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The latest on the Key Bridge collapse, New York puts forth legislation to get clean energy projects on the grid and Wisconsin and other states join a federal summer food program to help feed kids across the country.

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Republicans float conspiracy theories on the collapse of Baltimore's Key Bridge, South Carolina's congressional elections will use a map ruled unconstitutional, and the Senate schedules an impeachment trial for Homeland Secretary Mayorkas.

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Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

'Don't Say Gay' Proves Challenging for FL Students, Teachers

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Friday, September 23, 2022   

Despite being aimed at children in kindergarten through third grade, Florida teachers say what's often referred to as the "Don't Say Gay" law has struck fear in teachers and students of all grades.

Billed as an effort to give parents more control over the types of instruction allowed in classrooms, the Parental Rights in Education Act prohibits classroom instruction about sexual orientation or gender identity up to the third grade. But since it went into effect in July, Erika Houvouras, a high school English teacher, said the law has done nothing but cause stress and confusion for all.

"I have had students come to me and say, 'Hey, we've been told that if we ask you to call us different pronouns, you have to tell our parents.' And you know, 'If you see us in the halls with someone of the same gender, you have to tell our parents'," she said. "And I tell them, 'That's never going to happen. You don't have to be concerned about that with me.'"

Houvouras said in group chats with teachers across the state, they're all concerned. Some tell her they're doing their best to make kids feel more comfortable, while others have gone as far as removing portions of literature they would usually cover, and limiting class discussions because they're concerned about "getting in trouble."

Houvouras said she hasn't seen a single message from district leaders on how to navigate classroom discussions - especially when kids are the ones driving the discussions and asking for explanations, including about the debate around the controversial issue.

"The more strident parts we were hearing have been dialed back a little bit in the actual verbiage of the bill, but there's still that concern there," she said. "There's an obvious effort to limit the acceptability of a community of people - which my students do not feel OK with, at all."

She said the law has sent shockwaves that extend far beyond limiting class discussions for younger kids. Most of her students are either 18 or close to it, she said, and if the topics of gender identity or sexual orientation come up in any literature and her students ask questions, she expects she will continue to answer.


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The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments this week about the popular abortion pill Mifepristone and will weigh in on whether the U.S. Food and Drug Administration was correct in how it can be dosed and prescribed. (Ascannio/Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

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Missouri residents are worried about future access to birth control. The latest survey from The Right Time, an initiative based in Missouri…


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Wisconsin children from low-income families are now on track to get nutritious foods over the summer. Federal officials have approved the Badger …

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Almost 2,900 people are unsheltered on any given night in the Beehive State. Gov. Spencer Cox is celebrating signing nine bills he says are geared …


The U.S. teaching workforce remains primarily white while the percentage of Black teachers has declined. However, the percentage of Asian and Latinx teachers is rising.(WavebreakMediaMicro/Adobestock)

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Environment

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New York's Legislature is considering a bill to get clean-energy projects connected to the grid faster. It's called the RAPID Act, for "Renewable …

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