Education

The University of New Hampshire School of Law has named an expert in intellectual property law as its new dean.

After what school officials call an ‘extensive national search,’ Megan Carpenter, currently on the faculty of Texas A&M’s law school, will take over as dean of UNH Law in July.

The New Hampshire College and University Council has named prominent Democratic political operative Mike Vlacich as its new president.

Vlacich is best known in New Hampshire political circles as an advisor to the state’s most successful Democratic officeholders. He’s worked for John Lynch, Jeanne Shaheen, and Maggie Hassan.

Last year, he was state director for the Hillary Clinton campaign.

His new role at the College and University Council will begin in June when current president Tom Horgan is set to retire.

Two major school construction projects on the Seacoast will go before voters this month. Similar proposals for both projects have been defeated in the past.

School districts looking to build or renovate have been in a tight spot ever since the state’s school building aid program was put on hold almost a decade ago.

Case in point: the Hampton and Newmarket school districts.

Officials with both districts say the renovations are long overdue and that taxpayer money is being wasted caring for out-of-date school buildings.

The state senate passed a bill today that would allow school districts to use tax money to send students to qualifying private schools if there is no public school available in the district.

The so-called Croydon Bill was born out of a legal dispute between the Croydon school board and state officials.

Croydon, which does not have a public school for grades 5-12, began paying for a handful of students to attend a private Montessori School in nearby Newport.

A judge ruled that illegal and ordered Croydon to stop the payments.

The state Senate has passed, and then immediately tables, a bill that would increase state funding for school districts that offer full-day kindergarten programs.

Compared with the University System of New Hampshire, which was flat funded under the budget Republican Governor Chris Sununu presented earlier this month, the community college system did pretty well.

The University of New Hampshire has announced a new scholarship program that will allow some in-state students to attend the university tuition-free.

Beginning next fall, UNH will offer free tuition to New Hampshire students who qualify for federal Pell Grants. The scholarships will go to around 285 incoming freshman and will cost the University roughly $300,000.

The announcement comes as lawmakers in Concord debate how much state support the University system should receive in the next budget.

The University of New Hampshire has received a grant to support training for early childhood math teachers in the state.

UNH will receive two-hundred thousand dollars to support an online professional development program for pre-k through third grade math teachers in New Hampshire.

The two-year program includes online coursework, in-person coaching, and an annual conference.

The money comes from the national non-profit 100Kin10 The group’s goal is to train 100,000 K-12 STEM teachers by the year 2021.

Officials with the state University System are registering their disappointment with Governor Chris Sununu’s proposal not to increase state funding for New Hampshire’s public universities.

The University System of New Hampshire requested an increase of about 12 million dollars over the next two fiscal years. They said the increase would allow them to keep tuition flat for in-state students.

Results from a new survey of public schools in New Hampshire shows that most elementary students aren’t receiving as much physical education as they should.

The survey of public school P.E. teachers was conducted by the state Department of Health and Human Services.

It found that none of the elementary school students in the schools who responded to the survey received the recommended average of at least 150 minutes of physical education each week.

Parents, teachers, and city officials met in Manchester last night to discuss a projected six million dollar budget gap for the Manchester school district.

In recent years the Manchester school district, the state’s largest, has been beset by declining enrollment, reduced aid from the state, and rising pension costs. Those trends have now added up to a projected budget gap for next year of six million dollars. That’s out of a total operating budget of around 180 million dollars.

Dartmouth College and the town of Hanover are in a stand-off over a new $18 million athletic facility the college wants to build.

Last month, the Hanover Planning Board denied Dartmouth a permit for the proposed 70,000 square foot building. The structure would house training facilities for student-athletes to practice their sports during the winter.

The decision was a victory for neighbors who oppose the project for its size and proximity to a residential area.

Southern New Hampshire University has announced it will freeze tuition for the next academic year.

The freeze applies to SNHU’s online degree program as well as its on-campus undergraduate program.

The current sticker price for an undergraduate student living on campus at SNHU is currently around $44,000.

This marks the fifth year without a tuition increase at the private university.

Typical annual increases at other private universities have been around three percent in recent years.

Facing a projected operating loss of $2.6 million, New Hampshire's Colby-Sawyer College says it will "restructure" and lay off 18 employees.

College President Sue Stuebner says seven faculty members and 11 staffers at the New London college received notice Monday. Another 11 learned their hours will be modified and more than a dozen who are leaving won't be replaced.

The Valley News reports Stuebner attributes the current year's operating loss to recent fluctuation in Colby-Sawyer's enrollment, which went from about 1,500 four years ago to 1,100 this year.

The Portsmouth School Board voted Tuesday night to make the start of the school day about an hour later for middle and high school students.

Next year, middle and high schoolers in Portsmouth will start the school day at about 8:30. The current start time is 7:30.

Research shows the extra time can make a big difference for students in everything from emotional well-being to academic performance.

Board member Patrick Ellis voted in favor of the change.

Amid uncertainty about the future of the country’s immigration laws under a Trump administration, Dartmouth is trying to reassure undocumented students that they’re welcome on campus — and that the school will try to protect them from potential changes in the law that might be in store.

University of New Hampshire President Mark Huddleston sent a campus-wide email Tuesday condemning what he says has been a recent increase in hate incidents on campus.

New Hampshire’s Community College system asked lawmakers for an increase in state funding at a budget hearing in Concord today. College officials say the increase is needed to avoid a hike in tuition.

Officials with the state Community College system are asking for about 49 million dollars for next fiscal year and 52.5 million for the year after. That’s up from their current annual budget of 44 million dollars.

New data released today by the U.S. Department of Education shows students — in New Hampshire and elsewhere — who graduate from career training programs at public universities tend to earn more than those who attended private, for-profit institutions.

The Portsmouth School Board held a public hearing last night on whether to push back the start of the school day for middle and high schoolers next year.

Among the roughly 60 parents and teachers who attended last night's meeting, there was broad agreement that a later start time could benefit students. A growing body of research suggests later start times can help teens get more sleep and be more productive during the school day.

Portsmouth superintendent Steve Zadravec outlined two proposals to push middle and high school start times back by an hour.

The Portsmouth School Board will hold a public hearing Wednesday evening on whether the school day should begin later for the city’s middle and high school students.