Podcasts about victoryxr

Hello everyone.  Welcome to another exciting episode of VR in Education, where we dive deep into virtual reality for teaching and learning.  Today we have the pleasure of talking Steve Grubbs CEO of VictoryXR.  Steve is no stranger to this podcast as he was on the show years ago for episode Episode 57, which was Dec. 2020,  where we talked about how 3d spatial platforms were superior for learning than Zoom.  Steve is here this time to talk about a new feature that VictoryXR is rolling out to members, AI avatars.

The Bridging to Resilience conference is about coming together with educators, social workers, health care professionals, religious communities, and other helping professionals to share conversations, ideas, strategies, tools, and connections to help build resilience and heal trauma in our own communities. November 6-8 in Wichita, Kansas. Register to attend this conference today! Matt Chaussee is the CEO of Be More Colorful, a Midwest-based immersive media production studio whose platform, CareerViewXR, is rapidly gaining national attention. Matt, along with his wife (and company owner) Katie, lead an innovative team of creatives who are laser focused on making career exploration affordable, accessible, and fun! CareerViewXR provides students and adult career seekers across the country with an unprecedented opportunity to experience real-world careers through virtual reality technology. Recently selected from a field of over 2,000 applicants to be one of 33 Semifinalists for the prestigious Yass Prize, Matt will discuss the significance of the award, and how he sees tools like CareerViewXR transforming how we guide students on their educational journey.Please add questions that we would ask here, and you can add anything that you would like to add as well.  STOP Principles of the Yass Prize Help us connect with students in new and different ways.  How do we use tried and true strategies to help us change things True transformation is going beyond the books.  How do we all learn best?  Transformation is change with a purpose.  Yass Prize celebrates innovation in education, with over 2000 applicants Career Exploration - CareerViewXR - How do we challenge others to become better?  Vote in the Yass Prize Other companies as the 32 semi-finalists: are ASU Preparatory Global, Burbella Learning Academy, CompSci High, Create Conservatory, Indi ED, Sora Schools, Verdi EcoSchool, and VictoryXR. CareerViewXR - Our focus is really on taking that tried and true real job experience to help kids have real-life experiences - immersive media, showing what that real work is like. Virtual reality and virtual tours.  Bricklayer's experience - I wanna try that bricklayer's experience in 4th grade.  Most of the time an adult's pathways really never gave them an opportunity on which pathway they could choose.  There are so many careers out there.  It doesn't have to be interesting or exciting, it has to be authentic to someone at the right time.  Helping kids see the excitement of what jobs could be.

It's YOUR time to #EdUp In this episode, YOUR guest is Daniel Coyle, Lead Software Engineer at VictoryXR YOUR cohost is Elvin Freytes, Cofounder of EdUp YOUR host is Dr. Joe Sallustio & YOUR sponsor is Commencement: The Beginning of a New Era In Higher Education! What does it sound & look like to podcast in the metaverse? How can faculty use VictoryXR to increase classroom engagement? Why does the metaverse have so much potential to improve educational outcomes? Listen in to #EdUp! Thank YOU so much for tuning in. Join us on the next episode for YOUR time to EdUp! Connect with YOUR EdUp Team - Elvin Freytes & Dr. Joe Sallustio ● Join YOUR EdUp community at The EdUp Experience! We make education YOUR business! --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/edup/message

We welcome YOU back to America's leading higher education podcast, The EdUp Experience! It's YOUR time to #EdUp In this episode, YOUR guest is Steve Grubbs, CEO & Cofounder of VictoryXR YOUR cohost is Erika Liodice, Executive Director at the Alliance for Innovation & Transformation YOUR host is Dr. Joe Sallustio & YOUR sponsors are Ellucian LIVE 2023 & Commencement: The Beginning of a New Era In Higher Education! How should Higher Ed integrate A.I. in the curriculum? What's the latest game changing development in AI? What does Steve see as the future of Higher Ed? Listen in to #EdUp! Thank YOU so much for tuning in. Join us on the next episode for YOUR time to EdUp! Connect with YOUR EdUp Team - Elvin Freytes & Dr. Joe Sallustio ● Join YOUR EdUp community at The EdUp Experience! We make education YOUR business! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/edup/message

One of the most exciting and impactful opportunities available to colleges and universities now is the rapid rise of remote and online learning through Metaversities - higher education in the Metaverse. Join us for our upcoming Leading Edge Thinking in Higher Ed webinar on February 23rd at 12:00 noon ET to learn more about exactly what the Metaverse is and how college leaders are taking advantage of this technology to improve the educational experience for their students and faculty. VictoryXR CEO, Steve Grubbs will lead a panel discussion with higher ed professionals who are using the Metaverse to enhance their students' educational experiences. In this IngenioUs mini episode, Steve Grubbs shares a sneak peak into the upcoming webinar including what attendees can expect to learn. Register here for the webinar. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/chelip/message

Yavapai College has its eyes set on the future of education by teaching classes in the metaverse. ‘Metaversity', as it is being called, is an immersive way for students to learn through virtual and augmented reality. The College landed a grant with Meta and will partner with VictoryXR, a company specializing in virtual reality education. The grant provides Yavapai College with 25 Meta Quest 2 headsets to be used by students and instructors. The college will also have ten branded classrooms at VictoryXR's Virtual Academy. In addition, YC faculty and staff will receive training from VictoryXR. “Yavapai College is poised... For the written story, read here >> https://www.signalsaz.com/articles/yavapai-college-lands-grant-with-victoryxr-to-teach-in-metaverse/Follow the CAST11 Podcast Network on Facebook at: https://Facebook.com/CAST11AZFollow Cast11 Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/cast11_podcast_network

Episode Summary1) Her STEM Story started with her brother's disability and her wanting to understand it and try to find a way to assist in making his life easier. 2) She has been able to bring her STEM education and her imaginative and creative nature to her work.3) She has taught high school and at the collegiate level. She loves working with students to understand how the brain works. It is her life's work. 4) She has been able to pair Maker Spaces and Chemistry together and now the Metaverse and Science together. 5) Her work with the Metaverse and VR is inspiring others throughout the country and is indeed inspiring the next generation of STEM professionals to follow in her footsteps. Dr. Muhsinah Morris BioMuhsinah L. Holmes Morris, Ph.D., is the academic program director and assistant professor of chemistry. Morris received a B.S. in chemistry from Clark Atlanta University with honors (cum laude) and an M.S. and Ph.D. in chemistry from Emory University (biomolecular division). Her research encompasses working in the Morehouse Makerspace Exploration Center, 3D Printing Specialized Laboratory Equipment for those with Autism and other Developmental Disorders. She is the PI of the Morris Research and Innovation Group, where they research and develop technologically innovative solutions for those with autism. Dr. Morris won the 2021 Vulcan Teaching Award of Excellence and launched her Advanced Inorganic Chemistry course in virtual reality in the spring of 2021 in the digital twin campus created by VictoryXR on the Engage Platform. She is a pioneer in this space as the chemistry content in VR is limited to non-existent. Wife to a gamer and mom to five sons, she is an inventive autism mom, a volunteer advocacy ambassador, National Community Advisory Council member, and grant review committee member for Autism Speaks. Her purpose in life is to create inclusivity in STEAAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, agriculture, and math). She believes that VR provides a pathway for creating that inclusion through immersive education, vocational rehabilitation services, and therapeutic experiences.Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/drmuhsinahmorrisWebsite: unitethemetaverse.com Buzzsprout - Let's get your podcast launched! Start for FREEDisclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Support the showYou can find out more information about Dr. Toshia here:https://www.drtoshia.comSTEMming in Stilettos Youtube Channel: https://youtu.be/xAc25J7UH9A

Steve Grubbs is the founder of VictoryXR, VictoryStore.com, ChalkBites, and Victory Enterprises. He is a proud member of the Young Presidents' Organization (YPO). Early in his life, Steve served as Chairman of the House Education Committee in the Iowa House of Representatives and passed the largest technology funding bill in state history. Today, he's working to create a place for a virtual reality curriculum in schools. Steve has degrees in business and law from the University of Iowa. Connecting with SteveLinkedInA Quote From This Episode"This generation of students expects an immersive learning environment...a metaversity is the combination of the metaverse and university."ResourcesVideo: What is a metaversity?Video: Experience you college in VRVideo: Morehouse CollegeConnect with Scott AllenWebsiteAbout The International Leadership Association (ILA)The ILA was created in 1999 to bring together professionals interested in the study, practice, and teaching of leadership. 

Education can be cheaper, more productive, and more immersive. VictoryXR is utilizing technology to expand the educational landscape. What is the Metaverse? That isn't the question we want to answer. What problems are being solved? That is a question worth answering. Understanding the future by understanding the problems being solved. Speaking with Amal Dorai, the partner at leading venture firm Anorak Ventures. Learn more about Avory https://www.avory.xyz/ _______ Disclaimer Avory & Co. is a Registered Investment Adviser. This platform is solely for informational purposes. Advisory services are only offered to clients or prospective clients where Avory & Co. and its representatives are properly licensed or exempt from licensure. Past performance is no guarantee of future returns. Investing involves risk and possible loss of principal capital. No advice may be rendered by Avory & Co. unless a client service agreement is in place. listeners and viewers are encouraged to seek advice from a qualified tax, legal, or investment adviser to determine whether any information presented may be suitable for their specific situation. Past performance is not indicative of future performance. Likes” are not intended to be endorsements of our firm, our advisors or our services. Please be aware that while we monitor comments and “likes” left on this page, we do not endorse or necessarily share the same opinions expressed by site users. While we appreciate your comments and feedback, please be aware that any form of testimony from current or past clients about their experience with our firm is strictly forbidden under current securities laws. Please honor our request to limit your posts to industry-related educational information and comments. Third-party rankings and recognitions are no guarantee of future investment success and do not ensure that a client or prospective client will experience a higher level of performance or results. These ratings should not be construed as an endorsement of the advisor by any client nor are they representative of any one client's evaluation. Please reach out to Houston Hess our head of Compliance and Operations for any further details. Find more here https://www.avory.xyz/disclaimer-page #InsideScoop #Podcast #Metaverse #VR

Imagine being able to expand a human heart to 6 feet tall and climb inside to explore the ventricles or how about learning Paleontology, whilst in an immersive dinosaur world riding a Triceratops. Or even learning about Astronomy whilst on board a space craft, with your teacher and class mates in full virtual reality. Well this is all already possible right now thanks to VictoryXR who've built exactly these products and many more. We dive into this fully on this week's episode of the Welcome to the Metaverse Podcast. VictoryXR are gamifying education, massively increasing access and in doing so are building out digital twin Universities called Metaversities with the help of Meta, previously Facebook of course. I loved this chat - A really key, clear, undisputable use case for the metaverse / web3 and a fascinating chat. Our guest this week is CEO and Co-founder of VictoryXR, Steve Grubbs. (who by the way if you mention this podcast, will accept your request on LinkedIn) --- Grab you 30% of Realm Academy - just use the code FRANKS30 at checkout! - click here This show is brought to you by Everyrealm, who are your portal to the metaverse. If you want to level up quick and learn about : Metaverse Foundations, Intro to Blockchain and Advanced Topics in Web - taught by leaders at top companies in the industry like Ledger, The Sandbox & Dragonfly Capital, then Realm Academy is the place to do it. The code you need is FRANKS30 (F-R-A-N-K-S no. 30) - just enter it at checkout for 30% off, absolute no brainer, grab it quick! Join 10s of 1000s of others who've already made their way to the metaverse. Search ‘Realm Academy' or click the link above Check out more at https://everyrealm.com and join their industry newsletter here : https://everyrealm.substack.com/ --- VictoryXR Links : Steve Grubbs LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/steve-grubbs-4708825/ VictoryXR Website : https://www.victoryxr.com/ VictoryXR Twitter : https://twitter.com/VictoryXR Steve Grubbs Twitter : https://twitter.com/SteveGrubbsVXR ======================= Everyrealm's Links Realm Academy : https://everyrealm.com/realm-academy - 'FRANKS30' at checkout for 30% OFF! Twitter : https://www.twitter.com/everyrealm Discord : discord.gg/everyrealm Newsletter : https://everyrealm.substack.com/ Search 'Everyrealm' for more ======================= I always love to hear from you, say hello on the following links! : Twitter : https://twitter.com/luke_franks LinkedIn : Search Luke Franks

Our special guest this week on Empowering Homeschool Conversations will be Kathleen Ouellette, M.Ed., veteran homeschool mom, and Victory XR Homeschool Program Manager. Kathleen will share with us about "Integrating Virtual Reality into Your Homeschool"Watch the full broadcast on YouTube at https://youtu.be/qCld4IlMH88 This episode of Empowering Homeschool Conversations was funded by viewers like you. To learn how you can support the nonprofit work of SPED Homeschool and this broadcast, visit https://spedhomeschool.com/donate/To connect with Kathleen from VictoryXR visit https://www.victoryxr.com/ and to specifically see the homeschool bundles offered by VictoryXR, use this link https://www.victoryxr.com/vr-homeschool-education-solutions/ To find out more about SPED Homeschool, visit our website at https://spedhomeschool.com/ Check out our most recent articles on SPED Homeschool at https://spedhomeschool.com/articles/ Click here to power up your at home teaching: https://www.empoweredhomeschool.org/ #edtech #virtualreality #VRlearning

On Episode 18 of The Felix Hartmann Show, we sit down with Steve Grubbs, the CEO at VictoryXR. He tells the story of how him and his team became the global leader in building Metaverse Universities. SUBSCRIBE & SHARE Hartmann Capital Website: https://hartmanncapital.com EMAIL / COLLAB: info@hartmanncapital.com Steve's Links: Twitter: https://mobile.twitter.com/stevegrubbsvxr LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/steve-grubbs-4708825/ VictoryXR Links: Website: https://www.victoryxr.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/DecentralGames YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/VictoryXR1/ Felix's Social: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/felix_hartmann Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/felixohartmann LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/felixohartmann TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@felix_hartmann --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/felix-o-hartmann/support

This week the hosts are joined by Steve Grubbs, founder and CEO, VictoryXR!Thank you to our sponsors, Virbela & Zappar!Don't forget to like, share, and follow for more! Follow us on all socials @ThisWeekInXR! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

When students are too intimidated to write an email to their professor, it can lead them not to ask for help, Lumen Learning Chief Academic Officer David Wiley says on this week's episode of Cutting EDge. The National Student Clearinghouse's Tara Conrad joins the podcast to talk about the nonprofit's venture into blockchain. In the news: Experts explained a potential mismatch between the cybersecurity workforce and current academic options at “Hack the Capitol” last week. https://edscoop.com/universities-cyber-workforce/ VR company VictoryXR is working with universities on creating immersive learning experiences, terming them “metaversities.” https://edscoop.com/morehouse-college-vr-metaverse/ The University of Arkansas hired its first system-wide chief information security officer to identify cybersecurity threats across 22 campuses, divisions and units. https://edscoop.com/university-of-arkansas-ciso/ Hear more from the higher education information technology community every two weeks on the Cutting EDge podcast. Listen here. https://edscoop.com/cutting-edge-podcast/

Imagine a world where students can sail on a WWII Battleship, study the inner details of a cadaver, and go for a spacewalk, all while never leaving the comfort of their classroom, workplace, or home. Thanks to the connected technologies of AR, VR, and 5G available now, this type of learning is no longer a far-off dream, it's happening now. The cross-benefits of seamlessly being able to bring the world to the classroom, and the classroom to any part of the world are crucial in advancing society forward by training the minds of our youth in ways that were never before possible.     Join us as we kick off Season Three of The Restless ones with the visionary Steve Grubbs, Founder, and CEO of VictoryXR who is utilizing his passion for education and technology to change the way we all learn. The latest developments in low-latency 5G connectivity, graphics technologies, and haptics have allowed Steve and the company to explore the key insight that engagement impacts the speed and way the brain interacts and processes information. At VictoryXR Metaversities, lesson plans no longer come to life on paper and whiteboards, instead, students are exposed to a 360 field of learning to stimulate their minds. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Imagine a world where students can sail on a WWII Battleship, study the inner details of a cadaver, and go for a spacewalk, all while never leaving the comfort of their classroom, workplace, or home. Thanks to the connected technologies of AR, VR, and 5G available now, this type of learning is no longer a far-off dream, it’s happening now. The cross-benefits of seamlessly being able to bring the world to the classroom, and the classroom to any part of the world are crucial in advancing society forward by training the minds of our youth in ways that were never before possible. Join us as we kick off Season Three of The Restless ones with the visionary Steve Grubbs, Founder, and CEO of VictoryXR who is utilizing his passion for education and technology to change the way we all learn. The latest developments in low-latency 5G connectivity, graphics technologies, and haptics have allowed Steve and the company to explore the key insight that engagement impacts the speed and way the brain interacts and processes information. At VictoryXR Metaversities, lesson plans no longer come to life on paper and whiteboards, instead, students are exposed to a 360 field of learning to stimulate their minds.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Steve Grubbs is the founder and CEO of VictoryXR. After founding the company in 2016, Steve lead the VXR team to winning the Global Education Innovation of the Year award in 2021. Before founding VXR, Steve founded two other successful ventures. Steve served in the State of Iowa Legislator from 1991-1997, sitting as Chair of the House Education Committee. He holds a B.B.A. in Finance and J.D. from The University of Iowa.

Steve Grubbs is the founder of VictoryXR, an education metaverse company. Working with higher education and K-12, VXR is creating synchronous learning classrooms in all subject areas. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/myedtechlife/support

#virtualreality #experientialeducation #immersivelearning #futureofeducation The Future of Education is Experiential & Immersive which will be enabled by Virtual Reality Steve Grubbs is a serial entrepreneur and the founder of VictoryXR, VictoryStore.com, ChalkBites, and Victory Enterprises. Early in life, Steve served as Chairman of the House Education Committee in the Iowa House of Representatives and passed the largest technology funding bill in state history. More recently, he chaired the YPO Technology Network for two years. Today, Steve is working to create a place for a virtual reality curriculum in schools. He has degrees in business and law from the University of Iowa. VictoryXR is one of the world leaders in virtual reality educational product development. To date & they have created over 240 unique VR experiences spanning over 50 different learning units with educational partners like Carolina Biological and Oxford University. VictoryXR has been able to develop brand-new educational encounters for VR users across the globe. https://www.linkedin.com/in/steve-grubbs-4708825 https://www.victoryxr.com/

Dr. Morris is the Morehouse College's 2021 Winner of the Vulcan Teaching Award of Excellence who launched her Advanced Inorganic Chemistry course in Virtual Reality in Spring of 2021 in the digital twin campus created by VictoryXR on the Engage Platform. She is a pioneer in this space as the chemistry content in VR is limited to non-existent. She most recently became the Project Manager of the VR Project at Morehouse College. Her purpose in life is to create inclusivity in STEAAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, agriculture, and math). She believes that VR provides a pathway for creating that inclusion through immersive education, vocational rehabilitation services, and therapeutic experiences. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/myedtechlife/support

Steve Grubbs, the CEO of VictoryXR, joins the podcast to discuss his company's really exciting partnerships with Morehouse College and other institutions of higher learning to develop VR learning experiences, what teachers who are interested in VR can do to dip their toes in the virtual waters, why VR is a smart financial decision for school districts, and so much more!

Steve Grubbs is the CEO of VictoryXR, one of the world's leading companies in virtual reality educational products, having created over 240 unique virtual reality experiences. He's also the CEO of Victorystore.com, Chalkbites and Victory Enterprises. Steve is a YPO member and currently working to create a place for virtual reality curriculum in schools and…Continue reading ➞ Steve Grubbs, CEO and Serial Entrepreneur, Immersing Education into Virtual Reality – Episode 106The post Steve Grubbs, CEO and Serial Entrepreneur, Immersing Education into Virtual Reality – Episode 106 first appeared on Mike Malatesta.

Steve Grubbs is the founder of VictoryXR, one of the world's leading providers of AR and VR curriculum to schools. VictoryXR's frog dissection was recently recognized by HTC Viveport as the best education VR product in the world. Steve also founded Paradigm, a VR and Esports facility for corporate training and gaming. Steve is a recovering politician who left the world of politics 20 years ago to embrace entrepreneurship as his way to solve the world's problems. In this episode, Bob will be talking with Steve about his businesses and how he manages them. Steve will give some insights into how they do things in their VR space and how they engage their customers so they would come back more often. Let's dive in! WHAT YOU'LL LEARN FROM THIS EPISODE: How Steve manages different zones in the facility The cinema room experience and what demographics it attracts Why they chose LA Deadzone instead of Arizona Sunshine for their free-roam space Are they doing anything in mixed reality Prop tracking in their space Frog dissection app Steve created How does Steve land distribution deals Steve's experience in finding distributors Is Oculus Quest a game changer? VictoryXR: https://www.victoryxr.com/ Listen to PART 1 here: https://anchor.fm/bobcooney-vrdeepdive/episodes/EP67-Bob-Cooneys-Virtual-Reality-Deep-Dive---Steve-Grubbs-of-VictoryXR-Part-1-edsj5k

Steve Grubbs is the founder of VictoryXR, one of the world's leading providers of AR and VR curriculum to schools. VictoryXR's frog dissection was recently recognized by HTC Viveport as the best education VR product in the world. Steve also founded Paradigm, a VR and Esports facility for corporate training and gaming. Steve is a recovering politician who left the world of politics 20 years ago to embrace entrepreneurship as his way to solve the world's problems. In this episode, Bob will be talking with Steve about his businesses and how he manages them. Steve will give some insights into how they operate in their VR space and how they engage their customers so they would come back more often. Let's dive in! WHAT YOU'LL LEARN FROM THIS EPISODE: Steve's background on the businesses that he created Davenport's population and how Steve find's working in a small city Why double booths better revenue drivers and what is Steve does differently What type of games are offered in the double booths Steve's approach to food and beverage What indicators Steve saw that made him to bring in a liquor license The importance of group business Approaches to curriculum Steve talks about VR training modules market The technology and games Steve uses in their free-roam space VictoryXR: https://www.victoryxr.com/ Listen to PART 2 and 3 here: https://anchor.fm/bobcooney-vrdeepdive/episodes/P68-Bob-Cooneys-Virtual-Reality-Deep-Dive---Steve-Grubbs-of-VictoryXR-Part-2-edsj9n https://anchor.fm/bobcooney-vrdeepdive/episodes/EP69-Bob-Cooneys-Virtual-Reality-Deep-Dive---Steve-Grubbs-of-VictoryXR-Part-3-edsjcd

Steve Grubbs is the founder of VictoryXR, one of the world's leading providers of AR and VR curriculum to schools. VictoryXR's frog dissection was recently recognized by HTC Viveport as the best education VR product in the world. Steve also founded Paradigm, a VR and Esports facility for corporate training and gaming. Steve is a recovering politician who left the world of politics 20 years ago to embrace entrepreneurship as his way to solve the world's problems. In this episode, Bob will be talking with Steve about his businesses and how he manages them. Steve will give some insights into how they do things in their VR space and how they engage their customers so they would come back more often. Let's dive in! WHAT YOU'LL LEARN FROM THIS EPISODE: Promoting their educational product How Steve interacts with local school communities Challenges being the middle man Is the education building awareness of the entertainment What is a 100-seat arena and how much it costs Is eSports bringing revenue An internship deal Steve made with a local university and how it worked out Shout casting and eSports Where eSports fits in to the location-based entertainment How much did it cost Steve to build the whole facility Approaches to bring people in on the weekends VictoryXR: https://www.victoryxr.com/ Listen to PART 1 and 2 here: https://anchor.fm/bobcooney-vrdeepdive/episodes/EP67-Bob-Cooneys-Virtual-Reality-Deep-Dive---Steve-Grubbs-of-VictoryXR-Part-1-edsj5k https://anchor.fm/bobcooney-vrdeepdive/episodes/P68-Bob-Cooneys-Virtual-Reality-Deep-Dive---Steve-Grubbs-of-VictoryXR-Part-2-edsj9n

Good morning, you're listening to the Daily Apple, your source for the latest in Education News. I'm your host Jim Kent, the date is December 19, 2019. Before we get into the news of the day, I'd like to take a moment to thank our sponsor, VictoryXR. VXR's award-winning content, helps kids experience science and engineering in a way that they have never been able to before, while making sure to cover everything within the NextGen Science Standards, and they've made it accessible on every kind of VR headset you can think of. To find out more, check out VictoryXR.com But now for the news.Education Dive reports that The U.S. Department of Education is ending experiments that allowed participating colleges with competency-based education (CBE) programs to receive federal aid, according to an agency letter obtained by Education Dive.Launched in 2014, the experiments waived federal aid rules for some colleges with CBE programs, which allow students to complete coursework mostly at their own pace instead of on a fixed schedule. The aim was to collect data to inform policy decisions on CBE. Inside Higher Ed first reported the Ed Department was halting the experiments. The Ed Department notified affected colleges last month that the experimental sites initiative will end on June 30, 2020, though colleges that have active programs may be able to receive federal aid through 2021 to give students time to complete their studies.The agency is ending the experiments after it crafted new regulatory language that could affect CBE programs. Although the department has not yet issued final regulations, the proposed changes include a new system for disbursing federal aid for some CBE programs, according to the letter.  https://www.educationdive.com/news/ed-dept-ends-competency-based-education-experiments/569291/  According to Sup China, A high-profile Chinese charity program, created to empower low-income female students by offering them financial aid, has come under attack after people discovered that a notable percentage of its beneficiaries are boys.The practice was brought to light on December 17 when a Weibo user made a post accusing Spring Buds Plan (春蕾计划 chūnlěijìhuá), an education charity launched and managed by China Children and Teenagers Foundation (CCTF), of misusing donor money on boys, which goes against its promise to “help drop-out girls in impoverished areas return to schools,” as the charity states on its website.Responding to widespread backlash to its misuse of donor money, CCTF issued a statement (in Chinese) yesterday admitting to financing boys and apologizing for the confusion that it had caused. According to the statement, among the 1,267 high school students who received its financial aid lately, 453 of them are boys. CCTF explained that when it started seeking donations on online platforms, it intended to only help girls. But during the operation, the foundation changed its mind after local teachers told them that some boys from low-income families also needed support. https://supchina.com/2019/12/18/girls-only-education-charity-program-under-fire-for-financing-boys/Also in China, Xinhua reports that Chinese colleges and universities are required to formulate and issue regulations on online education enrollment, according to a guideline issued by the Ministry of Education Wednesday.The guideline requires colleges and universities to make decisions regarding the scale of online education enrollment in accordance with their development plan, conditions and capability.It also calls for strengthening examination management. Colleges and universities should establish an assessment and evaluation system for online education students, and strengthen examination discipline, the guideline reads. http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-12/18/c_138640288.htmIn the UK, the Guardian reports that A school has apologised after children were set homework asking them to imagine they were the parent of a victim of the Manchester Arena bombing.The pupils at Bridlington school, in east Yorkshire, were asked to write a response to the view that “all terrorists should be forgiven”. But parents of the year 8 pupils took to social media complaining that the homework was “not acceptable”.The PSHE (personal, social, health and economic education) task was posted on the Showmyhomework app, used by many schools to coodinate homework between staff, students and parents.Salman Abedi killed 22 people when he detonated a bomb at an Ariana Grande concert at Manchester Arena in May 2017. His brother, Hashem, is due to go on trial in January next year charged with the murder of 22 people, the attempted murder of others who were injured, and conspiracy to cause an explosion. https://www.theguardian.com/education/2019/dec/18/bridlington-school-says-sorry-for-homework-on-terrorist-forgiveness-manchester-arena-attackAccording to Haaretz, State funding to special education in certain ultra-Orthodox schools in Isreal is to face a further cut because coalition agreements signed when the government took office in 2015 have run out. At the time, in return for their participation in the coalition, the ultra-Orthodox parties insisted on increased funding. Some 6,500 children receive special education services in ultra-Orthodox schools that are recognized by the Education Ministry but considered unofficial – that is, the ministry does not supervise them to the same extent as it does institutions that are both recognized and official.The cuts will affect some 6,100 schools attended by a total of 158,000 children. Of these, 113,000 are ultra-Orthodox and 44,000 in secular frameworks and the Arabic-speaking school system. Church-run schools are also included in the recognized but non-official category. In addition to salary cuts, additional teaching hours are to be cut in the non-special education ultra-Orthodox elementary schools that are recognized but not official, affecting 80,000 children. These additional hours are given to schools with poorer children, or to children who need extra help keeping up with the class. https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-israel-s-ultra-orthodox-schools-begging-for-special-education-funding-1.8286403Tech Crunch reports that One of India's biggest tech startups is no longer losing money. Education tech startup Byju's on Tuesday posted a net profit of $2.8 million on revenue of $188.8 million in the financial year that ended in March this year. The startup, which helps all school-going children understand complex subjects through its app where tutors use real-life objects such as pizza and cake, has amassed 2.8 million paying subscribers, up from 2.4 million in July, it said. Overall, it has 40 million registered users. Byju's, which also prepares students pursuing undergraduate and graduate-level courses, said its education app is gaining significant traction in smaller cities and towns in India. Its subscribers from outside metro cities already account for 60% of its paying customer base, it said. To court users outside of large cities, Byju's has tweaked the English accents in its app and adapted to different education systems. Mohit said the startup plans to launch programs in vernacular languages. The startup has previously said it plans to enter the U.S., U.K., Australia and New Zealand markets. Earlier this year, it acquired Osmo, a U.S.-based learning startup that is popular among kids aged between five and 12, for $120 million. Osmo this year unveiled a new product to serve the pre-schoolers' market. https://techcrunch.com/2019/12/17/byjus-profitable-fy-2019/  ZDNet is reporting that A non-standard and somewhat weird password reset operation is currently underway at a German university, where more than 38,000 students and staff were asked this week to stand in line with their ID card and a piece of paper to receive new passwords for their email accounts.All of this is going on at the Justus Liebig University (JLU) in Gießen, a town north of Frankfurt, Germany. The university suffered a malware infection last week. While the name or the nature of the malware strain was not disclosed, the university's IT staff considered the infection severe enough to take down its entire IT and server infrastructure. For the past days, IT staff have used antivirus scanners loaded on more than 1,200 USB flash drives to scan each JLU computer for malware.Furthermore, JLU staff also believed the malware infection impacted the university's email server, and, as a precautionary measure, they reset all passwords for all email accounts, used by students and staff alike. But in a bizarre twist of German law, the university couldn't send out the new passwords to the students' personal email accounts.Instead, citing legal requirements imposed by the German National Research and Education Network (DFN), JLU professors and students had to pick up their passwords from the university's IT staff in person, after providing proof of their identity using an ID card.https://www.zdnet.com/article/more-than-38000-people-will-stand-in-line-this-week-to-get-a-new-password/ And that rounds it up for todays headlines. Thanks again to VictoryXr for making this all possible. You can find the full transcript of today's episode, along with links to the full stories, in the description of the episode. If you have any questions, comments, or stories of your own that deserve to be broadcast, let us know on social media at dailyapplepod or by email at dailyapplepod@gmail.comThanks for listening. We'll see you tomorrow morning, bright and early

Good morning, you're listening to the Daily Apple, your source for the latest in Education News. I'm your host Jim Kent, the date is December 18, 2019. Before we get into the news of the day, I'd like to take a moment to thank our sponsor, VictoryXR. VXR's award-winning content, helps kids experience science and engineering in a way that they have never been able to before, while making sure to cover everything within the NextGen Science Standards, and they've made it accessible on every kind of VR headset you can think of. To find out more, check out VictoryXR.com But now for the news.Politico reports that congress is looking to increase education spending . The $72.8 billion in discretionary funding for the Education Department, part of an eight-bill "minibus," H.R. 1865 (116), marks an increase of $1.3 billion compared with enacted fiscal 2019 funding. The maximum Pell Grant award under the bill would be increased by $150, an increase of more than 2 percent from $6,195 to $6,345 for the 2020-21 school year. Title I grants would increase by $450 million. Funding for grants under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act would get boosted by $410 million. The spending agreement offers $250 million in quality improvement funding, which includes a priority on addressing “the rise of adverse childhood experiences attributable to increased prevalence of substance use, economic hardship, home and community violence, and other traumatic experiences that can negatively impact child development and lead to disruptions in classroom environments.”https://www.politico.com/newsletters/morning-education/2019/12/17/education-department-in-line-for-a-13b-spending-bump-783766  According to reporting by the Daily Californian, The 2019 California School Dashboard report shows statewide improvement in graduation rates, college and career readiness and in English and math test scores.Every year, the California Department of Education, or CDE, releases a report measuring statewide academic performance based on six main indicators: chronic absenteeism, suspension rates, graduation rates, college and career preparedness and English and math test scores.The CDE uses the report to identify school districts that are in most need of assistance, based on student groups receiving extremely low rankings in two or more indicators. The number of school districts eligible for this “differentiated assistance” has gone down from 386 in 2018 to 333 in 2019, according to CDE spokesperson Scott Roark. The only measure of academic performance in the report that saw a significant negative change from 2018 to 2019 was chronic absenteeism, with 10.1% of students missing 10% or more of the school year, a 1.1% increase from the 2018 report. For the upcoming year, in order to further the educational progress seen this year, the ACOE will continue working on its Pathways to College and Career Department, as well as building more youth-led initiatives and investing in leadership development for teachers, Roberson said. The ACOE is also working on addressing the unique needs of at-risk student groups, such as homeless students. https://www.dailycal.org/2019/12/17/annual-ca-education-report-shows-statewide-academic-progress/American School & University Magazine reports that In fall 2019, overall postsecondary enrollment at U.S. institutions decreased 1.3 percent, or more than 231,000 students, from the previous fall.The Fall 2019 Current Term Enrollment Estimates report compiled by the National Student Clearinghouse® Research calculated fall 2019 higher education enrollment at 17.9 million students.Florida saw the greatest drop in year-to-year enrollment—52,328 students.Fifteen states saw increases in enrollment, especially those in the South and the West. Utah had the greatest year-to-year  increase—nearly 16,800 students or a 4.9% growth from last year.California, with more than 2.4 million students, had the largest college enrollment among the states, nearly a million more students than second place Texas.https://www.asumag.com/research/top-10s/article/21118631/states-with-largest-higher-education-enrollment-fall-2019KOCO in Okahoma City reports that New requirements from the Oklahoma State Department of Education could nearly wipe out the four-day school week model, forcing schools across the state to go back to a five-day week.Senate Bill 441 is designed to limit four-day school weeks, setting the standard that a minimum of 165 days must be spent in the classroom. To be exempt, a district must meet the Department of Education's guidelines, which a local advocacy group said are unattainable. The Oklahoma 4 Day School Coalition said the standards are so high that only 12% of all school districts in Oklahoma would meet them right now.Gov. Kevin Stitt signed the Senate bill earlier this year. The exemption rules will go to the state Legislature for final approval. https://www.koco.com/article/oklahoma-ag-says-hes-withdrawing-from-tribal-gaming-compact-negotiations/30259499Inside Higher Ed reports that The proportion of all enrolled college students who took at least one online class continued to rise, edging up to 34.7 percent in fall 2018 from 33.1 percent the previous year. The rate of increase appears to be slowing ever so slightly, although online education remains the main driver of growth in postsecondary enrollments. Western Governors University's aggressive expansion has catapulted it to the top of universities with the most students taking at least one online course. It is followed by Southern New Hampshire University, another fast grower (15.2 percent year-over-year growth and, like WGU, growing by nearly 73 percent over three years).Southern New Hampshire and Western Governors were early movers among nonprofit universities to challenge the for-profit colleges that had largely captured the online market for adult learners in the 1990s and 2000s.The list also shows significant growth by several large public universities in recent years, with institutions like Arizona State University (nearly doubling online enrollments since 2015), Florida International University (up 10 percent from 2017, and 44 percent since 2015), the Lone Star College system and the University of Texas at Arlington ascendant. Numerous other flagship institutions and public university systems are planning major investments in online learning, hoping to join the ranks of major national players. https://www.insidehighered.com/digital-learning/article/2019/12/17/colleges-and-universities-most-online-students-2018Bloomberg is reporting that The owners of a struggling luxury dorm at the University of Oklahoma sued the college Monday for allegedly breaking a commitment to rent retail and parking spaces at a 1,230-bed complex at its flagship campus.Provident Oklahoma Education Resources Inc., a non-profit that financed the $250 million project with municipal bonds, sued the university in state court, saying that if it had known the school would break its promise it never would have built the dorm, which includes a theater, a hair salon and a fitness center. Baton Rouge, Louisiana-based Provident is seeking more than $250 million in damages.The project is suffering because the university doesn't allow first-year students to live in the dorm, Provident said. The school also wanted suites without kitchens so students would eat at a university-run dining facility located in the dorm. However, upperclassmen overwhelmingly want in-unit kitchens, the lawsuit said. In addition, the university provided a flawed market study that didn't include fraternity and sorority housing and another dorm traditionally occupied by upperclassmen that competes directly with the project, the lawsuit said. The University of Oklahoma received $20 million from proceeds of the 2017 bond issue for the complex for a 50-year ground lease of the site. High ranking university officials, including its chief financial officer promised Provident it would rent the commercial and parking space every year over the life of the bonds, Provident alleged. The university also said it had obtained authorization to rent the space, which was later “exposed as patently inaccurate“ by the university's Board of Regents, the lawsuit said. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-12-16/university-of-oklahoma-sued-over-struggling-luxury-dorm-project  According to Japan Times, The government Tuesday decided against adding open-ended questions for Japanese and math to the country's new standardized university entrance exams due to start January 2021.Education minister Koichi Hagiuda said issues such as the potential for errors to be made by private-sector graders, which includes student part-timers, and the difficulty for test-takers to be able to self-assess answers to open-ended questions could not be overcome.Questions in the current standardized entrance exams are all in multiple-choice format. The scores determine which universities students choose to take further entrance exams.However, the minister stressed the importance of including open-ended questions that evaluate logical thinking and a student's ability to express themselves, and urged universities to put these types of questions on their own entrance exams.https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2019/12/17/national/open-ended-questions-scrapped-university-entry-exams-japan/#.Xflhrh9INEY And that rounds it up for todays headlines. Thanks again to VictoryXr for making this all possible. You can find the full transcript of today's episode, along with links to the full stories, in the description of the episode. If you have any questions, comments, or stories of your own that deserve to be broadcast, let us know on social media at dailyapplepod or by email at dailyapplepod@gmail.comThanks for listening. We'll see you tomorrow morning, bright and early

Good morning, you're listening to the Daily Apple, your source for the latest in Education News. I'm your host Jim Kent, the date is December 17, 2019. Before we get into the news of the day, I'd like to take a moment to thank our sponsor, VictoryXR. VXR's award-winning content, helps kids experience science and engineering in a way that they have never been able to before, while making sure to cover everything within the NextGen Science Standards, and they've made it accessible on every kind of VR headset you can think of. To find out more, check out VictoryXR.com But now for the news.The Hill reports that National Education Association (NEA) President Lily Eskelsen García on Monday said that even though she thinks Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has continued to target public schools, she credits the backlash for DeVos's appointment for helping to highlight national concerns over public education. García added that she thought DeVos has done more harm than good, accusing the education secretary of having "abandoned public schools."  Department of Education press secretary Angela Morabito pushed back against García comments, saying that DeVos wants to "see education improve for all students." She also accused the union leader of trying to protect the "status quo."  Though many decisions are made on a state and local level, García maintained that education is fundamentally a presidential issue, which she says was highlighted in Saturday's 2020 public education forum in Pittsburgh. DeVos, who has regularly championed charter schools, has recently come under intense scrutiny from congressional Democrats, especially when it comes to her handling of students who claim they were defrauded by for-profit colleges. During a tense hearing last week, Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.) rebuked DeVos as "out to destroy public education."  https://thehill.com/hilltv/rising/474716-teachers-union-leader-devos-is-a-cautionary-tale-of-presidential-impact-on-public-education  According to the Hartford Courant, The Connecticut Partnership for Education, a public-private partnership backed by billionaire Ray Dalio, is looking for teachers, employers and community leaders to help the new organization as it tackles challenges created by generations of poverty in Connecticut's cities. The partnership funded with a $100 million contribution each from the state of Connecticut and Dalio. The group also plans to raise $100 million. Under the state law creating the unusual partnership, board members are allowed to hold closed executive sessions.The partnership said state estimates show 50,000 to 60,000 disengaged and disconnected youths aged 14-24 across Connecticut. Almost 80% come from low-income backgrounds and 36% of boys of color. Data from 2014-2015 show Hartford, New Britain, Waterbury, Bridgeport and New Haven as having particularly high levels of disengaged and disconnected youth. But over 110 school systems statewide have at least 50 of these young people, and about 9,000 come from towns with above average income levels.In order to move forward and further define its program offerings, the board's first requirement is finding a CEO. https://www.courant.com/news/connecticut/hc-news-connecticut-lamont-partnership-20191216-f4bnd4dybzcjlkq2jiirbrzcna-story.htmlIn India, the Financial Times reports that A violent wave of protests against a citizenship law that critics said discriminates against Muslims gained strength on Indian campuses on Monday after police stormed a university in Delhi overnight. Many students at the Jamia Millia Islamia university in the Indian capital were injured and dozens arrested late on Sunday, setting off demonstrations at universities in Mumbai, Bangalore and other cities across the country on Monday. Students at Nadwa college in Lucknow threw stones at police after clashes at Aligarh Muslim University prompted authorities to impose an internet blackout. The campus chaos follows days of unrest around the country after parliament last week passed a law giving non-Muslim migrants from India's Muslim-majority neighbours a fast-track to Indian citizenship. The bill, championed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata party, provoked international condemnation from critics who said it discriminated against Muslims and undermined India's secular constitution. Amreen Farooq, a 24-year-old with a masters degree from Jamia Millia Islamia, said she was protesting the law because it was unconstitutional and designed to divert attention from India's economic slowdown. “This is a vicious cycle to distract the people,” she said. “The protests will keep happening until we get justice.” https://www.ft.com/content/81506adc-1fc7-11ea-b8a1-584213ee7b2bAccording to the Des Moines Register, One of the world's largest banks will reap a windfall from the University of Iowa's multi-billion-dollar plan to outsource its utility operations before students or faculty see any benefit from the deal.Wells Fargo is expected to get nearly 1% of the nearly $1.2 billion payment that the university has negotiated in exchange for leasing its utility system to a private operator, a university spokeswoman confirmed Friday.The university hired the bank last year to work as its strategic adviser on a plan to monetize its utility assets through a long-term management contract.Wells Fargo's contract, obtained by the Associated Press, shows that the bank was to be paid only at the “successful conclusion of a monetization transaction.” Its fee would begin at 0.75% of any transaction's value and escalate if the deal exceeded expectations. On Thursday, University spokeswoman, AnneBassett said the university was anticipating the firm's fee will average about 1% of the deal, or $11.65 million. On Friday afternoon, she provided a more detailed calculation estimating that Wells Fargo will receive about $10.45 million. https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/2019/12/16/wells-fargo-get-millions-university-iowa-utilities-deal/2661878001/The Fix reports that A male student at Adams State University complained that he was repeatedly excluded from the campus gym because of his sex. A day later, the Colorado public university told him the weekly “Women's Night” had ended.It was an unexpectedly fast reversal, though the administration didn't directly tell student Chris Spears that his threat to file a Title IX complaint against the school had killed the program.Spears told The Fix in an email that he was tired of showing up to the gym all year and being told that men weren't allowed in the space on those evenings when he wanted to work out. Spears hasn't decided whether to drop his complaint in light of the administration's response, or continue to pursue it for retroactive relief. He told The Fix he would “like to see a legally binding document saying the gym will never exclude people on the basis of sex ever again.” https://www.thecollegefix.com/university-ditches-womens-night-at-gym-after-male-student-threatens-title-ix-complaint/According to the South China Morning Post, A top university in central China has expelled nearly 100 international students amid a national call for colleges to get tougher on students from overseas.Wuhan University in Wuhan, Hubei province, expelled 92 students from more than 10 countries for problems ranging from poor grades to discipline violations and failure to pay tuition fees, Changjiang Daily reported on Monday.The expulsions followed warnings to the students a year earlier, the report said, quoting a staff member in the admissions office of the university's School of International Education.In the past, the university expelled just one or two overseas students a year, but the number rose this year in response to the Ministry of Education's call to improve standards for overseas studentsWhile most Chinese students heading overseas opt for colleges in Europe, North America or Australia, most students coming into China were from the developing world, according to ministry data.Last year, nearly 60 per cent of China's half-million foreign students were from Asia, while about 16 per cent were from Africa.  KMVT in Idaho reports that Presidents from Idaho's four-year higher education institutions announced a freeze in tuition for resident undergraduate students in 2020.The announcement was made Thursday. A news release said University of Idaho, Lewis-Clark State College, Boise State University and Idaho State University are taking this step to address the issue of college affordability in Idaho.Idaho Gov. Brad Little said he commends the university presidents for not seeking tuition increases. Idaho State Board of Education President Debbie Critchfield said the presidents “made good on a pledge” made last spring to work with the board to contain tuition costs. Critchfield said the board is discussing a long-term plan and explained that state funding hasn't returned to pre-recession levels and internal costs at universities continue to rise. In April, Idaho colleges and universities approved tuition increases. University of Idaho approved a 5.6% increase for in-state undergraduate students. Boise State University full-time resident undergrads saw an increase of 4.9%. Idaho State University full-time resident students paid 6.1% more. Lewis-Clark State College increased tuition by 5.5% for full-time undergrads.  And that rounds it up for todays headlines. Thanks again to VictoryXr for making this all possible. You can find the full transcript of today's episode, along with links to the full stories, in the description of the episode. If you have any questions, comments, or stories of your own that deserve to be broadcast, let us know on social media at dailyapplepod or by email at dailyapplepod@gmail.comThanks for listening. We'll see you tomorrow morning, bright and early

Good morning, you're listening to the Daily Apple, your source for the latest in Education News. I'm your host Jim Kent, the date is December 16, 2019. Before we get into the news of the day, I'd like to take a moment to thank our sponsor, VictoryXR. VXR's award-winning content, helps kids experience science and engineering in a way that they have never been able to before, while making sure to cover everything within the NextGen Science Standards, and they've made it accessible on every kind of VR headset you can think of. To find out more, check out VictoryXR.com But now for the news.According to a new poll by Gallup, About half of U.S. adults (51%) now consider a college education to be "very important," down from 70% in 2013. Over the same period, the percentages rating college as "fairly important" and "not too important" have both increased, to 36% and 13%, respectively. Perceptions that a college education is very important have declined in the U.S. among all age groups since 2013, but the drop has been especially pronounced -- 33 percentage points -- among adults aged 18 to 29. As a result, younger adults are now less likely than middle-aged adults and seniors to consider college as very important, whereas the different age groups held similar perceptions in 2013. Consistent with what Gallup found in 2013, women today are more likely than men to report a college education is very important (57% vs. 45%, respectively), although the figures are down among both groups. In 2013, 75% of women and 65% of men said a college education was very important.Black and Hispanic adults, two groups that are underrepresented in colleges and universities nationally, are more likely than whites to say a college education is very important. The differences in importance by race/ethnicity are generally consistent with 2013 measures, in which black and Hispanic adults were more likely than whites to view a college education as very important.College tuition has increased at twice the rate of inflation over the past two decades -- forcing many to wonder if that investment is worth it, and how important a formal degree is to achieving a better job and a better life. https://news.gallup.com/poll/270008/half-consider-college-education-important.aspx  The Kansas Star has published an article focusing on the struggles foster children face in education. Two years after the Every Student Succeeds Act required states to tally and report graduation rates of its foster children, the federal government has yet to make that information public.Of the states that have reported, most are shockingly low. In Oregon, 35 percent of students in foster care graduated from high school in 2017, compared to 77 percent of the general population.The Star spent the past year examining the long-term outcomes for kids who age out of foster care. It found that many will end up homeless, jobless and in prison because, in part, they were shortchanged on education. Shuffled from home to home, often sent outside their original school districts, they fall behind early and don't catch up. Zachary Lawrence, a special education teacher in south-central Kansas, told members of a legislative task force last year that many foster kids live such unstable and unpredictable lives that it's tough for them to be able to learn each day. Most states have not collected detailed information on the resources necessary to resolve these issues, or even the outcomes currently being faced.Brent Kent, former CEO of Foster Success, worked with lawmakers on legislation to require Indiana to track how foster kids are doing in the classroom. Once a year, a detailed report card must be published so the public is informed about how children in the state's custody are doing relative to their peers.The first report card was published last spring. https://www.kansascity.com/news/special-reports/article238246264.htmlThe Lansing State Journal reports that A federal appeals court panel has ordered the dismissal of a lawsuit brought by four former Michigan State University students against the university for failing to adequately respond to their sexual assault claims. The lawsuit, first filed in 2015, alleged MSU's handling of the four women's sexual assault claims violated Title IX and denied one of the women equal protection. The appeals court found that the women failed to prove “the school had actual knowledge of actionable sexual harassment and that the school's deliberate indifference to it resulted in further actionable sexual harassment against the student-victim, which caused the Title IX injuries.” "Because none of the plaintiffs in this case suffered any actionable sexual harassment after the school's response, they did not suffer “pervasive” sexual harassment as set out in Davis and they cannot meet the causation element," the opinion reads. The opinion also upholds Maybank's immunity, saying while Gross was "clearly dissatisfied" with Maybank's decision to overturn the male student's expulsion, Gross "has no 'right' to her preferred remedy." https://www.lansingstatejournal.com/story/news/local/2019/12/12/msu-title-ix-lawsuit-kollaritsch-6th-circuit-dismissal/4409968002/According to the AP Democratic presidential candidates pledged to boost funding for public schools, increase teacher salaries and reduce college debt at a Saturday forum that cast a rare spotlight on education, an issue that has received only passing attention in recent debates. In one camp are Warren and Sanders, who have proposed free public college for all Americans and the cancellation of all or most of the nation's existing student debt. Buttigieg doubled down on his criticism of those plans, saying there needs to be more discussion about apprenticeships, internships and other options other than a four-year degree. He has supported free college for families making under $100,000. Biden continued to push for free community college. The candidates checked many of the boxes the unions will look for when they decide which candidate to support. Many of the candidates took shots at the prevalence of high-stakes testing, curriculum requirements and other measures that limit teachers' flexibility. https://news.yahoo.com/democratic-hopefuls-pledge-more-money-221236629.htmlThe Courier Journal is reporting that Despite a pending legal challenge to its authority, a newly appointed Kentucky Board of Education on Thursday forced out the state's education chief — a swift move that fulfills one of Gov. Andy Beshear's most prominent campaign promises.Education Commissioner Wayne Lewis resigned and will immediately vacate his position leading the state's K-12 school system. The new board accepted his resignation by a unanimous vote and acknowledged it did not have just cause to terminate Lewis.Lewis, who earned $200,000 annually as commissioner, was required to receive written notice of his termination 90 days in advance, under his contract with the board. Lewis accepted the earlier exit — and will walk away with 120 days salary and health benefits — after nearly three hours of closed-door negotiations. Under Lewis and the former board, the Kentucky Department of Education had planned to press for full-day kindergarten, reading interventions for the state's youngest learners and more flexibility for schools. It is unclear whether those requests will remain the department's priority under a new board and a new commissioner. https://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/education/2019/12/12/kentucky-board-education-ousts-education-commissioner-wayne-lewis/4397133002/According to Michigan Radio, The U.S. Department of Education has launched an investigation into a southwest Michigan school district.Paw Paw Public Schools is no stranger to controversy. The district has been under fire for its mascot name and image – the Redskins – for years. Now, the district is facing a federal investigation after the ACLU of Michigan filed a complaint back in January. The ACLU's complaint alleges the school district "maintains an environment that is hostile to a variety of racial, religious, ethnic and immigrant groups." Mark Fancher, Racial Justice Project staff attorney for the ACLU of Michigan, says, “The school district has stubbornly refused to even discuss possible changes to make its programs more welcoming for Native Americans and other people of color, making this OCR investigation a victory. We are hopeful that federal scrutiny of the district will prompt concern that leads to reform.”Back in 2017, the Paw Paw school board voted against changing the mascot name from the controversial “Redskins” name despite pressure from groups like the ACLU. https://www.michiganradio.org/post/department-education-launches-investigation-paw-paw-public-schools  The AP reports on another school joining the modern backlash against standardized testing in admissions practices. Indiana University could soon stop requiring students to submit ACT or SAT scores with their college applications. A university spokesman says students applying for fall 2021 could have the option not to submit college standardized testing. The (Northwest Indiana) Times reports that the university's Board of Trustees recently approved the policy change. IU's nine individual campuses now must approve and implement their own “test optional” admissions practice. https://www.wave3.com/2019/12/15/indiana-university-could-make-sat-act-tests-optional/ And that rounds it up for todays headlines. Thanks again to VictoryXr for making this all possible. You can find the full transcript of today's episode, along with links to the full stories, in the description of the episode. If you have any questions, comments, or stories of your own that deserve to be broadcast, let us know on social media at dailyapplepod or by email at dailyapplepod@gmail.comThanks for listening. We'll see you tomorrow morning, bright and early

Good morning, you're listening to the Daily Apple, your source for the latest in Education News. I'm your host Jim Kent, the date is December 13, 2019. Before we get into the news of the day, I'd like to take a moment to thank our sponsor, VictoryXR. VXR's award-winning content, helps kids experience science and engineering in a way that they have never been able to before, while making sure to cover everything within the NextGen Science Standards, and they've made it accessible on every kind of VR headset you can think of. To find out more, check out VictoryXR.com But now for the news.NPR reports that documents they've obtained shed new light on a bitter fight between defrauded student borrowers and U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos.These borrowers — more than 200,000 of them — say some for-profit colleges lied to them about their job prospects and the transferability of credits. They argue they were defrauded and that the Education Department should erase their federal student loan debt under a rule called "borrower defense."DeVos disagrees: She says most student borrowers still got value from these schools and deserve only partial relief from their federal loans. Now, internal Education Department memos obtained by NPR show that career staff in the department's Borrower Defense Unit came down firmly on the side of defrauded borrowers.Until now, these internal department memos have been hidden from public view. Lawmakers had previously requested access to them, but DeVos and her department refused to hand them over. DeVos has argued for years that the Obama administration's full-relief interpretation of the borrower defense rule was too lenient. DeVos' new plan is the department's second attempt at resolving the more than 200,000 outstanding borrower defense claims. The first attempt was blocked in May 2018 by Magistrate Judge Sallie Kim of the U.S. District Court in San Francisco. Devos testified yesterday, in front of congress to defend her plan.https://www.npr.org/2019/12/11/786367598/betsy-devos-overruled-education-dept-findings-on-defrauded-student-borrowers  According to The New York Times, An executive order signed Wednesday that extends civil rights protection to Jews is likely to strengthen the hand of President Trump's Education Department, where the department's civil rights chief has been investigating some of the nation's most elite universities for anti-Jewish bias. Mr. Trump, at a Hanukkah celebration at the White House, opened the door on a case-by-case basis to essentially defining Judaism as a race or national origin, not just a religion, under the Civil Rights Act. His order also expanded the definition of anti-Semitism to include some anti-Israel sentiments. Both moves had been pushed by Kenneth L. Marcus, the head of the Education Department's Office for Civil Rights, for years. Jewish groups were largely supportive, with some liberal organizations opposing it. Palestinian rights groups were incensed. The issue arises as campuses have become hotbeds of racial and cultural strife. In a 2018 report, the Anti-Defamation League found an 89 percent increase in reported episodes of anti-Semitism on college campuses in one year, as well as a steady rise in white-supremacist propaganda. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/11/us/politics/trump-anti-semitism-judaism-nationality.htmlAccording to Fox61 in Connecticut, The Killingly Board of Education voted late Wednesday night to temporarily not have a mascot given the different opinions on whether it should be the Redmen or the Red Hawks.Before that vote, the board initially voted for the Redmen and that is when most of the crowd left in an uproar. Those who oppose Redmen said the name is racially inappropriate and disrespectful to the Native American culture. State Police and Killingly Police made their presence known at the Board of Education meeting knowing the crowd has been aggressive in past meetings.Killingly High School's mascot was formerly known as The Redmen. In July, the Board of Ed decided to allow a mascot change. In October, students voted to change the mascot to the Red Hawks.However, the controversy returned when Newly-elected Republicans on the board decided to change it back to the Redmen. Members with the Mashantucket Pequot Tribe said the Redmen image is offensive because it displayed a Native American in a headdress and feathers were adorned on the helmets of football players. A special meeting will be held next Wednesday to further discuss this controversy.https://fox61.com/2019/12/12/crowd-leaves-in-an-uproar-as-killingly-board-of-education-votes-not-to-have-mascot/The Dothan Eagle reports that Alabama's State Department of Education voted to replace Common Core math standards on Thursday. Suzanne Culbreth, former Alabama Teacher of the Year (2013), and member of the Math COS committee, said she believes the hard work and dedication that went in to developing the new math standards will bode well for Alabama students and their educational achievement for years to come. Alabama joins eight other states that do not teach Common Core state standards, either because they never adopted or have since replaced or repealed it. https://www.dothaneagle.com/news/education/alabama-state-department-of-education-vote-to-replace-common-core/article_e075fad9-4f99-576c-9981-50dfdd5dbeda.htmlIn Toronto, the Globe News Wire reports that four unions representing teachers and education workers across Ontario's publicly funded education system have filed court challenges against the Ontario government's Bill 124, the Protecting a Sustainable Public Sector for Future Generations Act. Given the content and timing of the legislation, in the midst of negotiations for the renewal of collective agreements in the education sector, the unions contend that Bill 124 is a direct attack on free collective bargaining in the education sector, and a violation of sections 2(b) and 2(d) of the Charter, which guarantee freedom of expression and the freedom of association. In addition, they believe the legislation violates the duty of the Crown to bargain in good faith. The Ontario government has said that the purpose of the bill, which would moderate the compensation of public employees, is to “ensure public sector compensation reflects the province's current fiscal reality.”https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2019/12/12/1959885/0/en/Education-Unions-Launch-Charter-Challenge-Against-Ford-Government.htmlAccording to reporting by the AP, The University of Phoenix and its parent company have agreed to pay $50 million in cash and cancel $141 million in student debt to settle allegations of deceptive advertisement brought by the Federal Trade Commission.The deal, announced Tuesday, settles a dispute over an ad campaign the for-profit college launched in 2012 touting partnerships with companies including Microsoft, Twitter and Adobe. It suggested the school worked with those companies to create job opportunities for students, even though there was no such agreement, investigators found.The Federal Trade Commission said the settlement is the largest the agency has ever obtained against a for-profit college. Under the settlement, the University of Phoenix and Apollo will cancel all remaining debt for students who first enrolled between Oct. 1, 2012, and the end of 2016. Letters will be sent to borrowers saying they no longer owe payments to the school. The school is also barred from making false claims about its relationships with companies or employers.The FTC says the $50 million payment will be used to help consumers who were misled by the ads.https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/u-phoenix-agrees-cancel-141-million-student-loan-debt-n1099681  CBS Minnesota reports that Bethel University announced this week that it will cut administrative staff and faculty in order to deal with declining student enrollment. In a statement Tuesday, the Arden Hills-based Christian college says that staff cuts will be announced next month and that faculty cuts will be made public in April. Affected faculty will stay on until the end of the 2020-2021 academic year, the university says. Teach-out programs will be offered for students affected by the curriculum changes. Bethel did not say which departments would be affected by the cuts. Bethel says it's among many colleges across the nation facing financial difficulty due to the declining undergraduate enrollment numbers. https://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2019/12/11/citing-declining-student-enrollment-bethel-university-to-cut-staff-faculty/ And that rounds it up for todays headlines. Thanks again to VictoryXr for making this all possible. You can find the full transcript of today's episode, along with links to the full stories, in the description of the episode. If you have any questions, comments, or stories of your own that deserve to be broadcast, let us know on social media at dailyapplepod or by email at dailyapplepod@gmail.comThanks for listening. We'll see you tomorrow morning, bright and early

These days, more and more students can — and do — opt out of animal dissection in science classes, and not just because formaldehyde smells awful. As fewer kids are morally comfortable with chopping up an amphibian in the name of their education, an alternative will be needed. VictoryXR’s Steve Grubbs offers a solution through VR, and chats with Alan about how XR can be used to enhance education in other ways, too. Alan: Today’s guest is Steve Grubbs, founder and CEO of VictoryVR, one of the world leaders in virtual reality educational product development. To date, they have created over 240 unique VR experiences, spanning over 50 different learning units, with educational partners like Carolina Biological and Oxford University. They have been able to develop brand new educational encounters for VR users around the globe. Steve is also a member of YPO and was recently featured in an article entitled Virtual Reality Is Transporting Students to the Next Frontier in Science Education. You can learn more about Steve’s company at VictoryXR.com. Steve, welcome to the show. Steve: Alan, thanks for having me. I appreciate it. We’ve been working in XR Technologies — first virtual reality, and then augmented reality — since 2016. I first tried to headset on near the end of 2015 and it struck me that this type of technology would change the world. And so, we struck out and decided that our field would be education. And so we dug in and figured out how to do it, because at that point it was very difficult to find people; you couldn’t just hire people off the street who knew how to create virtual reality technology. We set to work figuring it out. In September of 2016, I attended a group meeting with some folks in Dallas, and then by January of 2017, we had our first major product in a school. I felt pretty good that we were able to move quickly on that first experience. Alan: That’s incredible. Let me ask you a quick question. What was the first experience that you tried that inspired you to start VictoryVR? Steve: Well, it was a MetaVRse product that I downloaded to my phone some time, in Google Cardboard. I am pretty sure I went to the iPhone store and tried a roller coaster — and this had been a few years now. And then I tried The New York Times 360 News reporting on my phone and they both were great, amazing, cool, and so I said, this is something I want to be a part of. Alan: For those people that don’t know you and VictoryVR, maybe just give us a 10,000-foot view of your mission and why you’re doing what you’re doing, and where you see the company going. Describe your company, the products, and the platform that’s being used. Steve: We believe that we can change education in a positive way around the world. If you think about it, for decades — I used to serve in the Iowa legislature, and I was chairman of the Education Committee, and we spent a lot of time addressing, how do we improve education? And there were a lot of things we did on the input side, but at the end of the day, what we all know is that if students love to learn, they love what they’re learning — like all of us — then there’s no work in it; you just love to do it, and you immerse yourself in it. We believe that XR Technologies — VR and AR — are the solution to having students love what they’re learning. So we’re creating as much content as possible, aligned to standards, so that teachers can integrate it into their lesson plans, or parents can just simply pull it off the shelf and use it. I have a background in technology. I started my first tech company in 1997, building web sites. I bought a book called “Web Sites for Dummies,” read i