School Me

For more than 30 years, schools, hospitals, and places of worship have been considered "sensitive locations" — spaces protected from immigration enforcement. But recently, President Trump has moved to strip away those protections, opening the door for ICE to enter campuses and target families. Now, a coalition of educator unions, community organizations, and families has come together to fight back. Our guest is Karen Tumlin, Founder and Director of the Justice Action Center, and one of the attorneys leading the PCUN v. Noem lawsuit, which seeks to restore these decades-old protections and defend every student’s right to learn without fear.

Jennifer Albert Mann joins the show to discuss her book "Shift Happens, The History of Labor in the United States," a labor history book for teens and young adults. Shift Happens was the September young adult book recommendation on NEA’s Read Across America Calendar, under the theme “invite transformation.”

Jacqueline B. Toner is a trained clinical psychologist and author of more than 10 books for young readers, including True or False? The Science of Perception, Misinformation, and Disinformation. Her book is an NEA Read Across America-recommended book for middle-grade students that teaches them about the brain in order to help them recognize misinformation and disinformation. In a world where false claims can spread faster than ever, how can we help kids build the skills they need to sort fact from fiction?

Our two part series on billionaires and public education continues. Today, we’re zooming in on the rise of new, well-funded activist groups targeting school boards, banning books, and attacking everything from diversity initiatives to trans student rights. Who’s behind groups like Moms for Liberty and Parents Defending Education? What is “dark money,” and how does it quietly reshape local and national education policy? And who is Leonard Leo, and why is he so influential in this fight? Alyssa Bowen, deputy executive director of True North Research and the director of True North’s Equality Project, explains.

Have you ever wondered why the rich and powerful seem to have so many opinions about public education, especially when neither they nor their children have attended public schools? This is the first of a two-part series exploring how the rich and powerful are cashing out on public education. Today, we’re looking at the big picture: the historical, decades-long agenda by wealthy donors and corporate interests to privatize schools, weaken unions, and limit what educators can teach. Our guest is Lisa Graves, founder and Executive Director of True North Research.

We’re discussing a critical issue facing future educators: how they are compensated—or rather, not compensated—for their student teaching assignments. Hannah St. Clair, Chair of NEA’s Aspiring Educators program, has been deeply involved in the movement to secure paid student teaching, and she’s joining the show to break down why this issue matters, what progress has been made, and how educators and allies can continue pushing for change.

Medicaid is a lifeline for millions of Americans, including students, families, and school employees. But right now, it’s under serious threat. New proposals in Congress aim to slash Medicaid funding, and the consequences could be devastating. Even for those of us with private, employer-provided healthcare, cutting Medicaid makes your healthcare more expensive and harder to access. Cynthia Blankenship, NEA’s senior policy advisor for health policy and benefits, joins the show to explain what these proposed cuts mean, how they could impact students and schools, and what educators can do to help protect Medicaid at the state and national level.

Schools are meant to be safe spaces for all students, but what happens when immigration enforcement reaches the classroom or college campus? Alice O’Brien and Lubna Alam from NEA’s legal team join the show to help educators navigate the complex legal waters of the Trump administration's immigration policies and remind them of their rights to protect every student, regardless of immigration status.

The Trump administration is waging war against diversity, equity, and inclusion. But what does that mean for educators when it comes to discussing race, equity, and history in the classroom? How can schools continue to foster inclusive learning environments despite these restrictions? Alice O’Brien, general counsel for the National Education Association, walks through your rights, risks, and opportunities to push back against anti-equality policies and fear tactics.

With the rise of social media and constant online communication, bullying is affecting students in new, pervasive ways, and schools are often on the front lines of addressing it. Madeline Micou, a middle school counselor with over two decades of experience in education, shares her insights on the realities of cyberbullying, how it differs from traditional bullying, and what educators and families can do to combat it effectively.