Public Schools

The legislation now goes to the Missouri Senate, where similar bills have died in prior sessions.

There are now 11 candidates running in the April 8 election to fill three seats on the board.

Department of Secondary and Elementary Education officials said the data signals a turning point in a teacher shortage the state has struggled to address in recent years.

According to the lawsuit, the St. Louis Public Schools Board of Education told Chester Asher he’d been warned about being “disrespectful” while speaking at public meetings before issuing a six-month ban.

The number of homeschooled students in Missouri has nearly doubled since the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a study from St. Louis University.

Students, parents and teachers protested proposals to prohibit discussions on gender identity and allow people to request books be banned. But the school board introduced the measures over those objections, with final votes coming as early as July.

One of the proposals the school board will introduce would allow anyone who lives in the district to call for bans on books and classroom materials — and prohibit books that lack school board approval.

A new poll from St. Louis University and YouGov found support for increased funding for some education initiatives but growing discontent with public schools in Missouri.

Missouri Supreme Court Judge Robin Ransom wrote, with five in concurrence, that the unexcused absences in the case violated state law.

The case centers around two parents, both of whom were sentenced to jail time because their six-year-old children missed too many days of school.