Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE)

Missouri lawmakers cut the Imagination Library's budget for the upcoming fiscal year by more than half — from about $6 million to $2 million. The state education department said it won't have the money to enroll new children in the program after next month.

School leaders in the Kansas City area are grappling with how to balance their budgets and continue serving students as they face declining enrollment, state funding shortfalls and property tax caps.

The former state lawmaker will step down from the state's top job in K-12 education after the Missouri State Board of Education accepted her retirement on Tuesday.

Missouri lawmakers argue that state education officials must make it easier for families to understand students' academic performance. Educators believe it disproportionately punishes districts serving socioeconomically disadvantaged students.

A partir del domingo, los nuevos solicitantes del Programa de Subsidios para el Cuidado Infantil de Missouri se pondrán en una lista de espera. El departamento de educación del estado informó que el número de familias que reciben asistencia para el cuidado infantil ha aumentado en un 19% desde enero pasado.

Beginning Sunday, new applicants to Missouri’s Child Care Subsidy Program will be placed on a waitlist. The state's education department said the number of families receiving child care assistance has increased by 19% since last January.

About 60% of the teachers, principals, aides and other staff at KIPP Kansas City have left in the last year, describing a chaotic environment with frequent mishaps. Leaders say they're trying to reimagine the charter and not everyone is on board with the changes.

Operation Breakthrough in Kansas City was waiting on $400,000 in federal subsidies. Educators say the freeze put smaller child care providers in a "heartbreaking" situation.

Missouri has approved three recovery high schools to open in Kansas City, St. Louis and Cape Girardeau. The schools will help support students with their recovery from substance use while they earn their high school degree.

The federal government told the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education that the funds would be paused until "detailed justification" was provided for pending child care payments.

After the state's education department oversaw a pilot program teaching science through agriculture, lawmakers saw an opportunity for more.

Missouri Speaker of the House Jon Patterson, R-Lee’s Summit, who was in St. Louis at an event for DraftKings, said much of the tax revenue from legal sports betting in the state is expected to go to public schools. But it's unclear how much money they'll actually get.