Gail Cornwall
@gailcornwall.com
Former teacher & lawyer who now works as a mother & writer. Bylines for the Atlantic, Nation, NYT, Good Housekeeping, Guardian, New York Mag, USA Today, & many more. Stories tackle education, psychology, parenting, etc.
Pinned
Gail Cornwall
@gailcornwall.com
· Nov 11
The hidden financial aid hurdle derailing college students
Little-known rules requiring that students make ‘satisfactory academic progress’ to receive federal grants have derailed countless college students. But legislators are finally taking notice.
hechingerreport.org
A little-known requirement meant to incentivize academic performance has been doing the opposite for decades, disqualifying capable students from financial aid for life & becoming “a de facto end” to their education. It’s not fair or smart. My latest for @hechingerreport.org & @washingtonpost.com.
“Two-parent households do not confer … academic advantage [for low-income kids]…. Those who live w/ both parents scored a 199. Those who live w/ just mom scored 200.” Money matters far more than family structure. @jillbarshay.bsky.social for @hechingerreport.org hechingerreport.org/proof-points...
Conservatives see married parents as a solution to low student achievement. It's not that simple
NAEP data suggests that family structure affects student performance mostly in wealthier households
hechingerreport.org
January 15, 2026 at 1:32 AM
“Two-parent households do not confer … academic advantage [for low-income kids]…. Those who live w/ both parents scored a 199. Those who live w/ just mom scored 200.” Money matters far more than family structure. @jillbarshay.bsky.social for @hechingerreport.org hechingerreport.org/proof-points...
“In the years that Block was homeschooled, why was he never assessed, or even checked on? The answer is that homeschooling was wildly-regulated when Block was a boy—a situation that has not changed much since then.” @olgakhazan.bsky.social for @theatlantic.com www.theatlantic.com/family/2026/...
He Was Homeschooled for Years, and Fell So Far Behind
A new memoir shows how a lack of accountability can hurt home-educated kids.
www.theatlantic.com
January 14, 2026 at 11:13 PM
“In the years that Block was homeschooled, why was he never assessed, or even checked on? The answer is that homeschooling was wildly-regulated when Block was a boy—a situation that has not changed much since then.” @olgakhazan.bsky.social for @theatlantic.com www.theatlantic.com/family/2026/...
Important corrective from @phillewis.bsky.social. www.whatimreading.net/p/jacksonvil...
What’s missing from the online discourse about the viral Jacksonville Jaguars interview
The Black Press never agreed to conform to the mainstream media’s ideal of “objectivity.”
www.whatimreading.net
January 12, 2026 at 6:08 PM
Important corrective from @phillewis.bsky.social. www.whatimreading.net/p/jacksonvil...
“Forced divorce.” Living in perpetual, pervasive fear. Inability to see a parent for a decade, to go camping with a grandparent who’d like nothing more.
Draconian, punitive immigration policies are traumatizing generations of hardworking, law-abiding Americans. www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
Draconian, punitive immigration policies are traumatizing generations of hardworking, law-abiding Americans. www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
A Mexican Couple in California Plans to Self-Deport—and Leave Their Kids Behind
Can undocumented parents elude ICE capture for one more year, until their youngest turns eighteen?
www.newyorker.com
January 7, 2026 at 6:19 PM
“Forced divorce.” Living in perpetual, pervasive fear. Inability to see a parent for a decade, to go camping with a grandparent who’d like nothing more.
Draconian, punitive immigration policies are traumatizing generations of hardworking, law-abiding Americans. www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
Draconian, punitive immigration policies are traumatizing generations of hardworking, law-abiding Americans. www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
Can you imagine being so desperate to deprive other people’s teenagers of an education that you’d be willing to contort law and logic? So desperate to hoard opportunity that you’d subvert democratic processes? @knottkatherine.bsky.social for @insidehighered.com www.insidehighered.com/news/governm...
Virginia Agrees to Scrap In-State Tuition for Undocumented Students
The state’s lame-duck Republican officials sided with the Trump administration and asked a federal judge to block the Virginia Dream Act. Incoming Democrats and advocacy groups are vowing to fight.
www.insidehighered.com
January 6, 2026 at 11:36 PM
Can you imagine being so desperate to deprive other people’s teenagers of an education that you’d be willing to contort law and logic? So desperate to hoard opportunity that you’d subvert democratic processes? @knottkatherine.bsky.social for @insidehighered.com www.insidehighered.com/news/governm...
Writers, check out Jennifer Wilson’s swoon-worthy transition:
“employ a good lawyer, someone who … has heard more sad stories than can fit inside the Country Music Hall of Fame.
I flew to Tennessee to meet Rose Palermo, the so-called divorce queen of Nashville ….” www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
“employ a good lawyer, someone who … has heard more sad stories than can fit inside the Country Music Hall of Fame.
I flew to Tennessee to meet Rose Palermo, the so-called divorce queen of Nashville ….” www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
Why Millennials Love Prenups
Long the province of the ultra-wealthy, prenuptial agreements are being embraced by young people—including many who don’t have all that much to divvy up.
www.newyorker.com
January 5, 2026 at 1:23 AM
Writers, check out Jennifer Wilson’s swoon-worthy transition:
“employ a good lawyer, someone who … has heard more sad stories than can fit inside the Country Music Hall of Fame.
I flew to Tennessee to meet Rose Palermo, the so-called divorce queen of Nashville ….” www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
“employ a good lawyer, someone who … has heard more sad stories than can fit inside the Country Music Hall of Fame.
I flew to Tennessee to meet Rose Palermo, the so-called divorce queen of Nashville ….” www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
Peeing when you sneeze or jog or cough is preventable, sexist bullshit that doesn't just impact those who give birth. Please read my latest for @theguardian.com if you or someone you love has plumbing similar to mine. We don't have to live this way. www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...
No more Kegels: I found a fix for post-birth incontinence – why don’t more women know about it?
After years of worrying that running or sneezing would leave me needing fresh underwear, a quick procedure changed my life
www.theguardian.com
December 30, 2025 at 9:35 PM
Peeing when you sneeze or jog or cough is preventable, sexist bullshit that doesn't just impact those who give birth. Please read my latest for @theguardian.com if you or someone you love has plumbing similar to mine. We don't have to live this way. www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...
“She represents the kind of people often caught up in … Trump's goal of deporting 1 mil immigrants each yr: well-established in her community, active in her church, no criminal record…. The [US citizen] twins were away from their friends, their school, their father.” www.jsonline.com/story/news/l...
14 years in Wisconsin. A new life in El Salvador. She's trying to accept it.
Half a year has passed since U.S. immigration officials gave former Milwaukee teacher's aide Yessenia Ruano no choice but to return to El Salvador.
www.jsonline.com
December 17, 2025 at 10:31 PM
“She represents the kind of people often caught up in … Trump's goal of deporting 1 mil immigrants each yr: well-established in her community, active in her church, no criminal record…. The [US citizen] twins were away from their friends, their school, their father.” www.jsonline.com/story/news/l...
“By the time teachers get through their required curriculums and prep students for exams, they often have little or no time left to guide classes through a whole book…. When whole books are assigned, they are most often from a relatively stagnant list of classics.” www.nytimes.com/2025/12/12/u...
Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class.
www.nytimes.com
December 17, 2025 at 10:04 PM
“By the time teachers get through their required curriculums and prep students for exams, they often have little or no time left to guide classes through a whole book…. When whole books are assigned, they are most often from a relatively stagnant list of classics.” www.nytimes.com/2025/12/12/u...
The insouciance never gets old. www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
And Your Little Dog, Too, by David Sedaris
Two small dogs, both unleashed, rushed toward me, snarling, and one of them bit me on my left leg, just below the knee. It all happened within a second.
www.newyorker.com
December 16, 2025 at 4:33 AM
The insouciance never gets old. www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
“The program is similar to others in Europe, as large developed economies seek to capitalize on the challenges faced by international researchers in the United States, and offer younger researchers alternatives to American universities to start their careers.” www.nytimes.com/2025/12/09/w...
‘Come North!’ Canada Makes Play for H-1B Visa Holders With New Talent Drive
www.nytimes.com
December 16, 2025 at 4:27 AM
“The program is similar to others in Europe, as large developed economies seek to capitalize on the challenges faced by international researchers in the United States, and offer younger researchers alternatives to American universities to start their careers.” www.nytimes.com/2025/12/09/w...
Hard to explain to non-lawyers how appalling it is for a federal judge to attend a political rally. Clearly unethical, under clear rules. Like a doctor intentionally causing a patient extra pain, it undermines faith in the whole system. This is not a gray area. www.newyorker.com/news/the-led...
The Federal Judge at the Trump Rally
Emil Bove violated a basic tenet of judicial ethics, presumably on purpose.
www.newyorker.com
December 16, 2025 at 1:13 AM
Hard to explain to non-lawyers how appalling it is for a federal judge to attend a political rally. Clearly unethical, under clear rules. Like a doctor intentionally causing a patient extra pain, it undermines faith in the whole system. This is not a gray area. www.newyorker.com/news/the-led...
Reposted by Gail Cornwall
The horrific tragedy at Brown University is the 389th mass shooting this year and the 230th gun incident on school grounds so far this year.
This is not normal and we don't have to live this way.
bradyunited.org
@bradyunited.org
This is not normal and we don't have to live this way.
bradyunited.org
@bradyunited.org
December 14, 2025 at 1:04 AM
The horrific tragedy at Brown University is the 389th mass shooting this year and the 230th gun incident on school grounds so far this year.
This is not normal and we don't have to live this way.
bradyunited.org
@bradyunited.org
This is not normal and we don't have to live this way.
bradyunited.org
@bradyunited.org
Thank you, David! You were an incredible resource for this story, and I'm super grateful for your thoughtful, ambitious work on this topic and equity in general.
December 11, 2025 at 5:54 PM
Thank you, David! You were an incredible resource for this story, and I'm super grateful for your thoughtful, ambitious work on this topic and equity in general.
Reposted by Gail Cornwall
I was fortunate to have the opportunity to provide some info & resources for this story. I urge you to take time to read & sit with this really important, and heartbreaking, issue.
Across the nation, colleges have students sleeping in cars, napping pods, alums’ homes, hotels & even an assisted living facility. My latest for @theguardian.com & @hechingerreport.org is on what emergency housing ingenuity says about higher ed in today’s America. hechingerreport.org/a-new-soluti...
A new ‘solution’ to student homelessness: a parking lot where students can sleep safely in their cars
More colleges are looking at emergency housing solutions, including have students sleeping in alumni’s homes, napping pods, Airbnbs and even an assisted living facility.
hechingerreport.org
December 11, 2025 at 5:36 PM
I was fortunate to have the opportunity to provide some info & resources for this story. I urge you to take time to read & sit with this really important, and heartbreaking, issue.
THIS. It's not just the phones.
“Asking students to drill down on their schoolwork amid an array of digital distractions isn’t just bad for test scores; it is inimical to learning,” Jean Wenge writes. “And it is fundamentally unfair to children.”
Opinion | The Laptop That Ate Your Child’s Classroom
Asking students to drill down on their schoolwork amid an array of digital distractions is inimical to learning.
nyti.ms
December 11, 2025 at 5:28 PM
THIS. It's not just the phones.
I can't stop thinking about this conservative mom trying - & failing - to keep MAGA conservatives from taking apart public school from the inside, courtesy of @laurapappano.bsky.social & @emmaepperly.bsky.social for @hechingerreport.org & @idahoednews.bsky.social. hechingerreport.org/a-republican...
A Republican homeschooling mom came to love her public schools. Now she’s fighting other conservatives she thinks will destroy them
In North Idaho, a local mom’s efforts to wrest school board control from MAGA conservatives ended in disappointment on Election Day. How it happened carries a message about political power.
hechingerreport.org
December 11, 2025 at 5:23 PM
I can't stop thinking about this conservative mom trying - & failing - to keep MAGA conservatives from taking apart public school from the inside, courtesy of @laurapappano.bsky.social & @emmaepperly.bsky.social for @hechingerreport.org & @idahoednews.bsky.social. hechingerreport.org/a-republican...
Reposted by Gail Cornwall
We just secured 5.5 million dollars to certify and provide jobs to nearly 600 formerly incarcerated firefighters transitioning from fighting wildfires in prison to serving communities while free. This is what hope and redemption looks like. This is California.
December 10, 2025 at 4:03 PM
We just secured 5.5 million dollars to certify and provide jobs to nearly 600 formerly incarcerated firefighters transitioning from fighting wildfires in prison to serving communities while free. This is what hope and redemption looks like. This is California.
The headline is the TLDR: ICE raids are negatively impacting school communities across the country in a bunch of different ways. Read the full article for the deets and receipts. Iris Kwok and Howard Blume for @latimes.com www.latimes.com/california/s...
High school bullying is up, attendance down as ICE raids sow ‘climate of distress,' study says
A new survey of public high school principals across the U.S. found widespread, heightened distress among students from immigrant families amid ICE raids.
www.latimes.com
December 10, 2025 at 4:28 AM
The headline is the TLDR: ICE raids are negatively impacting school communities across the country in a bunch of different ways. Read the full article for the deets and receipts. Iris Kwok and Howard Blume for @latimes.com www.latimes.com/california/s...
"Each time I went, I found the silence anew and let myself sink into it a little further. I learned more about Quaker beliefs in pacifism [and] equality ... Most believed in God, but others were agnostic .... Eventually, I started to have faith, too." www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...
A moment that changed me: My unbearable grief kept growing – until I found solace in a silent community
After my dad died, I tried to cope by keeping busy: a day job, a side hustle, socialising and working out. But I kept bursting into tears in public. At a Quaker meeting, it was as if someone had turne...
www.theguardian.com
December 10, 2025 at 4:23 AM
"Each time I went, I found the silence anew and let myself sink into it a little further. I learned more about Quaker beliefs in pacifism [and] equality ... Most believed in God, but others were agnostic .... Eventually, I started to have faith, too." www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...
“AI tools are now being incorporated into how student applications are screened and analyzed …. Virginia Tech is debuting an AI-powered essay reader… The Daily Tar Heel, reported [that UNC] was using AI to evaluate the grammar and writing style of applicants’ essays.” apnews.com/article/ai-c...
AI may be scoring your college essay. Welcome to the new era of admissions
Students applying to college know they're not supposed to use AI chatbots to write their essays. So it might come as a surprise that some schools are now using artificial intelligence to read those es...
apnews.com
December 9, 2025 at 11:09 PM
“AI tools are now being incorporated into how student applications are screened and analyzed …. Virginia Tech is debuting an AI-powered essay reader… The Daily Tar Heel, reported [that UNC] was using AI to evaluate the grammar and writing style of applicants’ essays.” apnews.com/article/ai-c...
Reposted by Gail Cornwall
NEW YORK (AP) — Philanthropist MacKenzie Scott increased her donations to nonprofits in 2025, giving $7.1 billion.
December 9, 2025 at 7:41 PM
NEW YORK (AP) — Philanthropist MacKenzie Scott increased her donations to nonprofits in 2025, giving $7.1 billion.
Grow apprentice programs and fund them as well as SF in order to "train early childhood educators & to boost pay enough so teachers can [do] it for the long term,” writes @nirvishah.bsky.social for @hechingerreport.org. Just wait til you read Erica Davis's story! hechingerreport.org/one-city-fin...
With preschool teachers in short supply, cities, states turn to apprenticeships
Preschool teachers are generally in short supply, and many who attempt this work quickly quit these typically low-paying jobs. Some places are using apprenticeships — a training arrangement more commo...
hechingerreport.org
December 9, 2025 at 5:49 PM
Grow apprentice programs and fund them as well as SF in order to "train early childhood educators & to boost pay enough so teachers can [do] it for the long term,” writes @nirvishah.bsky.social for @hechingerreport.org. Just wait til you read Erica Davis's story! hechingerreport.org/one-city-fin...
Super detailed dive into “the long-term transformation of stadiums from working-class cathedrals for the people into luxury palaces for the rich.” Reading about SoFi's various offerings, I couldn't help but think of Dante's nine circles of Hell. www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
How the Sports Stadium Went Luxe
Is the race to create ever more lavish spectator offerings in America’s largest venues changing the fan experience?
www.newyorker.com
December 9, 2025 at 5:41 PM
Super detailed dive into “the long-term transformation of stadiums from working-class cathedrals for the people into luxury palaces for the rich.” Reading about SoFi's various offerings, I couldn't help but think of Dante's nine circles of Hell. www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...