News – Politics – Opinion – Podcasts
National test scores are out for our K-12 students, and the results – again – are not good. The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) shows that in 2024, barely half of high school seniors had a basic proficiency or better in math, and a third scored “below basic” in reading. This trend of declining … Read more
This week on The NE Take, New Hampshire House Majority Leader Jason Osborne gives a preview of what to expect for the fall session, with topics ranging from education funding, school choice, judicial reform, and economic development. Speakers’ opinions are their own and may not represent those of Grok Media, LLC, GraniteGrok.com, its sponsors, readers, … Read more
Harjinder Singh could barely read or speak English, but he had an excuse. He wasn’t from here, entered the nation illegally, where Democrats provided a work permit and CDL licenses in two states, to drive trucks, which ended in the unnecessary deaths of three people in Florida. Democrat fingerprints are all over this “crime” as … Read more
Andru Volinsky’s op-ed about Claremont’s financial crisis assumes a premise that is flatly wrong.
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
Judging by the passion in the room, you might conclude that sports, not literacy, are the real core mission of public education.
As I watch the Claremont school board hold hearings about its current challenges, a few thoughts occur to me over and over again.
Introduction: A System in Survival Mode Parents in the Claremont School District (SAU6) are living through a crisis that can no longer be brushed aside as a temporary budget hiccup. The district is not merely facing a “tight year.” It is confronting a full-blown financial collapse brought on by years of mismanagement, structural deficits, and … Read more
In 2012, U.S. Army Master Sergeant Cedric King woke up from a coma in Afghanistan to discover that his legs had been amputated. Today, 8 years later, Cedric says if given the chance, he’d do it all over again. You’ll hear his story of finding tremendous growth in tragedy by relinquishing control and expectations. In … Read more
EdOpt has New Hampshire’s options! Jody Underwood, Ph.D of EdOpt.org breaks down their work to help New Hampshire families find the right school and education choices for their children, from homeschool to so much more. Speakers’ opinions are their own and may not represent those of Grok Media, LLC, GraniteGrok.com, its sponsors, readers, authors, or … Read more
I’m so old that I can recall how Europeans used to frown over America’s inhibitions regarding sexuality. Sadly, such a critique is no longer voiced. My memory was jolted from a brief review in John Stormer’s 1998 best seller, None Dare Call It Education. Although experienced by those of my age set, Stormer’s concise listing … Read more
The financial website Wallet Hub just came out with state rankings for public education, and Vermont came in overall 19th out of the fifty states. Pretty “meh” on the surface. But the overall score was based on components of outcomes and safety, and purely on the outcomes side, Vermont ranks 25th. That’s more like a … Read more
In the comments on a recent post, someone expressed the commonly held (and much-applauded) attitude that, It’s the kids in the classrooms that matter here.. It’s about the life of the child and the parents that are trying to give this child a good life with opportunity — this is the goal here. But this … Read more
No one’s left to defend educational freedom, except for a motley group of independent, unfunded homeschoolers teaching their kids at home. Given that they broke free of centralized control and approvals of their home programs, many have a healthy mistrust of state control over education. Most folks never read, or understood, history. They simply trust … Read more
The New Hampshire Supreme Court for the first time ordered the state to spend a minimum amount of money—$7,356.01 per pupil—to educate public school students. The state therefore lost this landmark school funding case, Contoocook Valley School District v. State, as it had tried to avoid such a decree. But a closer read suggests that ConVal … Read more
Mark Twain is supposed to have said, “Never argue with an idiot, they will only drag you down to their level and beat you with experience.” That’s how I feel about the New Hampshire Supreme Court’s decision on the ConVal case (and the Claremont cases, for that matter). Their reasoning is hard to follow, … Read more
The so-described education reform law, Act 73, is in effect. Its first order of business, creating a Vermont Redistricting Task Force, is done, and now said Task Force is getting down to its task of drawing up at least three maps of new mega-school districts for the legislature to consider next year, scrapping our current … Read more
(Manch Talk 07/09/25) Special guest, founder and President of EdOpt, Jody Underwood of Croydon, joins Carla Gericke to discuss the myriad of education options available in the Free State of New Hampshire. Learn more about how to find schools, compare programs, and discover resources for your child’s success. Speakers’ opinions are their own and may … Read more
Rebuild New Hampshire Executive Director Melissa Blasek joins me to deliver an after-action report on the State budget, which is now law. We’ve got a lot of good news, and a bit of bad, and ugly, so join us for an HB2 round-up, a few laughs, some eyerolls, and a breakdown of what got dragged … Read more
Goal to expand Classical education opportunity continues ACTA Classical Schools Foundation, a private charitable organization established early this year to encourage new schools offering classical education, has designated Holy Family Academy, a private academy located in Manchester, New Hampshire, as its second “Model School.” The Foundation determined that Holy Family Academy demonstrates how private schools … Read more