Kevin Richert

2 weeks ago | idahoednews.org | Kevin Richert

On Thursday, Idaho Republican Party Chairwoman Dorothy Moon decried low voter turnout in this week’s nonpartisan elections — which included more than two dozen school bond and levy proposals. And Moon floated one approach to boost turnout: further consolidating elections. “How do we get more people involved?” Moon wrote in her weekly op-ed. “One idea is to move all elections to even-numbered years.

2 weeks ago | idahoednews.org | Kevin Richert

One year and more than $1 billion later, it’s still borderline impossible to build a new school in Idaho. Voters in Middleton, Shelley and Filer overwhelmingly rejected $150.5 million in school bond issues Tuesday. And it wasn’t even close. The districts’ share from Idaho’s historic facilities bonding program didn’t appear to make a bit of difference. Election blowouts like Tuesday’s raise some imponderable questions. Is the state’s method for building schools hopelessly out of date?

2 weeks ago | idahoednews.org | Kevin Richert

Idaho’s universities are looking at exemptions to a new anti-DEI law, passed just last month. The exemptions would cover summer courses that are already underway — and overlap with the law’s July 1 effective date. And the universities probably won’t seek a lot of leeway. “It’s not a deluge,” Idaho State University Provost Adam Bradford said in an interview Tuesday.

2 weeks ago | idahoednews.org | Kevin Richert

Lewis-Clark State College held its first graduation ceremony last week at the Idaho State Correctional Center south of Boise. Two graduates, Dwayne King and Erin Anthony Murphy, received associate degrees in liberal arts. They were honored at a Wednesday ceremony attended by about 80 people, including family members, college administrators, faculty and staff and other students in LC State’s prison education program.

3 weeks ago | idahoednews.org | Kevin Richert

A new anti-DEI law doesn’t go into effect until July, but in June, Idaho colleges and universities can start asking for leeway. The State Board of Education will consider exemptions for required summer classes that might otherwise violate the new law. The exemption plan is spelled out in a 10-page memo, which went out Friday to Idaho’s public colleges and universities. Timing was the driving force behind the memo.