Latest news with #Richey
Yahoo
26-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ed Committee Advances Schwinn, Richey Nominations to Full Senate
Penny Schwinn, Tennessee's former education chief, is one step closer to joining the U.S. Department of Education as deputy secretary after the Senate education committee on Thursday advanced her nomination to the full chamber. The committee also voted to move the nomination of Kimberly Richey to lead the Office for Civil Rights. A conservative civil rights lawyer, Richey served in the second Bush and first Trump administrations. Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter The votes for both nominees fell along strict party lines, 12 to 11. 'These nominees are crucial to enacting President Trump's pro-America agenda,' Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, who chairs the committee, said in a statement. With the Senate focused on passing President Donald Trump's tax bill and roughly 200 nominations awaiting a vote, it could be several weeks before both are confirmed. Schwinn would oversee K-12 policy. During a June confirmation hearing, she expressed support for a more hands-off approach from Washington while also strengthening reading instruction based on science. A week after the hearing, she participated in an event at a Nashville charter school with Education Secretary Linda McMahon to promote one of the Trump administration's top priorities — school choice. The visit came as the department has increased funding for charters while proposing over $4 billion in cuts to other programs. If confirmed, Richey would take over a civil rights office with a much leaner staff following mass firings in March and recommendations from McMahon for further reductions. She vowed to continue the department's actions against schools that permit antisemitic demonstrations and allow trans students to use facilities or compete in sports consistent with their gender identity. Those views have drawn opposition to her nomination from civil rights groups that advocate for LGBTQ students. In advance of Thursday's vote, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, along with 45 other organizations, sent senators a letter saying Richey 'has not demonstrated a willingness and ability to enforce civil rights law and protect all students in our country from discrimination.' Some hope she'll prioritize disability complaints. As acting assistant secretary for civil rights during the pandemic, she launched investigations into districts that failed to provide students with disabilities services written into their individual education programs. 'She was responsive during the first Trump term and pushed through the COVID complaints,' said Callie Oettinger, a special education advocate in Fairfax County, Virginia. Related While Richey's track record fits squarely within the Trump administration's ultra-conservative agenda, many education insiders view Schwinn as a moderate who largely avoided culture war clashes while holding schools and students accountable for progress in reading. Unlike McMahon, Schwinn has always worked in education. The California native founded a charter school in Sacramento in 2011 and held top positions in Delaware and Texas before Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee appointed her commissioner in 2019. Related 'Penny has the strongest literacy chops of any state supe I've known, and she has Linda McMahon's ear and trust,' said Robert Pondiscio, a senior fellow at the conservative American Enterprise Institute. But controversy tends to follow her. Under her leadership in Tennessee, staff turnover was higher than normal. Conservatives who signed letters calling on senators not to confirm Schwinn argue that she holds progressive views on educational equity and proposed an unpopular effort to conduct 'well-being' checks on students during the pandemic. Others question her judgement, pointing to incidents in which Texas and Tennessee directed no-bid contracts to companies where Schwinn had personal connections, including her husband, Paul Schwinn. Related But those complaints didn't sway Republicans on the committee, and Pondiscio dismissed the backlash to Schwinn as 'B.S.' In a February commentary, he suggested that her 'conservative critics want a culture warrior, not an administrator focused on competent governance and delivering results.' He's among those who hope her confirmation brings more attention to core education issues.'If you see the secretary spending her time on curriculum and instruction,' he said, 'that will be Penny's thumbprint.'
Business Insider
07-06-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
The dos and don'ts of networking
You might be networking all wrong — and that could be more detrimental than ever before. In the age of AI-generated applications and a tough market for many desk workers, making connections can be key to landing a job. Career coaches and etiquette experts told Business Insider about some of their dos and don'ts of networking. Be specific Too often, people blast out generic LinkedIn messages that will never stand out. "You can't go into it cold," Jasmine Escalera, a career expert with MyPerfectResume, told BI, referring to networking. "That doesn't mean that you can't go into it making a cold connection, but you can't go into it just without a connection." That connection doesn't always have to be strictly professional, Escalara said. You could, for example, find a common hobby. When it comes to online outreach, send a tailored message instead of a boilerplate one. Madeline Mann, a career coach and CEO of Self Made Millennial, offered similar advice. "If you're going to ask for 15 minutes of their time, be sure to show that you spent 15 minutes of yours," she said. Generally, though, social media alone isn't enough. Brandon Dock, managing director of the recruitment firm TGC Search, said that talking to people in person is always best. "I have always been a fan of using social media and other online tools as part of your arsenal, but it is a grave mistake to think of it as the entirety of your networking strategy," Dorie Clark, a communication coach who teaches at Columbia Business School and wrote the book "The Long Game," told BI. Keep it professional — even online While it's great to bond over hobbies, it's crucial to maintain professionalism. At in-person events, that often means limiting alcohol to one glass, Escalera said. On social media platforms you're using for outreach, she said to maintain a "professional tone" and "tight brand." Gen Zers can sometimes struggle to balance between professionalism and friendliness, Escalera and Lisa Richey, the founder of the American Academy of Etiquette, said. "The formality of a handshake — you can never go wrong," Richey said. "It shows leadership. It shows confidence." Dress for the industry Now that in-person schmoozing is back, dressing the part is crucial, but each industry requires a slightly different look. "Dress the way someone would in that office or in the industry, with a step up," Mann said. She said that no matter your gender, a button-down top is a safe bet. Escalera advised sticking to one statement piece. It's important to tailor your clothing to the industry. Mann said, for example, that a suit might look odd at a tech event, but it's perfectly normal among lawyers. The same rules apply online, Richey said. "You have to be aware of what's going on behind you, your hair," she told BI. "You have to be groomed. You have to dress the part, even if it's an online meeting." Don't wait until you need a job People often only start networking when they need a job, but experts told BI that can be a mistake. "Whenever there's an economic down cycle and people start to get worried about their jobs, that is inevitably when networking accelerates," Clark said. To avoid becoming just one among many asking for a favor, you should maintain relationships even when you're secure in a job. Texting with closer connections is an underrated tool, according to Clark, who advised reaching out when you're not looking for anything in return. Keeping up relationships doesn't follow a cookie-cutter template. Mann said that connections can come from the unlikeliest of places, so it's important to chat about your interests frequently. "Never underestimate who knows the person you want to know," she said — maybe your barber's cousin works at your dream company. Don't make it all about you Experts said that too many people only highlight their experiences. "Don't focus on knowing people. Focus on noticing people," Mann said. Both she and Escalera suggest coming up with specific questions for people you find exciting. "Having a good elevator pitch is really awesome, but what we don't want to do is make it all about you," Escalera said, which can make the process feel "robotic." Don't ask for too much Networking is necessarily transactional, but that transaction can be a delicate dance, the experts said. "You have to be cognizant of power relations and power differentials in networking," Clark said, noting you can ask a friend for more favors than a distant connection. "You need to be very targeted and strategic about your ask, and you can probably only get away with asking them one thing," she added. Mann thinks about it as flipping the switch from asking to giving — instead of just trying to extract information, consider what you can offer the other person, even if it's something as simple as tips for a coming vacation. No matter the conversation, gratitude is key. "Do not forget to follow up with them the next day or within a few hours, thanking them," Mann said. "And do not forget within the coming weeks to say how you utilize their insights."
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ed Dept. Nominee Vows Aggressive Civil Rights Enforcement Despite Mass Layoffs
Kimberly Richey, President Trump's pick to lead the Education Department's Office for Civil Rights, told a Senate committee Thursday that she would fight to make sure the office had the resources it needed — even as the administration has moved to gut the agency. The mass layoffs, part of Trump's plan to eliminate the Education Department, fell particularly hard on the civil rights office, which lost more than half its staff and currently has a backlog of more than 25,000 discrimination cases. Despite that, Ritchey said she is 'always going to advocate' for the office to have 'the resources and tools it needs to do its job,' while at the same time calling out only those types of cases prioritized by the administration. Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter 'If I am confirmed, the department will not stand idly by while Jewish students are attacked and discriminated against,' Richey said. 'We will stop forcing schools to let boys and men into female sports and spaces,' she continued, referring to inclusive school policies that allow transgender students to participate in school athletics and use restroom facilities that align with their gender identities. Richey led the civil rights office on an interim basis during Trump's first term amid COVID's widespread disruptions and she also worked for the office under President George. W. Bush. She is a prominent force in Republican-led state efforts to deny civil rights protections to transgender youth, promote school choice and parental rights, crack down on curriculum that focuses on racism, and weed out diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. During Thursday's hearing, lawmakers put particular emphasis on Richey's record involving LGBTQ+ youth, with Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin pointing to a recent climate survey where more than half of these students reported experiencing discrimination at school. 'These kids are in dire need of protection against discrimination,' Baldwin said. 'If confirmed, I hope you will act in the best interest of all children.' Meanwhile, Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville, a retired college football coach from Alabama, described permitting transgender students to compete in school sports as 'a huge problem' and dangerous. Richey, a former basketball player, said she would have had to sit out had transgender students been allowed to participate in school sports when she was a student. 'I could not have competed against biological men, it's just not something that I would have been able to do,' she said. Related The Trump administration maintains that policies allowing transgender students to participate in school sports 'actually violated Title IX because they deprive women and girls of the opportunity to participate in athletics.' 'I'm very proud of the way the secretary and the president have prioritized this issue, and I'm certainly committed to vigorously enforcing it and continuing to pursue these cases,' she said. Richey's interim stint leading the civil rights office included the Trump administration's response to a 2020 U.S. Supreme Court decision extending anti-discrimination protections to LGBTQ+ employees in the workplace. The administration said the ruling did not apply to schools under Title IX, the federal law prohibiting gender discrimination. The Biden administration then based much of its rewrite of Title IX regulations around that same Supreme Court decision, instructing schools to allow transgender students to use restrooms and pronouns that match their gender identity. The rule, no longer in effect, sparked lawsuits from red states and hard-right parent groups like Moms for Liberty. In 2021, near the end of her interim leadership, Richey launched investigations into allegations that the state of Indiana and three districts — Fairfax County, Virginia, Los Angeles and Seattle — failed to provide special education services during the COVID school shutdowns. Both the Los Angeles and Fairfax probes resulted in agreements to make up for missed services. Richey said her commitment to protecting the civil rights of children with disabilities reflects her own learning experiences. She was diagnosed with a brian tumor nearly 20 years ago, she explained, and relied on federal protections to access educational programs. 'I know firsthand the importance and the significance of our civil rights laws and there's no greater work than leading an agency responsible for ensuring that students get the services they need,' Richey said. Whether the Education Department will be capable of fulfilling that mission is now being fought over in court. On Tuesday, an appeals court rejected the administration's request to lift an injunction stopping it from further dismantling the department and ordering it to reinstate the thousands of Education Department employees who lost their jobs. The administration has said it will appeal to the Supreme Court. Earlier this year, the nonprofit National Center for Youth Law filed a separate lawsuit against the Education Department, alleging specific staff reductions at the civil rights office rendered it incapable of carrying out civil rights enforcement efforts mandated by Congress, with particular harm to students of color, female students and LGBTQ+ youth. Johnathan Smith, the center's chief of staff and general counsel, dismissed any assertion that the administration was interested in protecting students' civil rights. Related 'Nothing about this confirmation changes the fact that this administration has consistently gutted OCR by laying off staff, by closing regional offices and by sending the message that discrimination just simply isn't a priority for them and their work,' he told The 74 this week. Richey's appointment has largely been embraced by conservative groups like the American Enterprise Institute. In a blog post, the think tank lauded the nominee for her role in 'ambitious reform efforts' in Virginia and Florida, and urged her to end the 'Biden-Harris team's unconscionable 'catch and release' approach to antisemitism, where some of the worst offenses in decades were treated with indifference.' On Wednesday, the Office for Civil Rights notified the accreditor for Columbia University that the institution violated federal anti-discrimination laws and had 'acted with deliberate indifference towards the harassment of Jewish students.' Also on Wednesday, the Trump administration sought to restrict international students from entering the country to attend Harvard University as the administration cracks down on the institution over its response to protests during the 2023-24 school year over the Israel-Gaza war. Richey said Thursday that antisemitism has intensified at U.S. institutions in recent years and the civil rights office will continue to prioritize efforts to combat it. Meanwhile, Democrats accused the Trump administration during Thursday's hearing of opening a slew of civil rights cases — including allegations of antisemitism on university campuses — primarily motivated by politics. The administration has also sought to revoke the visas and deport international students for their participation in protests, their social media postings and expressing opinions in their college newspapers. Related Sen. Ed Markey, a Democrat from Massachusetts, asked Richey if she would object to actions that 'do not afford due process' to students and charged the Trump administration with 'treating American freedom and dissent as the enemy.' 'Do you endorse ripping funding from researchers and students, stealing educational opportunity from international students, abducting students from campuses for asserting their First Amendment rights and continuing to threaten colleges and universities that refuse to comply with lawless demands?' Markey asked. In response, Richey stated simply she would 'commit to following OCR's regulations and OCR's case processing manual.' The Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions is expected to vote in the coming weeks on Richey's nomination before it moves to the full Senate for confirmation.
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Second person charged with shooting up Tupelo house
TUPELO – A second man has been arrested and is facing multiple felony weapons charges after allegedly shooting up a house with a pistol converted to fully automatic with a Glock switch. Police say the case started Thursday April 17 when officers responded to North Church Street on a call that a house had been struck by gunfire. The occupants of the house told police that multiple bullets struck and entered their home. The gunfire had also damaged a car at the address. Two days later, a vehicle on North Church Street was found to have been struck by gunfire from the previous incident. During the course of investigation, multiple suspects were identified, and warrants were issued for their arrest. The first suspect was arrested after police stopped a car on Holmes Street due to a traffic violation on Friday, May 16. While conducting a search of Cameron M. Harris, 18, of Olive Branch, a firearm equipped with a machine gun conversion device (known as a Glock switch) was discovered. During a traffic stop on Lawndale Drive three days later, Zykius O. Richey, 19, of South Green Street, Tupelo, was arrested after multiple firearms, including one with a Glock switch, were located in the car. Richey was charged with two counts of attempted aggravated assault, one count of shooting into a dwelling, two counts of shooting into a motor vehicle, and one count of possession of machine gun conversion device. During his initial appearance, Tupelo Municipal Court Judge Jay Weir ordered Richey to be held without bond.
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Yahoo
Real ID needed for domestic flights at Shreveport Airport
SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS) – As summer travel season heats up, the Shreveport Regional Airport will require a REAL ID beginning Wednesday, May 7. REAL ID enforcement starts this week: 5 things to know According to Homeland Security, on May 7, 2025, U.S. travelers must be REAL ID compliant to board domestic flights and access certain federal facilities. The new identification card will have a gold star on it for travelers to get TSA checkpoint approval. The airport director says to have your passport or military ID handy as an alternative, or it may take longer to get to your flight on time. A local passenger shares why he is glad he was prepared. Elton Richey shared that he was carrying both his driver's license and passport on a recent trip. He could not recall which exact airport would not scan his passport immediately. Don't have a REAL ID yet? That could cause you travel headaches after May 7 Airport authorities asked if he had any additional forms of ID. 'My REAL ID, and it went real quick,' said Richey, traveling into Shreveport Regional Airport. Real IDs will be mandatory for all flights starting May 7th. Find out if you're REAL ID ready with the Homeland Security interactive tool Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
