Author
Shauneen Miranda is a reporter for States Newsroom’s Washington bureau. An alumna of the University of Maryland, she previously covered breaking news for Axios.
Missouri Independent is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.
U.S. Education Department to open new financial aid form to more applicants
By: Shauneen Miranda - September 12, 2024
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Education named the first six organizations to participate in the phased rollout of the 2025-26 form to apply for federal financial student aid Wednesday, and opened up the interest form for high schools, school districts and other entities to get involved in its next three testing periods. In August, the department said it […]
Despite opt-outs by GOP states, debut of kids’ summer food program seen as a success
By: Shauneen Miranda - September 6, 2024
A U.S. Department of Agriculture initiative to feed hungry kids during the long summer months is mostly winding down, with advocates calling it a success despite some hiccups — and the federal government and many states are already working to bring the permanent program back in 2025. The Summer Electronic Benefit Transfer Program — or Summer EBT — has popped […]
5 things to know about the Harris-Trump presidential debate
By: Shauneen Miranda - September 5, 2024
Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump will take the stage next week in the only planned debate between the respective Democratic and GOP presidential candidates between now and November. It’s the first presidential debate since President Joe Biden bowed out of the race following his own disastrous debate performance in late June […]
U.S. Education Department outlines testing period for phased rollout of new FAFSA form
By: Shauneen Miranda - August 28, 2024
WASHINGTON — With the U.S. Department of Education using a staggered approach in opening up the 2025-26 application period for federal financial student aid, the agency said Tuesday it will partner with a small number of community-based organizations to participate in the first testing period beginning Oct. 1. Earlier in August, the department said it would use […]
Added delays in store for Trump in 2020 election interference case
By: Shauneen Miranda - August 9, 2024
WASHINGTON — Special counsel Jack Smith was granted more time on Friday before having to give an outline on the next steps his office is taking in the 2020 election interference case against former President Donald Trump, the GOP presidential nominee. The delay pushes the case proceedings further into the thick of the presidential race, […]
U.S. Education Department to gradually roll out new FAFSA form by Dec. 1
By: Shauneen Miranda - August 8, 2024
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Education said Wednesday it will use a phased rollout to launch the 2025-26 form to apply for federal financial student aid, which will make the application fully available two months later than usual. The Free Application for Federal Student Aid — better known as FAFSA — will be available to […]
Much-attacked final Title IX rule goes into effect while still blocked in 26 states
By: Shauneen Miranda - August 1, 2024
WASHINGTON — Though the Biden administration’s final rule for Title IX extending federal protections for LGBTQ students went into effect nationwide Thursday, a slew of legal challenges has temporarily blocked over half of all states from enforcing the updated regulations. After the Department of Education released the final rule in April, 26 states — all with GOP attorneys general […]
Trump shooting ‘a failure on multiple levels,’ acting U.S. Secret Service chief says
By: Shauneen Miranda - July 30, 2024
WASHINGTON — When acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe Jr. visited the site of the campaign rally where a gunman attempted to assassinate former President Donald Trump, he went up to the roof, lying flat on his stomach, to evaluate the shooter’s line of sight that mid-July day. “What I saw made me ashamed,” Rowe […]
VP Harris tells teachers union she’s ‘fighting for the future,’ blasts Project 2025
By: Shauneen Miranda - July 25, 2024
Vice President Kamala Harris — the likely 2024 Democratic presidential nominee — outlined on Thursday some of her “vision of the future” while touting the administration’s education record in her keynote address to the American Federation of Teachers national convention in Houston. Harris has quickly drawn the support of major unions like the AFT in […]
What to know about Vice President Kamala Harris, endorsed by Biden as his successor
By: Shauneen Miranda - July 21, 2024
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Sunday endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to be the new Democratic presidential nominee, passing the torch to the California native who has helmed administration initiatives on reproductive rights and gun control. A former U.S. senator from California who vied for her party’s presidential nomination in the 2020 primaries, Harris, 59, would […]
California Rep. Schiff latest Democrat to call on Biden to drop out
By: Shauneen Miranda and Jennifer Shutt - July 17, 2024
WASHINGTON — The intraparty effort to convince President Joe Biden to end his reelection bid resurfaced Wednesday, when prominent U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff of California became the latest Democratic member of Congress to go public with his concerns. Leading Democrats also set an early August window for a virtual roll call to officially name Biden […]
Booker, Castro urge feds to prepare for DACA recipients seeking health care access
By: Shauneen Miranda - July 16, 2024
WASHINGTON — Worried about the outcome of the 2024 election, a slew of congressional Democrats called on the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on Tuesday to take steps to ensure Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program recipients can actually access health insurance provided under the Affordable Care Act when they become eligible this […]