U.S. Supreme Court hands victory to transgender students in locker room case
The Supreme Court has declined to take up a case brought by Oregon parents who want to exclude transgender students from school locker rooms and restrooms.
Education
This archive covers education milestones from expanding school access in low-income communities to innovative teaching methods and rising literacy rates. Stories here spotlight what’s working — and who’s making it happen — across classrooms, policy halls, and community programs worldwide.
First tribally-associated medical school in the United States launches in the Cherokee Nation
In rural Oklahoma, a brand new medical school sits in the Cherokee Nation, training Nation members to become physicians at Nation clinics. Oklahoma State University College of Osteopathic Medicine at the Cherokee Nation is the first tribally associated medical school in the country.
School enrollment for girls around the world has risen from 73% to 89% since 1995
A new report from UNESCO shows great progress globally in girls’ education since 1995’s Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, a landmark commitment by 189 countries to advance the rights of girls and women.
University of Cambridge drops its $4.5 billion endowments from fossil fuels
The university will divest from conventional energy by the end of the year, build “significant investments” in renewable energy by 2025, divest from remaining fossil fuels by 2035, and become net-zero across its portfolio by 2038.
Michigan is compensating essential workers with free college education
Michigan is recognizing the commitment and sacrifices of their state’s 625,000 essential workers by offering them free education at any community college in the state.
UC Berkeley launches new center for psychedelic science and education
With $1.25 million in seed funding from an anonymous donor, the new UC Berkeley Center for the Science of Psychedelics will conduct research using psychedelics to investigate cognition, perception and emotion and their biological bases in the human brain.
New Jersey enacts new law to help undocumented immigrants find jobs
New Jersey has become the second state to lift restrictions that bar undocumented individuals from obtaining occupational and professional licenses, which are necessary to enter a large number of career fields.
University of California becomes U.S.’s largest university to divest fully from fossil fuels
The UC milestone capped a five-year effort to move the public research university system’s $126-billion portfolio into more environmentally sustainable investments. UC officials say their strategy is grounded in concerns about the planet’s future and in what makes financial sense.
Princeton names its first black valedictorian in the university’s history
“It feels empowering. Being Princeton’s first Black Valedictorian holds special significance to me particularly given Princeton’s historical ties to the institution of slavery,” said Nicholas Johnson, valedictorian of Princeton’s Class of 2020.
Oxford University bans investment in fossil fuels after student campaigns
In a motion passed by Oxford’s governing body, the Congregation, which is made up of 5,500 academic and administrative members, the university is now required to cut all ties with fossil fuel firms and end future investment in these companies.