AI in Education: Firebird Labs launched in Armenia with OpenAI support to bring frontier AI access to 50,000 students, teachers, and researchers. College & Career Pathways: U.S. service academy nomination portal opened for Pennsylvania’s class of 2031, with applicants needing a congressional nomination. School Safety Funding: The U.S. Departments of Education and HHS launched the FY 2026 School Safety Enhancement grant competition to strengthen safe, secure school systems. Early Childhood Literacy: Missouri cut Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library funding from $6M to $2M, pausing new enrollments July 1 while continuing books for current participants. Student Grading Policy: South Carolina’s new law bans “grade floors,” making it harder for students to recover lost credits after grade drops. Legal Fight Over School Money: A judge temporarily blocked Trump’s $1.776B “anti-weaponization” fund payouts, shifting the fight to a June 12 hearing. Local School Governance: Los Angeles school board races’ mega-spending era appears to be ending as the cycle closes. Teacher Immigration Case: A federal judge ordered Milwaukee’s former teacher’s aide to be allowed to return to the U.S. after being forced to self-deport. STEM/Research: UT Knoxville launched the Knoxville Quantum Accelerator to accelerate quantum tech and regional economic growth.