Education

Athletes across Minnesota had to rethink how and when they practice their sports — or skip their seasons completely — to avoid getting and spreading the coronavirus.

Schools across the state are still finalizing plans for the return of classes this fall. For districts where students will be coming back into the classroom, at least in some capacity, there's a lot of pressure on school nurses. Nurse Deb Landin in Warroad, Minn. spoke with MPR News host Cathy Wurzer.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison has received less than 1 percent of the money that Taiwan-based Foxconn Technology Group pledged to it two years ago amid the electronics giant's expansion plans in Wisconsin.

Universities and colleges have different plans for returning to teaching this fall, and there are specific needs for many classroom settings. As faculty and instructors prepare to teach, they worry about their students and their families.

Because of the pandemic, many students will be applying without standardized test scores and several other metrics selective schools have long relied on to make admissions decisions.

Some are worried their districts are unable to offer a strong virtual learning program. For others who may have been considering homeschooling, concerns for their family's health amid the coronavirus and the on-again, off-again planning for in-person instruction are leading them to part ways with school systems.

Barely a week after Georgia reopens its public schools, a district north of Atlanta reported nearly 60 positive tests among students, teachers and staff, and closed one hard-hit high school.

Even before COVID-19, about 15 percent of school-age kids were thought to have a mental health or behavioral disorder, and schools were having a hard time providing enough mental health support. The pandemic has only added stress to the system.

A total of nine students and staff members at a Georgia high school have tested positive for the coronavirus, the principal said in a letter to parents after the school made headlines for online photos showing hallways packed with teens — many of them not wearing masks.

About 200 people representing more than 20 schools took part in a student-led march in downtown St. Paul on Saturday, calling on Minnesota school districts to end contracts with local police departments.