Comply! Zero Tolerance, Bullying, Racism, School Shootings, Sexual Assaults, Law and Disorder, Juvenile Deliquence; Educamation, Teachers, That's Un-Possible! Parenting

Comply!

• Parents say middle school students suspended over FB post—"A group of Spalding County middle school students is facing suspension over a Facebook post about the school dress code."
• Student's awesome non-apology for wearing leggings
• North Carolina Senior Stripped of Diploma After He Strips at Graduation
• Running Coach Fired For Running Boston Marathon—He went on his personal day, and the athletic director goes on a power trip.
• Oakland High guard charged in abuse of student in wheelchair
• Campus cop fires gun at teens he caught making out in car parked at OK school
• Georgetown officer suspended 40 days after tripping incident
• Dad Arrested For Picking Up Kids At School By Foot

Zero Tolerance

• New Report on Zero Tolerance: Stop Expelling Kids for Ridiculous Nonsense
• Dad: NJ threatens to take away son after pencil-twirling incident—"A simple pencil-twirling incident landed Ethan Chaplin in hot water with his school, which threatened to suspend him after a classmate claimed he was spinning the writing utensil like a gun."
• School mum over dad's gun—Dad flashed his gun permit to the school principal during an argument "over a picture his son drew in art class of Gru, the main character in the movie 'Despicable Me,' 'shooting ping-pong balls at his minions,' which school officials thought was sexual in nature." School administration stupidty at work again.
• Boy, 7, may be expelled after telling teacher he accidentally brought toy gun to school
• Parent wants NEISD to reconsider sunscreen policy—"Girl, 10, not allowed to bring sunscreen on field trip due to 'toxic' nature."
• When your high school gets you arrested for a science project—"Last year Kiera Wilmot was busted for simulating a volcano with toilet cleaner and foil. Her record still lists felony arrest."

Bullying

• Was Rainier HS student suspended for reporting online bullying?
• Maryland girl pleads 'responsible' for bullying boy with autism—"A 17-year-old Maryland girl accused of assaulting an autistic boy pleaded 'responsible' to two misdemeanor charges after her case was transferred from adult to juvenile court."
• Torrence Collier: Westport parents insist town is not racist—"Parents in the tiny Newfoundland community of Westport say suggestions that their community is racist are wrong, with one saying that Torrence Collier, the 11-year-old black boy whose allegations of racially motivated bullying have made national headlines, is a bully himself."
• CPS investigating allegations of anti-Semitic bullying
• It's time to outlaw bullying

Racism

• Mich. teacher suspended over blackface lesson plan—"A community is outraged after a Michigan public school teacher was removed from the classroom for showing a video of white entertainers in blackface." Updated: The teacher has been reinstated. The administrator should be kicked out.
• UCI student council penalizes frat over themed party—"Critics say Phi Gamma Delta's annual Fiji Islander event is a slap because of how the nation was treated during colonial times."
• Hylton officials file complaint about racism following soccer game

School Shootings

• Seattle student credited with stopping campus gunman has wedding registry, honeymoon paid for by strangers
• Oregon school shooting leaves student, gunman dead
• The Daily Banter's Investigation Helps Catch Sandy Hook Memorial Thief

Sexual Assaults

• Brown University Student Speaks Out on What It's Like to Be Accused of Rape—"In April, Daniel Kopin was publicly accused of sexually assaulting his classmate. For the first time, he tells his side of the story."
• Judge Blocks Expulsion of Duke Student Accused of Sexual Misconduct WSJ
• More college men are fighting back against sexual misconduct cases
• Stanford won't expel student in sexual assault case
• Stanford sexual-assault case: Did the university do enough to punish a student it found responsible for sexual misconduct?
• Teacher charged with raping student flipped out over prom date
• Dad hits teacher with baseball bat after 'inappropriate' texts surface with teen daughter

Law and Disorder

• 14 charged in Wilmington College hazing incident at the Gamma Phi Gamma house
• Woman sentenced to 2 days for truancy fines dies in jail; judge says it was his only option
• 20 students taken to hospital after first grader brings heroin to school

Juvenile Deliquence

• Girls Charged in Stabbing Allegedly Tried to Kill for 'Slender Man'
• 13-year-old Ohio girl stabs mother in 2nd 'Slenderman' attack
• Teenager calls in hoax bomb threat so brother can finish Burger King shift early
• Man jumped in Patterson Park by teenagers who were filming attack

Educamation

• Obama Plans Steps to Ease Student Debt—"Borrowers' debt load is growing and retarding the ability to buy homes, start businesses or otherwise spend to spur the economy, economists say." NYT
• Bill To Allow Refinancing Of Student Loans Dies In Senate
• Cafeteria worker tosses child's lunch when he's 26 cents short
• Public Schools Are Hurting More in the Recovery Than in the Recession
• Half of college grads still relying on parents' money
• How Medicaid lowers high school dropout rates and leads to more college grads WaPo

Teachers

• Williamsburg students stage walkout to protest mistreatment of teachers
• North Carolina: Judge rules revocation of teacher tenure, 25% contracts unconstitutional
• Judge Strikes Down California Teacher Tenure—"A judge struck down tenure and other job protections for California's public school teachers as unconstitutional Tuesday, saying such laws harm students — especially poor and minority ones — by saddling them with bad teachers who are almost impossible to fire."

That's Un-Possible!

• UNC's McCants: 'Just show up, play'—"Former North Carolina basketball star Rashad McCants told Outside the Lines that he could have been academically ineligible to play during the 2004-05 national championship season had he not been provided fraudulent academic assistance."
• School cancels reading program rather than promote "hacker culture"—"Boing Boing editor responds, offers 200 free copies to the school's students."
• This Made Us LOL—South Carolina takes a stand.

Parenting

• The day I left my son in the car—"I made a split-second decision to run into the store. I had no idea it would consume the next years of my life." Salon
• Stop helicopter-parenting other people's kids—"We've reached the point where parenting "mistakes" are being reported to the cops."
• Hawaii Man Gets Probation for Making Kid Walk Mile—He was sentenced to probation, but he shouldn't have been charged in the first place.
• Dad charged for forcing teen to carry landscape stone
• Brooklyn pub bans kids after being swamped by families—"The Hot Bird in Clinton Hill posted a sign reading 'Children are not allowed,' after hip parents kept taking their babies to the bar."

Snowden; Santa Barbara Massacre, Guns; Comply! Incarcerating Kids, Rape, Bullying; Racism; Religion; I Was Told There Would Be No Math, That's Un-Possible, Educamation; Commencement, Graduation; Law and Disorder

Snowden

• Edward Snowden interview: breaking law was only option, says whistleblower—Watch the interview.
• Edward Snowden: I was a high-tech spy for the CIA and NSA—"Fugitive US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden has described himself as a trained spy specialising in electronic surveillance, dismissing claims he was a mere low-level analyst."
• In NBC interview, Snowden says NSA watches our digital thoughts develop
• NSA Releases Email Snowden Sent Before Leaks

Santa Barbara Massacre

• The 'Twisted World' Elliot Rodger Lived In
• Are 'pick-up artists' to blame for Isla Vista shooting?
• Facebook removes page glorifying Isla Vista killer
• Seth Rogen, Judd Apatow blast journalist who suggested their films inspired Elliot Rodger 51
• Tech exec fired for comments about California killer
• Fox News analyst retracts theory about California killer's sexuality—"On a Fox News show Dr. Robi Ludwig wondered if a 22-year-old Californian killed six because women were taking men away from him [Salon]."

Guns

• Victim's Dad Blames Deadly Rampage On NRA, Politicians—"They talk about gun rights. What about Chris's right to live?"
• Father of victim in Santa Barbara shootings to politicians: 'I don't care about your sympathy.' WaPo
• California GOPer Sent Out Pro-Gun Robocall Day After Massacre
• CNN Guest Shames Anchor For Banning Gun Control Talk After Calif. Mass Shooting
• Joe the Plumber: The real victim of Santa Barbara shootings would be me losing my guns
• How the Gun Nuts Try to Excuse Away the Santa Barbara Slaughter—and Why They're All Wrong—"The firearms fanboys have been more creative than usual, scrambling to defend their precious weapons in the wake of the massacre in Santa Barbara. It's only made their excuses lamer."

Comply!

• Second Grader Written Up for 'Seeing' Gun in the Clouds
• Community sounds off after school punishes boy for refusing to stand for pledge
• New York Teacher Tells Atheist Student She's Unpatriotic and Disrespectful for Refusing to Stand for the Pledge
• Students Allegedly Threatened With Suspension To Stop Them From Protesting Pennsylvania's Governor
• Students rebel, police called after 170 high school students suspended for dress code: reports—"Police were called to Duncanville High School in Texas Wednesday to help mitigate the chaos as packs of students were seen on video allegedly throwing food and at least one trash can, myfoxdfw reported."
• Mother wants answers after teenage daughter's armpits were shaved by teacher—"I spoke to the teacher the very next day and she told me that she has the right to do it, it's part of the curriculum."
• Boardman Schools to begin drug testing students

Incarcerating Kids

• Arresting Children Is Now Commonplace in America—"Putting police in schools was supposed to make kids safer, but instead it's resulted in a children and teens being handcuffed."
• Why Are Kids Being Tried in Kangaroo Courts?—'Juvenile courts across the country deny young defendants the constitutional right to an attorney."
• Ohio agrees to reform, eventually eliminate juvenile solitary confinement—"Under the agreement with the DOJ, Ohio will provide mental health treatment rather than rely on solitary confinement."

Rape

• Schoolgirl Punished for Reporting Rape by Fellow Student
• Ohio schools chief accused of destroying evidence—"The superintendent of the eastern Ohio district where two high school football players were found guilty of rape in a high-profile case last year wiped computer hard drives, erased emails and lied to investigators about his knowledge of the allegations against the boys, newly released court documents say."
• Duke student, expelled after sex assault claim, sues for degree

Bullying

• Calif. mom accused of assaulting boy over bullying daughter—"A Northern California woman is facing charges that she grabbed a 12-year-old boy by the throat while confronting him about bullying her daughter, authorities said Sunday."
• Carson moves to criminalize bullying for children as young as 5
• California mayor sparks outrage by telling bullying victims to 'grow a pair'—"The mayor was responding to a student program proposing safe zones around town with signs directing children to places where they could seek refuge from bullies."

Racism

• Academe, an academic blog, reveals common prejudice among professors against white, rural students.
• 'Hump Day' event cancelled after students claim bringing a camel to campus was racist—"Students at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota have cancelled an event to celebrate the end of the year after complaints that bringing a camel on campus could offend those of Middle Eastern cultures."
• The Real Origins of the Religious Right—"They'll tell you it was abortion. Sorry, the historical record's clear: It was segregation."

Religion

• Narconon: Misleading antidrug program back in public schools—Scientology crap.
• Lawsuit claims teachers indoctrinated teens into religious cult
• Why Does This Public High School Football Team in Georgia Have an Official Pastor?
• Christian prayers violated Buncombe school policy
• A Winfield Tradition Comes To An End—"[T]he board of education says they've gotten complaints that McCoy's speeches contain too many religious references, and violate the Supreme Court ruling banning prayer in public schools." Thank FSM.

I Was Told There Would Be No Math

• Think the climate change fight is tough? What about the 17th century fight over math? LATimes
• 2+2=What? Parents rail against Common Core math—"Stacey Jacobson-Francis, 41, of Berkeley, California, said her daughter's homework requires her to know four different ways to add." Who came up with this shit?
• US 'in denial' over poor maths standards

That's Un-Possible

• Florida Lawmaker: Common Core Will Turn 'Every One Of Your Children' Gay
• Company rescinds Ohio man's job offer after learning he was home schooled
• Cole Middle School Cancels Honors Night—"Citing concerns about the "exclusive nature" of the annual honors night at Archie R. Cole Middle School, school officials have decided to scrap the tradition."

Educamation

• Group temporarily withdraws, modifies report accusing U of administrative bloat
• Elementary School 'Pay to Potty' Rule Outrages Parents—Technically monopoly money, and it was girl's decision not to go, but bathroom breaks shouldn't have been part of the prize/price list.
• Study: Black college grads have double the unemployment rate
• America's college students are graduating more indebted than ever
• Deck is stacked against millennials

Speeches

• Commencement meltdown– students are wisely rejecting elite authority
• Haverford College commencement speaker lambastes students
• Charlie Day's Commencement Speech Is the Only One You Need to Hear
• Blast from the Past: Fairness, idealism and other atrocities Commencement advice you're unlikely to hear elsewhere.

Graduation

• Florida high school charging $200 for 'premium' graduation seats
• Ridgewood to withhold diplomas pending class apology—The school has reversed their decision. The superintendent had blogged: "Perhaps it is the final lesson they will take away from high school: there are consequences for behaviors in life."
• Teen Threatened With Graduation Ban For Yearbook Quote
• Arizona high school dedicates yearbook pages to pregnant students
• Students upset to discover yearbook photos were altered to show less skin

Law and Disorder

• Teen tied to shopping cart drowns in Georgia lake
• Peace Sign Stolen From Conn. Playground Honoring Sandy Hook Victim Grace McDonnell
• Man with guns at BU commencement held on high bail
• Student charged with felony via hand sanitizer—"A 14-year-old has been arrested, accused of trying to poison his teacher with hand sanitizer."
• Dear Prudence: I made my teacher lose her job by saying she hurt me.

School of Crock, Bullying, LGBT; Comply! Zero Tolerance; Rape; Law and Disorder, Troubled Youth, Educamation; Parenting

School of Crock

• Louis C.K. Has Figured Something Out About Why Our Kids Are Sad—"Their love of learning is dying. And the only way to fix it is to listen to them."
• TOEIC, TOEFL axed as route to U.K. visa—"Two of the most popular English-language proficiency tests in Japan can no longer be used to obtain student visas to Britain after a British TV program exposed fraud in the test-taking process."
• Chinese media: Kindergartens suspected of drugging students to boost attendance
• President of Drug-Testing Company Is Brother of St. Edward High School President—One of two high schools "kicking off a mandatory drug-testing program for their students in the fall."
• Students suspended after porn found on teacher's computer—"School classroom and the students ended up getting in big trouble."
• Students humiliated by staff member at North High School rally, KHSD apologizes
• Plymouth University forced to remove anti-cheating posters 'that helped students cheat'
• Stevens High substitute teacher quits over Facebook ultimatum

Bullying

• Special Ed. Student Records Audio Proof of Bullying, Threatened With Charges of Warrentless Wiretapping—He's been convicted for disorderly conduct.
• South Fayette parents express dissatisfaction with handling of bullying
• School Advises Students Not to Report Bullying, and Basically Just Accept It
• Girl Gives Her Bullies 'Semen-Filled' Cupcakes
• DA: Teens charged with ethnic intimidation for 'smack cam' video
• Argentine girl dies after apparent bullying attack by classmates

LGBT

• Why Would A Gay Teenager Commit Hate Crimes Against Herself?—"Ten years ago, a liberal San Francisco suburb was traumatized by a rash of hate crimes against a 17-year-old lesbian. But when it was revealed that the victim herself had staged the attacks, the entire community turned on her and she never spoke about the incidents publicly. Until now."
• 'Man Up,' 'Don't Be A Pussy' Labeled Offensive Language at Duke University—"A new word-discouragement campaign at Duke University has labeled phrases such as 'Man Up,' 'That's So Gay,' and 'Don't Be a Pussy' offensive language that 'delegitimizes' homosexuality and oppresses and insults people."
• Canada: Human-rights tribunal probing student's complaints of homophobic discrimination

Comply!

• Torturing Children at School—"Complaints of dangerous disciplinary practices involving Tasers are cropping up all over the country." NYT
• Teenager kicked off Florida school bus by driver while having seizure—"The sister of Andrew Shepard, 16, had to carry her big brother off the bus April 16 after he had a seizure on the way home from school in Broward County."
• Second-Grader Says School Put Him In Handcuffs For Misbehaving
• Miss America: Don't Suspend Teen Who Asked Me to Prom
• RSA Animate - Changing Education Paradigms—Sir Ken Robinson speaks on Divergent Thinking

Zero Tolerance

• Science teacher's suspension spurs petition drive—"Cortines School's Greg Schiller was removed by L.A. Unified after two students' projects were deemed to resemble weapons."
• Vernon teen Ethan Chaplin suspended from school for pencil gesture
• Kids who imitate gun with food, fingers would not face punishment under Missouri bill

Rape

• Nonconsensual sex: How colleges rebranded rape
• 'We reject rape culture': American Univ. students demand sanctions against rogue frat
• 55 colleges under investigation over handling of sexual violence complaints
• Student Alleges Brown University Let Her Rapist Return to Classes While She Was Still There
• Trial set for superintendent after Steubenville rape case
• Girl raped in high school hallway as class goes on
• Mass DNA testing in French school to find rapist

Law and Disorder

• 15 Years After Columbine, How "Never Again" Became "Oh Well"
• Waseca police say they foiled teen's plot to kill parents, stage school massacre—A teacher called 911 when she noticed a student acting strange.
• Two girls arrested on suspicion of teacher 'murder plot'
• Illinois teacher left note: school 'will b n flames,' officials say
• High school senior class prank leads to 62 arrests—"Sixty-two students were arrested Thursday after police said they broke into their high school overnight for a senior class prank, urinating in hallways, greasing doorknobs with petroleum jelly and taping hot dogs to lockers."

Troubled Youth

• Teens use baseball bat and golf club to beat mentally disabled man to death for his Xbox
• Chicago girl, 14, charged with killing rival
• Teen arrested in connection to Brandon Road attack; vigil held for victim
• Anne Maguire stabbing: Boy, 15, due in court charged with murder
• Tanana resident, 20, arraigned in killing of 2 Alaska State Troopers
• Teen crews linked to 40 percent of NYC shootings—"There are more than 300 of them in New York — violent crews of dozens of 12- to 20-year-olds with names such as Very Crispy Gangsters, True Money Gang and Cash Bama Bullies." WaPo
• Oregon teen sentenced in swastika attack

Educamation

• Teacher who 'ordered a hit' on 7th grader gets fired
• Teacher fired for using broom to break up Detroit classroom fight—Damned when she did, damned if she didn't.
• Santa Monica coach may become a hero for exasperated teachers

Parenting

• Celebrity Quack Moms Are a Terrible Influence on Everyday Parents
• Gen Y and Millennial moms having more kids and abandoning helicopter parenting
• Parent calls cops on teen for giving books away at a book giveaway—"Trying to give away award-winning novels got this girl a chat with the cops in Idaho."

Comply! Zero Tolerance; That's Un-Possible! Educamation, School Fees; Racism; Bullying; Teen Killers; Think of the Children; Teachers

Comply!

• Girl, 9, barred from school for shaving head to support friend with cancer
• Tennessee teacher out of a job after taking sick student to ER and paying the bill—"It's a liability issue. It's an issue of insubordination after doing something you were officially warned not to do and doing it again.
• Minnesota teen wins settlement after school takes Facebook password—"A Minnesota school district has agreed to pay $70,000 to settle a lawsuit that claimed school officials violated a student's constitutional rights by viewing her Facebook and email accounts without permission."
• Supreme Court declines 'I (heart) Boobies'
• Free speech vs. school order—"Public school administrators must have their heads spinning as they try to sort out recent court decisions regarding free-expression rights of students. Principals have the almost impossible task of balancing constitutionally protected student expression with keeping order in schools where education is the primary objective."

Zero Tolerance

• Student involved in razor incident will return to school Friday—"A Virginia Beach sixth grader who came to the aide of a classmate who was cutting his arm will now return to school Friday after initially facing expulsion for her actions."
• Teen's military plans on hold after spending 13 days in jail —He was "charged with a felony and spent 13 days in jail, after what he says what was a pocketknife was found in his car during a search at his school Ashtabula County Tech."
• There's no such thing as zero tolerance—"Yup, we have yet another 'Asinine School Administration Negligently Enforces Zero Tolerance Policy Because the Administration is Asinine' debacle."
• St. Louis County mother furious after being arrested for consoling son—"A mother trying to pick her special needs son up from school winds up in handcuffs and puts the school on lock down."
• Citing abuse, advocates to seek changes in zero-tolerance policies

That's Un-Possible!

• Here's the Awful 146-Word "Essay" That Earned an A- for a UNC Jock
• Teenager expelled from school after organising mass-walkout over LACK of homework—Say hello to a future politician.
• Chemistry Professor Accidentally Taught The Wrong Course For Months

Educamation

• A Conservative Meme On School Lunches: Work For It, Kids!
• Kansas illegally underfunds poorer school districts, court rules
• Hilariously, Bobby Jindal Attempts To Use "Science" To Defend His Failed School Voucher Program
• Ohio legislator says America's public education system is 'socialism,' should be privatized
• Diane Ravitch Tells Bill Moyers Why School Privatization Is Turning into a Disaster
• Gov. Mike Pence signs bill to ditch Common Core
• Kindergarten teacher: My job is now about tests and data — not children. I quit. WaPo

School Fees

• Pay it forward: Plan would allow Michigan students to attend college for 'free'—"In return for free tuition, students have to agree to pay a fixed percentage of their future income for a specified number of years to a special fund that would pay other students' college bills." Interesting.
• University of Baltimore to offer free final semester—"... if [the students] can finish their degrees in four years."
• New strategy would drop college textbook costs to zero—"USM holds pilot in which students use free 'open-source' textbooks put together by their professors."
• College affordability: Low-income students bearing brunt of price hikes at some West Michigan schools
• Superintendent's pay in South Bay district called 'excessive'—"The superintendent of the small Centinela Valley Union High School District, Jose Fernandez, made $674,559 last year, far more than the New York and Los Angeles school district heads."

Racism

• Olathe district apologizes after only black students invited on trip—Claims it was a "misunderstanding."
• Teaching tolerance: How white parents should talk to their kids about race
• U Of Alabama Sororites Win Right To Ban Blacks

Bullying

• School Bans Bullied Boy from Wearing his 'My Little Pony' Bag – This is Victim Blaming
• Petition asking for principal's termination—Accused of cyber-bullying a six-year-old.
• Details Emerge in Throat Stabbing of Elementary School Student; Photos Obtained
• Fed-Up Father Of Bullied Son Files Restraining Order Against Fairfield 9-Year-Old
• Teens get banned from an app after vicious attacks and threats—"Yik Yak is banned from Chicago after upsetting middle and high school students."
• Two Maryland teens admit to assaulting boy with autism
• Former elementary school lunch lady taken to jail for paying kids $1 to beat up classmate

Teen Killers

• Student Who Allegedly Produced Ricin Was Inspired By 'Breaking Bad'
• Ballard High student who killed for cell phone disappointed victim didn't have a nicer model—Psychopath.
• Two Wylie Teens Arrested For Murder Of Classmate
• Teen charged with killing parents in Calif. mansion
• Girl, 16, stabbed 65 times following Facebook argument
• Texas teens arrested for skinning dog and killing kittens in 'satanic-style ritual'
• Saturday's Louisville mob violence step-by-step

Think of the Children

• Doctor: ADHD Does Not Exist
• Alabama retailer turns away special needs kids
• When one New Zealand school tossed its playground rules and let students risk injury, the results were surprising
• When parents limit screen time, kids behave, sleep, and test better—"Since the average kid is in front of a screen more than 40 hours a week, researchers say even small limits on screen time can reap multiple health benefits."
• Blast from the Past: British children 'babied' by intrusive parents, says MP—"UK children are being 'babied' by overly-intrusive parents, leaving them unable to cope as they grow up, an adviser to David Cameron has said."

Teachers

• Los Alamitos High School Teacher Tweets—In the vein of celebrities reading hate tweets on Kimmel.
• Maths teacher threatens Game of Thrones spoilers instead of detention for naughty students
• Teacher keeps promise to mail thousands of former students letters written by their past selves

Zero Tolerance, Comply! Gun Show; Hunger Games, Student Loans, Free College, School Fees; That's Un-Possible! SAT; Educamation; Think of the Children; Bullying, Parenting, Law and Disorder; Ukraine

Zero Tolerance

• Pop-Tart school-gun bill clears first hurdle in Florida—"Legislators here are working to keep students from getting in serious trouble for simulating a weapon with harmless objects like their fingers, Pop-Tarts or Legos."
• NRA Backs Fla. "Pop Tart" Gun Bill Because Playing With Toy Guns at School Is Totally a Kid's Right
• Chicago School Officials Suspend 11-Year-Old Boy Under 'Dangerous Weapons' Policy for Voluntarily Turning in Non-Firing Toy Gun
• Boy points finger like gun, gets suspended
• New Hanover County Schools remove 'Zero Tolerance' Policy

Comply!

• Texas student suspended after bringing beer to school by mistake
• Clarksville Student Suspended For Knife In Father's Car—30 days (down from 90) is still too much.
• Boy arrested after throwing snowball at cop—"13-year-old being charged with a felony following incident."
• Teen: Teachers Made Me Stand Outside In Wet Bathing Suit, Barefoot
• University policy will force students to wear trackable identification at all times

Gun Show

• 'Toy gun' found at Flint's Doyle-Ryder Elementary, two students arrested on disorderly conduct charges—"While police called it a 'toy gun,' Watkins said he believed in was a BB gun," which is an expellable offense.
• Student brings gun to elementary school—"The 11-year-old boy brought the .44-caliber handgun to Feaster Charter School in a backpack to show a few other students on Jan. 31, police said. He didn’t wave it around or threaten anybody, they added."
• Ind. House OKs bill to allow guns in cars at schools
• Associates defend man who had gun in school—Ironically, an advocate of the SAFE act, "the state law that made carrying a gun on school property a felony."
• When May I Shoot a Student?—"Modest questions about an Idaho bill allowing guns on campus." NYT

Hunger Games

• Many Minnesota students are subjected to lunch refusals, including 'tray pulls'
• USDA Tells Schools: Don't Refuse Food To Students Who Owe
• ACLU takes case of bus driver fired over Facebook posting—"Johnny Cook said that he was terminated from his job after he made a post about a child who he said was refused a free lunch."
• Howell elementary student raising money to cover unpaid school lunch bills for classmates
• Policies need to make sure all students get a hot lunch
• Paul Ryan: Free School Lunch Means Poor Parents Don't Care About Kids—He just loves the poor.

Student Loans

• Student Loans Are Ruining Your Life. Now They're Ruining the Economy, Too—"American students are well over $1 trillion in debt, and it's starting to hurt everyone, economists say."
• Feds file suit against for-profit college chain—"The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau filed suit Wednesday against a large, for-profit college chain alleging that it pushed students into high-cost private student loans knowing they would likely end in default."
• Elizabeth Warren: Sallie Mae May Be Hurting Borrowers, Taxpayers—Can she get student loans refinanced?

Free College

• TN Governor makes education top priority in State of the State address—"Addressing a packed House chamber, Gov. Haslam announced what he called the 'Tennessee Promise'; the plan allows for all high school students to get two years of college education for free."
• Free Online University Receives Accreditation, in Time for Graduating Class of 7—"The University of the People, built to reach underserved students around the world, announced Thursday that it had received accreditation." NYT
• Can free community college save the US economy?

School Fees

• Cut Off Harvard to Save America—"University endowments promote inefficiency and are anti-meritocratic."
• Alamo Colleges trustees OK new approach to textbooks
• Oklahoma schools required to teach high school students to manage finances—"Oklahoma students, effective this May, now must demonstrate an understanding in banking, taxes, investing, loans, insurance, identity theft and eight other areas to graduate. Teachers are required to certify students' working knowledge in each area."

That's Un-Possible!

• The Myth Behind Public School Failure—"In the rush to privatize the country's schools, corporations and politicians have decimated school budgets, replaced teaching with standardized testing, and placed the blame on teachers and students."
• Carolina Confronts Classroom Corruption as Athletes Fail to Read
• Rutgers makes professor teach class he is clueless about, suspends him for telling students
• Fight Over Effective Teachers Shifts to Courtroom NYT

SAT

• Sharpen those pencils: The SAT test is getting harder—Bye-bye essay section [WaPo].
• Why the SAT is really changing: It's facing tough competition from the ACT WaPo
• The Problem Isn't What's on the SAT. The Problem Is the SAT Itself—"Make no mistake: The next revolution is an educational one. And America can only be at the forefront of it by disregarding for-profit standardized tests."

Educamation

• The University of Tennessee's Sex Week Will Go on Despite Major Controversy
• Philly-area student gets prize -- and more -- after being snubbed jackpot for half-court basketball shot—Props to Pizza Hut. Free good-will publicity for them.
• Columbus school board admits to illegal meetings, settles 'Dispatch' lawsuit
• Poudre School District destroys records to deny special needs family's access
• An inconvenient child—"My six-year-old son was suspended as a danger to others. His crime? Apraxia, a disability you could find in any classroom."

Think of the Children

• 11-year-old girl's cupcake business shut down by Madison County officials
• Victoria's Secret store bans mom from breastfeeding
• New Study Confirms It: Breast-Feeding Benefits Have Been Drastically Overstated
• Nick Lachey Says 'It Takes a Lot of Courage' for Media to Adopt #NoKidsPolicy
• Graco recalls nearly 4 million car seats because children may get trapped

Bullying

• Family Outraged Over Suspension Of Westlake High Senior Class President—"Friends and Conti supporters accuse Westlake High Principal Ron Lipari of coming down hard on Conti and protecting the school's football program."
• Suspended Rudder High School Teen Speaks Out—Stood up for someone getting harrased; gets suspended.
• Child attempts suicide after being bullied at school for being a fan of My Little Pony
• Former high school bully congratulates gay victim after seeing marriage proposal online

Parenting

• Motivating teenagers: How do you do it?—"Helicopter parenting has crippled American teenagers. Here's how to fix it."
• It's Complicated: An interview with danah boyd about teens and technology.
• Sponsor of Kansas spanking bill says it would help define corporal punishment, restore parental rights
• NY lawmaker: Parents should take parenting classes—Some parents don't know the fuck they're doing.
• The tyranny of the "bad mother": Slacker moms are just as intimidating as perfect ones Salon
• Judge Denies Tuition Money, Child Support For NJ Teen Suing Parents

Law and Disorder

• Parents force 5-year-old to drink grape soda until she dies, prosecutor says
• Judge accepts father's insanity plea in decapitation
• Boy, 11, is beaten and stabbed to death by his father at cricket practice
• Philadelphia couple face prison after sons' prayer deaths
• Baby to undergo blood transfusions despite objection of Jehovah's Witnesses parents—"High Court judge agrees to proceedure despite his parents' objections on religious grounds."
• US doctor found guilty of waterboarding his 11-year-old stepdaughter

Ukraine

• U.S. Navy destroyer heads to Black Sea for pre-planned exercises
• Russians sink a boat off Ukraine coast - their own
• EU leaders to hold emergency talks
• CIA reportedly says Russia sees treaty as justifying Ukraine moves—It "allows up to 25,000 Russia troops in the vital Crimea region, so Russia may not consider its recent troop movements to be an invasion."
• State-Funded Channel's Anchorwoman Hits Kremlin On Ukraine
• Russian professor under pressure over Nazi comparison on Ukraine
• Crimea votes to join Russia, Obama orders sanctions

Auburn vs. Alabama Aftermath; Comply! Zero Tolerance; Bullying; Rape; That's Unpossible; Educamation; Think of the Children, CPS; Parenting, Kids These Days; Obamacare, Sabotage

Auburn vs. Alabama Aftermath

• Alabama Kicker Cade Foster Sent Death Threats and Hateful Tweets After Loss
• Sister: Deadly shooting was over Alabama loss
• Parody Radio Call Detailing Final Auburn-Alabama Return Play Goes Viral

Comply!

• Boy, 13, suspended for carrying Vera Bradley purse
• Lakeview ban on memorial T-shirts backfires—"Jones said the situation was handled 'compassionately.' She said, for example, that students who were asked to turn their shirts inside-out were told to keep Caitlyn's name 'close to their heart.'" Utter bullshit.
• African-American girl faces expulsion over "natural hair"
• Tased Bastrop Student Has Head Injury—"A Cedar Creek High School student that was tased Wednesday by a resource officer during an altercation in a hallway is still in the hospital with a brain injury, according to the student's family's attorney." Noe Nino de Rivera was trying to stop a fight.
• Coach Defends Students Arrested at Bus Stop—The charges were dropped.

Zero Tolerance

• Pre-K suspensions common in Maryland schools—"Most of the students were suspended for physical attacks on teachers or students, though a handful were suspended for offenses such as sexual activity, possession of a firearm or other guns, inciting a public disturbance, and vandalism." WTF, are these charges for real?
• Pocketknives, schools, and Georgia's 'zero tolerance' ban
• Seeing the Toll, Schools Revise Zero Tolerance—"School districts around the country are rethinking their responses to minor offenses by students amid mounting evidence of the downside of get-tough policies." NYT

Bullying

• 'My daughter was bullied to death in England over her red hair'
• Iowa parents defend bullying of autistic teen
• Boy Suspended For Bullying Is Serving Unusual Punishment From Parents
• Alleged Bullying Victim Sues School District
• Band of brothers rally around boy, 6, to stop teasing

Rape

• Steubenville case: Four more charged, including superintendent, volunteer coach
• Rape case, blackmail allegations roil Hamburg School District
• Montana appeals 30-day sentence in student rape case as insufficient—Judge who made the ruling says he doesn't deserve to lose his job.

That's Unpossible

• Texas Board of Ed votes to drop algebra II mandate—"The Texas Board of Education gave preliminary approval Thursday to dropping algebra II as a requirement for high school graduation, over the objections of critics who say the state is watering down its academic standards."
• NYC high schoolers can't earn '0' even if they skip class, miffed teachers say
• U.S. students still only average on tests—"American high school students still post only average scores on a key skills test administered to kids in 65 countries across the industrialized world."

Educamation

• Government books $41.3 billion in student loan profits
• Many Young Americans Blame Colleges For Rising Student Debt
• From Shop Class To Shipyard: Oregon's Plan For Industrial Interns—"Manufacturers in Oregon want to hire high school students. But they don't want the kinds of high school students that colleges are after — the kind who have amazing test scores and will spend hours perfecting essays. They want teenagers who want to paint, weld and work with their hands."

Think of the Children

• Principal tells mom with breast cancer she can't visit kids' school—"An Albuquerque, New Mexico mother with cancer says she was kept out of her daughter's school because of the way she smells."
• Daycare gives kids crackers, fines mom for unhealthy lunch
• Dad Goes To Pick Kids Up From School, Gets Arrested Instead

CPS

• 6,000 Arizona child abuse reports not investigated—Maybe they just forgot.
• Failure to protect: More children dying of abuse, neglect in Wash.
• Child taken from womb by social services—"Essex social services have obtained a court order against a woman that allowed her to be forcibly sedated and for her child to be taken from her womb by caesarean section."
• Family can sue in child removal case involving Mike's Hard Lemonade, judge rules—"An Ann Arbor family can proceed with a lawsuit against a judge who placed their 7-year-old son in foster care after his father mistakenly gave him Mike’s Hard Lemonade at a Detroit Tigers game...."
• Prosecutors fear for evidence after DFCS pair reinstated in Georgia—"The Georgia Division of Family and Children Services has reinstated two workers arrested last year for falsifying documents at its Muscogee County office, prompting prosecutors to seek a court order Monday denying the pair access to any records related to their case."

Parenting

• Arne Duncan: 'White suburban moms' upset that Common Core shows their kids aren't 'brilliant'
• State of Play: Peter Berg on Trophy Kids—Preview of upcoming episode documentary focusing on overparenting in sports.
• 'Ghetto Mom' Shames Daughter's Bad Behavior At School. Good Parenting Or Bad Approach?
• Dorkly.com: Parental Guidance
• Blast from the Past: 'Tiger Mothers' leave lifelong scars

Kids These Days

• Brooklyn Bar Raises Drinking Age to 25 Because Young People Are Annoying
• NYC Bans Tobacco Sales to Anyone Under Age 21
• Twitter wants to check your age before you can follow booze brands

Obamacare

• More signed up for Obamacare in first two days of December than in all of October WaPo
• Healthcare.gov working: Slate's health care guinea pig tries enrolling again
• Cost of Health Care Law Is Seen as Decreasing—"Because of a slowing trend in health care spending, the government is expected to spend billions of dollars less than originally projected on the law, and future cost controls may save billions more." NYT
• Sen. Sanders: Health Care for All
• Could A Tech Giant Build A Better Health Exchange? Maybe Not—"Oregon has spent more than $40 million to build its own online health care exchange. It gave that money to a Silicon Valley titan, Oracle, but the result has been a disaster of missed deadlines, a nonworking website and a state forced to process thousands of insurance applications on paper."

Sabotage

• Republicans Nearing a Dead End on Obamacare
• Hypocrisy, dogma and sabotage: The right’s stepping into an Obamacare trap Salon
• RNC: 'Offensive' That White House Wants 'To Woo Young People' To Obamacare
• Kentucky: Third website ordered removed; 'deceptively similar' to state's health insurance exchange
• More on the California GOP's bogus Obamacare website—"Following our post on the California Republicans' misleading health insurance website, numerous readers reached out to us with examples of how the Assembly Republican Caucus, which created the thing, has been marketing it."

The Lost Generation, Educamation; Comply! Parenting Fail, Rearing; Think of the Children! Bullying; Sandy Hook, Guns; Obamacare; Attacking the Press; NSA Spying and Surveillance

The Lost Generation

• Obama says he doesn't want to hear about spending cuts—"Don't tell me we can afford to shut down the government, which costs our government billions of dollars, but we can't afford to invest in our kids."
• Nearly 6 million young Americans not in school or working
• Middle-class young 'will fare worse than their parents'—"David Cameron's social mobility and child poverty inquiry to issue grim warning as debt and job fears create 'perfect storm.'"
  

Educmation

• Neil Gaiman: 'Face facts: we need fiction'—"It's essential that children are encouraged to read and have access to fiction if we are to live in a healthy society."
• We Are Teaching High School Students to Write Terribly—"The many problems of the SAT’s essay section."
• US school kids get 'abysmal' writing training
• America Is Raising A Generation Of Young People Who Can't Do Math
• Michael Gove: governments must stop lying to children about life chances—"Education secretary says 'inflated' GCSE figures were used in past to tell pupils they could go to university or get skilled work."
• State lawmaker seeks changes to charter school law—"Days after an Orange County charter school threatened to dismiss students for failing the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Tests, a state lawmaker has filed a legislative proposal that would ban the practice. The school, Cornerstone Academy Charter School in Belle Isle, withdrew the threat after parents complained and reporters contacted the principal
• Lawyer offering $1,000 to those who don't study law—"Matthew Willens, a Chicago personal-injury attorney, announced this week that he's launching a $1,000 Anything But Law School Graduate Scholarship for one student a year who is planning to go to a nonlegal graduate school."

Comply!

• Transforming America’s Schools into Authoritarian Instruments of Compliance
• North Andover High Punishes Teen For Giving Drunken Pal Ride Home From Party—Apparently the school's lawyer got suspended for lying about the case
• Bomb hoax costs male students at Bonners Ferry H.S.—"A recent bomb threat forced Boundary County School District leaders to revoke privileges at Bonners Ferry High School. Yet, the change only impacts male students." Were all the male students involved? If not, why were those who weren't being punished too?
• School Silences 14-Year-Old Autistic Student From Questioning Treatment
• Hearing Over Autistic Student's Bomb Drawing
• 8-year-old threatened with expulsion for drawings
• Student's breakfast trashed for 30-cent shortage

Parenting Fail

• 91-0 Texas football blowout leads to bullying charge from a concerned parent—The coaches have been cleared for something they shouldn't have been charged with in the first place all because of that 'concerned parent.'
• Yelling "Toy Guns" on a Crowded Facebook Page—"...Appi allegedly posted on Facebook the following message 'Maybe I have to walk in with Toy guns just to prove a point!' The comments were regarding... what he believes are lapses in security at the school. The Facebook posting prompted over fifty calls to the middle school from parents concerned about the message." More 'concerned' parents.
• Brian Holloway, former NFL star, may be sued by parents of teens who trashed his home—"Brian Holloway's house has already been ruined by a group of teenagers, and now the teens' parents are looking to push it further." Shitty kids, shittier parents, so it's heartening to see arrests have been made and hopefully more to come.
• Disney Changes Rules for Disabled Kids After Families Abuse Special Accommodations
• Who's raising the children?—"Parents actually blame teachers for their children's bad grades and behavior."

Rearing

• Study says yelling as harmful as spanking in disciplining kids. So what should parents do? WaPo
• Opinion: Spanking hurts kids in the long run, too
• Sweden's liberal parents 'spoil children rotten'—"In 1979 Sweden became the first nation to ban smacking."

Think of the Children!

• Varsity defensive end is kicked off team and suspended for writing a poem—The principal's statement: "[The student] wrote a mean and disrespectful poem about another student and our athletic director/head coach. [It was] hazing, harrassment." Bullshit.
• USPS to destroy "Just Move" stamps over safety concerns
• B.C. school bans kindergarteners from touching each other—"The letter blames the ban on playground injuries that have resulted from games and other forms of hands-on play during recess."
• Calgary school axes honour roll, saying it often hurts 'self-esteem and pride' of students who don't make it
• Texas Football Program Says No More Trophies for Just Showing Up—Good.

Bullying

• 12-year-old girl arrested for relentless bullying
• Juvenile Arrested in Bullying of Plano ISD Student
• School bullies rip scalp of 8-year-old Georgia girl
• Florida cyber-bullying suspect: Truth will never come out because victim 'went to hell'
• When It's Your Kid in the Locker Room—"What parents and coaches can learn from the NFL bullying scandal."
• Washington boy brought gun, knives to school to defend bullied friend: police
• Are Parents To Blame For Raising Bullies?
• Tormented For Years, NYC Student To Sue Bullies And Their Parents—"Caitlin Rocco, mother say it's the only way to get the message across."
• Students At L.I. Elementary School Stand Up Against Bullying—"Students will recite anti-bullying pledge every morning." Wait... what?
• Teen, Mom Take Stand Against Bullying

Sandy Hook

• The Votes Are In: Sandy Hook Elementary Will Be Torn Down
• Newtown Residents Oppose Plan to Make Dec. 14 "Guns Save Lives Day"—Tasteless and crass.
• Sandy Hook school to be melted down, erasing any trace of killing spree scene

Guns

• California boy with replica gun fatally shot by deputies—Shot seven times. Literally overkill.
• Father: Boy was acting out zombie-slaying game Minecraft—Blame the game... nice parenting.
• Virginia Boy Shot In Face After Handling Gun While Home Alone
• Two-Year-Old North Carolina Girl Dies After Accidentally Shooting Herself
• Child Fires Officer's Rifle at Elementary School

Obamacare

• HealthCare.gov's head tech guy is out—"A Medicare official who oversaw HealthCare.gov's botched launch will leave the federal government for the private sector." Heckuva job, Tony. WaPo
• Interest in Obamacare rises despite website problems: Reuters/Ipsos poll
• Study suggests politics of Obamacare could shift against GOP WaPo
• The Reality Of The Affordable Care Act
• Insurance cancelled? Don't blame Obama or the ACA, blame America's insurance companies
• What Congress didn't say: Obamacare outlaws policies that are essentially worthless
• Stop the faux outrage over Obama's 'healthcare lie'—"Yes, the Obama team knew that some people wouldn't be able to keep their insurance. So did any reporter who did her research."
• Jon Stewart: Obama 'Somewhat Dishonest' About Healthcare But Republicans Are 'Lying Like Motherf*ckers'

Attacking the Press

• David Miranda lawyers argue that Heathrow detention was unlawful—"Partner of former Guardian journalist Glenn Greenwald had his rights violated by detention, lawyers say at high court."
• Sarah Harrison joins other Edward Snowden files 'exiles' in Berlin—"UK journalist's lawyers advise against returning home after working with NSA whistleblower, says statement on WikiLeaks."
• Edward Snowden leaks could help paedophiles escape police, says government—"Paedophiles and other criminals could benefit from the Guardian newspaper's stories based on leaks by Edward Snowden, the High Court hears." Getting slippery...

NSA Spying and Surveillance

• Al Gore: Snowden 'revealed evidence' of crimes against US constitution—"Speaking at McGill University in Montreal, Gore said the NSA's efforts to monitor communications had gone to 'absurd' lengths."
• ACLU and Yale Clinic Seek Secret Court Opinions Authorizing NSA's Bulk Collection of Americans' Records
• Former NSA Codebreaker: I Tried To Tell People About Government Spying
• Inside the "Electronic Omnivore": New Leaks Show NSA Spying on U.N., Climate Summit, Text Messaging
• NSA Spying Sparks Calls For New Senate Church Committee
• On the Prospect of Blackmail by the NSA
• Googlers say "F*** you" to NSA, company encrypts internal network—"NSA had reverse-engineered many of Google's and Yahoo's inner workings." So yeah, "Fuck these guys."