Amid a surge in book bans nationwide, the librarian Amanda Jones was targeted by vicious threats. So she decided to fight back.

Two years into the popular $4.4 billion-a-year Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, educators in every school district are finding their priorities reordered, sometimes in ways they hadn’t expected.

Dallas schools started classes with more students than expected this year, which leaders say is the first time in nearly a decade that enrollment has trended up.

Oklahoma’s schools superintendent announced in June that every teacher in the state would be expected to teach the Bible. As schools open, there’s little evidence they have changed their curriculums or teaching.

Every three weeks, Irving ISD send parents a progress report. But it’s no longer just an alert about grades. Also included is how many days their children missed classes.

When Vice President Kamala Harris picked Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota as her running mate this month, the issue of “universal school meals” entered the spotlight because last year, Mr. Walz signed a bill that allowed public schools to provide all students with free breakfast and lunch.

Utah lawmakers set aside $72 million last year to help schools fund critical security upgrades, such as bulletproof window film, security cameras and emergency alert systems.

The reasons have been building for years, but the final straw for Mesa Public Schools officials came last November with a small, low-turnout election that became mired in misinformation and menace.