Understanding the Financial Aid Letter

With increases in federal student loan limits and hundreds of thousands in grant money, the decision to accept a financial aid award package should be easier than ever. The availability of free and cheap money, through scholarships, grants and low-cost federal loans, is great news for students as they look to cover the cost of college next year, but first it is important to know what you are getting into.   Click Here to Continue

Student Cultivates Peace Around The World

An international art contest celebrating children's visions of peace capped off its 20th year by recognizing a teenager from Malaysia as the grand prize winner. The grand prize winner of this year's Lions International Peace Poster Contest is Ming Yang Soong, a 13-year-old boy from Bidor, Malaysia.   Click Here to Continue

Brain-building Strategies for Parents

Mental and physical exercises, as well as brain-enhancing nutrition, can aid parents in nurturing their children�s natural abilities. Parents should keep some important things in mind when choosing activities and foods to help build children�s brainpower.   Click Here to Continue

How to Find Financial Aid - Help Is Out There for Financing a College Education

When dreams of higher education collide with the means to pay, the task of finding and applying for financial aid makes some students and parents feel like they are lost in the woods.   Click Here to Continue

Education: The Ins and Outs of 529 College Savings Plans

Saving for college is an important part of many families' financial picture. Families may choose to explore state-run 529 plans, which allow investors seeking tax-free growth of assets to pay for higher education.   Click Here to Continue

Education: Leveling the Playing Field Among 529 College Savings Plans

Many people are already aware of the benefits of investing in a state-sponsored 529 college savings program. What might not be as well known yet are tax parity laws.   Click Here to Continue

Education: Personal Finance 101 Saving Money Before and During College

According to the College Board, the average yearly cost for a public college is $5,836, and the cost for a private college is more than $22,000. So when you're planning your educational future, it's a good idea to create a clear financial plan before you ever set foot on campus.   Click Here to Continue

Education: Budget-Wise Tips for Managing College Costs

The average college student spends nearly $3,000 for various expenses beyond tuition, according to the College Board.  Good financial habits learned early will serve the student throughout his or her college years and well beyond, says Rich Linsday, president of the Society of Financial Service Professionals.   Click Here to Continue

Education: Ways to Keep Your Kids Learning in the Summer

For children who have been struggling in school, summer can be their opportunity to catch up on key skills and feel more confident when they head back to class. For students who do well, it's an opportunity to reinforce enthusiasm for learning.   Click Here to Continue

Education: Find Your 'A' Game During Report Card Time

Responding quickly to the first sign of academic struggle keeps small setbacks from growing into learning obstacles. By addressing the issue early, parents can make a noticeable difference in a child's confidence and performance throughout the school year   Click Here to Continue

Education: The Road to Life Success Begins With Math

Children who take math early in their educational careers set a stronger foundation for success in school and throughout life, according to education experts.   Click Here to Continue

Education: Good Study Skills Help Children Make the Grade

Developing effective study habits are essential for a child's academic success. Typically, children who have good study skills are likely to perform better in the classroom. Conversely, students with weak study skills can become frustrated, waste time and receive low grades.   Click Here to Continue

Education: Tips to Strengthen Your Child's Performance in School

How are your children doing in school? Are you pleased with their performance, or do you think there is room for improvement?   Click Here to Continue

Education: Parents Are Best Resource For Ensuring Student Success

To maximize their child's educational experience, parents should go back to school. But don't dust off the book covers and No. 2 pencils just yet. This experience only requires learning the ABCs of parental involvement - specifically, opening the lines of communication through parent-teacher conferences.   Click Here to Continue

Faculty in league table expulsion
A university department caught pressurising students in an official survey is to be excluded from this year's league table.

Economics 'dying out' in schools
Only three economics teachers were trained on postgraduate teacher training courses in the whole of England last year.

Primary 'free school meals' call
The government is being urged to scrap means testing and to give free school meals to all primary pupils in England.

Solar power call for more schools
Solar panels are being installed in schools to save energy and teach lessons about cutting carbon emissions.

Student teachers' higher degrees
People seeking to become teachers in England are better qualified than they were a decade ago, analysis shows.

Authors oppose 'toddler targets'
Authors join a campaign to scrap new literacy milestones for under-fives, but a review is already underway.

Schools hunting 'missing' papers
Schools in England are trying to track down national curriculum test papers mislaid by the Sats contractor, ETS.

Teens want to talk more about sex
Many parents are too embarrassed to have vital chats with their children about sex, a report for the government says.

Morris tells Balls to reform Sats
Ed Balls should not resign over the Sats problems, but take the opportunity to overhaul testing, says Estelle Morris.

Too shy to learn
"Invisible children" helped to put up their hands

Test of time
Do we still need to test our primary school children?

Test delays
Markers face computer problems with Sats results

Rare grade
A pupil's work is so good that it goes off the scale.

E-mail us
How to contact the BBC News website education team

From Parenting
Encouraging them without piling on the pressure

Ofsted says tests narrow learning
England's education inspectorate, Ofsted, says some schools narrow the curriculum by "teaching to the test".

Cameron pledge on apprenticeships
The Conservatives are vowing to create 100,000 more places for apprentices, saying it will cut social problems.

Schools adopt vocational courses
More vocational qualifications are being taken by school-age children around the UK, a report claims.

'A fifth of teens' carry a weapon
Almost one in five teenage pupils carries a weapon, although only one in 20 takes it to school, a study suggests.

Head teacher bans striking pupils
A head teacher suspended more than 100 pupils after they went on strike, informing their parents with a text message.

Students bring kit worth £6,000
Students are going to university laden with computers and electrical equipment, claims an insurance survey.

School design labelled 'mediocre'
A major school rebuilding programme risks being harmed by poor design, an architectural watchdog says.

Some students 'tell more CV lies'
A survey finds more lies on CVs from lower ranking universities than those from more well known ones.

'Farce' warning on degree levels
A committee of MPs warns that the lack of certainty about what a degree is worth is "descending into farce". Sean Coughlan reports

4,000 schools 'closed by strike'
A strike by teaching assistants and support staff closes at least 4,000 schools, its organisers have claimed.

Universities using entrance tests
Universities are using entrance tests as part of their selection procedure for would-be students, a report says.

Glasgow graduates suffer for art
Figures suggest 18% of Glasgow School of Art students fail to find work when they graduate.

Family celebrates double degrees
A mother and daughter both graduate with the same degree from the same university.

Legal battle over school closure
The National Union of Teachers is taking a council to the High Court over alleged failure to consult over school closure plans.

University takes rebel's name
Wrexham's new university, formerly North East Wales Institute, is named after Welsh rebel leader Owain Glyndwr.

Girl guides' warning on self-harm
Girl guides' leaders warn that girls face too many sexual and consumer pressures to grow up too soon.

Armed forces 'get free education'
Service personnel are to be allowed to study for a qualification free of charge after six years' duty, it is reported.

Private school fees 'rise by 43%'
The cost of sending a child to private school in England has risen by 43% since 2003, according to a survey.

Was there ever a golden age?

What to do about 'easier' exams?
Mike Baker looks at the choices facing those might wish to reform A-levels.

Should employers doubt Diplomas?
Mike Baker says that Diplomas need to convince employers, rather than appeal to academic pupils.

School tests: who takes what
A guide to the varied pattern of testing around the UK.

School's out as teachers march
Thousands of teachers take to the streets to march over demands for a better pay deal.

Where learning strategy takes us
BBC News website education editor Gary Eason assesses which way the wind is blowing.

What is BBC News School Report?
Find out more about the project which motivates secondary students around the UK to make and broadcast their own news.

Randy Pausch, 47, Dies; His ‘Last Lecture’ Inspired Many to Live With Wonder
Dr. Pausch was the Carnegie Mellon University professor whose “last lecture” made him a Lou-Gehrig-like symbol of the beauty and briefness of life.

Math Scores Show No Gap for Girls, Study Finds
A study paid for by the National Science Foundation has found that girls perform as well as boys on standardized math tests.

Richard Wade, 87, Urban Historian, Dies
Dr. Wade helped put cities on the map as an academic subject and advised Democratic candidates including Adlai Stevenson, Robert F. Kennedy and George McGovern.

Forced Off Duke’s Varsity Golf Team, Giuliani’s Son Files a Lawsuit
Andrew Giuliani, 22, accuses the university of bad faith by aggressively recruiting him to play golf for Duke and then dashing his dreams by taking steps to remove him from the team.

Camp Leads a Drumbeat for a Marching Band’s Style
Florida A&M University’s renowned band spreads its ecstatic style in a summer program that attracts hundreds of students from across the country.

News Analysis: Care Needed in Lending to Students
As New York’s governor promised to pursue a low-cost student loan program, it remained unclear how to set it up to ensure that it does not encourage unnecessary borrowing.

With No Frills or Tuition, a College Draws Notice
Berea College, which charges no tuition and only accepts applicants from low-income families, provides an unusual perspective on how universities should handle endowments.

Paterson Set to Embrace Student Loan Plan
Gov. David A. Paterson will seek a low-cost loan program to make New York more competitive with other states.

Skelos Presses for Tax Cap at First Leaders’ Meeting
The new Senate majority leader, Dean G. Skelos, said the Senate would pass the governor’s proposal to impose a ceiling on school property taxes within the next month.

The Next Kind of Integration
In response to the courts, class is replacing race as the primary basis for desegregating schools. It’s a mix that just might work.

At Struggling School, Pride Displaces Failure
Rising test scores highlight a year of ambitious change at the beleaguered Newton Street School in Newark.

Harlem Area Is Blighted, State Agency Declares
The finding is a step toward forcing property owners to sell their land as part of eminent domain proceedings to make way for the expansion of Columbia University.

Rangel to Ask Ethics Panel for Inquiry to Clear Him
Representative Charles B. Rangel said he would ask the House ethics committee to look into whether he had violated rules by using a Congressional letterhead to raise money for City College.

Crucial Data on Graduates Is Elusive
Graduation rates are widely considered among the most crucial indicators of whether a system is working, but New York State has not yet reported the percentage for the Class of 2007.

Calm Down or Else
Unable to handle behavior disorders, many schools use forcible restraint. Is it abuse?

Talk About Your Spring Awakening
The International Thespian Festival is part summer camp, part summer school, part arts festival and part recruitment fair.

High Cost of Driving Ignites Online Classes Boom
As fuel prices rise, thousands of students nationwide have suddenly decided to take college classes over the Internet.

U.S. Tries to Help 3 Scholars Barred From Leaving Gaza
Using a portable fingerprinting machine, U.S. consular officials were seeking to expedite the granting of study visas to three students in Gaza, despite Israeli concerns.

Dean of Harvard Business School May Join Citigroup’s Board
Jay O. Light, an expert in asset and risk management who has led the business school for the last three years, is one of at least three candidates being recruited as directors by the embattled bank.

Ohio Gives Veterans In-State Rates at Public Colleges
To attract more veterans, Gov. Ted Strickland of Ohio announced that the state would charge in-state tuition to all veterans attending college on the G.I. Bill.

Top Recruit Weighs the Benefits of a Trip of Europe
Brandon Jennings is considered the best point guard prospect of the high school class of 2008. And if he opts to play in Europe next season, it could cause a ripple effect.

Higher Education: Shedding the ‘Safe’ Label
The president of the University of Connecticut, a onetime “safety school” that now boasts sparkling new buildings and attractive programs, plans to raise its profile.

At Penn, the Subject Is Gossip
Ronald O. Perelman, the billionaire New York businessman, named a building on the University of Pennsylvania’s campus after his ex-wife, Claudia Cohen, and caused a stir.

Education: School Official in Dispute With State on Severance
A $740,000 severance package negotiated by the departing superintendent at the Keansburg Board of Education is being challenged in court.

The ’60s Begin to Fade as Liberal Professors Retire
Hired during an expansion in higher education, baby boomers are being replaced by a new generation.

Students, Teachers and Parents Weigh In on State of the Schools
For the second year in a row, a vast majority of New York City parents, teachers and students who responded to a Department of Education survey said they were satisfied with their schools.

Profit at Apollo Group
The Apollo Group, an education company that owns the University of Phoenix, says it earned $139.1 million in the third quarter as enrollment grew by 11 percent.

Attention Goes a Long Way at a School, Small by Design
At the Urban Assembly School for Law and Justice in Brooklyn, many in the first graduating class of 79 seniors are from the city’s poorest neighborhoods, and nearly all are collegebound.

A Game Changer Left Unchanged by the Game
In an era when high school prospects increasingly seek handouts and entourages, Jamarkus McFarland, college football’s top defensive recruit, stands out.

Law School Pays the Price in ‘Don’t Ask’ Rule Protest
The Vermont Law School has been denied some federal research money because of its policy barring military recruiters.

Education: Bringing Potential Dropouts Back From the Brink
To improve their dropout numbers, officials in districts throughout Long Island say they are taking aggressive steps to keep students in the classroom.

Survey of Teachers Shows Dissatisfaction With Klein
Of more than 61,000 respondents, 85 percent disagreed with the statement that the Joel I. Klein’s emphasis on testing had improved education in their schools.

Career Programs Stress College, Too, and Give Students a Leg Up, Study Says
An evaluation of nine career academies has found that eight years after graduation, participants had significantly higher employment and earnings than similar students in a control group.

Taking Lessons, and Confidence, From the Water
A New York City school is trying to raise academic achievement and confidence by having students learn about and navigate the harbor that surrounds the city.

Holding Back Young Students: Is Program a Gift or a Stigma?
A New York school district has revived a controversial retention practice to not only hold back nearly 12 percent of its first-graders this spring but to segregate them come fall.

Well: School Is Out, and Nutrition Takes a Hike
Camp food is just one of the summertime nutrition challenges for parents these days.

Reading and Math Scores Rise Sharply Across N.Y.
Test scores in grades three through eight improved across the state, with particularly sizeable gains in urban areas.

To Avoid Student Turnover, Parents Get Rent Help
In response to the turmoil in Flint schools, Michigan is giving some families $100 a month to help them stay put.

Officials Reject Report of Pregnancy Pact
The mayor of Gloucester, Mass., said there was no independent evidence that a group of high school girls had made a pact to become pregnant and raise their babies together, as a magazine reported.

Hacking Case Jolts Affluent California High School
A senior has been arrested on charges that he broke into the high school several times, hacked into administrative computers, changed grades and sent copies of test answers to dozens of students.

Findings: A New Frontier for Title IX: Science
Under pressure from Congress, some federal agencies are investigating sexual discrimination at universities that receive federal grants.

At Thomas Jefferson, 2.8 Is Tantamount to Failure
Matthew Nuti finished 10th grade at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology with much to be proud of. He excelled in oratory on the Model United Nations team. He was a starting lineman in junior varsity football. His English teacher complimented his classroom wit. Like virtually all...

Funds Found for New Charters
The District will use a $7.5 million education reserve fund to pay for the seven former Catholic schools slated to reopen as secular charter schools next month, and it will be able to find more money if necessary, officials said this week.

Randy Pausch, 47; Professor Gave Inspiring 'Last Lecture'
Randy Pausch, a prominent computer science professor at Carnegie Mellon University who became an instant sensation far beyond the classroom last year when he delivered his inspiring "Last Lecture," knowing he had only months to live, died July 25 at his home in Chesapeake, Va. He was 47.

Saving Young Men With Career Academies
By usual measures of student progress, America's high school career academies have been a failure. One of the longest and most scientific education studies ever conducted concluded they did not improve test scores or graduation rates or college success for urban youth. People like me, obsessed with...

Trust and Teamwork Conquer The Toughest of Challenges
Dillon Osei placed one foot into a hanging tire and shoved off with the other.

Head of Office Was Fired Before Payroll Problems
The District fired the head of the Office of Youth Programs because of problems with the city's summer jobs effort, days before human error and computer glitches led to thousands of students coming up short on payday.

The Odd World of E-School Teachers
For Trinity Wilbourn, teaching high school via the Internet offers a heartening and maddening prism into the teenage mind-set.

Cost to County Will Be Key To Hornsby's Punishment
For Andre J. Hornsby, the legal battles are far from over.

Barry Promoting 2 Charter Schools
Marion Barry has always taken an interest in education. He's been a guest science teacher at Ballou Senior High, and some of his D.C. Council colleagues are graduates of the Mayor's Youth Leadership Institute, which he founded.

Cafeteria Menus Get Failing Grades
A District-based nonprofit organization, affiliated with a group that promotes a vegan diet, issued a report card today on school lunches that gives two local school systems failing grades for the amount of processed meat they serve to students.

Pay-Hike Plan for Teachers In D.C. Entails Probation
D.C. teachers interested in the huge salary increases proposed by Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee would not only have to relinquish their seniority but also risk dismissal by spending a year on probation, according to details of the plan released yesterday.

State Executes Man Who Killed Co-Worker
Christopher S. Emmett was executed by lethal injection last night in Virginia's death chamber, seven years after he fatally bludgeoned a co-worker with a brass lamp.

Hundreds of Students Say They Weren't Paid
Samantha Baskin gets paid to be patient. One of thousands of students across the District who had pay problems in the summer youth jobs program last week, Samantha, 14, said that she doesn't actually do anything at the Washington East of the River Academy.

Arts Plan Could Cause Funding Gap, Study Says
In the midst of a contentious and politically turbulent first year as D.C. schools chancellor, Michelle A. Rhee drew near-universal acclaim with one goal: to place music, art and physical education instructors in all public schools.

Hornsby Convicted On 6 Counts
Andre J. Hornsby, the former Prince George's County public schools chief whose first corruption trial ended in a hung jury last year, was convicted yesterday on six of the 22 federal charges brought against him in his retrial.

Hornsby Retrial Jury Reports Deadlocks, Some Verdicts
The jury in the retrial of former Prince George's schools chief Andre J. Hornsby will continue deliberating today after announcing yesterday that it has reached verdicts on some of the 22 charges but is deadlocked on others.

Shake-Up Follows Probe of Police Chief's Degree Credentials
Some senior officials are leaving their posts at Virginia Commonwealth University following an investigation that found a police chief was improperly allowed to graduate after taking just two classes there.

County MSA Exam Scores Rise, Remain Ahead of Pack
Howard County students continue to outperform their peers on statewide exams, making gains in reading and mathematics, according to data released by the Maryland State Department of Education this month.

Reaching Beyond the Classroom
Deirdre Smith pressed the play button on the CD player, walked to the back of the high school auditorium and eyed her 12 students as they stood like statues in choreographic formation. The 25-year-old model folded her arms and awaited the cue in the song that was playing: "Five! Six! Five! Six!...

For More N.Va. Students, the Classroom Is on the Computer
Online schooling in Northern Virginia and elsewhere is becoming more popular among students and educators as a way to break from the traditional classroom setting and rigid school schedules, according to interviews with local officials and a new federal study.

County's Test Scores Rise in Every Grade
Anne Arundel County students improved their scores at every grade level on this spring's Maryland School Assessment exams, according to data released this month by the Maryland State Department of Education.

Matches Can Ease Climb to Fundraising Summit
Yesterday's Send a Kid to Camp column was about The Hike: the arduous uphill climb that is a rite of passage for the youngsters at Camp Moss Hollow.

Doubts Linger on Pre-K-8 Strategy
Like surgical scars, once promising or trendy ideas for reform have left their marks all over the D.C. school system. Many came as officials pursued the best way to configure schools for students coping with their turbulent adolescent years.

Barry Seeks Audit After Payroll Glitch
D.C. Council member Marion Barry is calling for an audit of the District government's payroll foul-up that left hundreds of students unpaid last week in the summer youth job program.

Young Drivers Getting A Lesson in Economics
Gas prices are too high for a day trip to Dewey Beach. They are too high for a quick visit to see a friend in College Park. They consume enough of 18-year-old Ashleigh Krudys's paycheck that she second-guesses her social plans.

By Taxi, Expanding National Harbor's Reach
If you're looking for the wonder in taking a water taxi across the Potomac, perhaps it is best to look at the journey through the eyes of a 4-year-old.

Circuit Court Judge Retiring in Charles
Charles County Circuit Court Judge Christopher C. Henderson, who has served for 12 years, will step down this fall.

2 Boards in Accord on Budget Shortfall
Fairfax County supervisors and School Board members agreed unanimously yesterday to share proportionally the responsibility for eliminating a $430 million combined shortfall for the school system and the county government in the coming fiscal year.

Summer Jobs Program Comes Up Short on Pay
Hundreds of participants in the summer youth jobs program woke up yesterday to find that they had either been underpaid or not paid at all.

Woman Charged in PTA Theft Sentenced to One Year
A woman who stole more than $180,000 from a Fairfax County elementary school's parent-teacher association was sentenced to a year in jail yesterday, though she will ultimately spend the time on home detention because of her poor health.

Union Chief Sets Meetings, Says Talks at 'Very Critical Stage'
Washington Teachers' Union President George Parker has scheduled a series of meetings with teachers to discuss contract negotiations with the D.C. school system, which he describes as "at a very critical stage."

Skepticism Greets Big Gains
State reading and math tests taken by Maryland students were shortened and tweaked this year, leading some critics to question whether the shifts contributed to surprisingly strong gains in achievement.

Boards to Seek Cuts In Schools Budget
Faced with declining local tax revenue, the Fairfax County School Board is preparing for a possible education spending freeze or a cut next year.

In Closed Schools, History Lessons
For Nancye Suggs, the call from D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee's office about nearly two dozen schools she planned to close was bittersweet: Suggs said that she was heartbroken about the loss, in one fell swoop, of so much history but that she was ecstatic Rhee was offering her a chance...

Sorority Leads March for Change
Wearing a pink and green T-shirt, Anne Sims rode down Pennsylvania Avenue to the Capitol in her motorized scooter as her Alpha Kappa Alpha sisters marched with her.

Texas OKs standards for elective Bible classes
AUSTIN, Texas -- The Texas State Board of Education gave final approval Friday to establishing Bible classes in public high schools, rejecting calls to draw specific teaching guidelines and warnings that it could lead to constitutional problems in the classroom.

U-Md. Accidentally Exposes Student Social Security Numbers
COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) -- The University of Maryland says it accidentally printed social security numbers on the outside of a mailing sent to all students.

Top Va. Education Official to Resign
Governor Timothy M. Kaine (D) announced today that Virginia's top education official is resigning after two years on the job.

A School Where One Size Doesn't Fit All
Growing up in Montgomery County, graduating summa cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania and getting a law degree from Harvard, Alan M. Shusterman had been called brilliant but didn't feel that great. He got a job in corporate law with a large Boston firm, but that didn't work for him, eit...

Coping With Their Parents' War
For Cody Caudill, it "wasn't that big of a deal" when his dad went to Bosnia in 2001 with the Maryland National Guard. In 2003, Robert Caudill served close to home at the Aberdeen Proving Ground. Two years later, he went to war.

Sun Starting to Set on Dreams Of a Better Summer
When our Send a Kid to Camp campaign kicked off in early June, we set an ambitious goal of raising $475,000 by July 25 -- enough to cover at least a week at Camp Moss Hollow in the Blue Ridge foothills for hundreds of children who otherwise wouldn't have much of a summer.

Disease Prevention Called a Better Bet
An ounce of prevention in community health programs could save states hundreds of millions in health-care costs, a new study has found.

Student Reaches for the Sun and Succeeds
Even with an overcast sky, the solar panels on the roof of George Mason High School in Falls Church were absorbing enough sun on a recent morning to power the air conditioner in a classroom.

County's Achievement Gap Narrows in Reading and Math
The achievement gap separating black and Hispanic students from whites and Asians in performance on statewide tests has narrowed in reading and math at every grade level tested, according to an analysis of results released this week by Montgomery County school officials.

Charles Workers Meet With Organizers
Organizers from a prominent labor union met with a group of Charles County employees this week as part of a fledgling effort to unionize county government workers.

Case Goes to Jury in Ex-Schools Chief's Retrial
The witness list was virtually unchanged. The judge and lawyers were the same. So, too, was much of the evidence, as former Prince George's County schools chief Andre J. Hornsby, whose last trial ended in a hung jury, was tried again on public corruption charges.

D.C. Gun Ban Is Out, But Regulations Stay
The D.C. Council unanimously approved emergency legislation last night that ends the strictest handgun ban in the country and voted 12 to 1 to approve the transfer of almost $125 million to renovate schools by fall -- two major issues that showed the council's complex relationship with Mayor Adrian...

Teachers Become Nurses as Schools Get Squeezed
-- During the past two school years, teacher Julia Keyse had to enforce an unusual rule in her kindergarten and first-grade classroom: No interrupting while she pricked Caylee's finger to check her blood sugar and adjusted her insulin pump.

Md. Scores In Reading, Math Show Big Strides
Maryland's march toward the goal of having all students reach grade level in reading and math gained momentum today with the release of test scores that show surprisingly strong gains in those subjects, especially among disadvantaged students.

Review Finds Slurs In '06 Saudi Texts
A Saudi-funded academy in Fairfax County used textbooks as recently as 2006 that compared Jews and Christians to apes and pigs, told eighth-graders that these groups are "the enemies of the believers" and diagrammed for high school students where to cut off the hands and feet of thieves, a Washin...

Jobless Rate for Youths Is Increasing
CHICAGO -- Since Eddie Macias graduated from high school in Chicago on June 17, his summer has stretched in front of him.

They're So Vein: Tapping A Job Market
There's the 60-year-old math teacher from India and the 34-year-old medical assistant from Eritrea. A 52-year-old Dodge car salesman who left New Orleans after Katrina, and a 32-year-old bank teller who cared for two parents until both died. A 26-year-old college grad. All trying their best to pu...

Owning His Gay Identity -- at 15 Years Old
School's out, and Saro Harvey and his best friend, Samantha Sachs, are hanging out in his Arlington County bedroom. She is slouched across his bed, and he is poised on a chair, posture-perfect, wearing dark, skinny jeans and a ruffled shirt meant for a girl. A rust-orange purse he sometimes carries...

A Century of Sisterhood
By 7:30 in the morning, nearly 1,000 ladies began their fitness walk around the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. Many wore pink sweat pants with a double row of green piping. Some wore dark green Converse tennis shoes with a salmon pink toe. Others went hard, head-to-toe pink with just a h...

Ads Hope to Inject U.S. School Challenges Into White House Race
Amid a presidential campaign dominated by debate about the economy and the war in Iraq, an advertising campaign scheduled to debut in Northern Virginia and elsewhere tomorrow is seeking to spotlight challenges facing U.S. schools.

Summer Is Hot Time For School Construction
Teachers and students typically get summer vacation, but it's the busy season for people charged with building and maintaining schools.

In Search of Young Mouths To Feed In Summer
Montgomery County officials dispatch a school bus daily to roam a Silver Spring neighborhood with an unlikely task: find children interested in going to school, in midsummer, for the food.

Group Protests School Transfer Policy
A new parent group in Calvert County is protesting a policy that allows children to attend elementary schools close to their day-care centers, an arrangement that the group says unfairly lets some families place their children in the county's best schools.

Some D.C. Principals Credit Rhee for Big Gains in Test Scores
Principals at some D.C. schools that demonstrated a dramatic increase on this year's student achievement test credit the gains to programs they implemented after a push from Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee.

Music Festival Battled Elements, Empty Seats
A first-year music festival that one reviewer called "staggeringly ambitious" drew only tiny crowds to Charles County during its 17-day run last month, but organizers hailed it as the start of something bigger.

Young Girl Follows Moss Hollow's Slogan, Finding Friends and a Creative Outlet
D onald Brown knows how big an uncle's responsibilities can really be. When his sister, a troubled drug addict, abandoned his infant nieces, he stepped in.

Broader Youth Involvement Urged
Erica Williams worries about the wave of political involvement among young people this election season.

Development Firm Is Picked For Library-School Project
The city has picked a developer for a site that includes Janney Elementary School and the former Tenley-Friendship Library, Mayor Adrian M. Fenty announced yesterday.

D.C. Students See Big Academic Gains
D.C. public school students made significant achievement gains during the past academic year, according to preliminary test data released yesterday.

D.C. Libraries Mired in Political Dithering
What's happened in the four years since the District shuttered four of its neighborhood libraries, lost another one to a fire and launched an endless debate over whether to renovate or get rid of its main branch downtown?

Law Students Rush to Meet Needs In Booming Field of Immigration
Ann Kim made monthly trips this year to a Richmond area immigrant detention center, trying to free a mentally ill Honduran man. He ended up being deported, but Kim got something out of it: more experience in the burgeoning field of immigration law.

Minority Groups Decry Ouster of School Advocate
Loudoun County's minority community is criticizing school officials for failing to renew the contract of the district's first supervisor for outreach.

A Hot Time For School Construction Projects
Teachers and students get summer vacation, but it's the busy season for the people charged with building and maintaining schools.