Today, The Council of State Governments joined with nine organizations representing state and local governments to urge Congress to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, or ESEA. The current version of ESEA, known as the No Child Left Behind Act, expired almost five years ago, and broad reforms are long overdue.

Teachers will have to meet additional standards before being granted tenure under a bill signed into law by Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal. That is one provision of a sweeping education reform package that opens the door to charter schools in areas with consistently ineffective schools.  Jindal signed a trio of education reform measures on April 18: House Bills 974 and 976 and Senate Bill 581.

In the world of higher education, invisible borders can become insurmountable financial barriers. Let’s say a student living in Columbus, MS is considering several four-year universities. One in-state option would be the University of Mississippi, roughly two hours away or Mississippi State University, more than three hours’ drive from home. Or, just an hour away in Tuscaloosa, AL, he or she could enroll in the University of Alabama. Because of a law enacted in Alabama, out-of-state residents, like someone living just across the border in Columbus, MS., could receive the same in-state tuition rate as an Alabama resident.

The same rules have not applied, however, to an Alabama resident wanting to enroll at a public university in Mississippi. For example, if someone from Tuscaloosa wanted to enroll at the Mississippi University for Women (which, despite its name, is co-educational) in Columbus, she or he would have to pay the out-of-state tuition rate. That’s more than twice Mississippi's in-state tuition rate.

House Bill 1095, signed into law by Gov. Phil Bryant, will level the playing field, allowing public universities in Mississippi to charge out-of-state students the same tuition paid by Mississippi residents. With full time tuition costing less than $5,500 per year, Mississippi can tout one of the least expensive higher education systems in the nation.

The Council of State Governments' National Center for Interstate Compacts, in conjuction with the Presidents' Forum, and with support from the Lumina Foundation are working to produce a national (but not federal) compact to help states better work together to offer online courses across state lines.  This compact, in its final form, is intended to help students get access to the skills they need to compete in the global economy.  The compact will also help institutions save money by removing redundant regulatory burdens involved with offering courses on a multistate basis and help states develop a more educated and productive workforce.

To some extent, access to postsecondary education and the ability to pay have always been inseparably linked.  We often call education the great equalizer, yet individuals from more affluent families have always been better able to afford tuition to attend more elite private colleges or to earn a degree from a public university without relying on financial aid and student loans as those from middle-class and low-income households.

Now, one community college in California is about to attach some new financial strings to the cost of higher education. One expert says it might be a first. Santa Monica College, with 34,000 students, will implement a new two-tier approach to pricing its classes. Beginning this summer, Santa Monica College will begin increasing tuition for about 200 courses it offers. Students needing to enroll in these classes will have to pay $180 per credit hour, compared to just $36 per credit hour for most classes offered at the college. 

A teacher's aide in Michigan claims that she was fired because she would not give the school access to her Facebook account.  This latest incident is part of a string of incidents involving employers requesting access to their employees' or potential employees' accounts.  The issue has become increasingly high profile with Facebook announcing their disapproval of the process and state legislators moving to address constituents' alarm.  One such bill has passed the Illinois House.

Enrollment in online courses has increased substantially over the past decade.  Online, educational offerings are flexible and allow students to develop the skills they need to be competitive in the job market even if they cannot regularly attend class and/or are located remotely.  The current, complex regulatory environment in the states inhibits many institutions from delivering these courses across state lines.  CSG’s National Center for Interstate Compacts, in conjunction with the Presidents’ Forum and with support from the Lumina Foundation, is developing an interstate compact to allow greater reciprocity in online education among the states.

For the first time in more than 15 years, school meal standards have been changed with a focus on improving child nutrition and reducing childhood obesity.  With the potential to impact more than 30 million students daily, these new guidelines will introduce more fruit and vegetables and reduce fat intake on lunch trays.  State policies and local practices can have a positive impact on the devastating rates of obesse and overweight children as students have an opportunity for more healthful eating.