8 stories shaping education and resources in Belleville schools
Belleville schools are facing changes and challenges that shape education for students and staff. Federal funding remains vital, with districts using Title I and IDEA funds for staffing, technology, and resources to support students with disabilities and those from low-income families. Safety upgrades, like the Centegix Safety Platform and wearable panic buttons for teachers, are being introduced to help respond quickly to emergencies.
Leadership changes are also underway in Districts 201 and 118. Meanwhile, rising property values are enabling districts to lower tax rates while planning facility improvements and maintaining essential services.
The same system was used at Apalachee High School in Georgia, which law enforcement officials said likely saved lives. | Published October 23, 2024 | Read Full Story by Kelly Smits
'I think in the 18 years I've been up here, that is the largest projected increase in our equalized assessed valuation,' one superintendent said. | Published November 21, 2024 | Read Full Story by Kelly Smits
'I have nightmares about what's going to happen to my children,' an East St. Louis District 189 teacher said. | Published February 20, 2025 | Read Full Story by Madison Lammert
The move comes less than a month after hiring a new superintendent in place of departing Brian Mentzer. | Published March 18, 2025 | Read Full Story by Madison Lammert
And is that money and the programs it supports at risk with the Trump administration's plan to disband the U.S. Department of Education? | Published April 14, 2025 | Read Full Story by Madison Lammert
'She's always just had an amazing heart for kids,' Principal Monet Webster said of the new assistant principal. | Published April 17, 2025 | Read Full Story by Madison Lammert
The summary above was drafted with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists in our News division. All stories listed were reported, written and edited by McClatchy journalists.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
11 minutes ago
- New York Post
Arsonist attacks ICE office in Washington state, hurls rock through window
Federal immigration agents escaped an arson attack at their office in Yakima, Washington, over the weekend, The Post has learned. An unidentified crazed arsonist first threw a rock through a window of the building — which is listed as a field office on ICE's website — before setting a fire in the back of the property on Saturday, Assistant Homeland Security Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told The Post. Photos taken during the torching show flames charring the grass behind a chain link fence surrounding the building while a thick cloud of black smoke billowed above. Advertisement There were no injuries reported. 3 A cloud of black smoke billowed from the burning building. Department of Homeland Security 3 The fire was started behind a chain link fence that surrounded the building. Department of Homeland Security Advertisement While McLaughlin said it's not confirmed that immigration agents were the target of the firebombing, the building has public signage identifying it as a Department of Homeland Security office. The complex, 140 miles southeast of Seattle, is also home to a Washington state Department of Social and Health Services office. Assaults on ICE personnel are up 830% as the Trump administration pushes a mass deportation campaign, according to McLaughlin. She railed against sanctuary leaders for demonizing immigration agents. Advertisement 'Make no mistake, Democrat politicians like Hakeem Jeffries, Mayor Wu of Boston, Tim Walz, and Mayor Bass of Los Angeles are contributing to the surge in assaults of our ICE officers through their repeated vilification and demonization of ICE,' said McLaughlin. 'From comparisons to the modern-day Nazi gestapo to glorifying rioters, the violent rhetoric of these sanctuary politicians is beyond the pale,' she said. 3 Windows were found shattered following the attack. Department of Homeland Security She added: 'Secretary [Kristi] Noem has been clear: Anyone who seeks to harm law enforcement officers will be found and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.' Advertisement No officers were injured as a result of the attack and local cops are investigating as an act of arson. In another recent anti-ICE attack, rioters took to the streets of Los Angeles in June, hurling concrete blocks at federal officers working at the detention center downtown and setting Waymo autonomous cars ablaze. The agitators began the rampage in response to a deportation raid at a local Home Depot. President Trump later deployed 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines to the City of Angels to control the violence.
New York Post
40 minutes ago
- New York Post
Young adults are less likely to follow politics or say voting is important, new AP poll shows
WASHINGTON (AP) — Mairekk Griffiths, a 26-year-old cook in a Denver suburb, doesn't think he'll ever pay a lot of attention to U.S. politics unless radical change happens. 'If another party was likely to win, I'd be interested in that,' said Griffiths, who voted for Democrat Kamala Harris in last year's presidential race but, like many his age, does not see voting as that valuable. 'I can't say either way that voting matters,' Griffiths said. 'It's just picking the least bad option. That's what I remember my whole life — both sides are bad, but this side is less bad.' 3 College students at a voter registration table. AP Young people such as Griffiths are less engaged with U.S. politics than older Americans and less likely to say voting is important, according to a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. Young people — even those who follow politics closely — are less likely to say issues such as the economy, government spending and health care are 'extremely important' to them than comparable older adults. The findings point to a broad sense of disillusionment among younger people about the country's political system — even if, like Griffiths, they still end up casting a ballot. Alberto Medina, who leads the Center for Information and Research on Civic Engagement at Tufts University, which studies youth and politics, noted that turnout among young people hit record levels in the 2020 election and was high last year. 'There's a sense that democracy isn't working for young people. There's a lack of belief that democracy is even able to improve their lives,' Medina said. 'At the same time, we have been living in an era of high youth voting.' Disengagement from political parties and politics In another sign of their general estrangement from politics, the poll shows young adults are more likely to reject political party labels. About one-third of adults under age 30 identify as political independents who don't lean toward either major political party, compared with 17% of Americans age 60 or older. The poll also finds young people are far less likely to follow politics closely than older adults are. 3 In another sign of their general estrangement from politics, the poll shows young adults are more likely to reject political party labels. AP Only about 2 in 10 of adults under age 30 say they follow U.S. politics 'extremely' or 'very' closely, compared with about one-third of Americans overall. That's even higher among adults age 60 or older — 45% of this group says they follow U.S. politics at least very closely. Disengagement is higher among teenagers, with an AP-NORC poll from May finding 44% of teens ages 13 to 17 report following U.S. politics 'not very closely' or 'not closely at all.' Meanwhile, about two-thirds of adults under age 30 say it's 'extremely' or 'very' important to vote, compared with almost 9 in 10 over age 45 who say it's at least 'very' important to vote. Some of these habits could shift as people grow older. Younger people traditionally are less likely to vote than older people, and voter participation tends to go up with age. It's possible that engagement with politics could follow a similar pattern. Brittany Diaz, 28, follows politics closely for an unusual reason: Her oldest son, who is 7, is obsessed with the news and watches it every night. Diaz, a Republican who lives in an Albuquerque, New Mexico, suburb, acknowledges that she's unusual among her age group because she decided to start paying attention to politics when she had her first child at 20. 'Now that I have kids, I'm like, 'I need to care,'' she said. In closely following politics, Diaz is different from many other women under 30. Women in her age group are less likely than young men to say they follow U.S. politics, the poll finds. About one-quarter of men under 30 say they follow politics 'extremely' or 'very' closely, compared with 16% of women in the same age group. And about 4 in 10 young women say they follow U.S. politics 'not very closely' or 'not closely at all' compared with about a quarter of young men. Lower investment in key issues On a few issues, such as the economy and health care, the divide between the youngest and oldest Americans isn't large. About 8 in 10 Americans under age 30 say the economy is 'extremely' or 'very' important to them personally, compared with about 9 in 10 Americans age 60 or older. 3 In closely following politics, Diaz is different from many other women under 30. AP But older adults are much likelier to say topics that have taken center stage during the first six months of President Donald Trump's second term — including immigration and government spending — are 'extremely' or 'very' important to them personally compared with Americans under 30. That's even true for topics such as the situation in the Middle East, which has become a rallying cry for young activists since the Israel-Hamas war broke out. Only about 4 in 10 adults under 30 say this is highly important to them personally, compared with about 6 in 10 Americans age 60 or older. For some, that lack of interest could be related to a sense that the political system doesn't respond to their needs. At 18, Blake Marlar is just starting to pay attention to politics. As Trump's tax cut and spending bill moved through the Republican-controlled Congress, the aspiring geology major at the University of Nebraska emailed his state's two senators, both Republicans, objecting to its Medicaid cuts and increases in immigration enforcement funding. 'They didn't seem to take me seriously,' Marlar said. 'While I recognize they have to represent the whole state and the whole state doesn't agree with me, it could have been a different experience.' But he's resolved not to give up on politics: 'In the future,' he said, 'I'll do my part and vote.'
Buzz Feed
40 minutes ago
- Buzz Feed
A Democratic Texas Representative Just Absolutely Destroyed Governor Greg Abbott
As we've been talking about for days now, Texas is trying to eliminate five Democratic House seats. The only problem is that Texas Democrats have fled to Illinois to block a vote. And now, Texas Governor Greg Abbott is threatening to file felony charges and remove them from office. He's also issued warrants for their arrests. One of those Texas Democrats, Representative Jolanda Jones from Houston, has responded to these threats in a now viral clip. "I'm a lawyer. Part of my practice is criminal defense work. There is no felony in the Texas penal code for what he says. Respectfully, he's making up some shit, okay?" "He's trying to get soundbites, and he has no legal mechanism. And if he did, subpoenas from Texas don't work in New York. Subpoenas from Texas don't work in Chicago. So, let me be clear, he's putting up smoke and mirrors." Rep. Jones doubled down in the replies, saying, "He's absolutely making up fake laws. I ain't scared and neither are my Democratic colleagues! #ProudQuorumBreaker." People are loving the energy. "Need to see this kind of smoke from every Democrat in elected office from the local to federal level," one person said. "More of this please. We cannot tolerate this republican sh*t," another person commented. And we have this person saying the obvious: "She cooked his ass!"
