The fourth and final night of the Democratic National Convention is underway, culminating with Vice President Kamala Harris accepting her party’s nomination for president.

For more than three decades, Rabbi Sharon Kleinbaum has led the nation’s largest LGBTQ+ synagogue through the myriad ups and downs of the modern gay rights movement.

The conservative parental rights group Moms for Liberty plans to spend more than $3 million on a multi-state advertising blitz to increase its membership and engage voters before November.

Liberal and moderate candidates have won seats in high-profile polarizing elections against social conservatives across the U.S. Candidates backed by Moms for Liberty and the 1776 Project, groups that question open discussions on race and sexuality in schools, lost Tuesday in closely watched races in Iowa, Pennsylvania, Virginia and elsewhere, though both groups claimed successes overall.

American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten visited South Florida Wednesday to denounce what she called an “attack on public education” by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Democrats are poised to boot Iowa from its traditional lead-off spot in the presidential nominating calendar in 2024.

A San Francisco Bay Area school district built subsidized housing for teachers and staff who could not afford market rent.

Americans are deeply divided over how much children in K-12 schools should be taught about racism and sexuality.

Teachers have hit the picket lines at public schools across Minneapolis, calling their strike a fight to ensure “safe and stable schools” for students and for better wages for the lowest-paid support staff.

Americans who have been clamoring for an end to mask-wearing have welcomed new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

A Tennessee school district has voted to ban a Pulitzer Prize-winning graphic novel about the Holocaust due to “inappropriate language” and an illustration of a nude woman.

Teachers have found themselves on the front lines of the culture wars as the anniversary of the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol arrives.

Several high-profile school board candidates who fought COVID-19 restrictions and anti-racism classes have lost their election bids.

Thousands of public servants who were rejected from a student loan forgiveness program will get their cases reviewed by the Education Department as part of a new settlement.

Races for local school board seats have emerged as intense political battlegrounds in the upcoming Nov. 2 elections across the U.S. Parental protests that started during COVID-19 lockdowns are evolving into full-fledged board takeover campaigns.

The Biden administration is moving to relax the rules for a student loan forgiveness program that has been criticized for its notoriously complex requirements.

As coronavirus outbreaks driven by the delta variant lead school districts around the U.S. to abruptly shut down or send large numbers of children into quarantine, some students are getting minimal schooling at home.

Jill Biden has gone back to her whiteboard.

A growing number of communities are moving to require teachers to get vaccinated against COVID-19 as part of aggressive campaigns to ward off the delta variant, which has infected hundreds of thousands of children in the United States.

In the nation’s capital on Saturday, multiracial coalitions of civil, human and labor rights leaders are convening rallies and marches to urge passage of federal voter protections that have been eroded since the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

The Biden administration says the historic amount of federal pandemic aid flowing to the nation's K-12 schools presents a moment for reimagining all aspects of American education.

The pandemic is already leaving its fingerprints on the education of future teachers.

The U.S. government’s top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, says he's hopeful that the Food and Drug Administration will give full approval to the coronavirus vaccine by month’s end.

School districts across the country have an important decision to make before fall classes begin: Will students be required to wear masks.

A number of states have embraced new federal guidelines that say fully vaccinated people no longer need to wear masks indoors or out in most situations.

The presidents of the nation’s two major teachers unions are separately calling for a full return to in-person learning in the fall.

This spring marks a year since the coronavirus pandemic shut down schools across the U.S., forcing many students, parents and teachers into virtual classrooms.

Democratic lawmakers have unveiled legislation that would invest $25 billion to convert the nation’s fleet of gasoline- and diesel-powered school buses to electric vehicles.

Schools and camps across the county are making plans to help kids catch up academically this summer after a year or more of remote learning for many of them. Several governors, including in California, Kansas and Virginia, are pushing for more summer learning. Many cities, meanwhile, are talking about beefing up their summer school programs, including Los Angeles, Hartford, Connecticut and Atlanta — the latter of which considered making summer school compulsory before settling for strongly recommending that kids who are struggling take part. The new $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package should help, as it allocates $122 billion in aid to K-12 public schools, including $30 billion specifically for summer school, after-school and other enrichment programs. The influx of money and increase in summer offerings has come as a relief to parents of kids who struggled with remote learning during the coronavirus pandemic.

President Joe Biden speaks during a meeting with labor leaders in the Oval Office of the White House, Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021, in Washington. Teachers’ unions have said they support reopening schools once officials are able to make the buildings safer, but they need the $130 billion included in Biden's proposed American Rescue Plan to make it happen. “As the months have rolled by and the data have poured in, it’s become clear that schools can open safely.”“An administration that puts facts and science first would be conducting a full-court press to open schools,” McConnell said. And Dr. Anthony Fauci, the administration's top infectious disease expert, said it would be “non-workable” for every teacher to get vaccinated before schools reopen. And with his 100-day goal for schools, Biden is taking responsibility for something that he cannot ultimately control.

President Joe Biden speaks during a meeting with labor leaders in the Oval Office of the White House, Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021, in Washington. Teachers’ unions have said they support reopening schools once officials are able to make the buildings safer, but they need the $130 billion included in Biden's proposed American Rescue Plan to make it happen. “As the months have rolled by and the data have poured in, it’s become clear that schools can open safely.”“An administration that puts facts and science first would be conducting a full-court press to open schools,” McConnell said. And Dr. Anthony Fauci, the administration's top infectious disease expert, said it would be “non-workable” for every teacher to get vaccinated before schools reopen. And with his 100-day goal for schools, Biden is taking responsibility for something that he cannot ultimately control.

Some believed it discredited teachers unions that have demanded vaccines before returning to in-person instruction. With the right mix of safety measures in places, teachers unions generally agree the vaccines aren't a condition for reopening. AdBut the plan has drawn fire from critics who say Biden is cowing to teachers unions who see him as an ally. Both of the nation’s two major teachers unions endorsed Biden for president, including the National Education Association, whose 3 million members include first lady Jill Biden, who is a longtime community college professor. Gavin Newsom cited Walensky’s comment as evidence that it’s safe to reopen schools before all teachers get vaccines.

For the first time since shuttering schools in March, Atlanta began returning the youngest and special education students to some in-person learning last week. Mayor Bill de Blasio said Friday that he expects middle school and high school students back in some capacity later this school year. AdClaiborne Wade, 31, has three children in the Chicago Public Schools system, ages 10, 9 and 7. Wade believes the district is not quite ready to reopen schools, and he favors distance learning for now. Ad“Any plan for reopening schools needs to be centered around equity for all,” she said.

If the lawsuit succeeds, officials at the nonprofit say they will file legal challenges in other states with similar school choice programs. A similar lawsuit challenging Maine’s exclusion of religious schools from a high school tuition voucher program was denied by the 1st U.S. Maine and New Hampshire have similar programs for students who live in communities without schools to attend public or non-religious private schools of their choice. The school treats him “as a welcomed member of the school community rather than as an imposition,” the lawsuit said. But he is now in 9th grade and the district has a high school so tuition money is not provided to attend another school.

FILE - In this Aug. 9, 2017, photo, flags decorate a space outside the office of the Education Secretary at the Education Department in Washington. President-elect Joe Biden has chosen the education commissioner for Connecticut and a former public school teacher to serve as education secretary. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)President-elect Joe Biden introduced Miguel Cardona as his pick for education secretary on Wednesday, saying Connecticut's education chief and life-long champion of public schools is the right pick to lead the department as the nation struggles to educate students safely during the pandemic. But despite their occasional conflict with him, a coalition of Connecticut education unions supported his candidacy as Biden's education secretary. Beyond the pandemic, Biden's education secretary will also be tasked with reversing an array of policies enacted by DeVos.

Lily Eskelsen García, who was president of the National Education Association until September, has been calling members of Congress to build support for her candidacy. The caucus drew attention to Biden's proposals to confront racial disparities in education, saying Eskelsen García has been pursuing that work for decades. Andrade called her a “bona fide, proven educator” with a compelling personal story and a firm commitment to public education. “You will not find a bigger contrast in people than between DeVos and Eskelsen García,” Andrade said. Supporters of Eskelsen García say her nomination would fulfill Biden’s promise to install an education chief with experience working in public education.

Among the victims of the coronavirus is Michael's wife, fourth-grade Arkansas teacher Susanne Michael, who died less than three months after celebrating the adoption of three of the children. (AP Photo/Adrian Sainz)MISSION, Kan. – In July, fourth-grade teacher Susanne Michael was ecstatic as she celebrated the adoption of a former student from a troubled home and two of the girl's brothers. Harrisburg Elementary, where Michael taught, remained open after her death, but 14 counselors descended on the school the next morning to help distraught students and teachers. Early research suggested that children are unlikely to contract or spread the coronavirus — an idea that influenced school reopenings in some communities. “I think the key question is whether being at school puts teachers at increased risk of getting COVID.

A third grade teacher died Monday in South Carolina, and two other educators died recently in Mississippi. It's unclear how many teachers in the U.S. have become ill with COVID-19 since the new school year began, but Mississippi alone has reported 604 cases among school teachers and staff. In Oxford, Mississippi, 42-year-old Nacoma James taught at a middle school and helped coach high school football. Another Mississippi teacher died Sunday. Superintendent Alex McCaul said contact tracing determined she had no close contact with any teachers, students or staff.

FILE - In this Sept. 1, 2020, file photo Jill Biden, wife of Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden, walks past a dry erase board in a classroom that reads "Shortlidge Welcomes Dr. Biden," as she tours the Evan G. Shortlidge Academy in Wilmington, Del. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)WAUWATOSA, Wis. When Jill Biden introduced herself to millions of Americans during last month's Democratic National Convention, she did so from a high school where she once taught English near her Delaware home. But in an election year where reopening schools shuttered by the coronavirus is emerging as a flashpoint, Jill Biden is increasingly drawing on her classroom experience to empathize with parents struggling to cope with the shift to virtual learning. I probably know it better than he does, Jill Biden said with a laugh. As part of her multi-city tour, Jill Biden held a virtual North Carolina back-to-school roundtable and has upcoming online events in Florida and Nevada.

(AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File)ATLANTA New guidance from the President Donald Trump's administration that declares teachers to be critical infrastructure workers could give the green light to exempting teachers from quarantine requirements after being exposed to COVID-19 and instead send them back into the classroom. South Carolina health officials also describe teachers as critical infrastructure workers, although it's unclear if any district there is asking teachers to return before 14 days. Among the first districts to name teachers as critical infrastructure workers was eastern Tennessees Greene County, where the school board gave the designation to teachers July 13. At least five other school districts in Tennessee have given the designation to their teachers, seeking to exempt them from quarantine orders. Floyd County said Thursday it would reverse its designation of teachers as critical infrastructure workers.

We are urging you to rapidly pass legislation to address the nation's hunger crisis, the group writes in a letter. In a terrible pandemic with terrible unemployment, with terrible food insecurity, why are we not doing more? she asked. Andrs told the AP he hopes $900 million can be set aside for school meals and waivers can be extended for poor families. Andrs said school meals shouldn't be political. But he specifically called out McConnell for not tackling food issues in the Senate or his own state.

The nation's 10th largest school district plans an all-virtual start to the fall semester amid the Covid-19 pandemic. The American Federation of Teachers, which represents 1.7 million school employees, issued a resolution on Tuesday saying it will support any local chapter that decides to strike over reopening plans. Children need in-person instruction, she said, adding that remote instruction is no substitute for it. But she said teachers need to know they'll be kept safe. Many are quitting, retiring or writing their wills.Along with strikes, the union said it will fight unsafe reopening plans through lawsuits and labor grievances. The union's Florida chapter filed a lawsuit last week attempting to block the state's plan to reopen schools, which the suit called reckless and unsafe.

Teachers unions have begun pushing back on what they see as unnecessarily aggressive timetables for reopening. Some have joined demonstrations in Arizona, where three teachers sharing a classroom during summer school tested positive for the virus and one died. And thats when I sat down and I thought, What am I doing?Other teachers feel they have little choice but to return. In case not, Waddell said she has spent part of her summer working out adjustments to her classroom routines. Id hate to see any of my kids die or any my fellow teachers die from this, he said.

School districts will need to find more buses to allow for more space between children and buy more computers for distance learning. The Council of Chief State School Officers says safely reopening public schools could cost between $158 billion and $245 billion, while the American Federation of Teachers put the figure at $116.5 billion. The school district in Columbus, Ohio, expects to bring back younger students in shifts while having high schoolers take all their classes online. Slaven said the federal government should send at least $200 billion to state education departments and school districts. That's in line with what the Council of Chief State School Officers has called for.

FILE - In this Thursday, March 19, 2020, file photo, a public school employee sanitizes a sink in a bathroom at a U.S. high school. Even as the U.S. added some jobs in May, the number of people employed by federal, state and local governments dropped by 585,000. The overall job losses among public workers have reached more than 1.5 million since March, according to seasonally adjusted federal jobs data released Friday. Tax revenue from businesses walloped by coronavirus restrictions has plummeted, forcing cuts by cities and states that rely on that money. It's likely to get worse in the coming months unless Congress delivers additional aid to states and cities.

WASHINGTON Joe Bidens search for a running mate could be reshaped by the police killing of George Floyd and the unrest it has ignited across the country, raising questions about contenders with law-and-order backgrounds and intensifying pressure on the presumptive Democratic nominee to select a black woman. Biden, who has already pledged to pick a woman, has cast a wide net in his search. Biden was pressed to pick a black woman on Monday when he visited a black church in Wilmington, Delaware. Well, weve never seen a black woman selected as a vice presidential candidate, she said. Its important for him to see the candidate, talk to the candidate, get body language from the candidate.

Its disheartening right now because I see it happening again.The financial crisis wrought by COVID-19 has left America's more than 13,000 school systems wrestling with the likelihood of big budget cuts. Advocates are pushing for more federal aid to schools as researchers warn budget woes could lead to massive teacher layoffs and less learning. If you dont have this, states are going to be doing huge budget cuts for schools, which would necessarily mean more layoffs and fewer services, Weingarten said. And a study last year found spending cuts during the recession were associated with lower academic achievement, especially in poorer districts. A quarter of expected learning was wiped in out in the hardest-hit districts, compared to districts where spending fell the least.