First Staters looking to dispose of their prescription drugs in a safe, responsible and convenient way can do so on Saturday, April 22 at 22 different locations throughout the state. Along with proper disposal, the National Drug Enforcement Administration Prescription Drug Take Back Day is meant to educate the public about the potential for abuse of medications. The country is …
5 school districts drop virtual option for board meetings
Five of Delaware’s 19 school districts no longer livestream their board meetings. Caesar Rodney, Delmar, Laurel, Smyrna and Woodbridge school districts removed the virtual option this years as students and faculty return to an in-person environment with pandemic restrictions diminishing. John Marinucci, the executive director of the Delaware School Boards Association, said the organization pushed for legislation that allowed, but …
43 to compete for 23 school board seats in May 9 election
The list of school board candidates for the May 9 election has been finalized after delays caused by new background check regulations. 43 candidates will run for 23 vacancies across 16 school districts. That’s one less candidate than 2022’s 42 candidates competing for 19 open seats. State education groups had hoped that more people would run, but First State Education …
Heated debate ends in vote to raise teacher pay over 4 years
Defying the demands of the state teachers union, a committee formed to make recommendations on educator pay voted Monday to bring teacher’s starting salary to $60,000 over four years rather than three. The four-year plan will consist of a 2% salary increase and a flat dollar increase of $1,875 to the base salary for teachers, nurses and administrators each year …
School board candidate listings delayed by background checks
The deadline for people to file to run for the May 9 school board elections has passed, but it may take weeks until the final list of candidates is published. The problem: A 2021 law that requires school board candidates to complete a criminal background check and a child registry check. These must be completed before candidates’ names can be …
State details plans for broadband expansion in county hearings
Kent County farm owner Jane Warren is anxious to have internet service at her home, but there’s no way to do that now. “We cannot function because everything is done online,” she said during a Delaware Department of Technology and Information public hearing Wednesday night about state efforts to expand broadband access. The department has until August to develop a …
Delaware offers second round of child care worker bonuses
Tiny Tots Childcare Director Jessica Burns got good news Wednesday: A second round of relief checks for Delaware’s child care professionals. That will help her workers pay for their certifications, which cost between $300 and $500, she said. “This definitely is a retention effort by the state,” she said. “My staff is very, very excited and hoping to get to …
Charter Schools sue Holodick over special ed payments
The Delaware Charter Schools Network, 11 charter schools and the Delaware secretary of education are waiting on a judge’s ruling in a lawsuit about $4 million in tax revenue the charters say they are due. The network and the 11 charter schools sued Education Secretary Mark Holodick in Kent County Superior Court in July to get the money and to …
UD alumna jumped into ‘Shark Tank;’ swam away with deal
University of Delaware graduate Joelle Flynn peddled her lipstick-size toothbrush on ABC’s “Shark Tank,” cutting a $250,000 deal with one of the sharks. FunkkOFF! TeethRefreshers was created in 2010 as a way for people to discreetly brush their teeth when they’re on the move – especially when they’re drinking red wine. It hit the consumer market in 2019. Flynn had …
College scholarships application deadlines are approaching
A variety of community groups are offering college scholarships, and students who want to apply need to get on it, because at least one deadline is today. “Our scholarship programs are created by generous people who understand that higher education is expensive and they want Delaware students to have more opportunity,” said Allison Levine, vice president of marketing for the …