Education

October is Head Start Awareness Month. There is no singular look to Head Start — its federal-to-local structure has served communities and families well over the past six decades, benefiting from the ability to adapt and connect to the unique priorities of individual communities.

Education Secretary Linda McMahon stated that the department will “no longer award Minority-Serving Institution grants that discriminate by restricting eligibility to institutions that meet government-mandated racial quotas.”

The latest results from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) reveal troubling declines in academic performance among U.S. students, with twelfth-graders posting lower scores in reading and mathematics and eighth-graders showing setbacks in science.In reading, the 2024 national average for twelfth-graders was three points lower than in 2019, and ten points lower than when the assessment was first administered in 1992.

As students across the city go back to school, former First Lady and Founder of The Obama Foundation’s Girls Opportunity Alliance, Michelle Obama, announced an additional commitment of $500,000 to empower and uplift girls in and out of the classroom.