State Policy

Read more about state laws, regulations, and programs that impact education
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul reads "Snowflakes Fall" to daycare children at the Department of Labor on Dec. 20, 2023, in Albany, N.Y. Hochul on Jan. 3, 2024, said she will push for schools to reemphasize phonics in literacy education programs, a potential overhaul that comes as many states revamp curriculums amid low reading scores.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul reads "Snowflakes Fall" to children on Dec. 20, 2023, in Albany, N.Y. Hochul became the latest Democratic governor to say she'll opt her state in to the federal tax-credit scholarship program that takes effect next year, and will direct federal taxpayer funds to private school scholarships.
Will Waldron/The Albany Times Union via AP
School Choice & Charters A Large Democratic-Led State Says Yes to Trump’s School Choice Program
Thirty-one states are on track to participate in the first major federal foray into private school choice.
Matthew Stone, May 8, 2026
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5 min read
Preschool students run on the new cushioned rubber surface while others use the double slide at Taft Early Learning Center in Uxbridge, Mass., on March 12, 2025.
Preschool students run on the new cushioned rubber surface while others use the double slide at Taft Early Learning Center in Uxbridge, Mass., on March 12, 2025. In Oklahoma, elementary schools will have to provide 40 minutes of recess daily starting this fall.
Brett Phelps for Education Week
Student Well-Being & Movement 40 Minutes of Recess Is Now the Law in This State
Elementary schools will have to provide 40 minutes of recess, after years of declining time nationwide.
Caitlynn Peetz Stephens, April 30, 2026
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3 min read
The Plumbing department, located in the school's well-equipped shop facility, alongside other trades including masonry and carpentry.
The plumbing department in a New Jersey technology high school. As the Trump administration invites states to request waivers from federal school accountability requirements, two have proposed changes that would emphasize career-oriented tests as opposed to more traditional academic knowledge tests.
Oliver Farshi for Education Week
Every Student Succeeds Act These States Want to Move Away From a 'College for All' Approach to Testing
Two states have pitched changes to their high school assessments to emphasize workforce preparation.
Alyson Klein, April 28, 2026
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7 min read
The United States Capitol building as a bookcase filled with red, white, and blue policy books in a Washington DC landscape.
Luca D'Urbino for Education Week
School Choice & Charters Opinion A New Federal Education Tax Credit Is Creating a Dilemma for Blue States
A new tax credit is forcing Democrats to navigate the tensions of politics and principles.
Rick Hess, April 28, 2026
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9 min read
Image of a student sitting on a stoop with a school bus in the distance. Ghosted in the background is the Capitol building.
Illustration by Laura Baker/Education Week + Getty + Canva
States With Federal Commitment Shaky, States Move to Codify Protections for Homeless Students
Washington and Oregon have taken action, and others states are considering moves of their own.
Evie Blad, April 23, 2026
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4 min read
In this Oct. 5, 1980, file photo, Nancy Armstrong, a teacher at the Marshall elementary school in Harrisburg, Pa., assists her students in the use of computers to aid them in their studies. Today’s grandparents may have fond memories of the “good old days,” but history tells us that adults have worried about their kids’ fascination with new-fangled entertainment and technology since the days of dime novels, radio, the first comic books and rock n’ roll.
In this Oct. 5, 1980, file photo, Nancy Armstrong, a teacher at Marshall Elementary School in Harrisburg, Pa., assists her students in the use of computers to aid them in their learning. The debate about how much time students should spend using technology to learn has been around for decades, but is now heating up in Congress and state legislatures and creating some unlikely allies.
Paul Vathis/AP
Ed-Tech Policy Welcome to the 'Funky' Politics of the Tech in Schools Debate
The Trump administration is cheerleading AI in schools as GOP lawmakers crack down on ed tech.
Alyson Klein, April 20, 2026
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9 min read
Democratic Senator Raumesh Akbari hugs a young demonstrator as people gather to protest an immigration bill outside the Senate chamber at the state Capitol Thursday, in Nashville, Tenn. The bill would allow public school systems in Tennessee to require K-12 students without legal status in the country to pay tuition or face denial of enrollment, which is a challenge to the federal law requiring all children be provided a free public education regardless of legal immigration status.
Democratic state Sen. Raumesh Akbari hugs a young demonstrator as people protest an immigration bill outside the Senate chamber at the state Capitol on April 10, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. The legislation is part of a broader push in Tennessee to require schools to collect students’ immigration status, raising concerns among educators about trust, access, and compliance with federal law.
John Amis/AP
States 'Not Our Job': Principals Decry a Proposal to Track Student Immigration Status
A principals group has publicly opposed efforts to require schools to track immigration status.
Ileana Najarro, April 17, 2026
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5 min read
A teacher and rising kindergarten students at Vose Elementary in Beaverton during story time on April 16, 2026. Gov. Tina Kotek asked the State Board of Education on Thursday to prohibit school districts from using student-contact days as furlough days to balance budgets, in order to preserve instructional time.
Story time in a kindergarten class at Vose Elementary School in Beaverton, Ore., on April 16, 2026. Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek has issued an executive order in hopes of blocking any further erosion of instructional time in a state that has one of the shortest school years in the country.
Mark Graves/The Oregonian via TNS
States A State With a Short School Year Wants to Stop the 'Bleeding' of Classroom Time
A new order aims to discourage districts from reducing instructional hours to fill budget gaps.
Mark Walsh, April 17, 2026
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4 min read
Conceptual art collage. Yellow apple, as gold, on white plate with money symbol engraved, against purple background. Textured effect. Concept of food pricing and consumer economy.
Anton Vierietin/iStock
Teaching Profession How Far Can You Stretch a Starting Teacher Salary? We Crunched the Numbers
Efforts to boost starting teacher salaries to $60,000 are underway. It may not be enough.
Elizabeth Heubeck, April 13, 2026
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2 min read
Illustration using a wedding cake in the foreground, and in the background is an image of Candice Bergen, who plays the role of a single parent on the television comedy series "Murphy Brown," relaxes on the set of her Emmy-winning show during a live broadcast of the CBS "This Morning" show, Sept. 21, 1992. Bergen's character will return to her TV news anchor job and will respond to Dan Quayle's remark about glamorizing single motherhood when the show resumes its new season. (Chris Martinez/AP)
Some states want schools to teach students that they have a better shot at success if they work, get married, and have a child—in that order. Debates about these "family values" have evolved and resurfaced over the years. One firestorm happened in 1992, when TV character Murphy Brown of the eponymous comedy series, played by Candice Bergen, became a single parent—a development criticized by then-Vice President Dan Quayle as an example of "glamorizing" single motherhood.
Illustration by Education Week via Chris Martinez/AP + Canva
Student Well-Being & Movement Then & Now Schools and 'Family Values': A Reboot of a Familiar Debate
The "success sequence" is the latest in a long line of proposals to have schools take up responsible decisionmaking.
Evie Blad, April 10, 2026
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5 min read
Illustration of a child with a backpack looking at game pieces and board from THE GAME OF LIFE.
Laura Baker/Education Week + iStock
States 'Success Sequence' Urges Marriage, Then Parenthood. These States Want Schools to Teach It
The decades-old concept is getting new attention, largely from Republican lawmakers.
Evie Blad, April 3, 2026
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6 min read
FILE - A Bible is seen on a chair in the House chamber in Washington, Jan. 6, 2023. The Bible will return to the shelves in a northern Utah school district that provoked an outcry after it banned them from middle and elementary schools. The Davis School District said in a statement on Tuesday, June 20, that its board had determined the sacred text was age-appropriate for all school libraries.
A Bible is seen on a chair in the House chamber in Washington, Jan. 6, 2023. Utah joins several other states that have moved to incorporate Christian teaching and text into the classroom.
Andrew Harnik/AP
Social Studies Another State Is Requiring Students to Study the Bible in School
In Utah, schools will teach Biblical passages that are “cited or alluded to in founding documents."
Sarah Schwartz, April 2, 2026
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3 min read
Bryan Najera holds a sign during a House Education K-12 subcommittee meeting Tuesday, March 11, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn.
Bryan Najera holds a sign during a House Education K-12 subcommittee meeting Tuesday, March 11, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. Tennessee lawmakers are debating amended legislation, originally introduced last year, to collect students' immigration information.
George Walker IV/AP
States A State Gets Closer to Challenging Undocumented Students' Free Access to School
Lawmakers are debating legislation that would require schools to collect immigration information.
Ileana Najarro, March 27, 2026
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4 min read
A display indicating a detected weapon is pictured on an Evolv weapons detection system in New York City.
A display indicating a detected weapon is pictured on an Evolv AI weapons detection system in New York City, on March 28, 2024. Lawmakers in Georgia are weighing a bill that would require all public schools to have weapons-detection systems or metal detectors at building entrances. While supporters say the systems make schools safer, critics say the technology has limitations.
Barry Williams/New York Daily News via TNS
School Climate & Safety States Push AI Weapons Detection as Part of School Safety
Three states are considering whether to require weapons-detection systems at school entrances.
Evie Blad, March 26, 2026
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5 min read