Every once in a while, I’ll come across a news story in the credentialed media that tells an entire story in just one sentence, but then moves on to a side issue.
This Philly 10th grader has had no English teacher all year. Now, the district wants her to take a high-stakes test.
Almost 300 teaching positions are vacant across the School District of Philadelphia. One student went to the school board to share how a vacancy is hurting her and her classmates.
When I don’t have a good photo for an article, perhaps just a picture of my morning coffee being made will suffice!
We noted, just three weeks ago, how Harvard University, the oldest and most prestigious institution of higher learning in our great nation, rather than at least negotiate with the Trump Administration over policies to end blatant anti-Semitism on campus, was choosing to double-down on discrimination instead.
Harvard is, of course, a private school, so the government cannot order it to comply, but as a private institution the government is not obligated to fund it, either. But that doesn’t mean that the university doesn’t have to address its problems. From The Atlantic:
Harvard Begins to Confront Its Anti-Semitism Problem
Our nation’s public school teachers are supposed to be intelligent and reasonably well educated. They are required to have baccalaureate degrees, and the vast majority of systems require teachers to obtain their master’s within about five years or so. Oddly enough, when I went to high school, back in the days of inkwells and quill pens, we had exactly one teacher who had his masters, yet I’d argue that we emerged from high school far better educated than what our public schools are producing today.
So, the obvious question is: why are so many of them so boneheadedly stupid?
Conestoga High School teacher facing 63 charges for allegedly having sex with student
Michelle Mercogliano, a special education teacher at Conestoga High School, was charged by the Tredyffrin Township police.
Harvard University, our nation’s oldest and most prestigious institution of higher learning — though any college which accepted David Hogg and granted him a degree has to be suspect when the term “higher learning” is applied to it — is suing the Trump Administration over federal spending cuts to the school due to Hahvahd’s refusal to go along with measures to protect Jewish students and personnel from the anti-Semitism which has been running rampant through our (supposedly) top universities.
So, naturally the Usual Suspects decide to demonstrate their anti-Semitism! Continue reading
Also see: William Teach, “Trump Admin Cancels $2.3 Billion In Funding To Harvard“
From The Wall Street Journal:
Harvard Says It Will Fight Trump Administration Demands
Thanks to former city councilwoman Helen Gym Flaherty’s failed campaign for the 2023 Democratic nomination for Mayor of the City of Brotherly Love, this site has reported several times on the Edward T Steel Elementary and Middle Schools, noting something that The Philadelphia Inquirer never bothered to tell readers as Mrs Flaherty, who campaigned on her educational record, used that school as a backdrop for her campaign, proudly telling the voters that she helped keep the school from “going charter.” What didn’t the newspaper tell its readership? That the school had an absolutely abysmal academic performance. That school is ranked 1193th out of 1591 in Pennsylvania Elementary Schools and ranked 656th out of 875 in Pennsylvania Middle Schools. Schools are ranked on their performance on state-required tests, graduation, and how well they prepare their students for high school. In the current rankings, 8% of students tested grade-level proficient in reading, and 2% of students who scored at or above the proficient level for math. Continue reading
Elena Bardin and her husband, via the New York Post.
This story was in the Lexington Herald-Leader, but, adhering to the McClatchy mugshot policy, the Kentucky newspaper didn’t print the mugshot of the accused. Fortunately, the New York Post did.
Police: Kentucky teacher had sexual contact with minor, asked him to kill her husband
By Bill Estep | Updated April 4, 2025 | 11:31 AM EDT Continue reading
Christyan Cabrera, mugshot via WCNC.
As soon as I heard about this, checked all of the available articles, and, as usual, they all left out one pertinent bit of information.
Former Rowan County teacher appears in court after being arrested for alleged sexual relationship with a student
Christyan Cabera, 25, was a world history teacher at West Rowan High School. The district said he is no longer employed at the school.
by Nathaniel Puente and Jesse Pierre | Thursday, March 27, 2025 | 6:31 PM EDT | Updated: Friday, March 28, 2025 | 7:20 PM EDT
ROWAN COUNTY, N.C. — A former West Rowan High School teacher was arrested for multiple sexual assault charges involving a 15-year-old student, authorities reported. Continue reading
The First Street Journal has mentioned the Edward T Steel Elementary and Middle School several times previously, primarily in connection with former Philadelphia city councilwoman Helen Gym Flaherty and her use of the school as a backdrop in her campaign for the Democratic mayoral nomination in the spring of 2023, a nomination she very fortunately lost. Mrs Flaherty proudly proclaimed that it was thanks to her efforts that the school didn’t “go charter”. We noted, at the time, that the school at the time ranked 1,205th out of 1,607 Pennsylvania elementary schools, in which 8% of students tested grade-level proficient in reading, and a whopping 1% of students scored at or above the proficient level for math.
Well, that was then, and this is now, 1¾ years later, and the ranks have been updated Continue reading