Briana Foster Newton, who was principal at the time of the Jan. 6 shooting, is no longer serving in that role, but is still employed by the Newport News Public Schools.
The shooting sent shock waves through Newport News, a city of about 185,000 that is known for its shipbuilding industry. It has also raised questions about school security and how a child so young could gain access to a gun and shoot his teacher.
The offer and reversal comes amid national efforts to restrict or ban certain books and topics in many schools. Alabama’s state board of education banned the teaching of divisive topics in 2021, which included teaching one race was superior to another, but has not banned any book titles
Park Ridge-Niles School District 64 Superintendent Eric Olson cited "irreconcilable differences" with the board as the main reason for his decision to resign from the Chicago-area system when the school year ends in June.
Between 2016 and 2020, there has been a total of 173 mass shootings in the U.S. Among those, 13 have occurred within educational institutions, making this sector the third-most targeted.
Multiage classrooms were standard in American schools until the mid-19th century, when they began to be replaced by a curriculum-centered, grade-level system. Education reformers later revived the idea of multiage education, particularly in the 1990s, arguing that it's a more child-centered and developmentally appropriate approach.
About an hour before the shooting, teacher Abby Zwerner texted a loved one to say she was worried because the boy had a gun but administrators had not stepped in to help, NBC News reported.
It's a 24/7 job that eats into family time, cuts short vacations and requires a thick skin and plenty of grace. Just ask the wife of Superintendent David Hoffert.
Between the end of pandemic-related school aid and the sharp increase in food costs, schools and families are getting squeezed in yet another area: school meals.
