year, will not be seeking reelection. Williams is completing her first and only term. Gonzalez has been on the board since 2021, when he was first elected to a one-year term and then subsequently ran with Williams in 2022 for a full term.

The pool of candidates includes incumbent Kanileah Anderson running on the Newark Schools Forward slate with newcomers Louis Maisonave, a city firefighter, and David Daughety, a Newark Public Schools graduate who serves on the city’s Civilian Complaint Review Board Commission.

Looking for a guide on how to vote in the election? Newark students created one here.

Returning candidates Latoya Tucker-Jackson and Yolanda Johnson are also running, along with Dewayne Bush, Jordy Nivar, John Farrell, and Elaine Asyah Aquil. Running on the Prioritizing Newark’s Children slate is another returning candidate Ade’ Kamil Kelly, along with newcomers Nathanael Barthelemy and Shana Melius.

Residents must register to vote in the April election by March 25. The last day to apply by mail for a vote-by-mail ballot is a week before the election. Voting in person at designated polling locations takes place on April 15.

In the form below, let us know what questions you have for the candidates by Friday, March 7.

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If you are having trouble viewing this form, go here.

Catherine Carrera is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Newark. Contact Catherine at ccarrera@chalkbeat.org.

Newark students' guide to voting in the 2025 Newark Board of Education election

2025-02-20T21:38:55+00:00

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This April, more than 7,000 16- and 17-year-olds in Newark will be eligible to vote in the city’s school board election for the first time.

New Jersey municipalities can set local voter requirements and Newark was the first in the state and eighth in the country to lower the voting age for local school board elections to 16. Similar measures have passed in cities like Oakland, California, Brattleboro, Vermont, and Greenbelt, Maryland.

Newark City Council unanimously voted to approve the change in January 2024 but city officials said implementation would be delayed until the April 2025 election due to voter registration issues.

The Jersey Bee held a weeklong community journalism workshop in August 2024 to compile a voter guide with and for Newark’s newest voters. It is designed to help new Newark voters understand the school board and voting processes.

What is the Newark Board of Education and what does it do?

New Jersey school boards represent the concerns of citizens, parents, and taxpayers to school administrators while representing student and school district needs to the public, according to the New Jersey School Boards Association.

The Newark Board of Education has nine members elected by the public during elections in April.

Each board member serves a three-year term. They are responsible for overseeing Newark’s 66 public schools.

Three Newark board members sit on each of six committees to review district programs and operations. The committees are:

Parent Engagement and Student Life
Personnel Policy
Instruction and Programs
Operations
Finance
Governance

Newark’s school board appoints the district’s superintendent, also known as the district’s executive officer. Superintendents administer day-to-day operations, manage district employees and contractors, and advise and report to board members. They typically serve three- to five-year terms.

Roger León has been Newark public schools’ superintendent since 2018. His contract expires on June 30, 2028.

In Newark, a budget director assists the business administrator in creating the Newark school district budget. Budgets may invest in facility upgrades, school activities, and curriculum development. School boards can also apply for state aid programs to help finance the district’s expenses.

New Jersey school boards are required to meet at least once every two months, according to state law.

Meetings are divided into conference, regular, and executive sessions. Conference sessions, also referred to as business meetings, and regular sessions are open to the public. They discuss district updates, including staff changes, school programs, and budgets.

How do I participate in Newark school board meetings?

People have the right to join, watch, and take part in school board meetings, according to the New Jersey Open Public Meetings Act.

Meeting agendas inform the public about what the board will discuss, including votes and other actions the board might take. Agendas can include:

Establishing or updating policies
Approving personnel changes
Discussions from school board committee meetings

Meeting agendas are available online here on the day of each meeting.

Newark school board members typically hold public board meetings on the fourth Tuesday and Thursday of each month, according to the board’s website. Meetings are online and in-person, though the location varies.

The schedule, with dates, times, and locations, is available here.

Meeting attendees can give public comment for three minutes during a portion of the meeting. Those interested in speaking must complete a public participation request here five calendar days before the meeting.

The school board maintains a video archive of past meetings here.

How does voting for school board members affect education?

School boards are responsible for approving the district curriculum, adopting policies, and overseeing expenses throughout the year. But consistent low voter turnout in Newark school board elections means that a handful of voters have had a say in who makes decisions for the district.

“The youth has power in votes and voices,” said Allison K. James-Frison, co-vice president of Newark Board of Education, during The Jersey Bee’s community journalism workshop on student voting in Newark school board elections. “If the community sees the students are getting involved, there will be a bigger turnout.”

Less than 3% of eligible voters participated in the 2024 school board election.

“The more people our age who are voting, the higher probability we will have for change,” said Ella Ojei, a 16-year-old Great Oaks Academy student from Newark, who participated in The Jersey Bee’s workshop.

How and when do I register to vote?

To vote in an election, a voter registration form must be completed and submitted by mail or online. The voter registration deadline in New Jersey is 21 days before the day of the election.

For the 2025 election, the deadline to register to vote is March 25.

Newark youth must meet the following requirements to register to vote:

A United States citizen
At least 15 years old at the time of registration and 16 years old on or before the day of the election
A Newark resident for at least 30 days before the day of the election
Not currently incarcerated

The Youth Voter Registration Application is available online or in paper form at a local election office, public library, or high school. Applicants must provide the last four digits of their Social Security number or their driver’s license/ID number when completing the form.

Proof of ID is not required on the day of voting.

Where and when do I vote?

Newark’s school board races are held in April. The 2025 election date is April 15.

Voters can cast a ballot at their designated polling location on the day of the election or by mail. Early voting does not apply to school board elections.

Voting polls will open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. for the 2025 Newark school board election.

How can I stay up-to-date on ballot information and candidates?

Voters can find updates about candidates, voting periods, and ballot information on state and local government websites and through local news outlets.

New Jersey Voter Information Portal is the official state government website for finding updates about election results, voter information, and polling locations.

Essex County Board of Elections provides updates about election dates and an online preview of ballots specific to Essex County.

Chalkbeat reports on education news in U.S. cities, including Newark. In 2024, Chalkbeat co-sponsored a candidate forum one week before the school board election.

The Jersey Bee distributes a daily newsletter called The Daily Buzz that updates readers about their local government, schools, and events that they can participate in. You can subscribe to the Newark newsletter here.

This student voter guide was created through a collaborative effort between Newark high school students Teniola Akinleye, Nissi Arogula, Oke Ekpan, Oumou Diambou, Paul Romero, and Nikolas Wortham, and The Jersey Bee staff including Melissa DiPento, Natalie Tsur, and Simon Galperin.

The Jersey Bee is a nonprofit civic news organization that works with communities to meet local information needs, increase civic participation, and improve quality of life for cities in Essex County, including the Oranges, Newark, Irvington, Maplewood, Montclair, Glen Ridge, Bloomfield, Nutley, and Belleville. This story was first published in The Jersey Bee.

Want to serve on your local education council? Here’s how NYC parents can get involved

2025-01-08T19:37:46+00:00

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This story was updated to reflect the new deadline, Feb. 27.

New York City parents: Do you want to get involved in local and citywide education policy?

Applications to serve on the city’s Community and City Education Councils, or CECs, opened in January, giving parents until Feb. 27 to submit their names for consideration. (This month, the city’s Education Department extended the deadline by 11 days from an initial deadline of Feb. 16.)

Each of the city’s 32 school districts has its own council representing local prekindergarten through eighth grade students at Education Department-run schools. There are also four citywide councils: for high schoolers, students learning English as a new language, students with disabilities, and District 75 schools, which serve students with the most complex disabilities.

During a press conference, schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos encouraged parents — particularly those who speak languages other than English — to apply for seats on the parent-led boards.

“If you’ve never held a parent leadership role before, now is always a great time to start,” she said. “At the same time, we recognize that not everyone can dedicate time to serving on these councils, and in that case, we encourage you to get involved in other ways — whether by voting in the elections this spring, or contacting your CEC members to share your thoughts and experiences.”

Here’s a look at what CECs do, who is eligible to serve on them, and how you can get involved:

What are Community and City Education Councils?

The city’s parent-led boards serve as largely advisory bodies, with the local councils holding direct power only to shape school zone boundaries.

Still, CECs give parents an opportunity to weigh in on a variety of education issues at their monthly meetings, from academics to school budgets and more. The parent councils help determine education policies and priorities across local districts and the city, collaborating with district superintendents and issuing resolutions and other recommendations for the school system at large.

In recent years, some local councils have waded into political discussions, issuing statements on the Israel-Hamas war, congestion pricing tolls, and other issues.

City Council member Rita Joseph, a former teacher who chairs the committee on education, called the councils “a vital space, where parents don’t only have a voice, but actively shape policies and decisions that impact their children’s school every day.”

“I encourage parents across the city to step forward,” she said. “Your voice matters, and now is the time to use it.”

Who can serve on a CEC?

All candidates must be the parent or legal guardian of a New York City public school student, with some additional eligibility requirements (and exceptions) for specific councils.

To serve on one of the 32 district CECs, you must have a child that is currently attending pre-K through eighth grade at a public school or program within that district. You can also apply for a reserved District 75 seat on the council if your child attends a District 75 program physically located within the district.

For the Citywide Council on High Schools, you’ll be campaigning for a seat in the borough where your child’s public, non-charter high school is located.

Candidates for the Citywide Council for District 75 must have a child in a District 75, while those seeking a seat on the Citywide Council on Special Education must have a child with an individualized education program, or IEP, whether in a city-run, charter, or private school, according to the Education Department.

To qualify for a spot on the Citywide Council on English Language Learners, you must have a child who is classified as an English language learner and who is currently enrolled (or was enrolled within the previous two years) in a dual language, transitional bilingual education, or English as a new language program.

Parents can also run for multiple councils, but will only be able to serve on one. Education Department employees are not eligible to serve on councils while employed by the agency.

Individuals can also be appointed to a CEC by a borough president, or join as a non-voting high school senior.

How can you run for a CEC seat?

Parents can apply through their New York City Schools Account. Applications will remain open until Feb. 27. Candidates will campaign from February through April.

There are more than 350 seats up for grabs. Elected parents and guardians will serve a two-year term on the boards, beginning July 1 and ending June 30, 2027.

How can you vote in CEC elections?

Parents and guardians are able to vote for each council that serves their children — meaning many families are eligible to vote in more than one council race. (Each parent gets one vote per child, and each vote allows you to select up to three seats on the council.)

Parents can vote online using their New York City Schools Account. In 2023, Education Department officials told Chalkbeat that many parents never activated their accounts — with roughly a third of the city’s students not linked to a New York City Schools Account at the time.

Voting will take place from April 25 through May 13, with run-off elections, if needed, from May 14 - June 2, according to Education Department officials.

Election results will be announced in June.

Why are some calling for changes to CEC elections?

CEC elections, which occur every two years, have faced criticism over insufficient outreach and dismal turnout figures. During the 2023 election cycle, roughly 19,000 votes were cast across the five boroughs — representing just 2% of the city’s public school families.

In November, city Comptroller Brad Lander called on the Education Department to implement a series of changes to the CEC election process, after an investigation by his office raised concerns over the department’s handling of the 2023 elections.

Among those proposed changes: An outreach plan for every district, a clear set of criteria for what constitutes a “political endorsement,” and an improved process for handling complaints during elections.

The comptroller’s investigation followed concerns from two citywide parent groups over the fairness of the election, as well as a Chalkbeat investigation that highlighted numerous concerns over how a city agency conducted the election process.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

NYC comptroller says ‘urgent need’ to fix school board election process before spring voting

2024-11-22T22:02:26+00:00

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A New York City comptroller investigation raised serious concerns about how the Education Department handled the 2023 Community Education Council elections, according to findings Comptroller Brad Lander sent this week to schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos.

Lander called on the Education Department to implement a host of changes before this spring’s voting cycle, including an outreach plan for every district published several months prior to launching the ballots, developing a clear set of criteria on what constitutes a “political endorsement,” and strengthening a process to handle complaints during the elections.

Every two years, New York City public school parents cast ballots for representatives on Community Education Councils, parent-led boards for the 32 local districts that oversee school zones and other policy issues along with four citywide councils. Many observers said election outreach and turnout have been dismal: Roughly 19,000 votes were cast across the five boroughs in 2023, according to Education Department figures. That’s about 2% of the city’s public school families.

Two citywide parent groups had called on the comptroller to audit how the Education Department’s Office of Family and Community Empowerment, known as FACE, ran the elections, saying they “were not carried out with fidelity, integrity, transparency and equity.” A 2023 Chalkbeat investigation highlighted numerous concerns in how FACE conducted the election process. In interviews with more than 20 current and former FACE staffers, election campaign contractors, and parent leaders along with reviews of documents and emails, Chalkbeat uncovered how FACE was gripped internally by turmoil and factions, potentially affecting the election process.

There’s an “urgent need for improved clarity, better and consistent complaint handling processes, and transparency,” Lander wrote in the Nov. 21 letter obtained by Chalkbeat.

Despite the concerns over FACE’s handling of the elections, FACE’s executive director Cristina Melendez — who took over in January 2022 after serving as a lead on the education transition team for Mayor Eric Adams — is expected to be elevated to the deputy chancellor role overseeing family engagement, Politico reported this week.

The Education Department did not respond to questions about Melendez. She did not immediately respond for comment.

“New York City Public Schools takes concerns about the elections seriously, and all reports were investigated and considered in accordance with applicable law and regulations,” Education Department spokesperson Chyann Tull said in an email. “We are reviewing our processes as we look towards the next citywide and community education council election season and will review the comptroller’s recommendations.”

Criticism over city’s handling of PLACE endorsements

Candidates endorsed by one group in particular made significant inroads on the councils: Parent Leaders for Accelerated Curriculum and Education NYC, or PLACE, which advocates to maintain and expand screened school admissions. The group’s picks won nearly 40% of the roughly 320 seats on the parent councils and captured all of the seats up for election on the high school council, one of the four citywide boards.

But Lander said that FACE mishandled its response to PLACE’s endorsements.

FACE did not consider PLACE endorsements as political, the letter explained, unlike endorsements made by another group, NYC Kids PAC, which tends to support integration and other progressive policies. Because Kids PAC is registered as a political action committee, FACE treated its picks as “political endorsements” and even disqualified one candidate because of her promotion of the endorsement. Treating the groups’ endorsements differently, however, was erroneous, the letter said: PLACE behaved like a political organization, its endorsements were political in nature, and it influenced the elections for a political purpose.

“FACE did not apply the Chancellor’s Regulations consistently or fairly when adjudicating candidate complaints,” Lander wrote.

NeQuan McLean, a parent leader from Brooklyn’s Bedford-Stuyvesant and president of the board of directors for the Education Council Consortium, one of the groups that brought the complaints to the comptroller, was unsurprised by the findings.

“It’s what we said it was: It was an unfair implementation of the rules and regulations,” he said. “Hopefully the DOE will take these recommendations seriously.”

Having “true and transparent” elections so parent councils “can be more reflective of the communities that they serve” will be especially important after President Donald Trump takes office, McLean said, since states and local bodies might have more say over education policy.

Lisa Marks, co-president of PLACE, said her organization was never contacted by the comptroller’s office and was unaware of the investigation.

“PLACE NYC is a volunteer parent organization that advocates for high quality, rigorous education in NYC public schools,” she wrote in an email. “We help and support fellow parents who believe in our mission, to hold seats on all relevant parent councils.” That includes PTAs, school leadership teams, and Community Education Councils, she said.

More outreach needed for Community Education Council elections

Other issues included improper ballot placement for candidates representing District 75 (which serves students with disabilities that have complex needs) as well as concerns about low participation at Bronx high schools, raising questions about the outreach to those communities.

Parents at only nine out of the Bronx’s 153 high schools voted for high school representatives on the Citywide Council on High Schools, according to the parent groups who called for the audit.

The 2023 election was just the second time that parents could vote directly for their school board representatives. (Previously, parent association leaders selected members.) The first time the voting system changed was during the pandemic, so low turnout was unexpected. But turnout remained low in 2023 as well.

“It seems likely that Department of Education (DOE) processes did not keep pace with what was needed for this expansion to a Citywide election involving hundreds of thousands of potential voters,” Lander wrote.

He is calling for FACE to have district outreach plans, which should outline budget and other resources, ready to implement at least three months before voting begins.

This year’s election cycle will kick off in January, when parents will be able to apply for seats. Campaigning will last from late February through April. Voting — which can be done online through a parent or guardian’s New York City Schools Account, or NYCSA — will take place from late April through May 13, according to the Education Department’s website.

This week, FACE began reaching out to parent leaders about participating in a working group to discuss how to improve the election process, according to a letter obtained by Chalkbeat. The working group aims to develop plans to reach underrepresented communities and encourage higher participation. Meetings are expected to start Dec. 11.

Amy Zimmer is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat New York. Contact Amy at azimmer@chalkbeat.org.

Denver Public Schools bond election results: 4A passes

2024-11-12T23:27:45+00:00

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Denver voters approved a $975 million bond to benefit Denver Public Schools, continuing a long trend of Denver voters pledging tax revenue to support the local schools.

Measure 4A passed 75% to 25%, according to unofficial election results released at 4 p.m. Tuesday, a week after Election Day, when officials finished counting ballots.

Denver Superintendent Alex Marrero released a statement last Wednesday morning thanking the city’s voters for passing the bond measure.

“We are grateful for the foresight of our community to help us ensure that our students will be provided a safe and welcoming environment in which to learn and grow,” Marrero said in the statement. “Denver Public Schools is dedicated to making sure that every student thrives.”

The $975 million bond measure was the Denver school district’s largest-ever ask.

Measure 4A will not increase property taxes because of how the school district has scheduled previous debt to come off its books. Denver voters approved bonds in 2020, 2016, 2012, and 2008 to benefit the district, which serves about 90,000 students.

The $975 million includes:

$240 million to install air conditioning at the 29 Denver schools without it.
$28 million for safety upgrades, including weapons detection and crisis communications systems and adding secure vestibules to 17 schools.
$43 million for middle and high school stage upgrades, theater seating, and more.
$33 million for athletic facilities upgrades, including installing artificial turf, updating high school weight rooms, replacing scoreboards, and adding lighting to athletic fields.
$51 million for career and technical education classrooms and STEAM spaces. STEAM stands for science, technology, engineering, art, and math.
$124 million for new school buses and new school construction, including building a new elementary school in the far northeast Gateway neighborhood and expanding another new campus near the airport to add middle school grades.
$100 million for upgrades to existing school buildings, including to school-based health clinics, restrooms, cafeterias, and outdoor classrooms.
$55 million for technology, including new Chromebooks and internet hotspots.
$301 million for critical maintenance at 154 buildings, including mechanical, electrical, and plumbing upgrades, as well as general renovations.

Melanie Asmar is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Colorado. Contact Melanie at masmar@chalkbeat.org.

What comes next for America: A message to readers

2024-11-12T15:42:36+00:00

I want to say something to our readers and our supporters here at Civic News Company about last week’s presidential election. However you voted, many of us right now are united in a sense that our politics are broken — and that our country may not be able to take on the challenges we face.

I think we can. But to get there, we have to repair something that goes deeper than politics. We have to repair the fabric of our civic life.

Healthy civic exchange across diverse American communities — real-life, non-virtual communities — has been fraying for decades. But that erosion has sparked a counter-force, a fledgling movement for civic renewal. People trading toxic shouting for real conversation. Communities crossing divides. Journalists like us forming outlets like Chalkbeat, Votebeat, and Healthbeat, where people can get trustworthy reporting about issues in their communities, in defiance of polarization and misinformation.

The truth is that when Americans get the tools to work on real issues in their local communities, they solve problems and create healthier politics. They become what we at Civic News Company call “civic catalysts.” They show up to public meetings; they start organizations; they run for office.

We’ve seen this in our work at Civic News Company through both the Trump and Biden years. We’ve seen ordinary people take action to bolster the integrity of their county elections after Votebeat reports on proposed or real changes. We’ve seen parents and students become aware through Chalkbeat of well-intended changes in education laws that went awry and work to overturn them. In many cases, we have seen Republicans and Democrats work together, changing course when Chalkbeat and Votebeat’s reporting showed them that their actions harmed fair voting or local schools.

We need many more civic catalysts. Because whether you find the potential policies of the second Trump administration thrilling or terrifying, you have to see that our country has challenging business in front of us. We’ll have to consider and track Trump’s explosive policies as they shape life in actual communities, from promised deportations to his proposal to eliminate the Department of Education to the possibility of a vaccine skeptic holding the highest public health position in the land.

Trump aside, schools face an “education depression”: student achievement has declined for the first time in decades (a trend that actually preceded COVID). Since Civic News Company has started reporting on public health with the launch of Healthbeat this summer, we’ve learned that many experts see another pandemic as not an if but a when. Meanwhile, our public health system remains unprepared, and on top of that faces a public health skeptic in the incoming president.

Pillars of our democracy that we were fortunate to take for granted now require vigilant attention. The U.S. system for elections was severely tested, and while it actually came out stronger, it is nonetheless plagued by distrust. The January 6 attack and two recent assassination attempts on President-elect Trump show a rising tendency toward political violence. And our media is corrupted by misinformation, magical thinking, foreign interference, and a fourth estate reduced both by diminishing economic prospects and declining credibility.

In the face of these challenges, we cannot throw up our hands. We have to enter the arena. Like you, our readers and supporters, already do.

You support organizations like ours as a vote for a healthier democracy.

And you are yourselves civic catalysts.

You are teachers, young people, and parents who look out not just for your own interest, but ask what’s going on in your community and what you can do to help. You are voters, election officials, and poll workers who monitor democracy’s most precious system, and take action if a law or policy threatens it. You are community leaders who work to improve your neighbors’ health.

You are the reason I know that we can set toxicity aside and start solving the big problems in front of us. And you inspire me to be my own civic catalyst, in the best way I know how — doing everything in my power to keep Chalkbeat, Votebeat, and Healthbeat strong. With your support, we can help you make this country a better place, one local issue at a time.

Elizabeth Green is the founder and CEO of Civic News Company.

Adams 14 tax request election results: Late results show 4A and 4B pulling ahead

2024-11-11T17:01:21+00:00

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Final unofficial election results show Adams 14 voters ultimately passed both measures. Read a more updated story here.

The latest election results posted by Adams County over the weekend showed that two tax measures for the Adams 14 school district have pulled ahead, despite earlier results showing both measures failing.

The votes for and against 4A and 4B had narrowed Friday to nearly a dead heat when more than 30,000 ballots were left to be counted, according to unofficial election results and Adams County officials.

A $10 million mill levy override to raise teacher pay was failing by a single vote. And a $113.9 million bond question to build a new school was failing by 124 votes.

By Saturday night’s last update, the mill levy override was ahead by 225 votes and the bond was ahead by 90.

On Wednesday, when the vote spread was wider, the district had released a statement saying leaders were disappointed in the outcome but found solace because the measures were only about 300 votes short of passing.

“While we were hopeful for the passage of these measures to support facility improvements and teacher salaries, we respect the outcome and will continue to seek ways to address the district’s critical needs,” said Superintendent Karla Loria in the released statement. “The fact that we were just shy of 300 votes on both measures shows that the community is beginning to rebuild trust in the District. This is a clear sign that we’re moving in the right direction and working toward uniting our community for the benefit of our students.”

The district has previously struggled to increase local funding. Voters haven’t approved a tax measure in more than 10 years. For about as long, Adams 14 has struggled to increase student achievement on state tests but did successfully rally against state orders for reorganization which could have dissolved the district. Still, Adams 14 has one of the highest rates of students choosing to enroll in other school districts. It is also home to many low-income families that may be more wary of raising taxes.

Voter guide: Adams 14 district wants voters to approve new funding for schools

If approved, Adams County’s 4A and 4B ballot questions would cost Adams 14 homeowners approximately $6.52 a month per $100,000 of home value. For a home valued at $400,000, that would be about $26.08 per month.

Measure 4A is the district’s request for a mill levy override to produce about $10 million per year to help pay for salary increases for teachers and classified staff.

Measure 4B is the district’s bond request to raise $113.9 million that the district wants to use to build a new middle school to house seventh and eighth graders from Kearney Middle School and Adams City Middle school. The district is planning to merge the schools but would like to build a new building instead of having to make costly repairs on one of the schools.

The district estimates it will take $77 million out of the $113.9 million bond request to build the new school building. That’s nearly as much as this year’s total general fund budget for the district, which is just over $99 million.

If approved, the rest of the bond money would help pay for security upgrades, HVAC system upgrades, and other maintenance as well as new furniture for classrooms.

The last time the district asked voters for a tax measure was in 2014 and 2013, and the measures failed both years.

The district enrolled about 5,484 students last school year. A majority of students come from low-income families, and about half of students are learning English as a new language.

Adams 14 has been the focus of state accountability measures for several years as it has struggled to raise student achievement enough to earn higher state ratings. But State Board members have stopped escalating state orders and are putting more trust in the district’s plans for improvement.

We’ll continue to update this story with election results.

Yesenia Robles is a reporter for Chalkbeat Colorado covering K-12 school districts and multilingual education. Contact Yesenia at yrobles@chalkbeat.org.

Colorado voters seem poised to approve about half of the school district funding measures this year

2024-11-08T22:52:13+00:00

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When it came to giving schools more local funding, Colorado voters were reluctant to raise taxes this year.

Typically presidential election years can be good years for districts to ask voters to raise taxes for schools. But this year, only about half of the requests, or 22 out of 41, were successful, according to unofficial results as of Friday morning. That’s fewer than in 2020 when about 90% of the measures were successful and also in 2016 when 68% of measures passed.

This year, of those 22 that voters approved, only 11 were actually tax increases.

Many of the successful ballot measures from school districts this year can at least in part attribute their success to the fact that they could say to voters that approving the measure wouldn’t mean a new or higher property tax.

In the Adams 12 school district north of Denver, the district’s two requests had split results, precisely on that basis.

The district was able to ask voters to incur new bond debt, but it would be able to pay for it with the existing tax collections. Voters widely supported that measure. It’s going to help rebuild the deteriorating Thornton High School, add a new central kitchen and warehouse, as well as pay for other maintenance of schools.

But in a bid for a new mill levy override that would provide ongoing dollars to raise teacher salaries, Adams 12 voters rejected the measure. If approved, homeowners would have had to pay about $2.04 per month per $100,000 in home value.

“We know the burden is higher,” said Adams 12 Superintendent Chris Gdowski. “Incomes are tight and squeezing in more. We know that was beyond what our families were able to do.”

Still, the district is going to continue to help the community understand school budgets, including possible revenue losses the district might face, and then do polling again later this school year to figure out “if things have changed with the property tax pinch.” Gdowski said the plan would likely be to ask voters again either in 2025 or 2026.

Denver and Aurora school districts had some of the largest funding requests on the ballot, and neither required those communities to pay a higher tax rate. Both measures were approved by large margins.

All of the measures that failed would have meant higher property taxes for homeowners. That includes measures for the Thompson school district, Pueblo County 70, several in Weld County including Weld Re-8 in Fort Lupton. In Adams 14, initial results seemed to indicate that both the district’s request for a bond and mill levy would be rejected, but by Friday, the margins had closed in and the mill levy measure was losing by only one vote. The Adams 14 measures would cost homeowners $6.52 per month per $100,000 of home value.

In Douglas County, where the district had struggled to pass a bond request for the last two years, voters approved a bond this year that — this time — did not require a higher tax rate. The money will go to building new schools in growing parts of the county.

The few districts that did pass a tax measure that required a higher tax rate include the Poudre school district in northern Colorado, Cherry Creek, Platte Valley in Weld County, Harrison in Colorado Springs, Durango, and Montezuma – which was successful in passing a mill levy override for the first time ever.

In Cherry Creek, voters were asked to approve a bond for $950 million and a mill levy override to net $9 million that together would cost homeowners $3 per month per $100,000.

The Harrison mill levy override to also get $9 million will cost those homeowners $5.31 per month per $100,000 of a home’s value, and that’s without a bond.

Disparities in local tax revenue for Colorado schools are growing, causing inequities and concern

Harrison Superintendent Wendy Birhanzel said that she knows in her community, which has many low-income families, making the request was a challenge. She thinks it helped that the last time voters approved a tax increase for a bond the district used it to improve all buildings.

“It showed our community that when we have a plan we will follow it,” Birhanzel said.

The mill levy override would pay for increased teacher salaries. But voters in Harrison also might have been showing support for another program that would be paid for with the new funding: continuing a scholarship program for all district graduates.

The scholarship started three years ago. With the approved funding, it will go to students regardless of other funding they get for college, which means they can get the district scholarship to cover tuition and then still receive other scholarships or federal funding to help with other expenses. Families may have seen the program as a direct return on investment, she said.

“It really truly creates equity for our kids,” Birhanzel said. “Our families really have got behind that.”

Holyoke, in the northeast corner of the state, was able to pass a measure that required a new tax for bonds that would only kick in if the state gets a grant to help build a new elementary school. The district last year didn’t get the grant, but the district plans to try again this year. School districts that win the state’s BEST grants for help with capital projects must have some matching funds to pay for the cost – and the Holyoke voter approval will assure the district has that this time.

Superintendent Kyle Stumpf said it was an “extremely difficult ask” for his community. As of Thursday, the measure was winning with just 70 votes.

“Our farming and ranching community supports our district very well and have always supported us, but it’s been extremely tight this year,” Stumpf said.

What made the difference, he thinks, is that parents of elementary children who attend the school building, which was built in 1954, have seen that maintenance problems are getting worse.

There have been main-water line breaks, one of the original 1954-electrical outlets caught fire, and on Election Day this week, the elementary school had to be evacuated for a gas leak. Officials ended up finding not one but three gas leaks in the school’s boiler room.

Plus, he said, the school building doesn’t have a lot of capacity to work with the technology students use now, or to accommodate smaller learning environments where teachers can work with students who need different support, including English learners.

“The building has served its purpose, but it was not designed for today’s type of education,” Stumpf said.

He said the district is “just very fortunate,” that it seems a majority of voters approved the measure. He said he expects it will be an investment that will serve the community for a long time.

Yesenia Robles is a reporter for Chalkbeat Colorado covering K-12 school districts and multilingual education. Contact Yesenia at yrobles@chalkbeat.org.

Philadelphia students walk out of classrooms to protest 2024 election results

2024-11-08T21:40:29+00:00

Dozens of Philadelphia students walked out of their classrooms Friday protesting the 2024 presidential election results and the impact President-elect Donald Trump could have on climate change policies.

Still, they said, the people have spoken.

“We are not trying to overturn an election. We are not storming the Capitol, but we are saying that our rights matter,” said Clara Hensley, 17, a senior at Science Leadership Academy. “We are saying that we deserve to have safe schools. We deserve to have a future. Because there’s only six years left to solve a climate crisis before it gets too far.”

The walkout was part of a national effort organized by the Sunrise Movement — an advocacy group that promotes policies to slow climate change — and led by local student activists.

Young people in deep blue Philly have been grappling with President-elect Donald Trump’s decisive win in Pennsylvania and what it will mean for the next four years.

Aster Chau, 16, from the Academy at Palumbo organized her classmates to walk out on Friday.

“We are not alone. Across the nation, there are other schools who just walked out with you and are taking action. We are scared for our futures, and today, it’s about uplifting the youth,” Chau said, speaking to her friends and classmates at City Hall. “We will create power and use this moment of fear, uncertainty, anger, and all of it to channel momentum.”

Chau said she and her peers are looking specifically at Trump’s education policies and how they will impact her school.

“Our schools are already underfunded and suffering and our extracurricular activities don’t get enough funding anymore,” she told Chalkbeat.

Trump and his campaign surrogates have made sweeping pledges to change the nation’s educational systems including dismantling the U.S. Department of Education, expanding school choice, rolling back some protections for LGBTQ students, and deporting millions of undocumented immigrants.

Students on Friday told Chalkbeat they were walking out of their classes in protest of Trump’s statements about abortion and reproductive care, as well as his immigration stances that some students said threaten their families and communities.

Though they rallied and organized their peers ahead of the election, youth voter turnout nationally was lower in 2024 than it was in 2020 overall, according to data analysis from the Tufts University Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE).

In Pennsylvania, voters ages 18-29 preferred Harris (54%) over Trump (45%) according to CIRCLE data.

Academy at Palumbo students Chaya Ackelsberg, 15, and Xavier Ray, 17, walked out of their classrooms in protest on Friday.

Chau said whatever the outcome, she and her peers will continue to advocate for causes they believe in.

“Youth will always build power, and we will always fight for the changes we want to see,” Chau said. “Regardless of the results of the election, we’re going to keep fighting, and we’re going to keep our hopes up, because that’s what’s keeping us going.”

Carly Sitrin is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Philadelphia. Contact Carly at csitrin@chalkbeat.org.

Colorado State Board of Education election results: Republicans hold lead over Democrats

2024-11-08T18:52:38+00:00

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Republicans are poised to net another seat on the Colorado State Board of Education after last week’s election.

State elections returns on Monday show Republicans are leading the three contested races, including in the highly competitive Congressional District 8. In that race, the Republican candidate widened her lead, with conservative education group Ready Colorado already declaring victory. And a Democrat won in a fourth uncontested race.

The election won’t flip the majority, but if the results hold, Democratic Party members would hold a slimmer 5-to-4 majority on the board that helps set education standards and oversees accountability for the state’s education system.

More members on the board would also be friendlier to school choice, which would impact charter school appeals from the board. Conservatives would also have more say on upcoming health and science standards reviews.

Results show in Congressional District 8 that Republican Yazmin Navarro has a growing lead over Democratic incumbent Rhonda Solis. The two were separated by about 4,000 votes for most of Tuesday night and into Wednesday. Navarro has steadily run away from her opponent with a 16,000 vote lead.

In Congressional District 3, Republican Sherri Wright has a formidable lead that will likely propel her to a win over Democrat Ellen Angeles. Wright was recently appointed to fill the District 3 seat until January after former member Stephen Varela resigned last month.

Kristi Burton Brown, also a Republican, has a large lead and will likely beat Democrat Krista Holtzmann to represent Congressional District 4. Burton Brown will replace outgoing Republican board member Debora Scheffel.

And Democrat Kathy Gebhardt won election to represent District 2 over Libertarian Ethan Augreen, who mounted a write-in bid for the seat. Gebhardt will replace Democrat Angelika Schroeder.

Voter guide 2024: We asked Colorado State Board of Education candidates 9 questions

State board members are elected for six-year terms and do not earn a salary.

The State Board of Education holds schools and school districts accountable for student test scores, hears appeals when school districts reject charter school applications, and sets standards for what students should learn and what schools should teach, among other duties.

Melanie Asmar is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Colorado. Contact Melanie at masmar@chalkbeat.org.

Amendment 80 election results: School choice ballot measure fails

2024-11-07T17:26:15+00:00

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A ballot measure that would enshrine school choice in Colorado’s constitution has been defeated, according to unofficial election returns.

Amendment 80 remained at about 7 percentage points below the 55% approval rate needed for passage when the Associated Press officially called the race Thursday morning.

Kevin Vick, president of the Colorado Education Association, which opposed the amendment, said Tuesday when initial results were reported that he was encouraged the measure appeared headed for defeat.

“I think the voters of Colorado saw this for what it really was, which is … a backdoor way of bringing private school vouchers into Colorado,” he said. “I just think this is a reaffirmation that the people of Colorado really appreciate their public schools.”

Voters in Kentucky and Nebraska also defeated school choice measures Tuesday.

Some experts predicted that passing Amendment 80 would most likely lead to a court dispute and a judge deciding how it would be interpreted.

Amendment 80 would have established “the right to school choice” for K-12 students. It defined school choice to include neighborhood schools, charter schools, private schools, home schools, open enrollment options, and “future innovations in education.”

The language said that “parents have the right to direct the education of their children” and that “all children have the right to equal opportunity to access a quality education.”

School choice is already guaranteed under Colorado law, but supporters have said passing Amendment 80 would protect that right from future attacks by state lawmakers.

Advance Colorado, the conservative group that proposed Amendment 80, suggested as the measure appeared headed to defeat that it may make another attempt.

“‘It is a certainty that we will see the same groups that spent millions against Amendment 80 back at the Capitol in a few weeks to renew their legislative assaults on charter schools and other forms of school choice,” Michael Fields, the group’s president, said in a statement Tuesday.

“When those rights are attacked, we will be prepared to bring Amendment 80 back before voters in the future,” he said. “Tonight marks just another round in the fight to protect school choice in Colorado.”

Besides Advance Colorado, Amendment 80 was supported by the Colorado Association of Private Schools, the Colorado Catholic Conference, the Independence Institute, Ready Colorado, and the Centennial Institute at Colorado Christian University.

Opponents included the ACLU of Colorado, the Colorado Democratic Party, the Colorado PTA, the Colorado Association of School Executives, a slew of individual school districts, including Denver Public Schools, the Christian Home Educators of Colorado, and several other organizations.

Voucher programs in other states, such as Arizona, have proven to be expensive.

Officials from Advance Colorado denied that Amendment 80 was about private school vouchers. The group initially proposed another amendment that was about vouchers but decided not to pursue collecting signatures to get it on the ballot.

Melanie Asmar is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Colorado. Contact Melanie at masmar@chalkbeat.org.

Ann Schimke is a senior reporter at Chalkbeat, covering early childhood issues and early literacy. Contact Ann at aschimke@chalkbeat.org.

Estos son los resultados electorales de las preguntas en la boleta de Colorado que afectan a las escuelas

2024-11-07T17:15:27+00:00

Los votantes de Colorado decidieron sobre varios temas relacionados con las escuelas en las elecciones del martes.

Aquí están algunos de los resultados, basados en el conteo de votos publicados el miércoles por la mañana.

La Enmienda 80 fracasa: Esta fue la propuesta a nivel estado para agregar el derecho de elegir libremente una escuela a la constitución de Colorado. Porque cambia la constitución, necesitaba el 55% de los votos para aprobarse. El jueves por la mañana, solo el 48% de los votos eran a favor de la enmienda. Los proponentes dijeron que querían proteger los derechos actuales en Colorado para elegir libremente una escuela, pero líderes de la educación pública se oponían a la medida. Dijeron que era un intento de dar lugar a desafíos en la corte para darles fondos públicos a las escuelas privadas.

Los votantes de Denver aprueban una medida de fondos: La propuesta de las Escuelas Públicas de Denver de recaudar más dinero para mejorar edificios, como instalar aire acondicionado en 29 escuelas más, tenía una fuerte ventaja. La medida no requiere que los dueños de propiedades en Denver paguen una mayor tasa impositiva.

Republicanos toman la delantera en tres puestos para el Consejo Estatal de Educación de Colorado: El Consejo Estatal de Educación, el cual cuenta con un total de nueve integrantes, tenía cuatro puestos vacantes en diferentes partes del estado estas elecciones. Dos de ellos ya estaban ocupados por integrantes republicanos. Un tercer puesto, actualmente ocupado por la demócrata Rhonda Solis en el 8º Distrito Congresal, el cual abarca la mayor parte del Condado de Adams y partes de los condados de Weld y Larimer, tenía la probabilidad de pasar a manos de la republicana Yazmin Navarro. Los resultados de la cuarta contienda mostraban a la demócrata Kathy Gebhardt en la delantera. Los resultados no cambiarán la mayoría demócrata en el consejo, pero pueden resultar en que haya más voces conservadoras.

Además: Conoce las candidatas al Consejo Estatal de Educación de Colorado

En Adams 14, los votantes rechazan solicitudes del distrito escolar: El distrito escolar les pidió a los votantes subir los impuestos a la propiedad para aumentar los salarios de los maestros y personal clasificado y para construir una nueva escuela media. Los votantes rechazaron tanto la propuesta de un bono como una propuesta para una recaudación especial de impuestos (en inglés: mill levy override). El distrito no ha logrado pasar exitosamente ninguna medida impositiva en más de una década.

Además: Alrededor del estado, otras solicitudes de fondos que hicieron los distritos escolares obtuvieron diversos resultados. En Aurora y Westminster, donde las solicitudes no hubieran aumentado los impuestos a la propiedad de dueños de viviendas, los votantes demostraron su apoyo. Los resultados también mostraron que se aprobarían las medidas de fondos escolares en el Condado de Douglas y en Cherry Creek. Pero votantes en muchos distritos, incluyendo el de Thompson, Pueblo 70 y la mayoría de los distritos en el Condado de Weld, estaban rechazando las medidas. En Adams 12, los resultados fueron diferentes para dos solicitudes. La que no aumentaría los impuestos probablemente se apruebe, mientras que los votantes rechazaron la que generaría mayores impuestos a la propiedad.

Traducido por Alejandra X. Castañeda

Yesenia Robles es una reportera para Chalkbeat Colorado que cubre distritos escolares de kindergarten a 12º grado y la educación multilingüe. Comunícate con Yesenia por correo electrónico a yrobles@chalkbeat.org.

Trump has won a second term. Here’s what that means for schools.

2024-11-06T19:21:00+00:00

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On the campaign trail, Donald Trump pledged to get rid of the U.S. Department of Education, expand school choice, roll back new protections for LGBTQ students, and deport millions of undocumented immigrants.

Now that the former Republican president is headed to a second term, the question becomes how likely Trump is to act on those ideas and others — and what effects students, teachers, and parents might see in the classroom.

There is significant uncertainty. Trump has not laid out detailed education policy proposals, and some key ideas were floated but not enacted in his first term.

At the same time, Trump’s decisive victory — he won the popular vote, picked up nearly every swing state, and made gains among young voters and voters of color — could create new political openings.

TELL CHALKBEAT: Trump will be the next president. What do you want him to know about your school community?

Chalkbeat spoke to advocates, experts, and former education department officials about what to expect from the next administration. They widely agreed that President Joe Biden’s Title IX rewrite, which extended new protections for transgender students and is currently tied up in the courts, will be repealed, that civil rights enforcement will look very different, and that future education budgets will be more austere.

But they disagreed on how likely it is that Trump would actually do away with the U.S. Department of Education and how much progress he might make toward federal support for school choice.

Many said they do not expect to see federal policy focused on improving education, even as students are still struggling to recover from the wide-ranging effects of pandemic school closures, chronic absenteeism remains high, and many students graduate poorly prepared for college or skilled jobs.

“We are getting ourselves into a position where we are seriously under-educating large, large numbers of students,” said Thomas Toch, the founding director of FutureEd, a think tank based at Georgetown University. “It’s almost at a crisis point.” But Toch doesn’t expect leadership from a Trump administration.

What does happen will depend on who controls Congress. Republicans have regained the Senate, but control of the House remains unclear and may not be known for days. A trifecta could clear the way for a broader Trump agenda. Trump’s pick for education secretary — whether he opts for an experienced administrator or a dedicated culture warrior — will matter, too.

For now, conservative parents’ rights groups and school choice advocates hailed Trump’s victory as a win for their perspective.

“Time to put parents back in the driver’s seat when it comes to their children’s education!,” Moms for Liberty co-founder Tiffany Justice, who campaigned alongside Trump, wrote on the social media platform X.

Calls to abolish the Department of Education have new momentum

Arguably this has been Trump’s most consistent promise on education policy, but also the one that seems most far-fetched to some political observers. Conservatives have talked about getting rid of the department for almost as long as it’s existed, and Trump didn’t make any moves to dismantle it in his first administration.

Fully dismantling the department would require an act of Congress. But Trump could limit its reach in other ways, such as eliminating or moving programs, removing career bureaucrats, and proposing much tighter budgets.

But Jim Blew, who served in Trump’s education department in his first administration and went on to found the Defense of Freedom Institute, said Trump has been adamant that he wants to get rid of the department, and that alone gives the idea more “heft.” Blew also believes public support for a federal role in education is changing. Many people don’t think the federal investment in COVID recovery yielded much, he said. At the same time, people see the Biden administration’s approach to Title IX changes and student loan forgiveness as examples of federal overreach.

Why ending the U.S. Department of Education is so alluring to the GOP — and so difficult

It would take months to take the department apart, Blew said, because every function mandated by Congress would need a new home. But that could be done, he said. Civil rights enforcement could move to the U.S. Department of Justice, for example, and Title I funding for high-poverty schools could become a block grant administered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Trump has been clear that his priorities are economic recovery, immigration, and national defense, Blew said, but that doesn’t mean he won’t follow through on education promises.

“It doesn’t need a lot of attention,” Blew said. “It needs political capital. And he can expend that while remaining focused on other priorities.”

Immigration enforcement could ripple through school communities

Trump made demonization of immigrants the centerpiece of his campaign, highlighting at every turn examples of crimes committed by undocumented immigrants or asylum seekers and the impact of immigration on American communities and schools.

Trump has promised to carry out the largest deportation operation in American history. Some experts on immigration policy have said such an effort would be legally and logistically challenging, as well as very expensive. Nonetheless, most observers expect to see an increase in enforcement.

Previous workplace raids have had widespread impacts on students whose parents were arrested, as well as on the broader community. An estimated 4.4 million American children have at least one undocumented parent, and some former Trump immigration officials have suggested that families be deported together.

Mike Petrilli, president of the conservative education advocacy organization The Fordham Institute, believes Trump’s education policies won’t make much difference in American classrooms, but his immigration policy may be felt in dramatic ways.

“It’s what he’s campaigned on, it’s what he’s promised to do, and he’d have a pretty free hand to do it,” said Petrilli, who has argued that American schools have a moral obligation as well as a legal one to educate all children who live here.

“The chances that it’s a humanitarian disaster are quite high,” Petrilli said. “Is he going to put people in camps? Will that include families? Are there going to be schools in these camps? I don’t see any reason we should believe they won’t give that a try.”

Trump’s deportation plan could separate millions of families, leaving schools to pick up the pieces

Even if enforcement is spotty, changes to federal policy have the potential to sow confusion and chaos in local communities, said Janelle Scott, a professor at University of California Berkeley. Some families may keep children home from school out of fear, she said. The messages that local law enforcement and school district officials send to families in this situation could make a difference.

Transgender students could lose new protections as civil rights enforcement changes

When the Biden administration issued new Title IX rules that clarified and strengthened protections for transgender students, Republican states and conservative groups, including Blew’s Defense of Freedom Institute, quickly filed lawsuits that led to the rules being blocked in a majority of states.

Conservatives argued that the new rules eroded protections for cisgender girls because they might have to share bathrooms and locker rooms with transgender classmates and affected the free speech rights of teachers who might be forced to use pronouns and names they disagreed with. They also argued the Biden administration overstepped by defining discrimination on the basis of gender identity as a form of sex discrimination.

Trump is expected to rescind the Biden rules, a move that would still require a lengthy bureaucratic process. But some observers have larger fears for a Trump administration. He has repeatedly accused schools of performing gender surgeries without parental permission — a false and baseless claim — and attacked the idea of gender-affirming care for youth, as well as participation in sports by transgender athletes.

“There have been fantastical claims, but undergirding that is a deep hostility to queer kids as well as allegations that schools are engaging in child abuse if they protect the rights of queer kids,” said Scott, the UC Berkeley professor.

Trump’s first administration also revoked Obama-era guidance on school discipline that aimed to reduce suspensions and expulsions for students of color and emphasized quick resolution of complaints. Some conservative groups have also used civil rights complaints to go after programs that aim to support Black student excellence or mentor teachers of color.

“Civil rights enforcement is one of those things that does change quite a bit as you move between Democratic and Republican administrations,” said Jon Valant, director of the Brown Center on Education Policy at the Brookings Institution.

Rick Hess, a senior fellow at the conservative American Enterprise Institute, said a Trump education or justice department could make high-profile examples of a few school districts’ diversity initiatives and bring about more widespread change, similar to how the Obama administration targeted districts over school discipline.

Valant said he expects Trump to continue to lean into culture war issues, though exactly what that would look like is unclear.

The Republican platform calls for defunding “woke” schools, something many observers said even Republicans might balk at as stepping on local control. Nonetheless, the federal government frequently uses funding as leverage, and teachers already report self-censoring when it comes to divisive political issues.

A Trump administration might also elevate examples of what it deems patriotic education, Valant said.

School choice gets a modest momentum boost

Expanding taxpayer funding for private schools and home-schooling have topped the conservative education agenda in recent years. A proposed federal tax credit scholarship program backed by Trump’s first education secretary, Betsy DeVos, failed to get any traction. But during Biden’s presidency, Republican-led states have expanded or started private school choice programs, some of which offer money to nearly all interested families.

On Fox News, Trump promised to sign school choice legislation that passed a House committee, and at a barbershop in the Bronx, he talked about the importance of school choice.

Blew expects Trump to push for a tax credit scholarship proposal similar to the one drafted during his first presidency.

Petrilli isn’t convinced that Trump cares that much. “It’s a stretch to say that he’s made it a priority on the campaign trail,” he said. “He has to be reminded to talk about it.”

Petrilli is also not convinced there would be enough support even in a Republican-controlled Congress to send a bill to Trump’s desk. Some rural Republicans, whose constituents have few private school options, are skeptical. So are small government conservatives who don’t want to expand federal programs.

Voters in three states — including two that Trump won by large margins — rejected school choice at the ballot on Tuesday, indicating that even many conservatives have qualms about spending public money on private schools. At the same time, Republican governors in Tennessee and Texas are pushing ahead after growing their legislative support.

But Congress will have to reauthorize Trump’s tax cuts, and a tax credit that allows businesses and individuals to write off donations to private school scholarships could be included there. Observers also expect to see a push to allow families to use money in tax-favored 529 accounts to pay for homeschooling expenses, tutoring, and other educational needs. That money already can be used for private school tuition.

Clarification: This article has been updated to more accurately describe policies that many conservatives see as federal overreach.

Erica Meltzer is Chalkbeat’s national editor based in Colorado. Contact Erica at emeltzer@chalkbeat.org.

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Education elections we’re watching

2024-11-06T16:30:14+00:00

Sign up for Chalkbeat’s free weekly newsletter to keep up with how education is changing across the U.S.

The decisions voters made Tuesday will set the course of education policy for the next four years and perhaps for far longer.

Former President Donald Trump, the Republican candidate for president, has won a second term. He has pledged to get rid of the U.S. Department of Education, cut funding for “woke” schools, roll back new protections for LGBTQ students, and expand school choice. Trump also has pledged to carry out a massive deportation operation that could have significant impacts on schools serving large immigrant communities.

TELL CHALKBEAT: Trump will be the next president. What do you want him to know about your school community?

Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate, cast herself as the defender of public education. One of her first stops after she announced her candidacy was at the convention of the American Federation of Teachers. She selected a former teacher, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, as her running mate.

She focused her campaign on policies such as affordable child care and an expanded child tax credit that could help alleviate child poverty and take some of the burden off K-12 schools. She also promised to expand apprenticeships and make college more affordable.

Political observers have said either candidate’s education agenda — including who ends up serving as education secretary — would be shaped by who controls Congress. Republicans are projected to take control of the U.S. Senate, while control of the House has not been settled.

Trump has won a second term. Here's what it means for education.

As always, state and local elections could have a more immediate impact on K-12 education. Voters also chose school board members in hundreds of districts, including in Chicago as part of a transition away from mayoral control. They also weighed in on state superintendents of education, school choice ballot measures, and the meaning of a high school diploma.

We’ll have much more on what Trump’s election means for schools and children. For now, here are some of the education races we have been watching around the country.

An extremist Republican loses bid for top education post in North Carolina

In the high-profile contest for North Carolina’s superintendent of public instruction, Democrat Mo Green beat Republican Michele Morrow.

Morrow’s many controversial statements attracted national attention to the race. She participated in the march on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and accused some teachers of being “groomers.” She homeschooled her children for part of their education and referred to public schools as “indoctrination centers” on the campaign trail. Morrow also called for the execution of prominent Democrats, including former President Barack Obama — she later called it a joke.

Green is the former superintendent of Guilford County Schools, one of the largest districts in North Carolina, who also held leadership roles in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. He described the race as a fight for the “soul of public education,” and said Morrow’s extremist rhetoric shouldn’t be normalized.

In North Dakota, incumbent state superintendent Kirsten Baesler handily beat Jason Heitkamp, a former state senator, to secure a fourth term. The race is nonpartisan, but both candidates are Republicans.

Notably, Baesler did not win the support of her state’s Republican party in the primary. The party instead backed a home schooling proponent who wanted to put the Ten Commandments in public schools, but that candidate ultimately didn’t get enough votes to advance.

Baesler has said the state’s Republican delegation is out of touch on education and overly focused on ideological issues that don’t have much effect on classroom instruction.

In Montana, Republican Susie Hedalen will succeed outgoing Superintendent Elsie Arntzen, who’s hit her eight-year term limit. She bested Democrat Shannon O’Brien, a state senator who advised former Gov. Steve Bullock on education policy

Hedalen is the vice chair of the state’s board of education and heads Montana’s Townsend School District. She formerly served as a deputy under Arntzen, who faced criticism for how her office oversaw spending and implemented education laws.

In Florida, school board elections remain non-partisan

A proposal to require school board elections to become partisan did not meet the 60% threshold it needed to amend Florida’s constitution, despite getting the support of 55% of voters. The proposed amendment would have mandated school board candidates to have their political party listed by their name on the general election ballot.

According to Ballotpedia, more than 90% of school boards are elected without any party labels attached to candidates. In recent years, however, more states and school districts have discussed moving to a partisan election system. Supporters argue that the new system will provide more transparency regarding the candidates’ political positions, while those opposed to it say it could bring about more polarization and political conflict.

Florida held partisan school board elections before a major electoral reform in 2000.

Voters reject school choice at the ballot

Vouchers and educational savings accounts have gained momentum in legislatures across the country, but voters in three states appear wary of spending public dollars on private schools.

Voters in Colorado were rejecting an effort to enshrine the right to school choice in the state constitution. The ballot measure would not have created or funded a voucher program. Still, opponents feared it would open the door to vouchers in this Democratic-dominated state.

Colorado has a robust charter sector, but Democratic legislators have blocked efforts to introduce private school choice or give public money to home schooling families. In unofficial returns, more than half of voters said no. The constitutional amendment would have needed at least 55% of the vote to pass.

In Kentucky, voters soundly rejected a proposed amendment to the state’s constitution that would have allowed public funding for students in non-public institutions. The proposed amendment proposal was placed on the ballot by Republican lawmakers to clear the way for a voucher program. Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear and the state teachers union opposed the amendment.

Former President Donald Trump, the Republican candidate and a supporter of school choice measures, won the state by a large margin, showing that a large number of Republican voters rejected one of his main education policy proposals.

In Nebraska, voters repealed a new law that would have directed $10 million of public money toward private school vouchers. The law established a partnership between the state and the nonprofit Opportunity Scholarships of Nebraska, directing public money to fund scholarships provided by the organization to low-income students.

The state legislature approved the law in April, with strong support from conservative politicians. Teachers unions opposed the scholarship program and pushed for a repeal to appear on the ballot. Their main argument is that the program would take away funding from public institutions.

The voucher repeal passed by a wide margin. Voucher proponents vowed to keep fighting.

Massachusetts votes to get rid of high school exit exam requirement

In yet another sign of the changing attitudes around what it should take to graduate from high school, Massachusetts residents voted solidly in favor of ditching the state’s required exit exam.

Right now, Massachusetts students have to pass a 10th grade math, science, and English test to get their diploma. Going forward, students will instead have to show they’ve mastered state standards in those subjects by completing certain coursework. School districts will make that call, likely with the state board of education weighing in on what it takes to demonstrate mastery.

The state’s largest teachers union led the campaign to repeal the exit exam requirement, arguing it disadvantages students with disabilities, students learning English, and students from low-income families. Graduation exams generally don’t increase academic achievement, research has found, and they can increase high school dropout rates.

Massachusetts’ governor and secretary of education both opposed getting rid of the test as a graduation requirement, saying the exams help set a uniform and high standard.

Keri Rodrigues, president of the National Parents Union, who lives in Massachusetts, said getting rid of the test would be a “disaster” and lead to some districts setting a low bar with the excuse that children who grow up in poverty just can’t do well in school.

“We don’t like the story that the data tells us,” she said, “that we’re not doing an adequate job preparing our children for adulthood.”

As of last school year, Massachusetts was one of only eight states that still required high schoolers to pass an exit exam to graduate. Several states have ditched the requirement in recent years, and others are moving in that direction. New York officials, for example, also proposed getting rid of the requirement that students pass the state’s Regents exams to graduate as part of a broader diploma overhaul.

Chicago elects first school board members

Chicago voters appear likely to elect a politically mixed school board as the nation’s fourth-largest school district begins a transition away from mayoral control. Unofficial results showed four teachers union-backed candidates, three pro-school choice candidates, and three independent candidates either winning or holding leads.

The elected board members will serve alongside mayoral appointees until 2026, when all members will be chosen by the voters.

The election comes at a time of political turmoil, as Mayor Brandon Johnson, a former teachers union organizer, has tried to assert his authority and stave off cuts to schools with a controversial plan to use loans to cover pension obligations.

Chicago Public Schools CEO Pedro Martinez (third from left) and Mayor Brandon Johnson (far right) ring bells with students at Chalmers Elementary School on the first day of the 2024-2025 school year. Johnson has pressured Martinez to resign, and the next school board could decide whether he continues to lead the district.

The appointed members of the board recently resigned en masse, and some of their replacements may be replaced again once the election results are clear. That means that an entirely new board with no experienced members will be charged with tackling major challenges, including a looming budget deficit, negotiations for a new teachers contract, the future of school choice, and the district’s relationship with the city.

Both the Chicago Teachers Union and pro-school choice groups have spent heavily in the race in an effort to influence the outcome.

Union-backed candidates leading in Los Angeles

Supporters of charter schools had hoped to pick up at least one seat on the Los Angeles Unified School District board as that body faces a major leadership transition. But in early returns, candidates backed by the teachers union were ahead, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Long-serving members of the board President Jackie Goldberg and George McKenna are retiring. Members backed by the teachers union took control in 2022. Since then, charter schools have faced less favorable policies while grappling with problems like declining enrollment.

Los Angeles is the nation’s second-largest school district and the largest governed by an elected school board. Technically there are four open seats on the seven-member board, but one of the races was decided in March when incumbent Tanya Ortiz Franklin, a supporter of charter schools, won her primary with more than 50% of the vote.

The most watched race is in District 3, where Dan Chang, a teacher and charter supporter, tried to unseat incumbent Scott Schmerelson, who had the backing of the teachers union.

Schmerelson, who has served two terms on the school board, was favored to win the race and was ahead in initial returns. Schmerelson has been a reliable vote for more charter oversight.

Chang had said that if he were successful, he would repeal a controversial policy that limits charter schools’ ability to use district buildings. Sharing space has been critical to charter school growth not only in Los Angeles but in other cities as well.

In another race, a candidate backed by the teachers union had a strong lead over one backed by the support staff union. In the final open seat, Sherlett Hendy Newbill could bring a more independent voice. The teachers union had backed her primary opponent before antisemitic social media posts effectively ended his candidacy, and she received very little financial support from the union.

Elsewhere in California, candidates backed by conservative parents’ rights groups and teachers unions are battling for control of school boards in elections that focus more on control over curriculum and the erosion of policies to protect racial equity and LGBTQ rights.

Erica Meltzer is Chalkbeat’s national editor based in Colorado. Contact Erica at emeltzer@chalkbeat.org.

Kalyn Belsha is a senior national education reporter based in Chicago. Contact her at kbelsha@chalkbeat.org.

Wellington Soares is Chalkbeat’s national education reporting intern based in New York City. Contact Wellington at wsoares@chalkbeat.org.

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2024 election results: Indiana voters elect Republican Mike Braun for governor

2024-11-06T14:31:48+00:00

Sign up for Chalkbeat Indiana’s free daily newsletter to keep up with Indianapolis Public Schools, Marion County’s township districts, and statewide education news.

Republican Mike Braun has won the Indiana governor’s election, with the Associated Press calling the race after the polls closed at 7 p.m. Tuesday.

Braun faced Democrat Jennifer McCormick, the former state superintendent of public instruction, as well as Libertarian software engineer Donald Rainwater.

With 93% of Indiana precincts reporting, unofficial results Wednesday afternoon showed Braun with 54.2% of the vote to McCormick’s 41.2% and Rainwater’s 4.6%.

Braun, a businessman and U.S. senator since 2019, previously served in the Indiana House of Representatives from 2014 to 2017.

With Braun leading the state, the Republican supermajority in the General Assembly likely has a clear path to expanding Indiana’s voucher program to all families by removing the final qualification — the income limit. The program is already nearly universal.

On Wednesday morning, Braun announced his transition team would include Betsy Wiley, president and CEO of the Institute for Quality Education, a school choice advocacy organization, as well as prominent conservative attorney Jim Bopp known for his anti-abortion model legislation.

The team is led by transition chair Victor Smith, who served as Indiana secretary of commerce under former Gov. Mike Pence, as well as transition director Joshua Kelley, Braun’s chief of staff in the U.S. Senate.

“Now is the time when the real work begins, where we can show Hoosiers the type of stewards we will be with all the trust placed in us. I am honored to have assembled such an exceptional team of individuals who bring a wealth of experience, expertise, and a shared commitment to serving the people of Indiana,” Braun said in a statement.

Teacher pay, recruitment in Braun’s education plan

Braun’s education platform also includes raising pay for teachers, but does not provide a target average dollar figure. He also champions cutting “red tape for out-of-state teachers” to become licensed in Indiana, as well as using targeted recruitment efforts to improve staffing shortages at Indiana schools.

The other points of his platform are largely in line with laws that lawmakers have passed in recent years, including limiting cell phone use in class and notifying parents if a student requests a name or pronoun change.

In culture war issues, lawmakers may have another ally in Lieutenant Governor-elect Micah Beckwith.

A pastor and small business owner from Hamilton County, Beckwith was instrumental in passing a controversial policy that moved books from the teen section to the adult section at the Hamilton East Public Library in 2022.

Beckwith was not Braun’s pick for lieutenant governor, but beat out Julie McGuire at the Republican convention, where delegates chose him over McGuire.

McCormick conceded the race around 10 p.m. Tuesday night, writing in a statement that though she was “disappointed” in the outcome, she was also “confident that Hoosier hospitality and ingenuity will ensure that Indiana’s best days remain ahead of us.”

In a statement, the Indiana School Boards Association congratulated Braun on his victory, noting that he is the first former school board member to be elected Indiana governor since Samuel Ralston in 1912. Braun was elected to the Greater Jasper school board in 2004.

“We are committed to working with the new administration and the Indiana General Assembly to achieve our common goals on improving education and student success,” the statement from ISBA said.

Aleksandra Appleton covers Indiana education policy and writes about K-12 schools across the state. Contact her at aappleton@chalkbeat.org.

2024 unofficial election results: Voters poised to approve one district’s referendum, reject two others

2024-11-06T14:17:50+00:00

Sign up for Chalkbeat Indiana’s free daily newsletter to keep up with Indianapolis Public Schools, Marion County’s township districts, and statewide education news.

Three Indiana school districts are seeking approval from voters for new or renewed property tax increases that will help support teacher pay, bus transportation, and academic programs.

Early unofficial results Tuesday night showed voters were poised to approve the referendum in Lake Station Community Schools and reject referendums in Kokomo School Corporation and Twin Lakes Community Schools.

It’s the first time that Kokomo and Twin Lakes schools have sough referendums, while Lake Station Community Schools asked voters to approve an extension of its 2017 tax rate. At least one district — Twin Lakes — says it would face teacher and staff layoffs if its referendum fails.

Operating referendum revenue supplements state funding for the costs of staffing schools and running programs and transportation. Other kinds of referendums are available for construction and for school safety initiatives, but no districts are seeking these this year.

Notably, Lake Station is subject to a 2023 law requiring certain districts to share property tax revenue with charter schools. If its referendum passes, Lake Station will share around $28,000 with charter schools.

We’ll update this story again with the results of each district’s referendum. Polls closed at 6 p.m. Eastern Time Nov. 5.

Kokomo School Corp.

Property tax rate: 0.26 per $100 of assessed value for eight years.

Annual revenue: $6,166,000

Total revenue over eight years: $49,328,000

Unofficial results as of 9:15 a.m. Wednesday:

Yes: 4,930

No: 10,262

Lake Station Community Schools

Renewal of a property tax rate previously approved in 2017: $0.54 per $100 of assessed value for eight years.

Annual revenue: $1,412,824

Total revenue over eight years: $11,302,592

Unofficial results as of 9:15 a.m. Wednesday:

Yes: 1,586

No: 1,051

Twin Lakes School Corp.

Property tax rate: $0.25 per $100 of assessed value for eight years.

Annual revenue: $3,500,000

Total revenue over eight years: $28,000,000

Unofficial results as of 9:15 a.m. Wednesday:

White County

Yes: 1,743

No: 3,350

Carroll County

Yes: 447

No: 958

Aleksandra Appleton covers Indiana education policy and writes about K-12 schools across the state. Contact her at aappleton@chalkbeat.org.

Election 2024: Here’s who won Chicago’s first school board elections

2024-11-06T07:05:59+00:00

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Chicago voters delivered a mixed message in the city’s historic first school board elections Tuesday, backing a set of candidates representing different, sometimes clashing views.

Unofficial results showed four teachers union-backed candidates, three pro-school choice candidates, and three independent candidates either winning or holding leads.

Ten seats representing 10 districts across the city were contested in the election. The winners will join 11 other members appointed by Mayor Brandon Johnson, a former teacher and Chicago Teachers Union organizer. In 2026, all 21 school board seats will be on the ballot.

Tuesday’s election will end 30 years of mayoral control in the nation’s fourth largest school district. It comes at a contentious time: CPS is in a period of leadership turmoil marked by divisions over how to cover costs at a time of expiring COVID aid and enrollment decline.

The makeup of the new board will help shape how the district answers thorny questions about money and its future direction.

Early Wednesday, The Associated Press had yet to declare winners in three races: in Districts 1, 9, and 10.

Based on preliminary results, the board will likely include 15 members either appointed by Johnson or endorsed by the CTU, a close ally of the mayor’s. That means Johnson will likely have a solid bloc of support for policies he and the union support, including avoiding school closures and pumping more money into neighborhood schools.

The other six seats will likely be filled by school choice, charter-aligned, or more independent candidates, who could press for different priorities or challenge Johnson’s agenda.

Some observers and critics of the teachers union have characterized Tuesday’s results as a blow to Johnson and the CTU, given that they spent nearly $2 million to help their endorsed candidates win in three of 10 races.

But others, especially CTU president Stacy Davis Gates, framed the election as a success. At a union election watch party Tuesday night, she led the crowd in a chant of “Whose Schools? Our schools!”

“You all created an expansion of democracy in an entire society that’s toying with the idea of fascism,” Davis Gates said.

She decried an influx of large checks, including some from out-of-state billionaires, in support of pro-school choice candidates.

Chicago Democrats For Education, a political organization that backed candidates who weren’t endorsed by the union, claimed victories in at least three races: Districts 3, 4 and 8.

“I am incredibly proud of the campaigns all our candidates ran,” Hugo Jacobo, the organization’s executive director, said in a statement. “These candidates had to fight through desperate lies and misinformation spread about them. This is a clear signal against CTU’s agenda—and just the beginning of a transformation in Chicago’s educational opportunities for students and not self interested union bosses.”

Earlier in the day, Chicago Board of Elections spokesperson Max Bever said voters in a few precincts were given ballots with the wrong school board district candidates. The mixups occurred because the new electoral districts don’t follow ward and precinct lines.

“It looks like this issue was raised fairly immediately, and proper ballots were located,” Bever said, adding that he did not know how many voters were impacted.

Unofficial results showed 63% of all registered voters had voted, according to the city’s Board of Elections.

A total of 47 people filed to run for school board, but just 31 made it on the ballot. Candidates staked out positions on school choice, taxes, and district leadership. The campaign was distinguished by big spending and sharp words over the role the teachers union and education reform advocates have played in the race.

District 1: Far Northwest Side, Irving Park

Jennifer Custer, a candidate for the Chicago Board of Elections in the 1st District, poses for a portrait in Union Park on Sept. 19, 2024.

Jennifer Custer, a former teacher and CPS mom, appeared to clinch a narrow victory against Michelle N. Pierre in the race to represent families and residents on Chicago’s Northwest Side in District 1.

“We worked really hard and knocked on a lot of doors and talked to a lot of voters,” Custer said when reached by phone late Tuesday night. She said it felt “surreal” to be part of the historic first school board elections in Chicago.

Moving forward, Custer said she wants to start building relationships with other new school board members.

“All of us have to work as a team,” she said. “We have a common vision and a common goal, and I think that’s the students of CPS and making sure we can do the best for them.”

Both candidates raised more than $100,000 in their bids to secure a seat on the board. Custer brought in significant amounts from labor unions, including the Chicago Teachers Union, which endorsed her candidacy. Pierre received backing from pro-school choice groups and benefited from spending by two super PACs supporting school choice candidates.

At an election night party downtown, Pierre said she was on “pins and needles,” unsure how the race would shake out.

Pierre said every moment of Election Day was stressful. But she said she felt hopeful when she met a voter at a poll who said she came to vote specifically for presidential candidate and vice president Kamala Harris — and Michelle Pierre.

“I know that my message resonated with a lot of people,” Pierre said.

In all, 43 schools in District 1 serve 32,410 students, most of whom are Hispanic and white. There is one charter school and one alternative school.

District 2: Rogers Park, Edgewater, Lincoln Square, Albany Park

Ebony DeBerry, a candidate for the Chicago Board of Elections in the 2nd District, poses for a portrait in Oz Park on Sept. 11, 2024.

Ebony DeBerry, a former teacher and the CTU-backed candidate, won a four-way race to represent District 2, which spans the city’s far north lakefront, according to unofficial results.

She’s one of three CTU-backed candidates to win in the 10 contests for school board seats.

At a CTU election watch party, DeBerry’s voice broke as she spoke about backing from educator volunteers and others for her campaign.

“This has not been easy and it hasn’t been short,” she said. “I am ready to brawl and fall for you guys.”

DeBerry portrayed herself as a true product of public schools and the confidence teachers instilled in her and vowed to be an advocate for students and teachers. She said she will push for expanded staffing, including for counselors, social workers and librarians, and more sports, arts and other programs.

She edged out Bruce Leon, a retired human resource entrepreneur who self-funded his campaign and argued for a fiscally prudent approach to running the school district. DeBerry also beat Kate Doyle, a former teacher and nonprofit cofounder who tried to position herself as an independent-minded progressive candidate, and CPS mom Maggie Cullerton Hooper, the daughter of former Illinois Senate President John Cullerton, who ran on a progressive platform.

District 2 serves 27,637 students in 37 schools, including three magnets and three charters.

District 3: Logan Square, Humboldt Park, Hermosa

Carlos Rivas Jr., a candidate for the Chicago Board of Elections in the 3rd District, poses for a portrait in Oz Park on Sept. 11, 2024.

Carlos Rivas Jr. notched a victory over Jason Dónes in the predominantly Latino District 3, according to unofficial results from the Chicago Board of Elections.

District 3 includes 55 schools serving 31,598 students, many of whom are bilingual or English language learners.

The two candidates have similar backstories: Both grew up in Humboldt Park, graduated from coveted selective enrollment high schools, and went on to work as educators through the Teach for America program.

But the two diverged on school choice. Rivas formerly worked at the Noble Network of Charter Schools and has said he will be an independent board member devoted to preserving the variety of schools that exist today, including charter, magnet, and selective schools. He drew financial support from the Illinois Network of Charter Schools and another pro-school choice group and has received a slew of small-dollar donations.

Dónes raised more than $300,000, largely from the teachers union and its allies, while Rivas brought in just over $75,000. However, super PACs, which are not allowed to coordinate with candidates, spent more than $280,000 in support of Rivas.

At an election night party, Rivas said the amount of attack ads against him were hurtful, especially mailers that stuck his face next to Donald Trump. He said he proudly voted for Kamala Harris today.

Rivas, who has run on a platform that’s critical of the mayor, said he hopes to work to build consensus with the board. A majority of the board will still be made up of mayoral appointments.

“It’s gonna be really difficult with 21 members, but we have to be able to do that for the good of our city, for the good of our students and our families,” he said.

Dónes is backed by the CTU and other unions as well as some local elected officials. He ran on a progressive platform focused on expanding school staffing and ensuring curriculums are culturally relevant.

District 4: Lakeview, Lincoln Park

Ellen Rosenfeld, a candidate for the Chicago Board of Elections in the 4th District, poses for a portrait in Oz Park on Sept. 11, 2024.

Ellen Rosenfeld, a former CPS teacher who currently works for the district doing family engagement, won a competitive race to represent neighborhoods along Chicago’s north lakefront.

The area includes 36 schools with diverse student bodies. Just over a third of students attending District 4 CPS schools are white, roughly one third are Hispanic, just under 16% are Black, and 8.5% are Asian American. There are no charters and about a dozen selective enrollment and magnet schools.

Rosenfeld said Wednesday that the win feels like a vindication after facing an onslaught of negative messaging that she argued aimed to mislead voters. She said she feels district residents gravitated toward a long-time neighbor, parent and educator — and, as turmoil in CPS leadership grew, increasingly spoke of wanting a counterweight to the mayor and the teachers union.

“I think that CTU and the mayor underestimated how smart the constituents are when they sent the ads that said I was the Trump puppet in Project 2025,” she said, noting it was easy for voters to confirm she is a lifelong Democrat. “Arguably it worked in my favor.”

“I know the ecosystem that is Chicago public schools, and I’m ready to do the work on day one,” she added.

Karen Zaccor, a retired CPS teacher and longtime community organizer who advocated for an elected school board, was behind Rosenfeld. Zaccor is backed by the Chicago Teachers Union and raised almost $236,000, the most of any District 4 candidate.

Zaccor said the CTU-backed candidates who did not win will remain active in school advocacy.

“No matter the outcome of the election, we’ll all continue in this fight,” she said.

Zaccor lives on the opposite side of the district from Rosenfeld, meaning she could be a potential choice for the mayor as part of his 11 appointments for the board.

That’s because of the way state law established representation on the new board. Each district will be split into two districts for the 2026 election. Tuesday’s winners become incumbents in the subdistrict in which they live, while Johnson must appoint people by Dec. 16 to represent the other subdistrict.

Other candidates who were vying to represent District 4 on the school board were Kimberly Brown, a marketing professional and adjunct professor at two colleges; Andrew A. Davis, a former owner of a brokerage firm and former head of a state agency focused on higher education who now heads up an education-related nonprofit; Thomas Day, a veteran who is an adjunct professor at the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy; and Carmen Gioiosa, a former CPS teacher and central office staffer who now teaches early childhood education at National Louis University. Every candidate has children who are CPS students or graduates.

Rosenfeld, who has been endorsed by a slew of state and local elected officials, has raised nearly $187,000. After Rosenfeld and Zaccor, the rest of the candidates raised nearly $25,000 or less.

District 5: West Side, West Loop, Near West Side

Aaron "Jitu" Brown will represent the 5th District on the Chicago Board of Education.

Aaron “Jitu” Brown will represent District 5, which spans from the West Loop to Austin and includes 105 schools — the most of any school board district.

Brown is a longtime community organizer who has fought school closures and advocated for an elected school board. He was endorsed by the Chicago Teachers Union and ran uncontested after Michillia Blaise withdrew from the race in early September. Blaise has since been appointed by Mayor Brandon Johnson to serve on the school board.

In District 5’s public schools, 62% of students are Black, 5% white, almost 28% Hispanic, and nearly 3% Asian American. A quarter of these schools in District 5 are charters.

District 6: Downtown, Bronzeville, Near South Side

Jessica Biggs, a candidate for the Chicago Board of Elections in the 6th District, poses for a portrait in Washington Park on Sept. 12, 2024.

Former CPS principal Jessica Biggs won election to represent District 6, which features a diverse school population serving several South Side neighborhoods..

Biggs ran on a platform of being an independent voice. A CTU-backed candidate, policy advocate Anusha Thotakura, finished second while Andre Smith, a finance manager, finished third. Danielle Wallace, a nonprofit leader, ran as a write-in candidate.

Biggs expressed surprise at the outcome given the large disparity in spending. Biggs raised the least of the three candidates on the ballot — about $42,600 as of the most recent filings – while Thotakura’s campaign had brought in more than $360,000.

“You never really know the impact that that money is going to have,” Biggs said. “I knew … talking with voters, talking with people at forums that our message was resonating with voters across the district. I knew people wanted an independent voice on the board.”

District 6 covers neighborhoods on the city’s South Side, such as Englewood, Greater Grand Crossing, Woodlawn and Hyde Park and neighborhoods on the city’s north side such as Streeterville and River North.

The district has over 50 schools with 21,000 students enrolled. The district’s population is majority white, but Black students are the majority of schools. About 70% of students enrolled in the district’s schools come from low-income families and 15% of students have Individualized Education Programs.

Thotakura lives on the opposite side of District 6 from Biggs, so Mayor Johnson could still choose to appoint her to the school board.

District 7: Pilsen, Little Village, Bridgeport, Brighton Park

Yesenia Lopez is a candidate to represent District 7 on the Chicago Board of Education.

Yesenia Lopez won in a three-way contest to represent District 7, which covers parts of the city’s South and Southwest sides.

The district has 79 schools with nearly 45,000 students — the most student enrollment of any school board district.

Lopez, a CPS graduate, is an executive assistant for the Illinois Secretary of State and has worked in multiple state and federal campaigns. She was endorsed by the CTU and Congressman Jesus “Chuy” Garcia. According to recent vote counts from the Board of Elections, she is ahead of Eva A. Villalobos, also a CPS graduate and a former accountant and mother of four children who attend private schools, and Raquel Don, a CPS graduate and parent, former accountant, and current member of the Jones College Prep Local School Council.

At the union election watch party, Lopez said her victory was a collaborative effort, with unions, elected officials, and fellow Southwest Side residents backing her campaign.

“It was not Yesenia on the ballot,” she said. “It was a community on the ballot.”

She said she would be a champion of working class families, advocating specifically for more afterschool programs and special education services.

“We still have many challenges ahead,” she said. “We saw out-of-state billionaires trying to buy our education system.”

Villalobos also noted that a lot of money was spent in the District 7 school board race.

“I’d like to think I made them sweat,” she said with a laugh.

Of the three candidates, Lopez has raised nearly $167,000. Villalobos has raised nearly $37,000, including from Urban Center PAC, led by former CPS CEO and mayoral candidate Paul Vallas. Don has collected nearly $3,000.

She said her advice to Lopez, which she has previously shared with her, is that she wants her to make her decisions independently without considering the agenda of political or private interests.

“I wanna make sure whatever decision she makes comes from her and not from the union and another bigger group,” Villalobos said. “We are being elected in this position because we are supposed to represent our students. We are supposed to speak on behalf of our parents. And overall make sure we increase and better our schools.”

District 8: Far Southwest Side, Back of the Yards

Angel Gutierrez is a candidate to represent District 8 on the Chicago Board of Education.

Angel Gutierrez, a nonprofit consultant, will represent voters in District 8. Unofficial results from the city’s board of elections show that Gutierrez beat his opponent Felix Ponce, a CPS music teacher and CTU-backed candidate, in a landslide.

At an election night party Tuesday, Gutierrez said his immediate priority in office will be to do a “forensic analysis” of the district’s expenses and understand how to solve CPS’s budget challenges and get the “maximum dollars into the classroom.”

One of the lessons that he said he’ll bring with him from the campaign trail is to always “elevate” the students who are the most vulnerable, such as those with disabilities.

“These are elected positions. I am beholden to the people who elected me and even the people who didn’t vote for me — I’m representing them,” he said. “That means listening to parents, listening to students, listening to teachers, listening to elected people.”

Gutierrez and Ponce were the only two candidates vying to represent families and school communities on Chicago’s Southwest Side and a smaller sliver of the Loop. District 8 includes neighborhoods like West Lawn, Marquette Park, Ashburn, McKinley Park, and Bridgeport.

Ponce raised around $295,000, while Gutierrez brought in about $86,000. A majority of Ponce’s campaign funds came from the CTU and other contributions from state and local officials. Gutierrez received money from the Illinois Network of Charter Schools. Two super PACs supporting pro-school choice candidates also spent at least $270,000 on direct mail and ads in support of Gutierrez.

CTU-backed Ponce lives on the opposite side of District 8 as Gutierrez and could be considered by Mayor Johnson for an appointment to the school board.

District 9: Englewood, Roseland, Beverly, Morgan Park

Therese Boyle is on the ballot for Chicago's District 9 school board race.

Therese Boyle looks to have secured a seat on Chicago’s Board of Education to represent District 9. According to unofficial results from the city’s board of elections, Boyle won an overwhelming majority of votes cast in Tuesday’s race. The AP had not called the race as of early Wednesday.

Boyle was in a four-way race with Lanetta Thomas, who was endorsed by the CTU, La’Mont Raymond Williams, and Miquel Lewis, who received financial support from pro-school choice PACs.

Boyle, a former longtime Chicago teacher, ran against Stacy Davis Gates for CTU president in 2019; Lewis served on the school board for a brief time under former Mayor Lori Lightfoot and is the acting director of Cook County Juvenile Probation and Court Services. Thomas is a U.S. Army veteran and community organizer in Roseland and Willians is chief of staff and general counsel to a Cook County commissioner.

District 9 covers the city’s south side in neighborhoods such as Morgan Park, Roseland, Pullman, Beverly, Auburn-Greshman, and Englewood.

Candidates raised a combined $108,000 for their campaigns, according to a Chalkbeat analysis of most recent campaign finance disclosures. Boyle raised the most, with over $55,000 coming from her own pockets, small donations, and loans. Lewis’ campaign raised the second highest amount, over $27,000. Two pro-school choice super PACs also spent more than $300,000 in support of Lewis, though by law they are not allowed to coordinate with candidates.

District 10: Hyde Park, South Shore, Woodlawn, Southeast Side

Che “Rhymefest” Smith, a candidate for the Chicago Board of Elections in the 10th District, poses for a portrait in Union Park on Sept. 19, 2024.

Rapper Che “Rhymefest” Smith appears to have beat all three of his opponents to represent District 10. Early Wednesday, Smith held a narrow lead over Karin Norington-Reaves, who also captured a large number of voters in District 10 according to unofficial results.

In one of the city’s most spread-out and socioeconomically diverse districts, four candidates were vying for the school board seat.

The Rev. Robert Jones, one of the hunger strikers who opposed the closure of Dyett High School in 2015, received a significant financial and in-kind boost from the CTU. Nonprofit CEO Norington-Reaves, the mother of a CPS student with a disability, got the backing of pro-school choice super PACs and what she described as an “anti-CTU coalition” concerned about the union’s growing influence.

Education consultant and former CPS principal Adam Parrott-Sheffer billed himself as an independent-minded candidate and the only one with both experience as a CPS educator and children attending the district. And rapper Smith, who garnered endorsements from some high-profile elected officials, said he would be a creative change agent on the board.

Meanwhile, a former CPS educator and teachers union official, Rosita Chatonda, ran as a write-in candidate after petition challenges knocked her off the ballot.

There are roughly 90 CPS schools in District 10 serving 34,700 students. With both popular specialized programs and campuses that have struggled with rapidly shrinking enrollment, the district captures the uneven student experiences in CPS.

Reema Amin is a reporter covering Chicago Public Schools. Contact Reema at ramin@chalkbeat.org.

Mila Koumpilova is Chalkbeat Chicago’s senior reporter covering Chicago Public Schools. Contact Mila at mkoumpilova@chalkbeat.org.

Samantha Smylie is the state education reporter for Chalkbeat Chicago covering school districts across the state, legislation, special education and the state board of education. Contact Samantha at ssmylie@chalkbeat.org.

Becky Vevea is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Chicago. Contact Becky at bvevea@chalkbeat.org.

IPS board unofficial election results: Thompson, Thomas, and Cosby poised to win

2024-11-06T04:58:29+00:00

Sign up for Chalkbeat Indiana’s free daily newsletter to keep up with Indianapolis Public Schools, Marion County’s township districts, and statewide education news.

Deandra Thompson, Ashley Thomas, and Gayle Cosby appeared to secure three competitive seats on the Indianapolis Public Schools board in a crowded election field that featured hefty donations from political action groups.

The unofficial election results bring two candidates — Thompson and Thomas — to the board with the help of charter-friendly political action committees that funded mailers, canvassing, and other outreach efforts. The two were among the slate of candidates endorsed by Stand for Children Indiana and RISE Indy, two nonprofits supportive of charter schools.

But the election also reinstalls Cosby to the board. Cosby, once an outspoken critic on the board, has called for a closer examination of the district’s partnership with charter schools.

Allissa Impink won her uncontested seat for District 4, which represents the southern and southwestern parts of the school district.

The new board could bring differing perspectives as members navigate the district through a cash-strapped future — particularly as IPS begins sharing property tax dollars with charter schools as dictated by a new state law.

The board will also lead the district as it continues on its Rebuilding Stronger reorganization meant to expand academic offerings to more students of color while responding to ongoing enrollment drops.

Spending from political action committees, most of which come from charter-friendly groups, surged in this election since the last relatively sleepy election cycle in 2022.

Thompson, who runs a STEM-based pre-kindergarten, unseated incumbent Kenneth Allen in the race for the at-large seat. She did not immediately return a request for comment.

But she identified the district’s literacy crisis as its most pressing issue in Chalkbeat’s voter guide.

With backing from the teachers union, Cosby raised a competitive amount of money against Hasaan Rashid, who earned the endorsement of groups supportive of charter schools. She will represent the east side of the district, including parts of Martindale-Brightwood and the Far Eastside.

Cosby said she expects to bring her outspoken nature back to the school board.

“I’m going to do everything I can to bring that same level of transparency that I had previously, including blogging,” she said.

“I’m back,” she added. “So that same spirit is coming back with me.”

Thomas, who will represent the eastern and near southeastern parts of the district, thanked the voters and her opponent. She said she’s most looking forward to the upcoming legislative session, during which time the state will draft its budget for public schools.

“We’ve got to be able to know where the money is at and making sure that our public school district is walking away feeling really strong,” she said.

In an Instagram post, Impink — the sole uncontested candidate for the southern and southwestern parts of the district — thanked sitting District 4 commissioner Diane Arnold, whose seat she will fill.

“Thank you for passing the torch,” Impink wrote. “This victory belongs to all of us who believe in the potential of our students, the strength of our teachers, and the importance of community in shaping our schools.”

Amelia Pak-Harvey covers Indianapolis and Lawrence Township schools for Chalkbeat Indiana. Contact Amelia at apak-harvey@chalkbeat.org

Elections 2024: Voting results for school boards in Marion County

2024-11-06T04:17:24+00:00

Sign up for Chalkbeat Indiana’s free daily newsletter to keep up with Indianapolis Public Schools, Marion County’s township districts, and statewide education news.

Incumbent school board candidates in Marion County are largely poised to return to their roles, per unofficial results on Tuesday.

This election, there were 40 school board candidates on ballots throughout the county for 33 seats on 10 district boards. Overall, roughly half the school board candidates in Marion County are incumbents, and a majority face at least one opponent.

Only two incumbent candidates, Kenneth Allen, current Indianapolis Public Schools board member, and Matthew Hopp, current school board member for Metropolitan School District of Pike Township, were poised to lose their seats, per unofficial results.

Elsewhere in Marion County, the difference between joining the school board for Metropolitan School District of Warren Township or not was roughly 200 votes. And in Perry Township, only two candidates were on the ballot for four open seats, but there were roughly 500 write-in votes that could impact who joins the board.

In Lawrence Township, where board disagreements about administrator pay and academic achievement spilled into the election, incumbent Crystal Puckett had the lead with 65% of the vote in the school district’s only contested race.

Voter guides: 2024 school board elections in Marion County

The role of the school board is not day-to-day operations but rather district oversight, creating and enforcing policy such as the student handbook, making sure bills are paid, approving the budget, and hiring a superintendent. School board elections are non-partisan.

The number of board members in total and up for election, as well as whether members are at-large or represent a specific district, varies by school district.

Winning candidates will start four-year terms in January.

With 100% of vote centers reporting, here are the unofficial results: (Results are not final until provisional and military ballots are counted by Nov. 15.) See IPS school board unofficial results here.

Speedway Schools is not included because the school board is appointed by the town board, not elected.

MJ Slaby oversees Chalkbeat Indiana’s coverage as bureau chief. Contact MJ at mslaby@chalkbeat.org.

Here’s how teens are preparing for a minefield of election misinformation

2024-11-05T17:14:42+00:00

This story was published in collaboration with Headway, a new initiative at The New York Times. Chalkbeat and Headway have been posing questions about the presidential election to educators and high school students since February. We have heard from more than 1,000 students and 200 teachers across the nation.

This presidential election year, young Americans are navigating a chaotic world of information, often with limited tools to distinguish what’s credible, what’s questionable, and what’s downright false.

A recent survey of more than 1,000 teenagers conducted by the News Literacy Project found that while many young people can detect images generated by artificial intelligence with ease, they struggle to differentiate news from commentary and advertisements and regularly encounter conspiracy theories on social media. Eight in 10 respondents said they believed at least one of those conspiracy theories.

Young, first-time voters and their peers told us that they regularly encountered false information online about the historically close election between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald J. Trump. Some teachers have dedicated entire lesson plans this fall to helping students better understand media literacy and fact-checking.

What election issues matter most to young first-time voters? The economy, Gaza, book bans, and more

And many students have told us they have gained confidence in spotting falsehoods. We asked more than 1,000 students about what tips them off that a piece of information might be false or misleading, what’s their approach to verifying information, and what advice they have for other teenagers. Here’s what we heard.

Responses have been edited and condensed for length and clarity.

How teens know if information is sketchy, made up or manipulated

“If the content I’m seeing is triggering an extreme emotional reaction in me — rage, fear or joy, to name a few — without offering nuanced context, it leads me to think that it might be designed to mislead. When I encounter something that seems absolutely certain about morally and politically complex topics, such as the Israel-Hamas war, without acknowledging alternative views or uncertainties, I suspect it’s oversimplifying reality to push an agenda.”

— Sena Chang, 18

College freshman at Princeton University in New Jersey

“Articles that sound sketchy, made up, or manipulated are a red flag. Some media sources get rid of the bits and pieces of context that make a situation understandable. And media outlets sometimes contradict each other. Check and cross-check media. When a true piece of media spreads like wildfire, some media outlets will try and get attention from the situation and end up spreading lies about the situation. That’s why I find most articles about popular controversies annoyingly eye-rolling.”

— Antonette Davis, 14

Freshman at Central High School in Philadelphia

A single source doesn’t cut it for verifying what’s true

“I verify my information by getting it from multiple sources, not just people online who are crediting the original article I read. I also look at the information presented in the article from the perspective of a person who doesn’t know anything about the topic and see if the article and the ideas presented still make sense.”

— Yoni Zacks, 17

Senior at the Blake School in Minneapolis.

“More often than not I look it up on Google and read about it on a more reliable website. For example, if an article makes a claim about a piece of legislation, I try to find the full text of the cited legislation to better understand what it’s saying.”

— Olivia Garrison, 17

Graduated in 2023 from Davidson Academy in Reno, Nevada

“There’s a tool called Google Reverse Image Search that I use to check the origins of viral images or memes to see where they first appeared and if they’ve been repurposed out of context. During events like the presidential debate, I also looked at multiple websites offering real-time fact-checking like The New York Times to help contextualize what I was hearing and identify when what the candidates were saying was misinformation.”

— Sena Chang

“To verify information, I try to listen directly to candidates or their campaigns. I find this is the easiest way to understand the candidate’s policy plans, opinions on certain issues, and overall decorum. While commentary can be helpful, it often includes opinions that make me perceive certain things a certain way. Therefore, I find it important to directly hear from a political candidate first. Afterward, I listen to and watch video media with commentary. It helps me compare my understanding to someone else’s and clarify things I might not have fully understood.”

— Meghan Pierce, 18

Freshman at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in Champaign, Illinois

How young people navigate a world of misinformation

“As a teenager, I get a lot of my information from social media. I know many other teenagers get their information this way, too, so my word of advice is to be aware of the algorithm and how you’re fed information usually from one side. You’re not getting the complete story, so do your research instead of trusting one source!”

— Emma Luu, 17

Junior at Pine Creek High School in Colorado Springs, Colorado

“Check anything you think is misleading with a quick search and cross-check if it’s legitimate or not.”

— Arnav Goyal, 14

Freshman at Olentangy Liberty High School in Powell, Ohio

“Become aware of media bias, and do your best to consider different perspectives and stay open-minded while being aware of media bias.”

— Lucas Robbins, 17

Senior at Mandela International Magnet School in Santa Fe, New Mexico

“My (unpopular) take is that fact-checking is easier than it seems. … Social media serves as an integral egalitarian news source where anyone can create and share primary source information no matter where they live in the world. However, using social media as a sole source of information can be dangerous. Sometimes even recognizing satirical news sources is hard — I have been a victim of thinking The Onion was a real news source. You don’t have to research every single headline you ever see. The internet can be an overload of information at times, and choosing to disconnect is a skill young people need. However, if you see something that raises eyebrows, understanding the context is just a Google search away.”

— Kush Kaur, 17

Freshman at Collin College in McKinney, Texas

Teenagers are inundated daily with a mix of credible information and fake news. Out of necessity, they’re sharpening their instincts to identify misinformation and building skills to verify or debunk it. Their advice is clear: Stay mindful of algorithmic influence, avoid relying on a single source, and remember that it’s OK to step back when it all feels overwhelming.

Need more insights? Explore the resources below.

Caroline Bauman is the deputy managing editor for engagement at Chalkbeat. Reach her at cbauman@chalkbeat.org.

Erica Meltzer is the national editor at Chalkbeat, where she covers education policy and politics. Reach her at emeltzer@chalkbeat.org

On election eve, ‘Walz’ and ‘Vance’ debate the issues at Philadelphia’s Masterman

2024-11-04T23:33:23+00:00

Sign up for Chalkbeat Philadelphia’s free newsletter to keep up with the city’s public school system.

On the eve of Election Day, JD Vance and Tim Walz engaged in a hard-hitting debate about a wide range of issues, from abortion to affordable health care to housing.

Asked about abortion, Vance shied away from a direct answer, saying, “There are a lot of different opinions on abortion, and that’s ok. That’s what we want. We want disagreement in our country.”

Walz shot back: “JD Vance thinks the state legislature knows more about a woman’s body than she does. This shows he doesn’t trust you with your own body, and if he doesn’t trust you, you can’t trust him.”

In this debate, the vice presidential candidates were actually students, and the exchange took place at Philadelphia’s J.R. Masterman Laboratory and Demonstration School – the district’s most selective and one that always shows up near the top of “best high schools in America” lists.

When it was finished, the few hundred students in attendance cast their votes in a straw poll.

More about that later.

The mock debate held Monday morning culminated a weekslong process – and a decadeslong tradition. Steven Gilligan’s Advanced Placement government students divided up into camps more or less at random, chose who would represent the candidates, researched their positions, and lobbied their classmates. Gilligan, a social studies teacher, has been doing this exercise for elections since 1998, and not just those for president but for mayor, congress, senator, governor, and even district attorney.

Ray Eggerts, who portrayed Democrat Tim Walz, and Sarah Zdancewic, as Republican JD Vance, debated for an hour before several hundred schoolmates, covering just about every issue of importance in the campaign. They answered sophisticated questions developed by the AP government students on 10 topics including inflation, tariffs, foreign policy, drug trafficking, climate change, the crisis at the border and the influx of fentanyl into the U.S, disinformation and free speech, abortion, housing prices, and affordable health care.

Unlike in some exchanges between the actual candidates, there were few platitudes or superficialities here.

One back-and-forth between the student debaters, on housing and Kamala Harris’ proposal to give $25,000 to first-time home buyers, went like this:

“Minnesota, the state that I lead, is number one when it comes to millennial home ownership,” said Eggerts as Walz. “The solution to the housing crisis is for the federal government to help people and construction companies make first time homes for people, right? The more houses we have, the more the cost goes down.”

Responded Zdancewic as Vance: “When you give people $25,000 when buying a house, it is not actually going to decrease the cost, but make the seller increase their prices.”

On the issue of free speech, Eggerts said while it is crucial and in the Constitution, it is dangerous to leave “unchecked” disinformation that leads to denials of past election results or “an attack on the Capitol or violence against immigrants.”

Zdancewic countered: “It concerns me that you’re saying that people should be prevented from saying the things that they believe just because you disagree with it.”

Gilligan decided the mock debate would focus on the vice presidential candidates rather than former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris. Having a student try to portray Trump would have been too distracting, he said. He didn’t want to put anyone in the position of presenting what could be interpreted as a caricature.

“We wanted to get beyond personalities and focus on the issues,” he said. “We saw that both candidates seemed reasonable in the vice presidential debate and that it was more sophisticated.”

Students were diligent in their research, Gilligan said, but not many volunteered to actually play the candidates. Eggerts got Walz, and Zdancewic got Vance, based on a coin flip.

Over the quarter-century he has been doing this, race and gender never mattered in choosing which students would play the candidates, Gilligan said. “During the debate between Clinton and Obama in 2008 [during the Democratic primary], Hillary was a boy and Obama was a girl,” Gilligan said.

Both Eggerts, who lives in Northern Liberties, and Zdancewic, from University City, said that their own personal views were secondary to attempting to understand and master the positions of their assigned candidates.

Still, “it’s an interesting exercise to represent someone you disagree with,” said Zdancewic. Diving into the policy debate and trying to rationalize the positions gave her a deeper understanding of issues, she said.

Eggerts said that he mostly agreed with Walz, but he also had some differences with him, including on the Israel-Hamas war and climate change. He also said he wished the Harris-Walz ticket would get firmly behind Medicare for all.

“Honestly, I lean more left than Walz,” he said.

The two teams also prepared short campaign ads. The one for Walz leaned heavily on the “Coach Walz” dynamic, with him running on a football field, while the ad for Vance was all about being a statesman.

In their closing statements at the debate, the two students got creative with alliteration. “No matter the issue you care about, Harris-Walz are the ones with the right policy … When compassion calls, vote Tim Walz, when freedom calls, vote Tim Walz, when progress calls, vote Tim Walz,” Eggerts declared.

Invoking inflation, the border, and drugs, Zdancewic said, “I implore you, take the right stance, vote for yourselves, vote for JD Vance.”

The Masterman campaign and mock debate is the last vestige of a Student Voices program funded by the Annenberg Center for Public Policy, which started in the 1990s and was designed to get more young people engaged in public policy and current issues.

After the debate, students voted in a straw poll, and 74% went for Walz, Gilligan said. Some students, however, said that how they voted didn’t necessarily reflect their real views, but rather whether they or their friends worked on the Walz or Vance teams.

Despite all of their research, neither Eggerts nor Zdancewic, who are both 17 years old, can vote Tuesday. Both said they were disappointed by that.

“I wish I could,” said Zdancewic. “I’m really upset I can’t.”

Dale Mezzacappa is a senior writer for Chalkbeat Philadelphia, where she covers K-12 schools and early childhood education in Philadelphia. Contact Dale at dmezzacappa@chalkbeat.org.

What teens said they hope for and fear in the 2024 election

2024-11-04T19:12:29+00:00

This story was published in collaboration with Headway, a new initiative at The New York Times. Chalkbeat and Headway have been posing questions about the presidential election to educators and high school students since February. We have heard from nearly 1,000 students and 200 teachers across the nation.

Over the last year, the Headway Election Challenge has talked with teenagers across the country about the 2024 presidential election, in partnership with Chalkbeat. We’ve often asked a version of this question: What don’t you know about the election but want to?

We’ve logged more than 500 responses. And while we published the 10 most common questions earlier in October, there was one question we couldn’t include that topped the list: Who’s going to win?

What election issues matter most to young first-time voters? The economy, Gaza, book bans, and more

We couldn’t answer it then. We can’t answer it now. And it may not be clear on election night either. So we thought we’d ask participants to speculate: what they hope and fear will happen in the election, and how they think young voter turnout will play out. That was the focus of last week’s challenge, and the responses paint a picture of teenagers navigating a highly charged political moment. Here’s what some of them had to say.

‘What do you expect will happen in this year’s presidential election?

Teenagers are expecting what many are: disputed results and challenges to the outcome. Some expressed fears of a repeat of the political violence that occurred on Jan. 6, 2021, and hope that if there are disputes, they remain legal and civil.

“I expect this year’s presidential election to be highly contentious, with close results in several key swing states. I’m concerned about potential challenges to the electoral process and how the candidates will handle those disputes.”

— Iman Rashid, 17

Senior at Thomas A. Edison Career and Technical Education High School in Queens

“There will likely be many incidents of protests, unrest, and controversies at various voting centers, and a rise in overall radicalism no matter the outcome.”

— Sophia Sun, 16

Junior at Skyline High School in Sammamish, Washington

“I expect votes to be challenged somewhat either way, but hopefully just through the legal system.”

— Will Palmer, 18

Freshman at American University in Washington, D.C.

Swing states were a big theme, too. Our respondents anticipate that just tens of thousands of votes in key states could play a pivotal role in determining the outcome of the election. But some expect traditionally red states, like North Carolina, to potentially swing blue, while others foresee more conservative shifts in Arizona and Nevada because of issues like immigration. Just about a quarter of our respondents expect Donald Trump to prevail in the election, while around 70 percent anticipate a Harris victory.

Mock elections, debates, arguments: Here’s how educators are teaching the 2024 presidential election

‘What do you hope will happen in this year’s presidential election?’

We heard hopes for both a Democratic victory and a Republican victory, although as the Harvard Youth Poll found in a survey of likely voters under 30, most respondents to our questionnaire prefer Kamala Harris. The prospect of electing the first female president is especially enticing to several respondents in our unscientific sample. But across the board, many of the teenagers expressed hope for a peaceful transfer of power, regardless of who wins.

“I hope that whatever happens, the U.S. will be able to recover as a united people after the election. Political divisiveness is tiring and unnecessary.”

— Lucas Robbins, 17

Senior at Mandela International Magnet School in Santa Fe, New Mexico

“I think this election will increase young people engaging in future elections, because the energy that younger people have brought to campaigns, canvassing, phone banking, sign waving, rally attendance, social media campaigning, and more has really shown the passion that young people are starting to develop for politics.”

— Isabelle Enriques, 16

Junior at Mililani High School in Mililani, Hawaii

‘What do you fear will happen in this year’s presidential election?’

Anxiety about unrest is strong. Teenagers vividly remember the violence of recent years, like the Jan. 6 Capitol riot and the 2020 protests over the murder of George Floyd, and they fear these types of events could repeat.

“I fear we see a level of unrest similar or even greater than what happened in 2020 with George Floyd’s murder. This election is shaping up to be the most polarizing election in my lifetime, and I’m scared people will be hurt over it. The assassination attempt was scary for me, and I’m fearful that it’s the new normal.”

— Raluchi Nzelibe, 16

Junior at Latin School of Chicago in Chicago

Respondents also worry about the deeper erosion of democratic norms. Several teenagers told us they feel that if the election results are contested, or if misinformation spreads unchecked, faith in democratic stability could weaken even further.

Misinformation is pervasive — not invincible. Teachers are helping students learn to adapt.

“Very afraid of political violence more than anything else. A lot of my friends are probably more afraid than I am but if the system starts to get challenged EVERY election, what was a problem one year could become the end of democracy.”

— Will Palmer

Voter turnout now and in the future

The 2020 election had the third-highest voter turnout among 18- to 29-year-olds since the voting age was lowered to 18, and nearly three-quarters of our respondents expect the turnout among young people to increase this year. One reason, they said, is social media.

“With how big of a factor social media is in our lives (and the likelihood of it stopping being slim), I think each election, the youth will be more involved. They have easier access to more information, so they can see the effects of certain policy and the actions of each candidate.”

— Keener Linder, 17

Senior at Cardinal Gibbons High School in Raleigh, North Carolina

“I believe that this age demographic cares a lot about activism and the way our society progresses. We have seen the negative impacts thus far when it comes to political leaders, and most if not all of the people around me want to make a change in some way.”

— Nikki Hatzopoulos, 18

Freshman at Fordham University in New York

But it’s not just memes. It’s also the stakes. Many teenagers told us that they feel that this election will greatly affect their future, and their family’s future.

“I believe with the current stakes, minorities being targeted and reproductive freedoms being targeted, that a lot of young voters will stand up and make their voices heard on these issues.”

— Zack Fein, 18

Freshman at Drew University in Madison, New Jersey

What’s next?

With this final set of questions, we’re wrapping up the weekly question posts of the Headway and Chalkbeat Election Challenge. If you missed a week or want to know more, now is the time to go back and finish up. Here are the questions we asked:

But don’t tune out yet; there’s more to come. After the Election Challenge, we plan to circle back with our respondents to see how their expectations, hopes and fears played out.

How Philadelphia students are participating in the 2024 election

2024-11-04T12:00:00+00:00

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In Philadelphia, the biggest city in what many are calling the swingiest swing state in the country, teachers and students are steeped in election talk.

They know the outcome of one of the most consequential presidential elections in their lifetime may come down to the votes they and their loved ones cast this week.

Across the city, students are engaging in mock elections, Socratic seminars, open discussions, arts and crafts projects, and podcasts to explore how the political process works and where they fit in.

Some are first-time voters this year, like Lecareous “LJ” Niles, a student at John Bartram High school. Niles marched from LOVE Park to City Hall with 500 of their peers from 17 district schools in a youth voting event in October.

“We’re young, but we do care about what’s going on. We do care about who’s in office. We do care about who’s controlling our everyday lives,” Niles said.

Others are too young to vote this year but are urging their peers who can to show up and support the causes they care about.

“I hope they vote. I hope they make an informed decision, and I hope they choose the best leaders to lead our country,” said Masterman student Nathaniel Kassahun, also present at the October march.

Here’s a look inside three classrooms that Chalkbeat visited this election season.

Students learn about voting laws, participatory democracy at Academy at Palumbo in South Philly

In South Philly, Charlie McGeehan’s honors social studies classes at the Academy at Palumbo have been dissecting the country’s voting laws and what it means to participate in a democracy. Formatted as a Socratic seminar akin to what college students might experience, McGeehan’s classes encourage polite and respectful debate with an emphasis on backing up one’s position with research and evidence.

Palumbo is a selective admissions school that draws students from neighborhoods across the city. McGeehan said of the 67 eligible students in his classes, he’s gotten about half to register to vote this year.

On a recent Tuesday morning, students challenged each other on whether voting is a right or a privilege — or something altogether different. They explored their views about voting restrictions: Should people who are incarcerated be allowed to vote? What about people here on work visas or who have temporary immigration statuses?

They vigorously debated whether the voting age should be lowered to allow high school juniors who work part time and pay taxes to be able to have a say in how those taxes are used.

In one class period, their discussions delved into the criminal justice system’s flaws, the looming impact of a proposed basketball arena in the city’s Chinatown neighborhood, and whether the nation should consider a voting age ceiling in addition to the current age limits.

The discussion method “just seems like the most interesting way to get kids to actually care about voting in elections,” McGeehan said. “Fundamentally, I feel most successful when I can make kids curious about something.”

McGeehan said he works hard to create opportunities for students to participate even if they’re less confident with public speaking. He said in his four years teaching at Palumbo, he’s learned that the “voting is important” message tends to fall flat, “unless you actually have them learn about it and come to that message on their own.”

“If we want them to feel like they have a voice per se, then I have to create structures in the classroom where they have a voice and a say,” he said. “If I’m not doing that, the lesson is not going to sink in.”

How voters decide which political party to join at Bodine High School in Northern Liberties

In one of Alex de Arana’s social studies classes at William H. Bodine High School in Philadelphia’s Northern Liberties, students explored political ideologies and how Americans sort themselves into political parties based on their most closely held beliefs.

De Arana’s goal wasn’t for each student to leave with a firm understanding of where they fit into the picture. Rather, it was to help them grasp how people are a tangle of different perspectives shaped by the environment they grew up in and the news they consume.

Facing a political arena that can quickly turn toxic, de Arana emphasized civility: “Please understand that when you are talking about politics with your friends, with your family members … someone’s priorities may be different from you, and that’s okay, and it’s important to try to come to an understanding of how you arrived here.”

De Arana expected his students to reflect on their political and social beliefs and consider how they arrived at them.

“I want you to try to be aware of why you think the way you do,” de Arana told the students. “The more you understand that, hopefully, the more you understand where people who disagree with you are coming from.”

De Arana and colleague Kate Reber (who teaches history and English at Bodine) run an online chat room where they watch the presidential and vice presidential debates and live-blog them with their students. Students are expected to run fact checks and research the candidates’ positions in real time, and consider what they think about them.

Reber said in an email that for the presidential debate, 65 of their students contributed over 1,000 posts and comments.

Communications class debates abortion, tax cuts at Martin Luther King High in East Germantown

The juniors and seniors in Stephen Flemming’s Communications 101 class at Martin Luther King High School in East Germantown are not afraid to speak their minds.

In a complex and passionate discussion one Friday morning, students expressed their anger at proposed policies aimed at controlling women’s medical decisions and attempts to limit access to birth control and abortion care.

They railed against systems of white supremacy that they say are widening gaps between rich and poor families in an effort to give tax cuts to the wealthiest Americans.

They stressed the importance of the U.S. Department of Education and said Republicans’ attempts to eradicate it would harm students like them.

The mostly Black student body also spoke about their experiences being Black in Philly. Their thoughts about politics and leadership intertwined with their feelings about their place in the city: White neighborhoods they are scared to walk through alone, and routine traffic stops they worry may end in violence.

Such comments aren’t just pegged to the election. These topics come up frequently in Flemming’s class, he said. His philosophy is to give students a safe and welcoming space to engage with these ideas, some of which other teachers may bristle at or steer them away from, he said.

“There’s a core group of people who don’t mind talking unapologetically, and there are some that listen more than they talk,” Flemming said.

The students also host their own podcast called Behind The Eyes of Our Youth where they dig into topics like social justice, toxic relationships, school phone bans, Black military service, women’s rights, and more.

The most recent episodes featured interviews with their student government candidates. The hosts questioned those running about their thoughts on school uniform policies and how they intend to improve life at MLK High.

Flemming largely shapes his curriculum through a communications lens. This election year, they’re discussing political rhetoric, messaging, speechwriting, and media criticism, in addition to pressing issues and policies.

The class is an elective, dual enrollment class with Harrisburg University, meaning students can graduate with some college credits. It’s a self-selecting group of high-achieving students from all backgrounds as well as some who simply need the class to graduate, Flemming said. And it’s a diverse group: There are athletes, cheerleaders, code writers, anime fans, and people of faith, he said.

Flemming’s teaching philosophy is to be genuinely interested in listening to what students have to say. “My voice does not matter as much as theirs in this space,” he said. “I’m an adult. I can vote, I have a platform outside of the classroom to express my opinions and views there.”

His advice to other teachers looking to engage their students in tough social and political questions?

“Don’t be scared,” he said. “I know it can be intimidating. You might get pushback. I say fight back. It’s all about the student.”

And above all, “step away from the mic.”

Carly Sitrin is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Philadelphia. Contact Carly at csitrin@chalkbeat.org.

Detroit school board election: Candidates draw nearly $230,000 in campaign donations so far

2024-10-31T23:50:00+00:00

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Nearly $230,000 in campaign contributions have poured into the Detroit school board race this year, with nearly all of the donations going to four candidates.

Donations reported by the pre-election filing deadline on Oct. 25 show the 22-candidate race for three at-large seats on the Detroit Public Schools Community District board are on track to exceed the last election cycle’s fundraising.

Most of the candidates have not yet reported any contributions or spending. The late contribution reporting deadline is Election Day, Nov. 5.

The new members will be tasked with addressing pressing issues, such as the district’s ongoing high rates of student chronic absenteeism, school climate and culture, low teacher pay, enrollment decline, and low academic achievement. The new makeup of the board could create division that may stall Superintendent Nikolai Vitti’s current approach to those issues — or allow it to move forward.

Sherry Gay-Dagnogo, the only incumbent in the race, is seeking reelection now that her first term on the board is coming up. Board members Sonya Mays and Misha Stallworth, whose terms are also ending, are not running for reelection.

Boyd White III, who is running for office for the first time, brought in the most money in the race by the Oct. 25 deadline. Wayne County records show White, an attorney and pastor, reported raising more than $86,000. White said Thursday he expects total contributions to reach around $100,000 by Election Day.

White said he knew his lack of name recognition within the DPSCD community meant he had to fundraise aggressively. His strategy was to reach out to people in his network, such as friends and family, for support.

White’s second-highest contribution, for example, came from his mother.

“If we win, it will be a total team victory,” he said.

Gay-Dagnogo raised the second-highest amount at more than $65,000, her state-level political action committee reported through the secretary of state’s office.

The board member said her county-level PAC raised $1,000 and she expects to raise a total of $75,000 by the end of the campaign.

Gay-Dagnogo said she almost didn’t run, but decided to seek reelection when she heard rumors Vice President Kamala Harris would become Democrats’ presidential nominee.

“I knew a lot of ground had to be made up.” she said of her late entry to the race. “But I wanted to be a part of heightening everyone’s awareness of the opportunity to have a Black woman as president. That has been my focus ever since.”

Gay-Dagnogo has held get out the vote rallies and events and has campaigned with other Democrats to stump for Harris.

Toson Knight, founder of the Caught Up mentoring program who is currently division director for prevention and diversion for Wayne County, reported more than $41,000 in contributions.

Sherisse Butler, senior vice president and executive director of City Year Detroit, raised more than $30,000.

District parent and nonprofit executive Monique Bryant’s campaign brought in more than $4,000. Of that amount, nearly half was donated by Bryant herself.

“This is my second time running and I knew that I was going to have to invest in myself to do what I’m trying to accomplish,” she said.

Gay-Dagnogo also invested in her own campaign, giving $6,000.

4 candidates get notable Detroit-area endorsements

Bryant is the only candidate who did not receive major endorsements to report raising more than $1,000 to the county.

White received endorsements from the Detroit Free Press, the Michigan Chronicle, the Detroit Regional Chamber of Commerce, and the Metro Detroit AFL-CIO.

Gay-Dagnogo was also endorsed by the Free Press, the Chronicle, and the AFL. Knight was endorsed by the Free Press and the chamber of commerce. Butler got endorsements from the chamber, the Chronicle, and the AFL.

Early reports don’t show much money flowing into the race from political action committees.

White did get several thousand dollars collectively from the Michigan Laborers Political League, the Michigan Action Political Fund, the Iron Workers Local 25 PAC, and the Friends of Janice Winfrey, who is currently the Detroit city clerk.

Gay-Dagnogo received $15,000 from the Committee to Elect Andrea Bradley, who is running for 36th District Court judge.

The chamber of commerce’s political action committee also donated to the campaigns of the candidates it endorsed, said its Vice President of Political Affairs Brad Williams. The contributions were not yet public in the county reporting system by Thursday.

“We see DPSCD as integral to our broader talent strategy,” said Greg Handel, the chamber’s vice president of education and talent.

A lot of money in the race came from individual donations by wealthy business leaders in Michigan who live outside of Detroit.

For example, Bloomfield Hills resident Bill Emerson, the president of Rocket Companies, contributed $5,000 to White and $3,500 to Knight. David Provost, former vice chairman of TCF Financial who lives in Birmingham, gave $5,000 each to the campaigns of White and Knight.

All of the candidates have largely spent their donations in the same areas: yard signs, printing, and online advertising.

White said his campaign spent around $50,000 on two mailers sent to Detroit residents. The campaign has also invested more than $2,200 on automated calls, more than $31,000 on yard signs, and more than $11,000 on graphic design.

Gay-Danogo has spent more than $30,000 on printing literature, more than $1,400 on food for volunteers, more than $3,300 on graphic design, and more than $2,800 on voter outreach.

This isn’t the first year the DPSCD board race has drawn hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign support.

In 2022, the 18 candidates for four seats on the board brought in more than $235,000. At the time, LaTrice McClendon garnered the most financial support in the race. A political newcomer, she won a position on the board.

In 2020, candidates received more than $289,000 in campaign donations in the election for three board seats. Most of the money went to the three incumbents in the race, including Gay-Dagnogo.

The amount the incumbents raised in 2020 was far more than the $47,000 candidates for two open seats in 2018 brought in.

The first election year after state control of the district ended in 2016, candidates vying for seven open seats raised more than $290,000.

Hannah Dellinger covers K-12 education and state education policy for Chalkbeat Detroit. You can reach her at hdellinger@chalkbeat.org.

3 Indiana school districts say teacher pay, academics, buses at risk if voters reject referendums

2024-10-15T17:41:41+00:00

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This article was originally published by WFYI.

Three Indiana school districts are asking voters to approve or renew a local property tax referendum on the November ballot to increase or maintain funding for teacher pay and student academics.

Enrollment decline over the last decade has made it difficult for these districts to maintain competitive compensation and pay for other classroom expenses.

Kokomo School Corporation and Twin Lakes Community Schools are seeking their first ballot initiatives. But Lake Station Community Schools is asking voters for the second time in a year to renew the tax rate approved in 2017. Voters rejected the extension in November 2023.

Schools are funded by the state through a per-student formula to pay for teachers, staff and academic programs. If enrollment drops, the total amount of funding a district receives proportionally decreases, reducing the overall budget available for teacher and staff salaries, academic programs and operations.

A voter-approved increase to local property taxes is one of the only ways a district can increase general funds and ensure its stability for eight years. The election is Nov. 5 and early voting is underway.

Transportation, teacher pay on the line in Lake Station

The defeat of Lake Station’s referendum last year led to dozens of staff layoffs, including all of the district’s paraprofessionals who support teachers in the classrooms. Transportation services in the northwest district were also cut, forcing students to stay home twice a week for remote learning instead of going to school.

“The state of Indiana is not properly, appropriately, whatever term you wish to use — funding public education,” Superintendent Tom Cripliver said during an Oct. 9 meeting about the referendum. “That is the number one issue.”

Lake Station’s proposed levy renewal would generate $1.4 million a year. Almost $700,000 is planned for teacher pay, recruitment, and academic programs. Nearly $485,000 would go toward bus transportation.

If the ballot initiative is turned down by voters, it would cause the district to end transportation for nearly all students and stop summer programs and after-school clubs. Teachers are expected to leave and mental health services for students will be reduced, according to the political action committee advocating for the referendum.

Enrollment in the district has dropped by about 23 percent since 2014, according to state data. Last year, 1,144 students were enrolled.

School choice appears to play a role in the enrollment changes, according to a WFYI analysis. During the 2023-24 academic year, the district had a 13.4% net loss of students who live in the district but chose to attend another traditional public or charter school, or use a voucher to enroll at a private school.

If the referendum passes, Lake Station will be required by a 2023 law to share a portion of the property-tax revenue with charter schools. Charter schools, which are publicly funded but independently managed, don’t typically receive property tax revenue in Indiana.

The district estimates it would pay out a total of $27,845 to three charter schools that enroll students who live in Lake Station.

Twin Lakes referendum asks for teacher pay support

Shrinking enrollment led leaders at Twin Lakes Schools to approve the closure of two elementary schools as part of a consolidation plan. Enrollment fell nearly 11 percent in the past 10 years. Last year, the north-central Indiana district enrolled 2,183 students.

Fewer students enrolling caused a reduction in state funds. As a result, the district’s early career teachers and educators with 20 years experience are paid $3,500 to $5,000 less than similar teachers at nearby districts, according to Twin Lakes Schools.

Twin Lakes’ proposed levy would inject $3.5 million a year into the district’s general fund. But there’s organized opposition to the plan on social media and a yard sign campaign urging a no vote.

A referendum loss would result in staff layoffs, the district said.

Kokomo referendum to pay for teachers, professional development

Kokomo’s levy would raise $6.16 million per year. The majority of the money — $4 million — would go toward retaining and recruiting teachers, plus professional development aimed at improved student outcomes.

The district enrolled roughly 5,400 students last academic year. That’s a nearly 20% decline in the past decade, according to state data. A majority of Kokomo students — 62%— qualify to receive free or reduced price meals

School choice also appears to have impacted Kokomo’s enrollment. Last year, the district had a nearly 26% net loss of students who live in the district but opted for other school options supported by state funds.

How does a property tax referendum work?

Many school districts rely on additional funds from local property tax referendums to consistently finance teachers, staff, and academic programs. This follows a change by state leaders in 2009 to primarily fund schools through state revenue generated by sales taxes, individual income taxes, and other levies.

Indiana imposes caps on property taxes based on assessed value rates according to property type: 1% for owner-occupied homes, 2% for other residential properties and farmland, and 3% for all other properties. However, if voters approve a local referendum, property tax bills can exceed the cap, with the additional revenue directed to the local school district.

Here are the local public questions for school referendums on the Nov. 5 ballot. The totals for operating levies are based on the net assessed valuation of taxable property in the district boundary earlier this year. The value can change.

Kokomo School Corp.

Property tax rate: 0.26 per $100 of assessed value for eight years.

Total revenue over eight years: $49,328,000

How $6,166,000 of annual revenue will be spent: Retention, attraction of teachers, staff and professional development ($4,000,000); academic, educational programs ($1,166,000); updates to technology infrastructure ($1,000,000).

Lake Station Community Schools

Renewal of a property tax rate previously approved in 2017: $0.54 per $100 of assessed value for eight years.

Total revenue over eight years: $11,302,592

How $1,412,824 annual revenue will be spent: School bus transportation ($484,743); retention, attraction of teachers and staff ($346,245); academic, educational programs ($346,245); student safety, school security ($138,498); other education needs ($69,248); required distribution to charter schools: Neighbors’ New Vistas High School ($13,317), Discovery Charter School ($13,317) and 21st Century Charter School of Gary ($1,211).

Twin Lakes School Corp.

Property tax rate: $0.25 per $100 of assessed value for eight years.

Total revenue over eight years: $28,000,000

How $3,500,000 of annual revenue will be spent: Retention, attraction of teachers and staff ($1,500,000); academic, educational programs ($1,250,000); student safety, school security ($750,000).

Eric Weddle is WFYI’s education team editor. Contact Eric at eweddle@wfyi.org or follow on X at @ericweddle

Voter guide: Amendment 80 would enshrine school choice in Colorado Constitution

2024-10-11T18:32:40+00:00

Leer en español.

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Amendment 80 would enshrine in the Colorado Constitution a right already guaranteed under state law: that children can apply to attend any public school in Colorado.

This is known as school choice.

But whether Amendment 80 would have other effects is disputed by various groups, and experts say the measure could end up in court.

Supporters say Amendment 80 is about protecting the right to school choice. Opponents say Amendment 80 could lead to the funding of private schools with public money.

Under Colorado rules for amending the constitution, Amendment 80 needs 55% of the vote to pass on Election Day Nov. 5, not just a simple majority.

What would Colorado’s Amendment 80 do?

Amendment 80 says each child in K-12 “has the right to school choice.”

Amendment 80 would effectively expand the definition of school choice to include private schools and home schools, among other types of schooling.

Colorado’s current school choice law applies only to public schools, which include neighborhood schools run by school districts and independently run, publicly funded charter schools.

Amendment 80 defines school choice as including neighborhood schools, charter schools, private schools, home schools, open enrollment options, and “future innovations in education.”

State law already allows parents to choose home schools or private schools. Amendment 80 would add to the state constitution that “parents have the right to direct the education of their children” and that “all children have the right to equal opportunity to access a quality education.”

Amendment 80 would not immediately change state law. But it could affect future state laws or school district policies. Amendment 80 could also end up in court, with a judge deciding how it should be interpreted. That interpretation could lead to changes in state law or local policy.

Who supports Colorado’s Amendment 80, and why?

Amendment 80 was proposed by Advance Colorado, a conservative advocacy organization.

“This says, ‘Hey, as a family, we trust you to make the best education choice for your child,’” Kristi Burton Brown, the executive vice president at Advance Colorado, told Chalkbeat.

Burton Brown said the rights already guaranteed by state law “are being attacked by people in power.” She cited a bill introduced by Democratic state lawmakers earlier this year that would have given school districts more control over charter schools. The bill was defeated.

Burton Brown is the former chair of the Colorado Republican Party who joined Advance Colorado in 2023. In 2008, she proposed an amendment to the state constitution that would have defined a person as “any human being from the moment of fertilization.” It was defeated. Burton Brown is currently running for a seat on the Colorado State Board of Education.

Other organizations supporting Amendment 80 include the Colorado Association of Private Schools, the Colorado Catholic Conference, the Independence Institute, Ready Colorado, and the Centennial Institute at Colorado Christian University, among others.

Advance Colorado also proposed Proposition 128, which would increase prison time before parole eligibility, and Proposition 130, which would increase funding for law enforcement, on this year’s ballot.

Who opposes Colorado’s Amendment 80, and why?

Amendment 80 is opposed by the Colorado Education Association, the ACLU of Colorado, the Colorado Democratic Party, the Colorado PTA, the Colorado Association of School Executives, individual school districts including Aspen School District, the Colorado Fiscal Institute, and several other organizations. Denver Mayor Mike Johnston also opposes it.

The statewide teachers union claims Amendment 80 is a “wolf in sheep’s clothing” that would lead to vouchers that use public money to pay tuition at private schools. The union says voucher programs in other states, such as Arizona, have proven to be expensive.

“They’re using the innocuous word of ‘choice’ as a vehicle for what opens the door clearly for a voucher scheme,” Kevin Vick, president of the Colorado Education Association, told Chalkbeat.

Christian Home Educators of Colorado opposes Amendment 80 for a different reason. In a statement, the organization said Amendment 80 could erode parents’ rights because it bestows the right to school choice on the child, not the parent.

The Colorado Republican Party did not take a stance on Amendment 80 in its voter guide. The Colorado League of Charter Schools decided not to take a position on Amendment 80, according to a spokesperson. And Gov. Jared Polis, a Democrat who founded charter schools, is neutral.

Melanie Asmar is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Colorado. Contact Melanie at masmar@chalkbeat.org .

Election 2024: What candidates for IPS school board said about charter schools, literacy, and more

2024-10-09T17:27:43+00:00

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The district’s sweeping reorganization plan and the influence of outside groups loomed large over Tuesday night’s forum featuring candidates for the Indianapolis Public Schools board.

All eight candidates for four seats on the IPS Board of School Commissioners, attended the forum at the Indianapolis Public Library’s Central Library. The event was co-hosted by Chalkbeat Indiana and WFYI. Races for District 1, District 2, and an at-large seat are contested. The candidate for District 4, Allissa Impink, is unopposed.

At-large board member Kenneth Allen is the only candidate seeking reelection. He is being challenged by Carrie Harris and Deandra Thompson. The race for District 1 is between Alan Schoff and Ashley Thomas. Former board member Gayle Cosby is in the District 2 race against Hasaan Rashid.

This election season comes as IPS continues the rollout of Rebuilding Stronger that’s designed to overhaul the district in response to enrollment pressures and an increasingly competitive school choice landscape. The district is also trying to improve student academic performance following the pandemic.

Asked to assign a letter grade to Rebuilding Stronger so far, several candidates said it was too soon to tell. The candidates did seem to agree that while the plan was a good idea, its implementation has been rocky.

Candidates were also asked to list their endorsements, which ranged from labor unions to education advocacy organizations. Financial contributions from outside groups that favor IPS collaboration with charter schools and other reforms have played a key role in board elections for more than a decade.

In the election four years ago nearly $600,000 was raised by 10 candidates seeking the same seats as in this election. One of those candidates was Allen, the only incumbent running for reelection, who wore a “not for sale” T-shirt to the forum.

Other candidates also stressed they couldn’t be bought by outside interests, and criticized the role groups like Stand for Children and Rise Indy play in the board elections. Both groups use political action committees to pay for ads, mailers, and other campaign support.

But Thomas defended Stand for Children’s advocacy with parents and her own previous work with the organization.

Chalkbeat and WFYI reporters also asked the candidates about topics including charter school partnerships, literacy, building community relationships, student mental health, and chronic absenteeism.

Watch the full forum below. Spanish subtitles are available in video settings.

Read our full voter guide for the IPS school board election here.

Early voting is underway at the Indianapolis City-County Building at 200 E. Market St. Additional early voting sites open on Oct. 26 and can be found online. On Election Day on Nov. 5, Marion County residents can vote at any of the county’s voting centers, which can be found online.

This article was updated on Oct. 15 to include how to find the Spanish subtitles on the forum video.

MJ Slaby oversees Chalkbeat Indiana’s coverage as bureau chief. Contact MJ at mslaby@chalkbeat.org.

Eric Weddle is the WFYI education team editor. Contact Eric at eweddle@wfyi.org.

Your guide to 2024 school board elections in Marion County

2024-10-01T13:16:02+00:00

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This election, 40 candidates are on ballots across Marion County for 33 seats on 10 district school boards.

Winning candidates will start four-year terms in January 2025 and serve through 2028. As school board members, they will provide district oversight, create and enforce policies such as the student handbooks, approve the budget, and set goals. One of the biggest jobs of a school board is to hire and oversee a superintendent.

The number of board members — and whether members are at-large or represent a specific district — varies by school district. Board members can receive up to $2,000 annually in addition to meeting stipends. Generally, school board seats are nonpartisan election positions, except in Speedway, where the school board is appointed by the town board.

Overall, roughly half the school board candidates in Marion County are incumbents, and a majority face at least some opposition.

The district with the most candidates overall is also the district with the most candidates — three — for a single seat: Indianapolis Public Schools. That race, one of four in the district, is also the only one where the incumbent is vying for re-election.

And in five districts — Beech Grove City Schools plus the Metropolitan School Districts of Lawrence Township, Pike Township, Warren Township, and Wayne Township — there is one more candidate on the ballot than the number of seats open.

In the other four districts, every candidate on the ballot will join the board: Metropolitan School Districts of Decatur Township, Washington Township, Franklin Township Community Schools, and Perry Township Schools. In Perry, the board has four open seats with only two candidates on the ballot. A third candidate is running as a write-in, meaning she could join the board with one vote, but that still leaves one open seat.

Voter guides for Marion County school board elections

Chalkbeat Indiana partnered with WFYI and Mirror Indy to publish voter guides on each Marion County school board election. Read each guide:

Additionally, Chalkbeat Indiana and WFYI are co-hosting an IPS school board candidates forum at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 8, at the Indianapolis Public Library, Central Branch. RSVP and submit questions here.

How to vote

Voter registration is underway and ends on Oct. 7. Marion County residents can register to vote here.

Early voting begins on Oct. 8 at the Indianapolis City-County Building at 200 E. Market St. Additional early voting sites open on Oct. 26 and can be found online.

On Election Day on Nov. 5, Marion County residents can vote at any of the county’s voting centers, which can be found online.

MJ Slaby oversees Chalkbeat Indiana’s coverage as bureau chief. She also covers access to higher education. Contact MJ at mslaby@chalkbeat.org.