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Why schools can’t hire enough good teachers

Patrick Gleeson Education

You've probably read about the awful teacher shortage in this country. School districts just can't get enough good teachers. According to the nonpartisan Learning Policy Institute, for example, in the 2017-18 school year there was a shortage of 110,000 qualified teachers. That sounds pretty bad — but when you consider this is a shortage of 110,000 teachers out of 3.8 million — it begins to appear that the teacher shortage may be exaggerated. Overall, in fact, there is a higher percentage of unfilled U.S. jobs in almost every area of science, technology, engineering and mathematics than in education. So how bad is it, really?

Bail reform efforts face resistance

Michelle R. Matisons Law Enforcement, Defense & Security

The U.S. bail bonds industry is presented as a public safety measure and billed as a supportive aid for incarcerated individuals. While there’s a concerted effort to reform the bail system, industry losses undermine the reformer spirit by maintaining the status quo in other ways. Can jails operate without bail? Some say yes, while others say no. Tasked with reducing prison populations, which boomed under mass incarceration policies, criminal justice reformers have targeted the bail bonds industry with mixed results. Some states have achieved a level of bail reform, placing the bonds industry in a defensive posture.

Updates for the 2019-20 hunting season in Texas

John McAdams Recreation & Leisure

Though it still feels like summer in most of Texas, there’s a light at the end of the tunnel and hunting season is getting closer. Hunting and fishing licenses for the 2019-20 season went on sale on Aug. 15, and the new license year started on Sept. 1. Texas Parks and Wildlife also recently released its Outdoor Annual Hunting, Fishing, and Boating Regulations, which contain a number of interesting updates.

UK airports introducing new scanners to speed up security screening

Matt Falcus Transportation Technology & Automotive

Passing through security bag screening can quickly sour the joy of travel. Arriving at the scanner usually requires removing items of clothing and unpacking items from the bags you spent so long carefully packing. Now, U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced that new scanners, which have the potential to reduce the stress of screening and the time it takes, would be rolled out across the country’s airports over the next few years. One of the major benefits of the new scanners is in removing the need to remove liquids from luggage.

Exploring the growing trend of K-12 online learning

Bambi Majumdar Education

The 2019-20 school year in Tennessee started with hundreds of students across the state going back to school virtually. The state’s new online school, the Tennessee Connections Academy, launched recently and is offering K-12 children new options for learning. Tennessee is not the only state to see a surge in K-12 online learning. Education Week reports that over 3 million K-12 students in the U.S. opt for online classes, and the number is growing every day.

Celebrate American workers this Labor Day

D. Albert Brannen Business Management, Services & Risk Management

Along with our fellow Americans, we should stop this Labor Day to reflect and honor the workers who make America great. To fully appreciate the significance of this celebration of American workers, we should understand the history of Labor Day. Yes, it has become little more than a day off for most Americans. It signals the end of summer and, in the past, it even signaled the beginning of a new school year. However, Labor Day has a much deeper and richer "back story."

Don’t get shot: Dealing with police during a traffic stop

Eric Lamberson Law Enforcement, Defense & Security

On March 6, 2014, in Opelika, Alabama, Air Force Airman 1st Class Michael Davidson was travelling on Interstate 85 headed to his next duty assignment at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in North Carolina. While driving through Opelika, Davidson (who was driving an SUV) lightly sideswiped a tractor-trailer. Both drivers pulled over to report the accident. When the accident call came in, Officer Hancock quickly arrived at the scene and pulled up behind the two vehicles just as they both exited the roadway. The police dashcam shows Airman Davidson attempting to get out of his vehicle; however, because he had pulled his SUV off the road shoulder, the vehicle was tilted slightly to the right.

The problem with heritage railroads

Lucy Wallwork Transportation Technology & Automotive

I have always thought of heritage railways, or "preserved railways," as a peculiarly British phenomenon. But they are perhaps an affection that has come to America, too. These nostalgic locomotives might seem harmless, but might they be encouraging an image of railways as a ghost from the past rather than as the future of sustainable transport? Heritage railways may make a fun family day out. But here is the problem. In the U.K., heritage railways are booming, while investment in new rail infrastructure has crippled key transport routes and caused the country to fall far behind the rest of Europe.

With Hurricane Dorian on the way, it’s imperative to be prepared

Damon Sayles Facilities & Grounds

As it continues toward the southeast coast of the United States, Hurricane Dorian has become national news. And the closer it gets to the Florida coast, the scarier it becomes. According to the National Hurricane Center, Dorian could threaten the Bahamas and then hit Florida during Labor Day weekend. Per forecasting, Dorian is expected to strengthen to a Category 3 hurricane. Central Florida could be a major target, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has declared a State of Emergency.

CFOs reveal their employees’ most outrageous expense report submissions

Terri Williams Business Management, Services & Risk Management

If it's your job to monitor and approve expense report submissions, you may have noticed an uptick in employees trying to submit inappropriate requests. According to a recent survey by Robert Half Management Resources, 56% of chief financial officers have observed an increase in unsuitable expense report submissions during the last three years. There are at least two factors contributing to the rise in inappropriate expense report submissions.

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