Education News from Washington Post

Why has Northeastern University opened two campuses in recent years far from its namesake geographic region?

What would drive a well-regarded school in Boston to open branches in the Pacific Northwest (Seattle) and the South (Charlotte, N.C.)?

Ron Maggiano is a social studies teacher at West Springfield High School in Fairfax County. In 2005, he won the Disney Teacher Award for innovation and creativity, and in 2006, he won the American Historical Association's Beveridge Family Teaching Prize for outstanding K-12 teaching. Now, after a 33-year teaching career, he is resigning, just four years away from full retirement.

Memorial Day is often confused with Veterans Day, and according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, here's why:

Many people confuse Memorial Day and Veterans Day. Memorial Day is a day for remembering and honoring military personnel who died in the service of their country, particularly those who died in battle or as a result of wounds sustained in battle. While those who died are also remembered, Veterans Day is the day set aside to thank and honor ALL those who served honorably in the military -- in wartime or peacetime. In fact, Veterans Day is largely intended to thank LIVING veterans for their service, to acknowledge that their contributions to our national security are appreciated, and to underscore the fact that all those who served -- not only those who died -- have sacrificed and done their duty.

From our friendly U.S. Census Bureau, all about Memorial Day in a single infographic:

Katie Mathews, the youngest of my three children, graduated from law school two weeks ago. That ends for me 22 years of college touring, SAT fretting, application essay reading, rejection angst, acceptance relief and tuition paying. I still worry about the job market, but barring an appointment to the Federal Reserve Board, that is beyond my influence.

The nation’s colleges and universities are churning out master’s degrees in sharply rising numbers, responding to a surge in demand for advanced credentials from young professionals who want to stand out in the workforce and earn more money.

As hundreds of Boy Scouts gathered in Washington on Saturday to inaugurate an urban trail that celebrates their history, troop leaders and parents reflected on how a recent decision to include openly gay youths will affect Scouting’s future.

Final exam scores for some high school biology, English and history courses in Montgomery County show failure rates of 37 to 50 percent, according to new school data that add to questions about student performance in the well-regarded school district.

A new report by the prestigious Institute of Medicine says that the U.S. Education Department should designate physical education as a core subject, just like math and English, to help confront a "pandemic" of physical inactivity that has contributed to a critical national health challenge.

Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton just vetoed a line item inserted into the state's higher education legislation that would have given $1.5 million to Teach For America over two years. This is what he said in an explanatory letter to the legislature:

The Fairfax County School Board on Thursday approved next year’s $2.5 billion budget, which includes money to increase teacher salaries, expand foreign language instruction for elementary students and hire more mental health professionals.

Paul Tudor Jones, a hedge fund billionaire and philanthropist, apologized Friday for comments he made at the University of Virginia last month about the lack of female traders. He had attributed the problem to women becoming mothers and no longer having the intense focus required for successful trading.

Here, from the White House, is the text of President Obama's speech on Friday to the graduation class at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis. Obama is the 16th U.S. president to speak at the Annapolis graduation since its founding in 1845.

President Obama on Friday used the issue of sexual assault in the military to illustrate to Naval Academy graduates the importance of trust and honor at a time when the public has grown weary of missteps by public servants.

At just about every high school, college and university, audiences who gather to watch their loved ones graduate listen to one main key speaker (plus a few other speeches from school leaders). But what about 60 speakers?

Widespread technical glitches interrupted thousands of Fairfax County schools students taking Virginia’s standards of learning tests online Thursday.

In a letter to parents, the district acknowledged “significant problems” while administering the online tests due to an outage with the school system’s Internet service provider.

In the video below, veteran teacher Ellie Rubenstein of Highland Park, Ill., resigns after eloquently explaining how teaching has changed over the past 15 years of school reform and why she believes public education is being misdirected.

Widespread technical glitches interrupted thousands of Fairfax County schools students taking Virginia’s standards of learning tests online Thursday.

In a letter to parents, the district acknowledged “significant problems” while administering the online tests due to an outage with the school system’s Internet service provider.

The House approved a Republican proposal Thursday to allow interest rates on federal student loans to rise or fall from year to year with the government’s cost of borrowing, ending a system in which rates are fixed by law.

Prince George’s County School Board Chairman Verjeana Jacobs (District 5) said Friday that Alvin Crawley, the county’s interim school superintendent, has agreed to stay in his position until school reopens in August.