Education
Missouri House bill would cut down on poisonous lead in school drinking water
Missouri children would be better protected from lead poisoning under a state legislative bill to require schools to nearly rid their drinking water of the dangerous toxin. The bill, heard Monday by the House Conservation and Natural Resources Committee, would require schools to test drinking water, remove old coolers and filter water where lead is […]
School officials say ‘furries’ talk is ridiculous after Nebraska lawmaker raises the issue
LINCOLN — Officials with the Seward and Adams Central school districts on Monday labeled as “ridiculous” and “an ugly rumor” talk that students have dressed up as cats and dogs and have requested litter boxes to handle their bathroom needs. Officials with both the Millard and Omaha public schools also said they were unaware of […]
From teaching and coaching Creighton Prep students to helping refugees of war-torn Ukraine
After a three-year stint teaching French at Omaha’s Creighton Prep, the Rev. Damian Czerniak is tackling a new mission in his homeland of Poland: organizing support for families fleeing war in neighboring Ukraine. Czerniak, who also coached soccer and cross country while in Omaha from 2018 to 2021, recalled the day Russian missiles first struck. […]
‘Nebraska Promise’ will offer tuition-free undergraduate education to additional students
Nebraskans with family incomes of $65,000 or less will be able to study tuition-free in the University of Nebraska system under an expansion of the “Nebraska Promise” program that was announced Monday. When it started in 2020, the program promised free tuition for qualifying full-time Nebraska undergraduates in families earning $60,000 or less. This year, […]
Thibodeau: Keep Nebraska Board of Education elected, accountable
OMAHA — Former State Sen. Theresa Thibodeau of Omaha, a Republican running for governor, said last week that she wants Nebraska to keep its elected state Board of Education. Thibodeau criticized a proposed state constitutional amendment that would eliminate the state Board of Education and move the state Department of Education under the governor’s control. […]
Lawmaker seeks to ban cell phones from classrooms
Smartphones in the hands of students in classrooms can be dangerous, as well as a learning barrier, an educator told a Nebraska legislative committee Tuesday. Diane Wigert relayed a personal experience in which she said she was “secretly recorded” as she was teaching. A version of the recording that she said was intentionally edited to […]
Proposal would give Nebraska schools funds to switch out Native American mascots
The mascots of 22 Nebraska schools offend Jacqelle Lane. They come, she said, in the form of a chief, a brave, two chieftains, seven Indians and 11 warriors. Native-themed caricatures — often in warlike or demeaning poses — on gym walls, sports jerseys and megaphones mock a culture and do nothing to advance the attainment […]
Help coming: $2.2 million in federal funds to help extinguish nurse burnout
As a sleep researcher and nursing instructor at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Alyson Hanish saw plenty of colleagues and students burn out during the pandemic. So when she saw an invite from the Biden administration, she seized the grant opportunity — and now will lead a $2.2 million project to promote resilience and […]
Medical school proposed at Kearney to help address rural health care staffing ‘crisis’
LINCOLN — If you want to increase the number of doctors, nurses and other health professionals in rural areas, you need to educate them in a rural area. That was the message delivered Thursday by several advocates of a plan to create a rural medical school on the campus of the University of Nebraska at […]
Lawmaker wants Holocaust discussion in schools
Eleanor Dunning said she was shocked when she saw a fellow college student throw up a Nazi signal, and doubly so when the student escaped repercussion from school officials. State Sen. Jen Day of the Gretna area said she was stunned to learn via recent email that an Omaha area school had tried to teach […]
NU system said to grow the state economy by $5.8 billion
NU system said to grow state by $5.8 billion annually
NU Regents agree to end dry spell at university athletic events — with caveats
The University of Nebraska Board of Regents voted Friday to end a longtime ban on booze sales and consumption at Husker sporting venues — but there are caveats. President Ted Carter said that any change related to alcohol at a particular NU campus first would need to be approved by the respective chancellor and then […]