Education Equity

‘Easy to Just Write Us Off’: Rural Students’ Choices Shrink as Colleges Slash Majors

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Although she won a scholarship to Mississippi State University, two hours’ drive away, Shamya Jones couldn’t get there because she had a new baby and no car. So she enrolled instead at a local community college, then transferred to the four-year campus closest to her home in the rural Mississippi Delta: Delta State University.

She planned to major in digital media arts, but before she could start, Delta State eliminated that major, along with 20 other degree programs, including history, English, chemistry and music.

“They’re cutting off so much, and teachers [are] leaving,” Jones said. “It’s like we’re not getting the help or benefits we need.” The cuts “take away from us, our education.”

That kind of frustration is growing. Rural Americans already have far less access to higher education than their counterparts in cities and suburbs. Now the comparatively few universities that serve rural students are eliminating large numbers of programs and majors, blaming plummeting enrollment and financial crises. Many rural private, nonprofit colleges are closing altogether.

How a Pennsylvania Middle School Violated the Privacy of Its LGBTQ+ Students: A Window Into SORVO

You’re a student at Emory H. Markle Middle School. You’re trans, and your teachers aren’t allowed to use your correct name or pronouns. They’ll be punished if they address you with any identifier other than what you’ve been legally assigned. LGBTQ-inclusive books have been banned. A transgender student at a nearby school was killed in a hate crime earlier this year.

The gender-neutral bathroom is the only place in your school that brings you refuge from the transphobia swirling around you. Then, the school cuts a window into the bathroom wall, and everyone can see in.

The school district’s board president stated the reasoning for the window was to “better monitor for a multitude of prohibited activities such as any possible vaping, drug use, bullying or absenteeism.” The kicker? The windows were only installed in Markle’s gender-inclusive bathrooms.

Gen Z Rep. Justin J. Pearson on Gun Violence, Activism and Being a Young Legislator

Generation Z—born between the mid 1990s and the early 2010s—is the most diverse generation in American history, with nearly half of the Gen Z electorate in 2024 identifying as people of color. Gen Z has also come of age during the rise of school shootings, the COVID-19 pandemic and the first Trump presidency’s legislative attacks on reproductive freedom.

While 41 million Gen Z members voted in the Nov. 5 election, some Gen Z voters are old enough now to run for office themselves. In The Z Factor’s second episode, Chander interviewed 29-year-old Tennessee State House Rep. Justin J. Pearson, who serves Memphis. In 2023, he was the second youngest person to serve in the Tennessee legislature. Since then, he’s advocated for climate and racial justice and gun violence prevention, introducing more than a dozen gun safety bills over the last year.

The Power of the Single Mom Vote

Single moms are closest to the issues in the 2024 election. Here’s why we need to talk more about their voting power.

Single moms are often described as superheroes, but unlike fictional heroes, they work through real-world challenges—providing stability, security, and support to millions of American families every day. In the 30 percent of U.S. households led by single mothers, moms don’t just do a lot—they do it all. More than just caregivers, they’re often sole providers and teachers, imparting everything from teaching us to tie our shoes to learning our ABCs, while navigating the pressures of work and family alone. And, in the upcoming 2024 election, they hold a unique power that often goes unrecognized: their voting influence.

Ending Child Marriage—For Good: The Ms. Q&A With Clay Dunn, CEO at VOW for Girls

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Oct. 11 is International Day of the Girl, an annual celebration that promotes advocacy for the rights, education and empowerment of girls across the globe. This year’s theme is “Girls’ Vision for the Future.” Child marriage, a practice that robs millions of girls of their childhoods, opportunities and dreams, prevents girls from realizing their own vision for the future. Each year, an estimated 12 million girls are married before the age of 18, perpetuating cycles of poverty and inequality. 

We got the chance to speak with Clay Dunn, CEO of VOW for Girls, an organization that partners with brands, individuals, and the wedding industry to raise money for local partners working to end child marriage in their community.

Children’s Interests, Ambitions and Skills Can Be Shaped Early On. The Toy Industry Has a Role to Play.

I recently had the honor of attending a roundtable meeting at The White House for toy and children’s entertainment leaders. As one of the organizers, our agenda included discussing initiatives to elevate inclusivity in the play space and break down gender stereotypes. The passion of female corporate leaders was apparent as we discussed how play helps children learn and develop a variety of skills: the importance of storytelling that allows kids to see themselves as they are, not how they are stereotyped, and the need for more diverse options in toys. Being “relegated to the sidelines” doesn’t start in our teens and twenties; it begins the moment a girl can hold a toy or book or watch a screen.

Florida Just Banned Sex Ed in Public Schools. Project 2025 Calls for the Same Ban *Nationwide.*

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If you don’t live in Florida, you may be inclined to distance yourself from the news that they just banned public school districts from teaching sex education—including lessons on consent, HIV transmission, abuse prevention, and the existence of LGBTQ+ people.

But this is not a “Florida problem”—it’s a national preview. Because Project 2025 calls for a federal ban on sex education too. It’s just hidden, snuck in as part of their ban on pornography. 

Misogynist Manifesto: Project 2025’s Plans to Gut Women’s Rights in the Workplace and Classroom

Part two of a three-part series about the 900-plus-page right-wing “misogynistic manifesto”:

Project 2025 eviscerates women’s long-held rights to sex equality in the workplace. Its plans for women students and workers would devastate their educational opportunities, harming their careers and earning power. 

(This article originally appears in the Fall 2024 issue of Ms. Join the Ms. community today and you’ll get issues delivered straight to your mailbox!)