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Every weekday I’m sharing the top education stories locally and nationwide. Today: Nanakuli High School freshmen prepare to take part in a new technology initiative targeting low-performing schools, Obama threatens to cut food stamps in order to fund his Race to the Top education initiative and states have more control over teacher quality than some think.

• Nanakuli High School is for a New Tech Network initiative designed to help low-performing schools engage students in the learning process, The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported today.

• President Obama is so determined to keep all funding for that , Jay Williams reported on The Answer Sheet blog today.

• Emily Cohen wrote over at EducationNext today about how states have , despite union contracts. EdNext posted a with Cohen

• The HechingerEd Blog reported today on Texas’ in its high school dropout rate. Fascinating analysis if you’re interested in how dropout rates are calculated.

• North Dakota is implementing a federally funded system to track and see how their skills are matching up with job market needs. It will be years before it’s implemented, The Associated Press reported, but it could be tremendously useful to school districts as they develop curricula and programs.

• Funds to bail out education jobs nationwide through U.S. Congress, Congressional Quarterly reported today.

Talk about the day’s news in our education discussion. To read more education news throughout the day, follow me on Twitter: .