Month: February 2026

Par Kermani

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) — A 29-year-old Idaho Falls man is facing serious felony charges after he led sheriff’s deputies in a foot chase during an attempted traffic stop.

On Feb. 24, the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office arrested Ryker Thomas Masson on multiple Felony Warrants for Probation Violations, stemming from previous drug-related charges.

Around 4:45 pm, a deputy attempted to initiate a traffic stop on a vehicle Masson was riding in near Broadway and Skyline Drive after recognizing him. Masson fled the vehicle from the passenger side and ran on foot to a nearby alleyway.

Deputies caught up to him when he stopped running. During the chase, officers recovered needles believed to be drug paraphernalia and other items Masson had discarded.

A deputy involved in the initial stop lost his footing while chasing Masson and fell on a concrete curb, breaking his arm. An Idaho Falls ambulance responded to the scene, and the deputy was transported to a hospital for treatment.

Masson was booked on the two outstanding felony warrants and a misdemeanor charge of resisting arrest.

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Emma Epperly

Originally posted on IdahoEdNews.org on February 25, 2026

By: Emma Epperly

Newly released grade-level reading test scores show some hiccups in the rollout of Idaho’s new reading test given to students in grades K-3.

School districts across Idaho are figuring out what works best for testing young students, from headphones to the number of test takers at a time, to what device kids use.

In Boundary County, only 11% of kindergartners scored reading at or above grade-level this fall, the lowest in the state.

That’s due in part to the protective cases on iPads that prevented the testing software from accurately capturing voices,  said Andrea Fuentes, director of curriculum, instruction and assessment at the district.

Scores improved when the district switched students to touchscreen Chromebooks.

The new Idaho Reading Indicator, was given for the first time in October.

The test was redesigned after Istation, the previous test provider, merged with Amira. The old test was multiple choice, while on the new test students read a passage off of a device, which then records and analyzes their response with an AI algorithm.

Idaho Ed News reached out to school districts with variances in proficiency to see if they ran into issues implementing the test. The issues they reported largely had to do with how to administer the test.

“I would say that the rollout was not very smooth for most districts,” said Susan Luke, administrator at Compass Charter.

Still, the Idaho Department of Education says it is confident the scores are an accurate measure of proficiency for most students.

“We have compared them to other school years, and for the most part, they are very similar,” said Kacy Proctor, IRI coordinator at IDE. “Do we have room for improvement? Yes, but it’s the first year of administration.”

More on the fall 2025 statewide results here.

Districts report hardware, testing group size issues

For Boundary County, equipment made an impact on scores, but likely just in kindergarten, Fuentes said.

Students scored proficient or higher in Boundary County at:

11.2% Kindergarten

39.2% First grade

51.4% Second Grade

61.8% Third Grade

Scores improved after teachers fixed the iPad issue.

Gooding: Hindered by iPad tabbing and test-group size

At Gooding Elementary, students from kindergarten through second grade also struggled to take the test on iPads for a variety of reasons, said Principal Brandee Sabala.

The new test is web-based, not in an app like Istation, so students were accidentally clicking out of the tab. They would also rotate the screen, another unforeseen issue.

The largest problem, Sabala said, was getting younger students to speak loudly and clearly enough to register with the program.

“We just found that really difficult for the younger grades to do,” Sabala said.

Students scored proficient or higher in Gooding at:

26.6% Kindergarten

25.3% First grade

39.1% Second grade

71.6% Third grade

While test scores statewide are historically lower in the fall due to learning loss over the summer break, Sabala said the spread between grades in previous years has been narrower.

During training from the state on the test, Sabala was told Amira’s voice detection ability was similar to Amazon’s Alexa speakers, so teachers could test a whole classroom at once if kids were spread out.

But in Gooding, they found it was in students’ best interest to test groups of four to six in the back of a classroom. Teachers then found a quiet activity for the other students during that time.

“It has just been a management thing for teachers,” Sabala said.

About Amira

Istation has been Idaho’s test provider since 2016. In 2024, as Istation merged with Amira Learning, the combined company was selected to administer the Idaho Reading Indicator for another 5 years.

The 2025-26 year is a pilot year, so Amira will not receive any funds, but for each following year the company will be paid $650,000.

Learn more about Amira here.

Learn more about standardized tests here.

Compass: Preparation produced results

When Susan Luke, K-12 administrator at Compass Charter, learned that the new Amira test would require a large speaking component, the school began practicing with iStation’s little-used speaking portion.

That led to the idea of purchasing headsets with microphones for all students to help the program better capture students’ voices.

“That has made a big difference in the accuracy piece,” Luke said.

The school tests half of a class at a time while the other half does a digital assignment. Students from kindergarten through second grade used iPads while third graders used Chromebooks. Luke plans to transition second graders to Chromebooks in the spring after they have learned more keyboarding skills.

Students scored proficient or higher at Compass:

62.6% Kindergarten

75.8% First grade

88.3% Second grade

89.1% Third grade

While the physical gear did help, Luke also attributes the school’s above-average scores to its curriculum, which includes reading throughout the day and focuses on choral reading over students silently reading to themselves.

Teachers also focus on reviewing skills as they build upon them. Those skills include a heavy focus on learning norms at the start of the school year, including digital ones like “think before you click,” Luke said.

Luke agreed with other educators that having Amira only available in a web browser was “unhelpful.”

Luke said that IDE did a good job of addressing issues this fall, but thinks the test scores weren’t as accurate as they could be.

West Ada: Helped by new equipment, teacher training

In West Ada, the state’s largest school district, students completed a practice assessment in September.

Then staff worked out bugs, like having to restart computers or issues with headphones, ahead of the assessment reported to the state in October, said Rhonda McDonough, chief academic officer of teaching and learning.

All students used headphones and the majority used laptops, a small number used Chromebooks.

“We don’t want the equipment to be the variance,” McDonough said.

The district bought 8,845 headsets for this school year for $173,986. Each headset cost $19.50. Some students muted and unmuted their microphone during the test, impacting the results, which led the district to spend an additional $6,500 for capsules to cover the mute button.

The district guidance is to test whole classes at once unless a student has an accommodation that requires small group assessment.

Like other districts, West Ada is in the learning stage, McDonough said. The team met with Amira directly and department of education leaders to learn more about analyzing their data, especially in the new system.

“I think we’re at an advantage because we have such a huge data set,” McDonough said.

Students scored proficient or higher in West Ada:

66.5% Kindergarten

81% First grade

74.4% Second grade

80.3% Third grade

The district rolled out its own phonics curriculum last year for Kindergarten teachers, based on the science of reading research.  Last spring, that resulted in IRI scores over 80%.

McDonough attributes high first grade scores this fall to that program, which has since been rolled out to teachers and interventionists for first and second grades.

IDE: It’s “a learning year”

Overall, the challenges that schools faced this fall are an expected part of rolling out a new exam, said Proctor, who coordinates the exam for the Idaho Department of Education.

Hardware issues like headphones and the number of students being tested at once can make an impact, Proctor said.

“I would say the biggest thing we’ve noticed is districts changing headphones,” Proctor said of things that improved scores.

While Amira says that any group size can be tested with or without headphones, schools have reported that students remain calmer in smaller groups, she said.

Five to seven students seems to be the sweet spot, she said.

One positive to the small group is that teachers can test over a handful of days, Proctor said.

Statewide, the biggest drop in scores was for kindergarteners.

“We can attribute that to many things, one, we’re asking kindergartners to speak,” Proctor said. “Kindergarteners are very shy and maybe they’ve never been away from their parents before.”

The new test also took away the guessing element of multiple choice, she noted.

“The most important thing for school districts to know is that it’s our first year of implementation,”  Proctor said. “It’s really important to take our first year as kind of a learning year.”

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Ryan Suppe

Originally posted on IdahoEdNews.org on February 25, 2026

By: Ryan Suppe

Some public school leaders are preparing to cut their budgets if lawmakers keep state funding flat next school year — even though K-12 is exempt from nearly statewide cuts.

Budget-setting lawmakers this month advanced a $2.77 billion public school funding bill for 2026-27. It’s roughly the same amount the state appropriated this school year. And so far, brick-and-mortar public schools have been shielded from proposed spending cuts that apply to most state-funded agencies and institutions. 

But stagnant funding is effectively a reduction amid increasing costs to operate public schools — costs for utilities, employee insurance, computer software, classroom supplies, fuel and other items affected by inflation.

“The cost of doing business has outpaced state funding,” said Republican state superintendent Debbie Critchfield. “Even a flat budget is a cut.”

Public school advocates have pointed to state savings accounts as an option that could spare K-12 from cuts. But Idaho’s $1.3 billion stockpile of reserve funds remains mostly untouched as Republican Gov. Brad Little and the GOP-dominated Legislature consider other ways to balance the budget amid a revenue shortfall. The governor and legislative leaders argue these savings should be used only in a recession.

This means school leaders will have to cover increasing costs by cutting their own budgets, leaning on local reserves or asking property taxpayers for higher supplemental levies.

State superintendent Debbie Critchfield shakes hands with Idaho School Boards Association President Jason Sevy at the ISBA Day on the Hill on Feb. 16. (Sean Dolan/EdNews)

School leaders hope to counter ‘held-harmless’ messaging from the Statehouse

The Bonneville School District is planning staff cuts to make up a projected shortfall estimated at $5 million to $6 million. The shortfall is tied to increasing costs for utilities, food and employee health insurance, according to Superintendent Scott Woolstenhulme. 

“We are cutting our budget. I think that’s probably true of almost every district in the state,” Woolstenhulme told a group of public school trustees last week.

Scott Woolstenhulme, Bonneville School District superintendent

Woolstenhulme was a panelist for a workshop on “overseeing budget reductions” hosted by the Idaho School Boards Association. The advocacy group, composed of trustees from across the state, gathered in Boise for ISBA’s annual “Day on the Hill.” 

Part of the workshop focused on how districts and charter schools could implement cuts in ways that minimize effects on students. The other part focused on how trustees will explain to patrons why cuts are necessary — particularly as state leaders paint a rosier picture of K-12 funding ahead of this year’s election.

Brick-and-mortar public schools are exempt next fiscal year from 5% budget reductions affecting most state agencies, including colleges and universities. The proposed cuts — including 3% from Little and an additional 2% from budget-setting lawmakers — come after state revenue underperformed over the last year, while $453 million in tax cuts and credits took effect. The Legislature passed the GOP-backed tax cuts, and the governor signed them into law. 

During his State of the State address last month, Little touted a 70% increase in state support for public schools since he took office in 2019. And he promised to protect “classroom funding” from the budget cuts. Legislative leaders have also said they’re pushing to hold the K-12 budget harmless. 

“My message to the Legislature has been very simple: Don’t you dare cut public education,” Sen. Kelly Anthon told ISBA members last week. The Rupert Republican is the Senate’s president pro tem.

Critchfield said she’s “thrilled” that state K-12 funding isn’t going backward. Her top priority this legislative session is keeping the public school budget flat, and she’s been successful for the most part. 

Still, public schools won’t be immune from the impact of the state’s tightening budget: 

The $2.77 billion public schools bill, which the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee (JFAC) approved on Feb. 13, represents an $18 million increase, or 0.7%. But it doesn’t account for cuts that could come later in the legislative session, including a $33 million reduction to virtual public schools and the state’s online learning platform. 

K-12 will get about $24 million less through the state’s attendance-based formula, which distributes funds based on “support units.” The metric essentially represents the cost to operate a classroom, and next year’s calculation assumes a small enrollment decline. Fall enrollment this school year was down 1%.

Public schools that aren’t on the state’s employee insurance plan won’t be fully funded for benefit cost increases. While schools that participate in the state plan will get an additional 14.4%, those on a non-state plan will get 10.8%. The unfunded benefits total $9 million statewide, although the local effects will depend on how much each district’s insurance costs change. Some could be higher or lower than 10.8%. 

Budget cuts to other state agencies likely will trickle down to K-12. Taking 5% from the Division of Career Technical Education, for instance, could defund 164 CTE programs in public high schools, according to the governor’s office. 

And the K-12 budget doesn’t include an increase in discretionary funding, which public schools use for operating costs.

Anne Ritter, a trustee at Meridian Medical Arts Charter High School and former West Ada school board member, said during last week’s workshop that local leaders will have to explain these “whys” to their parents and staff. 

“I don’t think a lot of people think that a ‘held-harmless’ budget is something that’s difficult for all of us to deal with,” she said.

Senate President Pro Tempore Kelly Anthon, R-Rupert, speaks to reporters on Jan. 8, at the Idaho Press Club’s legislative preview. (Sean Dolan/EdNews)

School operations funding remains flat amid inflation

Along with Bonneville, administrators in the Coeur d’Alene, Nampa, Middleton, Kellogg and Grangeville school districts have said in recent weeks that they’re weighing budget cuts and/or increased supplemental levies. 

Some administrators pointed to static state discretionary funding. Public schools won’t see an ongoing increase in discretionary funding for the second consecutive school year under JFAC’s proposed budget. 

Schools typically use state discretionary dollars for operating costs like utilities, maintenance, supplies and other expenses affected by inflation. They also use it to supplement employee pay and benefits when state funding falls short of their staffing needs.

“Flat isn’t really flat,” Stephany Bales, executive director of community relations for the Coeur d’Alene School District, told EdNews by email. “We’d still be looking at budget reductions as inflation and operating costs (i.e., insurance) increase.”

The last time lawmakers made a permanent increase to discretionary funding was an additional $47 million ahead of the 2024-25 school year. Since then, inflation is about 3%, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index. 

The Nampa School District will have to make “significant cuts” if discretionary funding is flat again, said Matthew Sizemore, Nampa’s director of community and media relations. On top of increasing power and gas prices, software costs are up between 5% and 10%, he said by email. 

“And none of the products we buy for supplies have gotten any cheaper,” he added.

Sen. Janie Ward-Engelking, D-Boise, addresses the audience at the Idaho School Boards Association Day on the Hill on Feb. 16. To her left is Sen. James Ruchti, D-Pocatello, and Quinn Perry, deputy director of the ISBA. (Sean Dolan/EdNews)

But what about the 70% increase to public schools since 2019? 

The 70% increase to public schools since 2019 was largely driven by targeted investments — facilities, teacher pay and literacy — and local leaders have limited flexibility to spend this money.

The $1 billion that districts got for facilities two years ago can be spent only on capital building projects, and $78 million in annual literacy money must support improving reading outcomes.

“They’re not fungible,” Critchfield said. “There’s no flexibility within the categories.”

A school district in the Treasure Valley, for instance, can’t use money earmarked for literacy to pay its bill from Idaho Power, which increased its rates 7.5% this year. 

Previous state increases also fulfilled needs that local taxpayers had covered. Last year, districts requested $234 million in bonds and levies during the May and November elections. That was a 67% decrease since the record-setting March 2017 election when districts asked for $715 million.

And the state has yet to address a glaring hole in local budgets: an estimated $100 million gap between what districts spend on special education and what they get from state and federal governments. Grangeville’s interim superintendent, Amanda Bush, said last week that local funds cover 75% of the newly created district’s special education costs. 

For Critchfield, this problem traces back to a familiar foe: the state’s antiquated school funding formula, which hasn’t had a major upgrade since 1994. “How we do the funding has not kept pace with what the actual day-to-day operations of a school look like,” she said. 

There won’t be any major formula changes this legislative session. But in the short-term, Sen. Janie Ward-Engelking worries that a flat K-12 budget will shift the burden to fund public schools back onto property taxes — the “most onerous tax of all,” she said.  A Boise Democrat and longtime JFAC member, Ward-Engelking has pushed Republican leaders to cover schools’ increasing costs using state reserves. 

“We’re not using this bucket of money, but districts are going to have to run more levies,” Ward-Engelking told EdNews. “It’s a cost shift.”

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