Junk food may soon be hard to buy at American public schools as the U.S. government readies new rules requiring healthier foods to be sold beyond the cafeteria – a move most parents support, according to a poll released on Thursday. View Full Article

Arlington, Va. — The National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE) awarded grants to seven state boards of education to develop and implement policies to improve school nutrition. Connecticut, Ohio, and West Virginia will each receive $15,000 over three-years, while Arkansas, Kentucky, Michigan, and North Carolina will each receive $6,000, two-year awards to continue [...]

ARIZONA STATE BOARD GIVEN AUTHORITY TO OK MASTERY-BASED PROGRAMS — The Arizona State Board of Education can now approve competency-based college- and career-readiness programs. A new education reform law allows students in 7th through 12th grades to receive credit based on subject mastery instead of meeting the traditional seat time requirements. The new law is an extension [...]

Longtime NASBE Publications Director David Kysilko was named the organization’s first-ever Chief Knowledge Officer. View Full Article

Before choosing to restrict the use of social and mobile tools in schools, policymakers and education leaders have to consider the negative impact such restrictions will have on learning. That’s the premise of a new policy report released jointly this week by more than a dozen prominent education associations and advocacy groups (including NASBE). View Full Article

Did you know New Teacher Center is a resource for policymakers and state boards of education? Recognizing the importance of comprehensive teacher induction, the National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE) recently partnered with NTC to develop a discussion guide and webinar for state boards of education and policymakers about new teacher induction. View Full Article

Arlington, Va. — The National Association of State Boards of Education named David Kysilko the organization’s first Chief Knowledge Officer. Kysilko has been NASBE’s Director of Publications for 20 years and is founder and editor of NASBE’s journal, The State Education Standard, as well as many other association publications. In his new role, Kysilko will [...]

UTAH STATE BOARD INCUMBENTS WILL NO LONGER GET NOMINATION PREFERENCE — The practice that gives Utah State Board of Education members seeking reelection an automatic pass for nomination is coming to an end. Instead, sitting board members must first be approved by the nominee selection committee that vets all other prospective board contestants before nominations are approved by the governor. [...]

NASBE Senior Communications Manager Steve Berlin stresses the importance of independent state boards that make decisions based on long-term successes.

NASBE recently submitted written testimony to the Chairman and Ranking Member of the House Appropriations Committee regarding President Obama’s FY2013 budget proposal.