Welcome to Storyflo Daily Education. I'm Eli.

First up, a bold timetable overhaul in Indiana is reshaping how schools think about money and sleep. Decatur Township schools will collapse six bus routes into three, trimming the district’s $6.7 million transportation budget and freeing up roughly $3 million in anticipated property‑tax losses, Chalkbeat reports. Superintendent Scott Collins says the new start‑and‑end times give middle‑schoolers extra rest and let high‑schoolers finish earlier, but he also admits the fiscal pressure from dwindling state aid is a driving force. It’s a rare case where sleep science and budget calculus converge, and the ripple could prompt other cash‑strapped districts to rethink bell‑times as a cost‑cutting lever. Across the nation’s capital, Congress is finally confronting a hidden cost of the “One Big Beautiful Bill.” The Hechinger Report highlights that while the law tightened earnings benchmarks for degree programs, it left certificate tracks—especially for‑profit cosmetology schools—largely untouched. With 45 percent of certificate enrollments in cosmetology and a staggering 220,000 students pouring into such programs each year, the lack of oversight risks saddling learners with debt and dim career prospects. Lawmakers now face a stark choice: extend accountability to these fast‑growing credentials or watch a profit‑driven pipeline churn out graduates whose earnings fall short of repayment thresholds. Meanwhile, a new adult‑learning study is mapping out a massive, underserved market. University Business cites the “65 Million Reasons Why Intent Matters Most” report, which finds that women, Black and Latino adults, and low‑income learners are the most eager to enroll in virtual or short‑term programs, yet they cite cost, time and enrollment navigation as top barriers. The data urges colleges to shed the monolithic “nontraditional” label and craft more flexible pathways—think stackable micro‑credentials and streamlined financial aid—if they want to tap this demand. New York City is turning that flexibility into a concrete pilot. The Hechinger Report, referencing The 19th, details the launch of “The Little Apple,” a free daycare for municipal workers that seats just 40 toddlers but costs the city $1.5 million—roughly $35 000 per child. Mayor Zohran Mamdani frames it as an investment that could keep families in the city after housing, while DCAS Commissioner Yume Kitasei points to employee surveys that flagged childcare as a top retention factor. If the model proves scalable, it could become a template for other jurisdictions wrestling with workforce stability. Finally, a cultural celebration is colliding with academic stakes. Chalkbeat reports that the Knicks’ ticker‑tape parade is scheduled