Joanna Hou

2 weeks ago | wweek.com | Joanna Hou

The Oregon Department of Education is pushing back against an April 3 federal order for states to scrap DEI programs, or risk losing federal funding. The order told states and local education agencies to certify compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act and Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, the June 2023 Supreme Court ruling that banned affirmative action from college admissions.

2 weeks ago | wweek.com | Joanna Hou

The U.S. Department of Education, under the command of the Trump administration, blocked final installments March 28 of COVID-era federal aid to state education agencies, sending panic across some parts of the country. The Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief program, first established in March 2020, sent billions across the U.S. Under the Biden administration, states were allowed to apply for extensions to fund previously approved projects until January 2026.

2 weeks ago | wweek.com | Joanna Hou

In a widely anticipated audit of Multnomah County’s Preschool for All program, released overnight Wednesday, County Auditor Jennifer McGuirk reported the program faces some challenges as it seeks to expand. The program, which voters passed in 2020, aims to provide every preschooler in Multnomah County free care by 2030. The county estimates that meeting that goal will require 11,000 publicly funded seats, with 7,000 from converting private seats and 4,000 from expanding capacity.

2 weeks ago | wweek.com | Joanna Hou

Multnomah County’s Preschool for All, which seeks to guarantee tuition-free child care to every preschooler in the county by 2030, reported another year of dramatically underspending its budget. The county’s annual comprehensive financial report for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2024, disclosed that Preschool for All once again collected more and spent less than it had planned.

2 weeks ago | wweek.com | Joanna Hou

In its quest to lower price tags on what would be the nation’s most expensive high schools, Portland Public Schools now estimates it will be able to shave between $33 and $67 million total off all three modernization projects. Tonight, the School Board will review three presentations and a staff memo after it tasked district officials and high school design groups to lower their project budgets in response to a February board-approved framework.