"One New Yorker paralyzed by polio is already too many.”

Christopher Gilmore, principal of Westwood High School in Mesa, Ariz., commenting on the shortage of math teachers as the school year begins. According to one national survey by Education Week, nearly three-fourths of principals and district officials said this summer that the number of teaching applicants was not enough to fill their open positions. Other surveys released this year have suggested that parents are deeply concerned about staffing and that many more teachers are eyeing the exits. (The New York Times, Aug. 30, 2022)

Gabrielle Perry, a 29-year-old epidemiologist in New Orleans, regarding the obstacles that families, especially Black families, experience toward generational wealth, which, Perry says, acts as a societal tax on Black people. Perry, who has $135,000 of student loan debt and expects $20,000 of that to be wiped out under the plan announced this week by President Biden, is grateful for the relief but is disappointed the president hasn’t decided to clear all student debt. (Associated Press — Aug. 26, 2022)

Executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equality Rodrigo Heng-Lehtinen, regarding a ruling from the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that found that gender dysphoria is covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act, which would help stop conservative efforts to restrict gender-affirming care. The ruling is binding for the states covered by the Richmond-based court, which are Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia. (Associated Press — Aug. 24, 2022)

San Miguel County, N.M., Manager Joy Ansley, regarding the containment of the Calf Canyon/Hermits Peak Fire after four months. The wildfire, the largest in the state’s recorded history, burned more than 530 square miles and cost $300 million to contain. In addition to the containment costs, federal emergency managers have paid more than $4.5 million in aid to affected individuals and households and $6.7 million to small businesses through low-interest loans. (Associated Press — Aug. 23, 2022)