Dr. Karissa Niehoff, executive director of the Connecticut Association of Schools-Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CAS-CIAC) the past seven years, has been selected as the next executive director of the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS), effective August 1.

The Board of Education selected a new principal for Sage Park Middle School at a special meeting on Tuesday. Liana Jorgensen, the school’s current vice principal, will take over as principal in July for Paul Cavaliere, who is retiring at the end of the school year after 19 years in the job.

The Day (Neag School alumnus Cynthia Ritchie is the new superintendent of New London)

Don Leu of the University of Connecticut said the performance of U.S. students likely does not demonstrate “a level of performance adequate to be fully successful in learning during online inquiry.”

Houston Independent School District trustees face a vote Tuesday on whether to move forward with plans to temporarily give up control over 10 low-performing campuses to a charter school operator, an unprecendented surrender designed to prevent school closures or a state takeover of HISD’s locally elected school board.

As a high school teacher in Pennsylvania, Shaun Dougherty noticed that students in career-focused programs seemed much more engaged than his other students. Now a researcher, Dougherty set out to see whether data backed up his experience. Could the programs not just prepare students for the workforce, but keep students from dropping out of school? To find out, Dougherty studied Massachusetts’ 36 vocational and technical high schools.

Jennifer Lanese has been named the 2018 Outstanding School Educator Award recipient by the University of Connecticut’s Neag School of Education Alumni Board. Lanese was recognized on March 17 at the Neag School’s 20th Annual Alumni Awards Celebration in Storrs, Conn.

The vivacious Amanda Slavin is cofounder and leader of Catalyst Creativ, an “experience studio” with expertise in marketing, events and design. Prioritizing solving internal pain points before creating on and offline campaigns, Catalyst Creativ digs deep into a company’s DNA. Hear Slavin talk about running a holocratic-style company, her thoughtful approach to solving conflict – and how she overcame a lukewarm reception from Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh, who later became an investor.

Gwinnett Daily Post (Neag School alumni awardee Mohammad Zaheer featured)

Norwalk Hour (Ratings system for identifying gifted students, developed by Joseph Renzulli, to be used by schools in Norwalk, Conn.)