An increasing number of jobs across Missouri require some level of training or education beyond high school, but rural students are less likely than their urban or suburban peers to enroll in and finish college.

The rootEd Alliance wants to change it, by bringing career counselors into school districts to complement the work guidance counselors are already doing. They can focus on students' opportunities after graduation, from a work credential or bachelor's degree to the military.

Hal Higdon, chancellor of Ozarks Technical Community College, a rootEd partner, said it is expanding from having advisers in just eight schools to 135 across the state.

"A lot of our rural students are first-generation, so they don't have mom and/or dad who've already been through the process of college; it can seem very daunting," Higdon pointed out. "What we see is students with no plans have plans, students with plans even come up with better plans. And then, a good number also go into the military."

Higdon added college-going rates increased at every school partnering with rootEd. National college enrollment numbers were down in 2021 from pre-pandemic levels, but went up by 7% at schools with a rootEd adviser.

Noa Meyer, president of the rootEd Alliance, noted the statewide expansion will serve 15,000 students or more. She explained learning what's out there, filling out financial aid forms, and identifying the right fit requires time and expertise.

"Guidance counselors are doing tremendous work, helping students on such a wide array of issues they're confronted with," Meyer asserted. "And as a result, they don't have as much time to help students with the plans that they need to develop for life after high school."

Higdon emphasized Missouri is facing real workforce shortages across industries, and argued the time is now for high school graduates to build skills to get good-paying jobs in their communities.

"The need for skilled workers, from Allied Health, to plumbing, to HVAC, to carpentry, to advanced manufacturing, it's all there," Higdon outlined. "And those students in rural areas make fantastic employees, so we've got to get them plugged into the workforce of not only Missouri, but of every state."

Support for this reporting was provided by Lumina Foundation.

Massachusetts lawmakers are hoping a new teacher certification process will draw more diverse candidates to the classroom.

The state recently passed legislation to create alternative pathways for teachers who struggle to pass the certification exam but can otherwise demonstrate competence in their field.

Jessica Tang, president of the American Federation of Teachers-Massachusetts, said the effort is ultimately good for students.

"You're going to run into a lot of diversity," Tang pointed out. "When you are exposed to diversity in our schools, that actually helps prepare you."

Tang noted even some of the state's previous teacher of the year award winners have struggled to pass the certification exam. She argued academic outcomes improve when students have teachers they can relate to and who understand their histories and cultures.

The legislation also requires districts to develop plans to recruit diverse educators and administrators, and collect diversity data. The state will also establish a teacher apprenticeship program to help support younger teachers and retain them. Tang stressed it is important the programs are now codified into state law due to potential upcoming changes in federal education policy.

"Even though a lot of these initiatives were already happening in so many places, we can do better," Tang emphasized. "We can do more and we can protect that work through this legislation."

Tang added educator preparation programs will also develop plans to increase the diversity of their graduates and she looks forward to seeing how students statewide will benefit from the legislation. She said it should help build a new pipeline of people entering the teaching profession, as the more students identify with their teachers, the more likely they will become teachers too.

Researchers say increasing the police presence in schools isn't the best way to address classroom violence. One expert in Iowa says educators would do better to treat the underlying causes.

Fifty years ago, just 1% of the nation's public schools had police officers on campus. That number has jumped to more than 40% now.

The 1999 Columbine High School shooting in Colorado prompted officials to harden schools with more police presence, thinking it would keep students safer.

Iowa State University Associate Dean for the Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice Monic Behnken said academic research shows that hasn't worked.

"What the literature is clear about for the past 20 years is actually the thing that you want to do is, you want to soften your schools," said Behnken. "You want to increase access to therapists, counselors, social workers, community liaisons."

Behnken said these professionals can address the emotional and social stressors among kids before they'd commit crimes.

She added that although school shootings have increased and get huge media attention when they happen, they are still statistically rare.

Behnken said data show that School Resource Officers (SROs), have next to no impact on stopping violence, bullying, or even schoolyard fights - but they do have a big impact in other areas.

"The research shows that SROs are good at policing," said Behnken. "So, they are fantastic in a school that has a drug problem. They are fantastic at a school that has a gang problem."

Behnken said otherwise, more officers on school campuses can do more harm than good - because school staff may learn to rely on SROs to solve discipline problems that administrators could handle without having to involve the police.




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In the wake of Donald Trump's re-election, teachers nationwide are bracing for more censorship battles. Currently, more than 40 laws in 22 states restrict teaching about race, gender, history and queer identities.

Oregon is not immune to this trend, with 93 book-removal attempts last year, a 30-year record. Educators recently shared their experiences with censorship at the Teaching Truth forum.

Jesse Hagopian, the Seattle-based author of "Teach Truth: The Struggle for Antiracist Education," said it's a topic of discussion.

"You're hearing from a lot of teachers already about what the repression looks like, but it's severe right now. You're dealing with, now, almost half of all kids going to a school where it's illegal for kids to learn the truth about U.S. history," he said.

Earlier this year, Republicans attempted to change Oregon's constitution to give parents the right to decide what materials are appropriate for their children's education. The amendment was voted down.

Lisa Stiller, a retired teacher who worked in rural and urban Oregon school districts, said it is important to give students space to ask questions about uncomfortable topics in school.

"If you think that a book with racial content has some deep issues I want to hear why. I don't want the discussion to be thrown out because it's controversial," she said.

Most attempts at banning books have been unsuccessful so far in Oregon, meeting legal challenges by the ACLU and other civil-rights groups. In September, a new rule banning Portland Public School teachers from posting anything personal or political in their classrooms was met with an official grievance from the teachers union.

Hagopian said it isn't enough to try to reverse laws that restrict teaching about racism and LGBTQ+ issues.

"We're fighting to expand Black studies, ethnic studies, queer studies, gender studies in our school so every kid can understand themselves, see themselves, and be empowered with the history of social movements they need to change this system," he explained.


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