Quick Hits (6.13.12)

More to worry about in 2014. The Office of Management and Budget’s early memo regarding the budget for fiscal year 2014 (yes, that’s correct) signals the severity of the nation’s debt and deficit—and why programs included in discretionary spending, like education, need to start looking for solutions now. (Title I-Derland)

“Well, we know at least ONE day they came to school …” Atlantic City High School reportedly spent $20,000 to host singer Ashanti, who led assemblies that encouraged students to stay in school. (ONTD)

“It’s all fun and games until you realize your second-grader can’t read.” Parents pull their children from a $32,000-a-year, “progressive school” (read: no books or tests) because they say their little ones haven’t learned to string sentences together. (New York Post)

Word: Femgineer. Definition: “an innovative, empowered, well-rounded engineer who lends human compassion to the face of technology,” as described by two 19-year-old Calif. students who want to get rid of “nerdy” stereotypes. (Forbes)