News – Politics – Opinion – Podcasts
Ann Marie Banfield 
Many of us who research public education know that teacher morale is at an all-time low. Most teachers understand what a strong curriculum looks like, how to teach content effectively, and how to manage a classroom. But today’s classroom looks very different. Curriculum has been watered down, teachers are told to “facilitate” rather than teach, … Read more
Many districts in New Hampshire have not elevated math education in our public schools.
Several parents in Pelham have reached out to me about a newly elected school board member who ran on a platform of improving public schools. Pelham students have been struggling academically for years, and teacher retention continues to be an ongoing issue. I know this personally—former teachers have contacted me directly to describe the poor … Read more
Back in the 1990s, schools used a mental health screening tool called TeenScreen. Most people didn’t realize these screenings often produced false positives—flagging children for mental health problems when none existed. Today, with the rise of the Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS-B) in public schools, the focus on children’s mental health has only grown. But … Read more
This week the Executive Council unanimously approved Governor Ayotte’s nomination to Commissioner of Education in New Hampshire. Caitlin Davis may not be a name that most people are familiar with. Unlike Frank Edelblut who will be vacating the office, Davis has a different vision for her role as Commissioner. Edelblut ran for Governor in New … Read more
Sadly, Governor Ayotte vetoed some important Bills including HB446. HB446 would have required parental consent when their child is given the CDC’s Youth Risk Behavior Survey in school. New Hampshire already has a law that requires parental consent when their children take a non-academic survey in school. There is ONE exception, and that is the … Read more
Public schools are fully engaged in mental health treatment in New Hampshire’s schools. But does any of this actually help children? We now task school counselors and teachers with assessing and treating a child’s mental health while they attend school. There have been numerous problems with this initiative in our schools. We’ve found that some … Read more
I connected the dots on The Learning Initiative here: Snake Oil Coming from New Hampshire’s Learning Initiative. As you can see, this organization is focused on pushing failed fads on our public schools. If Competency-Based Education was so successful, why are private and parochial schools so reluctant to adopt it? Perhaps because they recognize that … Read more
Residents in Rochester are growing concerned that the Rochester School Board hired former Superintendent Tom Ambrose. Ambrose just resigned from the Sanborn school district after parents and residents demanded his resignation. Ambrose resigned after a student abuse scandal that involved a special education teacher. The former teacher was accused of abusing kindergarten through 2nd grade … Read more
This is the conclusion from Lucy Foulkes, who at one time, believed bringing mental health therapies and services into the schools would help students. She is now explaining why mental health services in the schools, are not working: The reality is more sobering. Researchers have now run many studies testing the impact of universal school … Read more
After years of bullying reported by parents in Seabrook, the problem will not go away until Seabrook residents fork over more money in taxes. That’s the message coming from some of the school board members and administrators. When parents have spoken before the school board about their children who’ve been bullied in school, some board … Read more
On May 6, 2025, Jenny O’Higgins, and her colleague at the Department of Health and Human Services, testified at a public hearing on HB446. Their testimony can be accessed here at 2:35:00. As you will hear at the beginning of their testimony, Ms. O’Higgins stated that she was there on behalf of DHHS to oppose HB446. You can … Read more
Dear Mayor Ruais, Superintendent Gillis, and Members of the Board of School Committee, My name is Ann Marie Banfield, and I am a parental rights advocate in New Hampshire focused on excellence in education. Today I am writing to you regarding the Power and Privilege DEI assignment given to students at McLaughlin Middle School. After reviewing the questions on … Read more
There is a big shake up now that President Trump decided that pushing Marxism through the public schools and colleges, is no longer acceptable when they use public funds. The call to end DEI in colleges and schools across the country has some people upset. (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) Equity means taking resources or materials … Read more
The Manchester schools have been struggling to provide students with the most basic education. It’s sad to watch, but no one seems to care about making sure these kids get a quality education. Now we find out that they are continuing down the path of failure by pushing the WOKE agenda on students, instead of … Read more
President Trump issued an Executive Order ending the era of Obama discipline policies in public schools. In the EO, you will see how Obama pressured schools (by withholding federal funds) so his policies would be implemented in public schools: *In 2014, the Obama Administration issued guidance pressuring schools (including with threatened loss of federal funding) … Read more
SAU16/Exeter school district in New Hampshire has been going full force in their effort to indoctrinate students in WOKE ideology. Since they hired former Superintendent David Ryan, the district has been engulfed in pushing all of the WOKE ideology on students. Now that he’s left the district for SAU92/Hinsdale, there really hasn’t been any big … Read more
To be honest, there is no real online vendor today that protects your child’s personal data that they collect. When you read their privacy statement, it will sound like your child’s personal information is secure, but they won’t tell you that their data is not secure. Many kids in school use I-Ready. I-Ready comes with … Read more
Seabrook administrators have been failing their students for several years now. Parents are so desperate, they are asking for media attention. I sent this to a few media outlets in New Hampshire: Dear Media Reporters : I am writing to you today as a parent advocate in New Hampshire. I’ve been advocating on behalf of … Read more
More examples of Social and Emotional Learning are in the school classroom now. Here is a psychological exercise given to middle school students in Seabrook by a health teacher. Normally, these kinds of exercises are given to individuals after they’ve been assessed by a mental health professional, not in Seabrook schools. They just hand mental … Read more