Free Republic

Former champion gymnast Jennifer Sey laughed at soccer all-star Megan Rapinoe over her recent comments shrugging off the ability of trans athletes participating in women's sports. ... 1986 U.S. National Gymnastics gold medalist .. cited a 2017 match between the U.S. Women's Soccer team and a team made up of 15-year-old high school boys and how the pro-athletes were defeated by the group of male adolescents. ... the best women's soccer team in the world lost to 15-year-old high school boys, how - why was that? How did that happen?" Sey posed to Rapinoe. "An average high school boys team....

On Wednesday, American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten appeared in a House hearing held by the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic to discuss the impact of school closures due to COVID-19. In the hearing, Weingarten was pressed about the union’s influence on the federal government during this decision making process throughout the pandemic. In her opening remarks at the hearing, Weingarten claimed that in-person learning was the driving force behind the decisions made during the pandemic about school closures and re-openings. Once questioning began, Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Brad Wenstrup (R-OH), who is a doctor, asked Weingarten if AFT...

About 18 months ago, there was some chatter in Washington about a COVID commission that would examine the wild response and evaluate its good and bad features and make recommendations for the future. From the looks of it at the time, it seemed pretty obvious where it was going. In effect, it was going to be a cover-up, just government and industry leaders and anointed “experts” touting their wise decision-making while offering some mild tweaks for the future. The commission never formed. Why not? Pretty simple: absolutely no one would have believed it. There are too many people now wise...

Since announcing in August he would be departing his post at the White House, Dr. Anthony Fauci said he had “nothing to do” with COVID-related school lockdowns and the reported accompanied loss in learning among public school students. Speaking to ABC News on Sunday, Fauci denied that he was responsible for pushing the public consensus that schools should be shut down due to the spread of the virus. Across the United States, numerous public and private schools were forced to shut down and use virtual learning—which many experts and studies say led to a dramatic drop in basic skills. ABC...

Yet more harrowing data emerged yesterday that once again illustrated, in stark relief, how much damage was done by COVID-era school closures. These closures were driven by phony 'Science' fetishists who rejected data, in favor of a preferred political agenda. At the forefront of this cabal were selfish teachers union bosses, whom elected Democrats allowed to alter and influence the official 'Science,' in accordance with said agenda. As a rule of thumb, the bluer the jurisdiction, the longer children enrolled in government-run schools were locked out of classrooms -- for no good scientific reason. The results? Devastating: National test results...

So much of the angst over re-opening schools in the Covid era comes down to one issue: individual parents have very little say in school district decisions. This stems from the government having a near monopoly on K-12 education. No other area of life operates like this—not even other levels of education like pre-school or college. The result is that unions and district bureaucrats wield more power than parents or individual teachers. This imbalance has left millions of students unable to attend school this year. Yet every district includes a sizeable number of parents who want full-time school for their...

A small Christian school in Oregon is suing Democratic Oregon Gov. Kate Brown and other Oregon officials after claiming the state is discriminating against private and religious schools by keeping them locked down while allowing public schools to reopen. The Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) filed a lawsuit Friday on behalf of Hermiston Christian School, a K-12 school in Hermiston, Oregon, which has a student body of 51. The lawsuit reads in part: “After 41 years of faithful service, Hermiston Christian School (‘HCS’) could be forced to shut its doors for good unless the Court stops an obvious case of discrimination:...

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WSPA) – South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster announced temporary closures for schools and updated on coronavirus efforts in the state on Sunday. Gov. McMaster announced the closure of all schools from Monday, March 16 through Tuesday, March 31. This includes Pre-K -12, universities, colleges, and technical colleges. A grant has been offered to provide free meals (two a day) for children to be picked up or delivered by school buses. Buses will also be used to deliver WiFi sources to some areas and some buses will deliver instructional materials. Daycares are not included in this order, but the...

Lago Vista Independent School District announced Wednesday it will cancel all classes in the district Thursday and Friday due to influenza-related absences. The closure aims to decrease the spread of the flu virus by keeping students at home. During this time, the LVISD custodial staff will thoroughly disinfect all buses and spaces. All school-related activities scheduled for Thursday and Friday — including evening activities — will continue at the discretion of the activity sponsor. KXAN spoke with a group of seventh graders who said they started noticing their friends get sick last week. "Friday, I saw like two of my...

El Paso-area school districts will cancel classes Feb. 17 for Pope Francis' visit to Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, a city directly across the U.S. border. The Ysleta, Socorro and El Paso school districts cited finances, safety concerns, staffing challenges and transportation issues as reasons for closing. A portion of César Chávez Border Highway will be closed during the papal Mass, and district officials say the city's bus and policing resources will be strained.