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Guest Columnist Brian Lenney: Why the “Stop Harms from Addictive Social Media Act” Doesn’t Actually Stop Harms from Addictive Social Media

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September 2, 2026

Why the “Stop Harms from Addictive Social Media Act” Doesn’t Actually Stop Harms from Addictive Social Media
The bill they sold you on protecting all kids doesn’t protect all kids

By: Brian Lenney

You might have seen the headline in April. Something about finally making social media companies stop hurting kids.

If you’re a mom, you probably felt some kind of relief. Finally. Somebody did something.

But they didn’t.

The bill is called the Stop Harms from Addictive Social Media Act (SHASM, if you want the acronym). Idaho signed it April 2. South Carolina passed it in May. Minnesota passed it this spring, almost unanimously.

Its sponsors said the day it was signed that the law tells social media companies they “can no longer get away with addicting our children.”

In March, a Minnesota committee was told the bill “protects all teens and kids on social media.” All teens and kids on social media.

That’s the sentence I need to talk about, because it isn’t true, and the reason is sitting in the bill itself: the new law only applies to companies that make at least $1 billion a year selling ads.

That’s the entire test for whether a platform has to follow this new law.

  • Do you sell a billion dollars in ads? Then yes.
  • Do you make your money some other way? Then no.

The law never asks whether kids get hurt on a platform. It asks how the platform makes money.

Roblox isn’t covered by this new law.

Because they don’t sell ads for a living. They sell Robux, the little currency your kid begs you for. Kids buy Robux, game developers take a cut, Roblox keeps the rest. Last year that came to $4.9 billion in revenue and nearly $7 billion in bookings.

So how much of that was ad revenue?

In its February letter to shareholders, the company describes its ad revenue as modest, and then says it monetizes a young user base “without significant reliance on advertising.”

They wrote that to investors as a selling point. It is also the exact reason this law can’t touch them. The law asks how you make your money. Roblox put the answer in writing, and the answer was: not ads.

So Roblox isn’t covered. The new law has nothing to say about it. Not one line.

Now look at what else is happening with Roblox right now.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued the company last fall, accusing it of putting “pixel pedophiles and corporate profit” ahead of kids’ safety. Tennessee’s attorney general sued in December and called Roblox the digital equivalent of a creepy cargo van. Louisiana, Kentucky, Florida, Oklahoma, and Iowa have all filed lawsuits too. So has Los Angeles County. There’s a big federal case in California pulling a lot of these claims together.

These are lawsuits filed by the top law enforcement officer in seven states, saying adults are using this platform to get to children. Yes, the law that was supposed to protect all kids on social media doesn’t protect kids on Roblox.

Discord gets a pass too.

It’s the chat app where a lot of the grooming cases start. And it’s named in that same federal case alongside Roblox.

If you made a list of places where American kids get approached by adults who shouldn’t be approaching them, Discord is on the first page of it.

But this new law doesn’t touch them.

Because Discord makes its money on subscriptions (no real ad business).

Telegram is a messaging app that made $125 million on ads in the first half of last year, out of $870 million total. Untouched.

Then there are the AI companion apps, the chatbots kids talk to for hours at a time. They sell subscriptions, not ads. Texas opened an investigation into Character.AI last year over what those bots were telling children about their own mental health.

The new law doesn’t touch them.

So who does this new bill actually cover?

Facebook and Instagram. TikTok. YouTube. Snapchat. Reddit and Pinterest too.

It’s the ad-funded giants. Every one of them is already getting sued by somebody, already dragged in front of Congress, already in every documentary your sister-in-law forwards you. They were getting regulated with or without this law.

And the next one won’t be covered either.

Not because it’ll be too small. But because of where the money comes from.

The apps kids are moving to sell subscriptions, or currency, or a battle pass, or a premium tier with a better chatbot. Ads are how the last generation of platforms made money. Whatever your kid finds in 18 months will have figured out something else, and this law won’t touch them.

It just reaches the apps kids are leaving.

Sadly, these bills are coming from conservatives.

Not from the left. From us.

And they pass by numbers that should embarrass everyone involved: 62 to 7 in the Idaho House, 132 to 2 in the Minnesota House, 66 to nothing in their Senate.

That happens the same way every time. A bill arrives with a title no one can vote against. Somebody says it will “help the kids.” And at that point the hard questions stop getting asked out loud, because asking who this actually covers, in public, on the record, sounds like you’re soft on the thing in the title.

So nobody asks (well, almost nobody).

The vote is lopsided, everyone goes home feeling like they did something, and the check on all of it, the part where a conservative reads the text and asks what it really does, gets left at the door.

So it passes, and it reaches you as a news story that says a new law protects kids online, next to a photo of a governor with a pen. The money rule never makes the article. It isn’t hidden either. It’s the fourth definition in the Idaho bill, on page two.

So what you walk away with is a feeling. Relief.

“The legislature protected my kids!”

Except they didn’t. That’s just what got sold. Because a mom who knows the law doesn’t cover Roblox and Discord keeps checking the iPad. But a mom who was told the law “protects all teens and kids on social media” relaxes.

The distance between those two moms is exactly where a kid gets hurt, on a platform seven attorneys general are suing right now, that this law doesn’t cover and was never going to cover.

It says a billion dollars in ad sales. Roblox told its own investors it doesn’t rely on ad sales… but the promise went out to millions of parents anyway.

One more thing worth knowing: the apps it does cover may not survive court. Laws like this have already been struck down in Arkansas, Utah, Ohio, Texas, Louisiana, and Virginia.

Nobody has even sued over this one yet.

So, here’s what tonight actually looks like:

  • Your kid opens Roblox at 9 p.m. – Not protected
  • Switches to Discord at 10 p.m. – Not protected
  • Gets a friend request from someone who says he’s 14 – Not protected
  • Finds whatever social media app gets built next spring – Not protected

This has been law in Idaho since July 1. It’s been in effect for two months. Your kid opened Roblox last night anyway, and he’ll open it again tonight, and nothing in Chapter 21 of the Idaho Code has a word to say about it.

There will be lawsuits, deadlines, compliance reports.

But none of that is tonight.

Because tonight:

  • You decide whether there’s a phone
  • You decide what’s on it
  • You decide where it charges overnight (and it isn’t the bedroom)
  • You pay for the Wi-Fi and the router has a settings page (you’re allowed to use it)

Your authority covers Roblox. It covers Discord, Snapchat, and the app that hasn’t been invented yet. It doesn’t have a money rule, it doesn’t have an effective date, and no judge anywhere can throw it out.

It’s also the only thing on this whole page that works tonight.

No bill makes you a good parent or protects your kids on social media. Not this one, not a better-written one, not the federal version coming behind it.

Only involved parents protect kids.

Guest Columnist Brian Almon: Our Byzantine Bureaucracy

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(Image Credit: Gem State Chronicle)

September 12, 2026 (Cover Image Credit: Gem State Chronicle)

Our Byzantine Bureaucracy

By: Gem State Chronicle Publisher Brian Almon

Brian Almon

The Idaho State Capitol is a visible reminder of the existence of our state government. It houses the office of the governor, as well as the lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state, and state treasurer. It is home to the State Senate and State House of Representatives. It is one of the most recognizable buildings in the state. Yet there are quite a few other buildings that house our state government. In fact, there are so many scattered throughout not only Boise, but the entire state, that it would be impossible to house them in a single structure.

Over the past week or so, I have been building the State Agencies section of Idaho Insider, collecting as much information about the offices and personnel that run the day-to-day operations of our government. Depending on your definitions, there are anywhere from 20 to 200 state agencies. These agencies were not all created at the same time by the same lawmakers; rather, they were created, modified, consolidated, and reorganized over the course of Idaho’s 163-year history. There is bound to be a little chaos in such a system, which is why every few years governors, legislators, and activists attempt to reform it. The last major reformation of Idaho government was in the 1970s, but last year’s legislative DOGE Task Force examined numerous ideas.

Screenshot of the Gem State Chronicle / Idaho Insider "State Agencies" hub page.

First, recall that there are three branches of government: executive, legislative, and judicial. What I colloquially call the “bureaucracy” exists within the executive branch. Idaho has seven elected executive officers: governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, state controller, state treasurer, attorney general, and superintendent of public instruction. Nearly all of the agencies that I refer to as the bureaucracy report to the governor. This government website has a pretty good interactive organizational chart.

There are currently 19 cabinet-level departments in the executive branch of Idaho’s government. (We’ll get to why that number is special in a moment.) These departments are each headed by a director who is either appointed by the governor, and requires Senate confirmation, or hired by a board that is appointed by the governor. In 2026, the Legislature passed a law transferring appointment authority for the directors of the Idaho Transportation Department, Department of Parks and Recreation, and the Department of Fish and Game from each agency’s respective board to the governor. I wrote about that debate earlier this year.

The cabinet-level departments are:

You might wonder why Corrections and Juvenile Corrections are two entirely separate departments. Juvenile Corrections was made its own department in 1995 by splitting it not from IDOC, but from DHW, based on the idea that it should be focused more on rehabilitation than punishment.

There are a few other unique things to point out, for example, the director of the Military Division has the title adjutant general, and also serves as the commanding general of the Idaho National Guard. Major General Timothy Donnellan currently holds that position.

The State Board of Education (eight members appointed by the governor, plus the current superintendent of public instruction) oversees policies for both K-12 and higher education; however, the Department of Education exists in the Office of the State Superintendent, so there’s surely a bit of overlap there.

So why is 19 such an important number? Back in the 1970s, Idaho amended our state constitution to cap the number of executive departments at 20. This was presumably meant to limit the growth of government, but government—like life, as Jeff Goldblum said in Jurassic Park—finds a way. Around the same time that the Legislature approved the amendment, it also passed legislation creating a Department of Self-Governing Agencies, essentially a placeholder for more than a dozen additional offices. Current Idaho Code recognizes 20 such self-governing agencies:

There are some things that jump out from this list as well. The Board of Examiners is not really a separate office, but the governor, secretary of state, and attorney general—with the state controller serving as ex officio secretary—acting in a special capacity to examine claims against the state. Its website is nested under the Office of the State Controller.

The Idaho State Bar operates under the Idaho Supreme Court, so it’s more of a judicial branch agency than executive.

The Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses (DOPL) is an umbrella office for between 44 and 51 separate boards that oversee occupational licensing in fields as varied as medicine, HVAC maintenance, and aesthetics. Why don’t I have a precise number? DOPL itself was only created about six years ago to bring all of those separate boards under one roof. Since then, the Legislature has been consolidating some of them, such as integrating the Board of Midwifery into the Board of Nursing in 2024 and combining the Board of Dentistry and the Board of Denturity earlier this year.

There are other commodities commissions, including those related to barley, hops, and mint, that do not appear to fall under the purview of Self-Governing Agencies. These appear to exist somewhere in the orbit of the Department of Agriculture instead, but the precise structure is not clear to me.

Finally, there are numerous agencies and offices that are organized under the Office of the Governor. For example, the Commission on the Arts, the Division of Financial Management, the Office of Information Technology Services, the Military Division, the Liquor Division, and the Office of Drug Policy all fall under this umbrella.

Agencies can sometimes share personnel, even directors. Dean Cameron has long served as director of the Department of Insurance, but he also took over as interim director of the Department of Health and Welfare after Dave Jeppeson resigned in 2023. Andrew Arulanandam serves as director for both the Liquor Division and the Lottery, which makes me think he deserves some special title like Minister of Vice.

The first step in figuring out how to account for all of these departments, divisions, agencies, offices, boards, and commissions is deciding how to categorize them. As I mentioned earlier, Idaho.gov has a great organizational chart, but it doesn’t include everything, such as the commodities commissions, and it’s slightly behind, as it does not reflect the merger of the Office of Species Conservation, Office of Energy and Mineral Resources, and the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) into one new agency—the Office of Species, Minerals and Energy Coordination (OSMEC)—during the last legislative session.

The Idaho Blue Book is a great source of authority for categorizing government agencies. Published every few years since the 1930s by the Secretary of State’s office, the Blue Book presents a snapshot of all three branches of Idaho’s government, as well as trivia such as the state flower, how elections work, and more. It shows 19 “Departments of State” and 17 “Self-Governing Agencies”. Of those, nine are commodities commissions, such as the Beef Council and the Potato Commission. However, the Blue Book does not go into detail about the agencies directly under the Office of the Governor.

The final authoritative source for the structure of state government is the budget. The FY2027 Legislative Fiscal Report details how all of these state agencies are funded, often nesting sub-agencies and subdivisions beneath larger offices. However, agencies like the commodities commissions that aren’t funded via legislative appropriations won’t show up here.

The genesis of this idea to add state agencies to Idaho Insider came a year ago when I sat in a Capitol hearing room watching the DOGE Task Force proceedings. Not only were legislators—some of them longtime veterans—not fully aware of the breadth of our state government, even the experts who testified had to defer questions about it for further research. Our state bureaucracy has developed over the course of more than a century as lawmakers add, move, change, and consolidate offices and agencies every session. Sometimes the Legislature isn’t even involved—the original Office of Energy Resources was created by an executive order from Gov. Cecil Andrus in 1975 in the wake of the OPEC oil embargo. It was occasionally renewed (and renamed) by governors over the years until finally codified by the Legislature in 2026 as part of OSMEC.

Why am I spending so much time on this? If I—someone who has been intensely following Idaho politics for nearly half a decade now—find the structure of state government confusing, then what about those who are busy with life but still want to make a difference in state and local politics? It’s one thing for conservatives to demand change, demand reform, demand smaller government. But until we come up with concrete steps to actually accomplish those goals, we’re just shouting into the wind. The purpose of Idaho Insider is to give you tools to make a difference. Use these new pages to become more familiar with the offices that run the day-to-day operations of state government, so that you can come to your legislators prepared with concrete ideas for reforming them.

The State Agencies hub is nearly complete; I just have to finish up the self-governing commodities commissions, then decide what to do with some of the stray agencies and subagencies. Check it out and let me know what you think!

About Brian Almon

Brian Almon is the Editor of the Gem State Chronicle. He also serves as Chairman of the District 14 Republican Party and is a trustee of the Eagle Public Library Board. He lives with his wife and five children in Eagle.

Editor’s note:  This article originally appeared in the Gem State Chronicle.  I encourage our readers to visit their website and consider subscribing.  Find this and other informative articles at the Gem State Chronicle here: About – Gem State Chronicle

The Simpson Standard: Remember Charlie Kirk and 9/11

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(U.S. Representative Mike Simpson, September 13, 2026)

America changed forever when nearly 3,000 innocent Americans were killed in the terrorist attacks twenty-five years ago. Those lost were fathers, mothers, daughters, sons, friends, colleagues, and more. This week, I cosponsored a resolution to commemorate the anniversary and honor the lives lost on that solemn day.

I would be remiss not to mention a great American, Charlie Kirk, who was senselessly killed one year ago. Charlie was a husband, a father, and a friend to many. He loved his country. We must strive to continue his legacy by having conversations with one another and promoting free speech.

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, you can contact my office. I strive to represent Idaho to the best of my ability, and hearing from you allows me to do just that. I’m looking forward to returning to DC for a busy and productive week ahead.

Remembering 9/11

We will never forget September 11th, 2001.

The tragedy, loss, and fear brought Americans together, and we stood united. For many of us, there was a country before 9/11 and a country after. But as every year goes on, we must ensure that our future generations never forget that solemn day. May they never forget the heroic actions of the first responders and brave civilians who stepped in to help, the families who suffered an unimaginable loss, or the lessons learned to prevent history from repeating itself.

25 years later, we remember and honor those lost and the sacrifices made. May God continue to comfort those in need and bless our great nation.

Honoring Charlie Kirk’s Legacy

Since Charlie Kirk’s tragic death, I have been proud to support and cosponsor congressional resolutions honoring his life and legacy.

  • Speaker Johnson’s resolution to honor his legacy.
  • Mary Miller’s resolution to condemn the assassination.

As we continue to mourn one year later, Americans can take comfort in knowing his life will never be forgotten, and his memory will continue to inspire future generations. 

Patriots for Liberty and Constitution to Continue Discussing “The American Covenant” TODAY, September 14

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Observer Staff
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Patriots for Liberty and Constitution

September 14, 2026

Pocatello–Local book group “Patriots for Liberty & Constitution” plans to meet this evening as usual.  The members plan to begin discussing Chapter 2 of Marshall Foster’s book, The American Covenant.

A PDF of the book is available for download here.

Patriots for Liberty & Constitution meets at Mountain Valley Baptist Church, 202 S. 7th Avenue in Pocatello, every Monday evening at 6:30.

Bannock County Commissioners Meetings, September 14-18, 2026

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(Bannock County Press Release, September 11, 2026; Cover Photo Credit: Bannock County)

Bannock County Commissioners Meetings, September 14-18, 2026

Monday, September 14, 2026:

  • There are no meetings scheduled at this time.

Tuesday, September 15, 2026:

  • 9:00 AM Business Meeting (action items)

Wednesday, September 16, 2026:

  • There are no meetings scheduled at this time.

Thursday, September 17, 2026:

  • 9:00 AM Work Session and Claims Meeting (action items)

The Work Session Agenda will be updated on Monday, September 14, 2026.

Friday, September 18, 2026:

  • There are no meetings scheduled at this time.

(The information packets for the business meeting and work session can be found at http://www.bannockcounty.gov. Scroll down and click on “Agendas and Minutes” then click on the information packet for the meeting that you are interested in.)

About BOCC Meetings

The Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) is comprised of the three elected County Commissioners: Ernie Moser (District 1, Chair), Jeff Hough (District 2), and Ken Bullock (District 3).

The BOCC generally meets twice a week: regular business meetings are on Tuesdays at 9:00 a.m. and work sessions are on Thursdays at 9:00 a.m. Meetings are generally held in the Commissioner’s Chambers at 624 E Center, Room 212, Pocatello, Idaho, unless otherwise noted. Times subject to change within 15 minutes of stated time.

During these meetings, the BOCC may: approve contracts, expend funds, hear testimony, make decisions on land use cases and take care of other County matters, and are open to the public.

City of Pocatello Calendar for September 14-18, 2026

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(City of Pocatello Press Release, September 11, 2026; Cover Photo Credit: City of Pocatello)

City of Pocatello Calendar of Meetings ~ September 14-18, 2026

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 14

  • Mayor’s Youth Advisory Council Meeting 3:15 p.m., Council Chambers
  • Human Relations Advisory Committee Meeting 5:30 p.m., Council Chambers

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 15

  • CDBG Advisory Committee Meeting 12:00 p.m., Council Chambers
  • Site Plan Review 1:30 p.m., Paradice Conference Room
  • Library Board Meeting 4:00 p.m., 113 S. Garfield Avenue

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 16

  • Pocatello Development Authority Meeting 11:00 a.m., Council Chambers
  • Brennen Trail & Pedestrian Bridge Bid Opening 1:00 p.m., Council Chambers
  • CDBG Advisory Committee Technical Assistance Meeting 2:00 p.m., Council Chambers

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 17

  • Housing Alliance & Community Partnerships Meeting 11:00 a.m., 750 North 5th Avenue
  • City Council Clarification Meeting 5:30 p.m., Council Chambers
  • City Council Regular Meeting 6:00 p.m., Council Chambers

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18

  • No Meetings Scheduled

Bannock County Posts Job Openings

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Observer Staff
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(Bannock County HR, September 11, 2026)

Booking Deputy
Bannock County – Pocatello
Read the full job description:  CLICK HERE!

Deputy Sheriff – Detention
Bannock County – Pocatello
Read the full job description:  CLICK HERE!

Deputy Prosecuting Attorney
Bannock County – Pocatello
Read the full job description:  CLICK HERE!

Equipment Operator 2 – McCammon
Bannock County – McCammon
Read the full job description:  CLICK HERE!

Maintenance Technician, Level 2
Bannock County – Pocatello
Read the full job description:  CLICK HERE!

On-call Juvenile Detention Deputy
Bannock County – Pocatello
Read the full job description:  CLICK HERE!

For a complete list of available jobs… please visit our career site at: https://bannockcounty.applicantpro.com

Idaho 2nd Amendment Alliance Launches ‘Idaho Anti‑Gun Accountability Center’

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Observer Staff
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(ISAA Announcement, September 12, 2026)

The Idaho Second Amendment Alliance is excited to announce our latest project: the Idaho Anti‑Gun Accountability Center.

Click here to go to the Accountability Center.

For years, gun owners have asked us which places in Idaho do not respect the right to keep and bear arms. They want to know whether an event, business, or organization is restricting that right so they can make informed decisions.

The Accountability Center is the list gun owners have wanted for a long time.

Here are a few examples already in the Center (click each to learn more):

The list includes hospitals, events, organizations, and more, and it grows constantly.

The criteria is simple: if a business, event, or organization has signs or policies restricting the right to keep and bear arms (open or concealed), it is added to the Accountability Center.

Our goal is to give gun owners a reliable place to see who is restricting those rights. Whether you choose to keep going to those places, since signs do not carry the weight of law in Idaho, is entirely up to you.

Some gun owners may say, “What they can’t see won’t hurt them.” Others may decide, “They won’t get my business anymore.”

Whatever your approach, the Accountability Center is here to keep you informed.

For those who recently joined the Idaho Second Amendment Alliance, this is the kind of local, Idaho‑specific information you only get from ISAA. We are the organization on the ground fighting every day to keep Idaho from becoming the next California or Washington.

The Accountability Center also includes a tip button if you have information to submit.

Thank you to every ISAA member who makes this work possible. Your support ensures Idaho’s gun owners stay informed, organized, and ready to defend their rights.

NRA PVF Endorses Sen. Risch for Reelection; Awards A+ Rating

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Observer Staff
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(Risch for U.S. Senate Press Release, September 11, 2026)

The National Rifle Association Political Victory Fund announced its endorsement of U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho). 

Senator Risch is the only candidate running for U.S. Senator in Idaho to receive an A+ rating from the NRA-PVF.

“The right to keep and bear arms is a fundamental right protected – not granted – by our Constitution. Defending the Second Amendment and ensuring the federal government does not infringe upon the rights of law-abiding gun owners has always been a top priority of mine,” said Senator Risch. “I appreciate the NRA-PVF’s recognition of this work throughout my public service.”

Senator Risch’s strong defense of the Second Amendment stands in stark contrast to one of his opponents, Todd Achilles, a liberal who has proudly accepted an endorsement and donation from Everytown for Gun Safety, a national gun control group that has openly advocated for banning legal firearms and the repeal of self-defense laws.

In announcing the NRA-PVF’s endorsement of Risch, the Association wrote: 

“We are grateful for your leadership in ensuring that our Second Amendment rights are protected, even in times of crisis, and we thank you for your continued opposition to the Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries gun control agenda of banning lawfully owned firearms, ammunition, and magazines,” stated John Commerford, Chairman of NRA-PVF.

Idaho Awarded Nearly $4.8M to Build Innovative Career Readiness Ecosystem for Students

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Observer Staff
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(Idaho Department of Education Press Release, September 11, 2026)

Boise–Idaho students will soon have access to a new tool designed to help them identify and demonstrate the skills they’ve developed during their K-12 careers thanks to grant funding from the U.S. Department of Education (ED).

The Idaho Department of Education applied for and was awarded nearly $4.8 million over three years through ED’s Career Pathways Exploration Grant Program. That funding will support the development of the Idaho Learner Readiness Ecosystem, a comprehensive approach designed to help students connect what they are learning and doing in and out of classrooms today to their goals after high school.

“Here in Idaho, we’ve woven student readiness into every step of a child’s K-12 education, opened up career pathways, and worked to codify the essential link between the system that educates our students and the system that employs them,” said Superintendent of Public Instruction Debbie Critchfield. “Idaho schools already give students incredible opportunities to build skills in the classroom or through athletics, clubs, leadership, and beyond. This investment will help students make meaning from those experiences, recognize the skills they are developing, and learn how to articulate what they know and can do.”

The Career Pathways Exploration Grant Program made $44 million in funding available to state agencies to expand opportunities that expose students to real-life workforce experiences through career pathways aligned with each state’s priorities. Idaho was one of only five projects selected for funding through a competitive grant process.

At the center of Idaho’s project is a student experience portfolio that can be used alongside a traditional transcript or résumé. Students can document learning from experiences like class projects, athletics, jobs, community service, and leadership roles. They will be encouraged to reflect on what they learned and connect those experiences to their goals after high school.

The portfolio is designed to help students see connections across experiences that might otherwise seem unrelated while adding context and evidence to the achievements listed on a transcript or résumé. Most importantly, it will help students explain what they have learned, the skills they have developed, and what they can do.

The project is part of a broader effort at the Idaho Department of Education to help students find meaning and value as they build skills, explore their interests, and prepare for career, college, and life. That work includes Idaho’s updated graduation requirements, the Future Readiness Project, expanded career-connected, work-based learning opportunities, Idaho’s newly updated Career Readiness Competencies, and the Idaho Career Ready Students program.

“As students build on their experiences, they’ll have a record of how their learning has prepared them for what’s next and an appreciation for the learning they’ll embark on after high school,” said Critchfield. “I’d like to thank our federal partners for finding ways to elevate the good work that states are already doing while allowing them to remain in the driver’s seat when it comes to creating programs and initiatives that address the needs of the students and communities they serve.”

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