Good Will-Hinckley has a long and distinguished tradition of providing residence to special students. The new charter school, under the parent organization of Good Will-Hinckley, takes our high-risk students and provides a secure and sustainable educational environment for them to grow and learn. How do I know this? My granddaughter is a student at the school and is excelling in ways we could not have imagined just a few short years ago. There is a unique value in charter schools — especially MeANS — that should not be lost in the broader debate on whether charter schools are good for Maine. They cater to a slice of the population that needs direct attention, and they provide children who might otherwise fall through the cracks a “real” opportunity to succeed.

The Benghazi disputes revolve around the alleged mendacity of the Obama administration’s official talking points and allegations of a cover-up of its manipulations aimed at protecting the president’s 2012 re-election campaign. These questions are hotly disputed with accusations of politicization on both sides.

Ranking very near the top of the list of the best graduation speeches I ever encountered was Conan O’Brien’s 2011 address at Dartmouth College, with former President George H.W. Bush sitting on the stage behind him, there to receive an honorary degree.

What makes a traditional college education worth the price? That is the question those of us in higher education are increasingly called upon to answer, as tuition at brick and mortar institutions continues to rise, and as ever more inexpensive on-line college courses become available.

Dog bites are a serious problem for letter carriers. Yet, for every letter carrier bitten, hundreds of children also needlessly suffer the pain and trauma of dog attacks.

Disappointment at the lack of cooperation and collaboration at the state and national Capitols, and a level of disrespect there that has created dysfunctional legislative bodies, has left the electorate disillusioned. What’s to be done about it?

WASHINGTON — Women’s reproductive rights have enjoyed a half-century or so of well-defined proponents and opponents, but the recently flourishing fertility industry, from egg harvesting to surrogacy, has produced fresh and surprising alliances among former foes.

McLEAN, Va. — Even as America’s longest war grinds down, reminders of the recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan haunt Section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery, where the crack of rifle salutes, the rattle of caissons and the sounding of taps still echo among thousands of orderly white tombstones, each marked by a freshly planted flag for this Memorial Day.

One hundred fifty years ago this summer, the Battle of Gettysburg was fought on July 1-3, 1863, at the town of Gettysburg, Pa.

WASHINGTON — Call it the revenge of the 1 percent.