On April 23, 2024. Tennessee House Republicans votes 68-28 to pass legislation to allow some trained teachers and school staff to carry handguns despite pleas from Democrats, students and gun-reform advocates to defeat the bill. Dozens of protestors in the galleries began chanting "Blood on your hands" as soon as…
On April 24, 2024, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released its final rule updating nutrition standards for school meals that requires gradual limits on added sugars and slight reductions for sodium for breakfasts and lunches to be in place by the fall of 2027. The new school meal nutrition standards are…
Concerns over negative impacts to students’ out-of-school public insurance benefits appear to be delaying the release of a U.S. Department of Education (USDE) final rule that is supposed to ease the process of obtaining parental consent for Medicaid school-based health services. While some worry that children’s school-based services can adversely…
Most States have Medicaid plans in place that allow for Medicaid to reimburse for health services provided to students with disabilities under IDEA. However, only 16 States have plans that allow for the reimbursement of services to Medicaid-eligible students beyond just those who receive services under the IDEA. This difference…
As reported by The Hill, public health advocates are have become increasingly alarmed by former President Trump's anti-vaccine rhetoric. Recently, at a Richmond, VA rally, Trump stated, "I will not give one penny to any school that has a vaccine mandate or a mask mandate." Although Trump's campaign says he…
On March 1, 2024, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued updated COVID-19 guidance for community settings. According to the update, people who have tested positive can return to normal activities when they are fever-free for at least 24 hours without taking medication; thus, they no longer need…
On February 20, 2024, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) released four new resources today with information for students, parents and families, and schools addressing civil rights of students with disabilities, as well as a data snapshot about education access for students with disabilities drawn from…
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is considering the possibility of loosening the five-day COVID-19 isolation guidance that many school systems have been using to mitigate the spread of the COVID-19 virus. According to K-12 Dive, the isolation guidance is under review by the CDC with the possibility of revising them…
On February 9, 2024, the Jenna Quinn Law of 2024 was introduced in the US Senate and passed with an amendment by unanimous consent. The bill was introduced by Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Chair McCaul (TX-10), Representative Susan Wild (D-PA), Representative Nathaniel Moran (TX-01), and Senator John Cornyn (R-TX).…
A Title IX lawsuit will be heard later this year by the 4th US Circuit Court of Appeals, which hears appeals from the nine federal district courts in Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina and from federal administrative agencies. The plaintiffs claim that North Carolina’s Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools…
