Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by Linda A. White

David Houston @dmhouston.bsky.social · 17h

Supported by both the Fordham Institute and @wallacefoundation.bsky.social, Michael Hartney and I explored the extent to which U.S. school board members are politically and demographically representative of the communities they serve.

Here's a summary of our main findings:

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Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · 20h

New from Fordham, the Wallace Foundation, @dmhouston.bsky.social & Michael Hartney:

Who’s on Board? School Boards and Political Representation in an Age of Conflict fordhaminstitute.org/national/res...

Who’s on Board? School Boards and Political Representation in an Age of Conflict

School boards have become ground zero for America’s education culture wars, with fiery debates over race, gender, curriculum, and pandemic policies making national headlines. But beyond the noise, how...

fordhaminstitute.org

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Hahrie Han @hahrie.bsky.social · 14h

Totally, completely flabbergasted. #MacFellow

hub.jhu.edu/2025/10/08/h...

Johns Hopkins political scientist Hahrie Han receives MacArthur genius grant

Han, who studies political organizing and collective action and who has led the university's SNF Agora Institute since 2019, among 22 individuals to receive coveted MacArthur Foundation recognition

hub.jhu.edu

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Chalkbeat @chalkbeat.org · 21h

What is it like serving on a board of education? Here’s what Chicago school board members have to say about the unpaid job — so far.

16 quotes on what serving on the Chicago school board is actually like

What is it like serving on a board of education? Here’s what Chicago school board members have to say about the unpaid job — so far.

bit.ly

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Robert Kelchen @robertkelchen.com · 22h

As a small-town Midwesterner with a PhD in education policy, I know the world of competitive high schools exist...but I still can't process it. Growing up, the options were the local public high school or a regional Catholic school. I went to the public school and turned out okay-ish.

These Parents Are Willing to Pay Up to $15,000 to Get Their Kids Into High School

Getting into high school—private and public—is more competitive than ever. Parents are paying up.

www.wsj.com

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ProPublica @propublica.org · 21h

NEW: Under Trump, the Department of Education has been bringing in activists hostile to public schools.

It could mean a new era of private and religious schools boosted by tax dollars — and the end of public schools as we know them.

These Activists Want to Dismantle Public Schools. Now They Run the Education Department.

Under Trump, the Department of Education has been bringing in activists hostile to public schools. It could mean a new era of private and religious schools boosted by tax dollars — and the end of public schools as we know them.

www.propublica.org

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Linda A. White @lindawhite.bsky.social · 1d

Congratulations!🎉

Jessica Green @greenprofgreen.bsky.social · 1d

Today is the day!!! Existential Politics is out in the world!

Read about why we’re doing climate policy wrong (too focused on measuring emissions) & what we should do instead (focus on $$ to constrain fossil asset owners & expand green asset owners). Just in time for #COP30.

Existential Politics

A new way to tackle the real politics of climate change through asset revaluation

press.princeton.edu

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Kim Krawiec @kimkrawiec.bsky.social · 1d

"Within the academic world, it doesn’t change things all that much. I still write my papers, I submit my papers, I get them rejected." 🤣

Al Roth @alroth.bsky.social · 2d

More to come this week
#econsky #academicsky #nobel
marketdesigner.blogspot.com/2025/10/guid...

Guido Imbens reflects on "What’s it like to win a Nobel Prize?

marketdesigner.blogspot.com

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Daniel Drezner @dandrezner.bsky.social · 3d

At what point does a governor call up their National Guard to oppose the deployment of an out-of-state National Guard?

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My IRL friends call me Chris @christyceeck.bsky.social · 2d

“Every parent wants their child to get to and from school safely. Cameras slow drivers down where it matters most.”

I want to know if the Ford government's external consultant on this strategy anticipated all of the pushback & the fact that those pushing back would put their focus on kids.

#OnPoli

School boards across the province say speed cameras are one of the best ways to ensure student safety and are asking Premier Doug Ford to reconsider banning them.

“When it comes to protecting children in school safety zones, we must take every possible precaution. Slowing drivers down around schools reduces the risk of tragedy and keeps students and their families safer,” says a statement released Monday by the associations representing all 72 public, Catholic, French and French Catholic boards and trustees.

” … These cameras have been shown to be one of the most effective tools available to keep children and families safe near schools … (and) pediatric specialists have been clear: Speed is the single most important factor in whether a child survives a collision.”

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Gregory Hays @aristofontes.bsky.social · 2d

If you're in line to be prime minister of France, STAY IN LINE

RedScharlach @redscharlach.bsky.social · 2d

Currently waiting for a train to Paris, so at this rate I may be leading le gouvernement before the day is out 🤞🏻

James Ball @jamesrball.com · 3d

France’s latest government lasted 13 hours and 47 minutes

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Stephen Moran. @moranstephen1000.bsky.social · 3d

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Katie Martin @katie0martin.ft.com · 5d

Please join me in congratulating Woman on her appointment

Sky News @news.sky.com · 5d

Woman named as new Archbishop of Canterbury in historic first

Bishop of London Dame Sarah Mullally, a former nurse, has been named as the next Archbishop of Canterbury - the first time a woman has been appointed to the role in the Church of England's history.

news.sky.com

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Brendan Nyhan @brendannyhan.bsky.social · 7d

Trump's higher ed ransom note is here - everyone would have to acquiesce to their unprecedented demands or not be "given priority for grants," plus they can demand "reimbursement" for "violations" www.wsj.com/us-news/educ...

A mechanism to enforce fealty. An attack on academic freedom and democracy

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Noam Ross @noamross.net · 8d

The Damage Done: @marianneguenot.bsky.social tells the story of clinical trials derailed by the administration's reckless science policy, across kidney disease, HIV, Alzheimer's disease, and cancer. Years of work and money thrown away, at times just short of a cure.

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

The damage done - Nature Medicine

When clinical trials are suddenly halted by US funding cuts, there are repercussions for investigators and patients, and they do not stop at borders.

www.nature.com

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Dr Lindsay Tedds @lindsaytedds.bsky.social · 8d

Today is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, a time to honour Survivors and remember the children who never returned home from residential schools

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Equity in Education Canada - Building Better Futures @equityed.bsky.social · 8d

Congratulations to Dr. Samantha Burns, one of our former graduate students, who recently started a wonderful new role as Assistant Professor at the University of Guelph.

We wish you all the best!

@lindawhite.bsky.social @bdhuey.bsky.social @oiseuoft.bsky.social

family.uoguelph.ca/people/saman...

Samantha Burns

family.uoguelph.ca

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Equity in Education Canada - Building Better Futures @equityed.bsky.social · 8d

And in the second, Dr. Dhuey is explaining the "motherhood penalty" that women can experience after having children and how work from home policies can help change career trajectories: www.hrreporter.com/focus-areas/...

@utsc.utoronto.ca @lhaecomms.bsky.social @oiseuoft.bsky.social

Work from home and the motherhood penalty: what new research says

Research sheds light on how work from home policies shape mothers’ careers: ‘It follows you for the rest of your life’, academic says

www.hrreporter.com

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Equity in Education Canada - Building Better Futures @equityed.bsky.social · 8d

Here's our director, @bdhuey.bsky.social, featured in two media articles! The first deals with middle schools in Ontario and their effect on student achievement: www.thestar.com/news/ontario...

Are Ontario’s middle schools hurting student achievement? A new report says yes — but that’s not the whole story

C.D. Howe Institute study says students who switch to middle schools in Grade 6 score “significantly worse” on standardized tests, reigniting debate.

www.thestar.com

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Dr Lindsay Tedds @lindsaytedds.bsky.social · 11d

There were more residential and day schools in Alberta than any other Canadian province or territory. This map shows the residential schools in Alberta, including St. Mary’s Residential School, which was the last Indian Residential School to operate in Treaty 7 territory (1926 – 1988) bit.ly/4ncteu1

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Conrad Hackett @conradhackett.bsky.social · 12d

🧪Science has saved many lives!

Synthetic nitrogen fertilizer: Estimated 2.3 billion lives saved
Blood groups/storage leading to blood transfusions: 1.1 billion
High yield wheat: 245 million
Penicillin: 203M
Insulin: 200M
Chlorinated water: 177M
ourworldindata.org/data-insight...

Chart listing scientists whose work saved many people’s lives. The estimates are taken from the web publication Science Heroes.

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Daniel Drezner @dandrezner.bsky.social · 12d

Mother of God. www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...

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Linda A. White @lindawhite.bsky.social · 13d

How far we’ve moved from the idea the notwithstanding clause should be used to uphold other democratic values. What is the value of…speeding?

Mike The Canstralian 🇦🇺 🇬🇧 🇨🇦 @aussieinto.bsky.social · 13d

Doug Ford announces he will use the notwithstanding clause to ban speed cameras, as folks are sick of getting tickets for driving 4, 5 or 60km over the speed limit.

Doug Ford announcing that he will ban speed cameras in Ontario.

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Zahava Stadler @zahavastadler.bsky.social · 13d

I'm very proud to share a new, first-of-its-kind analysis and data tool from my team at @educationwork.newamerica.org.
Redrawing the Lines is a first-ever look at how, if states draw school district borders with equity as the goal, they can HUGELY reduce funding inequality and segregation. #edusky

Redistricting School Systems Can Increase Funding Fairness and Decrease Segregation

A new report and interactive data tool show how specific redistricting choices can create fairer school systems for our children.

www.newamerica.org

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NPR @npr.org · 14d

Thousands of years before Jimmy Kimmel and Stephen Colbert got under President Trump's skin, ancient Greek and Roman poets and philosophers paid a heavy price for displeasing heads of state.

What Kimmel and Colbert can learn from ancient comedians who ticked off their leaders

Thousands of years before Jimmy Kimmel and Stephen Colbert got under President Trump's skin, ancient Greek and Roman poets and philosophers paid a heavy price for displeasing heads of state.

n.pr

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lastpositivist.bsky.social @lastpositivist.bsky.social · 14d

In my life I've seen treatments for AIDs developed, vaccines for Ebola and malaria, and now this. Medical science is one is the areas that still consistently seems to make these miraculous advances and I'm genuinely grateful to everyone involved.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Huntington's disease successfully treated for first time

One of the most devastating diseases finally has a treatment that can slow its progression and transform lives, tearful doctors tell BBC.

www.bbc.co.uk

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