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How Struggling Schools Cope With Extreme Teacher Shortages

Lori Higgins | Detroit Free Press

On any given day in the Detroit Public Schools Community District, about 100 classes are operating without a permanent teacher—the result of a dire teacher-vacancy problem that is taxing schools, teachers, students, and principals.

As of April 27, the district had 263 teacher vacancies. Of that number, 161 were being filled by long-term substitute teachers, including several dozen that are part of a program that puts them on a quicker track toward full certification.

Schools are employing a variety of methods to cope day-to-day. Some teachers are taking on bigger loads. Some are giving up their preparation time. Some principals are covering classes. And in some cases, instructional specialists and curriculum leaders are filling in.

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Why a Philosopher-Founded School May Eliminate its Philosophy Program

Lindsay Ellis | Houston Chronicle

The University of St. Thomas—named after philosopher and theologian St. Thomas Aquinas—may eliminate philosophy programs, a signal of financial strain and a broader move toward professional programs at the private Montrose, [Texas], school.

Administrators are reviewing student interest, department offerings, and existing costs this month in advance of a June board meeting, sparking outcry among alumni and faculty. Supporters have raised more than $11,500 for a faculty legal-defense fund amid fear that the review will spur large-scale cuts.

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A Final Graduation for Segregated Schools

Bracey Harris | The Clarion-Ledger

All of Cleveland, [Mississippi], is letting something go in one form or another this day.

Within two hours, degrees for Cleveland High School will be conferred by the state of Mississippi for the last time. Before the day ends, the same will happen for the Wildcats’ cross-town rivals, East Side High.

The day of the ceremonies comes a year and week to the day that the federal judge Debra Brown ordered the Cleveland School District to consolidate its two high schools and middle schools, writing in her opinion that “the delay in desegregation has deprived generations of students of the constitutionally guaranteed right to an integrated education.”

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The Student I Couldn’t Stand

Sarah Carr, Mallory Falk | The Atlantic

Every teacher has a student they never forgot: the disruptive student who worked their last nerve. The shy student they struggled to reach. The heartbreaking student who endured too much too soon.

This week The Atlantic, in collaboration with Columbia Journalism School’s Teacher Project, debuts a new audio series dedicated to telling the stories of these unforgettable students. Most episodes feature the voice of a teacher reflecting on their most memorable student, and the voice of the student describing the same set of milestones—from when the pair first met to their most frustrating, or inspiring, interaction.