Evolutionists in Arizona are fighting for their survival after the state’s top education official suggested students should be taught the reality many scientists already acknowledge: Evolution is a theory, not settled science.

HOUSTON—The media swarm that surrounded Santa Fe High School after Friday’s mass shooting has mostly dissipated. Cars and trucks once again speed past the campus on Highway 6, a two-lane divided road flanked by open pastures, ramshackle antique shops, and burger joints. A memorial of 10 white crosses surrounded by now-wilted flowers and stuffed animals offers the only visible reminder of the horror that unfolded at the school just five days ago.

Advocates for Christian higher education are praising the news that the Department of Education plans to review regulations “regarding the eligibility of faith-based entities to obtain grants from the department or to participate in state-administered programs.”

Sporting red T-shirts, many with the sleeves rolled up to catch any whisper of breeze in the nearly 100-degree heat, Arizona teachers marched through Phoenix last week and camped out on the Capitol lawn to lobby for pay raises and better education funding. They waved catchy signs to make their point that read “Sorry we’re closed. We’re trying to fund our future!” “Our students’ future depends on education—Fund it!” and “Starving the schools. Feeding the rich.”

California homeschoolers converged on the state Capitol last week to voice opposition to a bill that would require state officials to collect and make public a list of families that educate their children at home. After listening to three hours of testimony, no member of the Assembly Education Committee wanted to go on record supporting the measure by making a motion for a vote, effectively killing the bill.

A report released by the U.S. Department of Education on Tuesday did little to resolve the debate about racial disparities in school discipline cases and how potential solutions affect campus safety.

Education reform advocates are pointing to the latest national “report card” as evidence more spending and government oversight can’t fix the nation’s public school system.

According to standardized test results released last week by the National Assessment of Educational Progress, only 40 percent of fourth-graders and 33 percent of eighth-graders are proficient in reading and math. Those numbers haven’t changed markedly from two years ago, when students last took the test.