For many Californians, buying a home, raising a family and planning for retirement can feel financially out of reach. Teachers, however, may find better prospects in the Golden State than in much of the country.

A new WalletHub study ranking the best states for teachers found California among the nation’s top performers, placing it ahead of the vast majority of states.

California did not claim the top spot. That honor went to Washington, where teacher pay has reportedly increased 83% over the past decade, although the state also has relatively high taxes.

Washington, home to Costco, Amazon, Microsoft and, for now, Starbucks, has the nation’s second-highest average annual teacher salary when adjusted for the cost of living. The figure stands at $83,938, according to WalletHub.

The state also ranks fourth for average starting teacher pay, with new educators earning about $52,713 annually.

California ranked ninth overall and placed second in WalletHub’s opportunity and competition category, which measures factors tied to career prospects and the teaching profession’s competitive environment.

Other Western states scored considerably lower. Oregon ranked 31st, while Nevada landed in 40th place.

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Hawaii finished near the bottom of the rankings, placing just above New Hampshire, which WalletHub identified as the worst state overall for teachers.

New York ranked second overall. It posted the highest average annual teacher salary in the nation, at $87,670, and provided the most public-school funding per student, at $33,752.

Virginia, Illinois, Utah and New Jersey were among the other states that made WalletHub’s top 10.

“Despite having one of the most crucial jobs in America — educating the next generation — teachers are often underpaid and underappreciated,” WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo said.

“The states that make a teaching career the most rewarding are those that compensate educators well, invest heavily in educational resources, pass laws that improve school-system quality, and provide supportive conditions that lead to low turnover,” Lupo added.

WalletHub developed its rankings by comparing all 50 states and Washington, D.C., across 24 categories. The analysis included measures such as teacher-friendliness, potential income growth, pupil-to-teacher ratios and public-school spending per student.

The study drew on data from the U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, National Education Association and other organizations.

A series of security breakdowns and disputed decisions left Charlie Kirk vulnerable to the rooftop gunman who killed him during a crowded event at a Utah university, according to a scathing new report.

Utah Valley University did not complete a formal threat assessment, prepare a written action plan or adequately address the danger posed by nearby rooftops before Kirk appeared at an outdoor courtyard packed with thousands on September 10, 2025.

University officials had questioned whether the high-profile conservative activist’s event should be held outdoors. However, Kirk’s organization, Turning Point USA, pushed to use the courtyard because he had spoken there previously and the group was familiar with the venue.

The findings were detailed in an independent after-action review released Friday, which examined both the event’s preparation and the university’s response to the assassination.

Kirk, 31, was speaking with students in front of an audience of roughly 3,000 when a sniper fired from a rooftop more than 400 feet away.

The review describes a deeply flawed planning process. Officials failed to properly evaluate surrounding buildings, coordinate with outside law enforcement agencies or assign clear ownership of key security decisions.

Investigators found that the university neither conducted a formal security review nor created a written action plan for the event.

Instead, the report said, university officials left critical security matters to Turning Point USA.

Earlier this month, Kirk’s family sent Utah officials a wrongful death notice, a step that can precede a lawsuit. The notice accused Utah Valley University officials of making a series of “reckless” decisions that left Kirk exposed to the rooftop sniper.

At an August 2025 planning meeting, a Turning Point representative reportedly argued that Kirk should speak in the campus courtyard because he had appeared there before and the organization knew the location well.

Several university officials voiced concerns about hosting the event outside, where tall buildings surrounded the venue. Nevertheless, the university ultimately approved the plan.

“In our assessment, those decisions were consequential,” the report stated.

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The outdoor setting presented “significant protective operations considerations,” according to the review. Yet planners did not document a line-of-sight analysis, hold a pre-event security briefing or conduct a walk-through with the relevant security personnel.

The report also found no clear coordination process involving Kirk’s private security detail and outside law enforcement partners.

“Dan Flood, TPUSA Security Supervisor, texted Chief Long advising that TPUSA security personnel had arrived on campus,” the report said.

“Chief Long engaged in a series of text communications with Flood, to include several regarding individuals located on the Hall of Flags outdoor pedestrian walkway and the Fountain Courtyard area where a canopy would be set up where Kirk would be speaking. These text exchanges revealed the primary security focus for TPUSA was the Hall of Flags outdoor pedestrian walkway above the canopy.”

Utah resident Tyler Robinson turned himself in to authorities a day after the shooting.

Prosecutors say he told his romantic partner that he ‘had enough of his (Kirk’s) hatred.’ 

Robinson has pleaded not guilty to aggravated murder, a charge that could make him eligible for the death penalty if convicted.

A judge on September 1 ordered the case to proceed toward trial. A date has not yet been set.

A review by the Associated Press showed the campus in Orem did not use several public safety practices that have become standard at events around the country.

Campus police staffing was far below recommended levels for a school of that size.

They also did not fly a drone to monitor rooftops or coordinate with local law enforcement to secure the event attended by about 3,000 people. There were also no bag checks or metal detectors.

President Trump appeared to be trying to “connect” with Chinese President Xi Jinping, rather than “dominate” him, during the White House state dinner honoring the Chinese leader, according to a body language expert.

Sean Johns, who has spent two decades studying nonverbal communication and founded the body language training company BodyLytics, told The Post that Trump seemed intent on making Xi feel welcome and respected throughout the high-stakes visit — from their first handshake to the president’s toast.

Johns said Trump “closed the distance” and moved toward Xi during the arrival ceremony on the North Portico, behavior he described as “not typical for Donald Trump.”

“Closing the distance between people is a way of trying to connect. In a sense, you’re creating a connection by closing that gap,” he explained.

“What we’re looking at with this handshake is what was absent,” Johns said. “Donald Trump is known for an aggressive handshake. He tends to shake for too long and will often grab someone by the arm.

“But he didn’t do that with President Xi.”

The way Trump handled the handshake was “more of a sign of respect,” according to the body language analyst.

“I don’t think he was trying to dominate, which is what he usually does,” Johns said. He noted that Trump often makes his handshakes and back pats particularly forceful, “depending on who he’s dealing with.”

“This showed a great deal of respect for [Xi],” he continued. “It was very much a two-sided exchange.” Both leaders, Johns added, “looked quite comfortable around each other,” with neither appearing to engage in a dominance display.

Johns also noticed what he called a brief “false smile” at the end of the handshake — an expression Trump would later repeat during his toast to Xi.

Several moments during the toast showed what Johns described as an “incongruence” between Trump’s words and his body language.

Trump stressed that “we’re delighted to have you here,” but Johns said there was no corresponding physical display of delight. “The words were positive, but the body language was neutral,” he said, noting that Trump did this twice.

When Trump said, “We’re happily celebrating,” Johns added, “it didn’t look like he was happily celebrating. It looked like protocol.”

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Another moment that caught Johns’ attention came when Trump departed from his prepared remarks to invite guests to tour the new White House ballroom, which remains under construction.

“That’s the first time you see a genuine smile,” Johns said. “He almost came across like a naughty schoolboy.”

Trump became more animated and forceful while discussing the ballroom than he had been during any other part of the toast or his interactions with Xi.

“He makes his first hand gesture, bearing in mind that his hands had been down the entire time,” Johns observed.

Trump then pointed directly at the camera. “In body language, pointing with the index finger is considered aggressive,” Johns said, adding that Trump’s words and physical expression were once again “not congruent.”

“You’re making a slightly aggressive finger-pointing gesture while talking about a ‘beautiful ballroom,’” he said.

“There’s a disconnect between the way the ballroom was being presented and all the drama surrounding it,” Johns said. “His body language delivered a clear message.”

Based on his body language, the president was also genuinely pleased with the large, bald eagle statue he gifted Xi at the dinner. 

“When they reveal the bald eagle statue, Trump does, kind of, two awkward steps … I think that was a closing distance gesture between him and the statue,” Johns said.

“It’s showing approval towards it almost. You get close to things you like. So he’s closed the distance and then, interestingly, he’s kind of does an exaggerated look at it and then looks back at Xi …. he’s trying to signal to him, ‘Look at the wonderful statue that we gave you.’”

Johns’ biggest takeaway was the “lack of physical, non-verbal aggression” throughout the dinner that Trump “usually shows certain people.”

“I think that what it shows to me is the amount of respect and perhaps the importance of the meeting and the fact that it was an important guest that had importance to even the economy, I would say,” he explained. 

“So he took that very seriously, aside from the odd joke or two.”

Utah Valley University has published a 158-page independent review examining the events that led to the fatal shooting of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk on campus last year. Kirk was killed during a public appearance in the university’s central courtyard.

The investigation was carried out by the Lake Forest Group at the university’s request. It outlined 10 “key findings” intended to strengthen security at future events and determined that no UVU employee acted “in bad faith or in willful and wanton disregard for the safety of others.”

Still, the review found serious shortcomings. UVU’s own security policies were applied “significantly inconsistently,” the security plan was inadequate for a large, high-profile outdoor gathering, and no member of the university police department had been specifically assigned to watch campus surveillance cameras.

Investigators also called for a reassessment of police staffing and training to reflect the university’s size, event schedule and potential security threats.

The report noted that colleges and universities have developed procedures to detect and prevent threats from within their communities since the 2007 Virginia Tech shooting. Those safeguards, however, did not apply in this case because the man accused of killing Kirk, Tyler Robinson, had no known connection to UVU.

Reviewers also assembled a chronology of the preparations for Kirk’s appearance, covering the period from July 10 through Sept. 9, 2025. They highlighted several “key decision points” beginning Aug. 25 and continuing through the day Kirk was killed, Sept. 10.

On Aug. 25, university officials kept the outdoor courtyard as the venue even though they had expressed doubts about whether the space could be adequately controlled. The event received approval two days later, but the review found no documented security assessment plan at the time. UVU police and Turning Point USA security did not hold their first direct coordination until Sept. 3, just one week before the appearance.

On Sept. 8, TPUSA organizers voiced concerns about access to rooftops overlooking the area where Kirk was scheduled to speak. According to the report, UVU Police Chief Jeffrey Long texted TPUSA security supervisor Dan Flood, “We got you covered.” Investigators said Long’s message referred to the Hall of Flags outdoor pedestrian walkway rather than all elevated locations near the event.

Flood came to the university in person on Sept. 10 alongside the TPUSA security team.

The review said Flood notified Chief Long by text that TPUSA security personnel had arrived. Long and Flood then exchanged messages about people in the Hall of Flags walkway and in Fountain Courtyard, where a canopy had been erected for Kirk’s speech. Those conversations indicated that TPUSA’s main security attention was directed toward the walkway above the canopy, according to the report.

That description differs from the Kirk family’s notice of claim against UVU, filed last week. The family’s filing identified the Sorensen Center rooftop—not the Hall of Flags walkway—as a location that had raised security concerns.

The Hall of Flags walkway was shut down during the event, but the review found that TPUSA security personnel never met face-to-face with university police before the shooting.

Prosecutors allege that Robinson ultimately climbed onto the Losee Center, a building northeast of the courtyard, and fired the shot that killed Kirk.

The Hall of Flags walkway sits directly above the location where Kirk spoke. The Sorenson Center is north of the courtyard, while the Losee Center is positioned to the northeast.

Brett Parkinson, an attorney for the Kirk family, said the findings supported the claims made in the family’s notice of claim against UVU. In a statement to News Media on Friday, he said the university’s security operation was “woefully understaffed and unprepared” for the foreseeable dangers posed by the event.

“UVU hosted this event, and in doing so, assumed responsibility for the safety of all in attendance, including Charlie,” Parkinson said.

As the family alleged last week, University Police Chief Jeffrey Long allegedly told Turning Point USA organizers that “I got you covered” when they raised concerns about rooftop access above the courtyard where Kirk was ultimately shot and killed by a sniper.

“The buck stopped with UVU leadership and law enforcement,” Parkinson said. “Justice for Charlie and his family requires true accountability for UVU’s fatal shortcomings that day.”

A university spokesperson told Fox News the school has no further comment beyond a statement released on behalf of UVU President Jon Anderson.

“September 10 will always be part of UVU’s history, but it will not define our future,” he said. “Our responsibility is to care for our community, learn from the findings of this review and follow through on its recommendations. This requires humility, an honest examination of our policies and practices and a commitment to act on what we learn.”

‘He’s a coward.’

Jethro Sheeran, Ed Sheeran’s estranged first cousin, has delivered a blunt assessment of the singer’s growing public controversy.

‘I’m just highlighting what he does. He takes advantage of you and then disregards you,’ the 44-year-old told the Daily Mail.

The comments came during a one-hour interview after the little-known rapper, who performs under the name Alonestar, posted a furious statement on Instagram accusing Ed of being a ‘selfish individual with malicious, cunning ways.’

‘It’s all coming out! I’m ashamed of my cousin Ed and what he’s done,’ he added.

Jethro, who could be seen as having a personal grievance against his famous cousin, rejected the suggestion that he was attacking Ed while the singer is under pressure. Instead, he said he had spent years trying to reveal the ‘real’ Ed and believes people are only now prepared to listen.

Ed, 35, is facing mounting criticism after failing to take a firm public position when his opening act, rapper Macklemore, delivered a pro-Palestine speech during a New Jersey concert on Ed’s Loop world tour.

Macklemore’s remarks drew condemnation from Jewish groups and leaders, as well as figures including pop star Pink and Robert Kraft, the billionaire owner of Massachusetts’ Gillette Stadium, where the tour was scheduled to stop. Kraft called for the rapper to be removed from the tour.

Ed ultimately agreed to Kraft’s request. Although the Thinking Out Loud singer said his tour promoter had pressured him to make the decision, he nevertheless lost almost half a million online followers and several of his tour support acts.

Yet one of the most significant consequences may have been the loss of support from people once close to him.

With tears in his eyes, an emotional Ed told his fans while onstage in Philadelphia on September 19: ‘I’m feeling all of my friends and family and people I know abandon me.’ 

Jethro, however, offered a sharply different interpretation of Ed’s emotional response. ‘Those tears were for himself, not for people that have suffered over centuries on either side,’ he said.

‘I’ve been in rooms where I’ve heard his team talk badly and how to wriggle out of things when I was friends with him,’ he claimed.

The British-born rapper, who said he has been estranged from Ed for seven years, accused The A Team singer of ‘playing both sides’ of the political divide to benefit from both camps.

‘He’s done Robert Kraft’s wedding, probably got paid a few million for that,’ Jethro said. ‘He gets all these brand deals and all these huge PR kind of massive billionaire wedding gigs and things like that, and he just wants to please everyone.

‘He’ll just follow the money.’

Jethro also claimed that some members of the family no longer speak to Ed. He said a relative working on the singer’s tour had told him Ed must have understood that Macklemore, or another supporting act, might use the stage to express political views.

‘He’s been friends with Macklemore for 13 years. He knows his political stance,’ Jethro claimed. ‘So for him to do a Scooby-Doo and go, “What happened there?”

‘Also, every single band, Beoga … are pro-Palestine. Everyone that walked, which is pretty much the whole tour except him, were pro-Palestine. And he knew this.’

Ed acting naive did not surprise Jethro who believes his cousin is ‘sneaky.’

But if you look on social media, the lesser-known cousin has faced some name-calling himself – ‘bitter’ and ‘jealous’ are noticeably prevalent in his comments section.

‘I’m not jealous of his millions because I have a massive catalog of my own that I own,’ he said. ‘I’m certainly not jealous of his hair or his voice or his guitar or his singing because I don’t like his music. I’m more into Tupac and Bob Marley. Certainly not the writer of Shape of You.

‘Fame is evil. I’ve been with him when he started to get famous. You can’t get out. It’s horrible. There’s paparazzi around you. It’s not a good life.’

Growing up, Jethro and Ed bonded over their mutual love of music.

‘He is extremely successful. But as my grandma told me, she said, “Jethro, he’s extremely popular, but he’ll never be as cool as you.”‘

Jethro said he was ‘popular’ as a young man and perhaps Ed ‘hates’ him because he was a ‘British martial arts champion,’ ‘good at mixing music,’ ‘break-dancing’ and a skateboarding champion’ in his youth.

By contrast, Ed has openly talked about getting bullied as a kid. 

Jethro claimed that part of the reason why his younger cousin became so good at the loop pedal – for which his current tour is named after – is because he ‘had no friends to have a band.’

‘I think he’s quite bitter about his childhood and now he wants his big superstar. He’s realized that money and fame doesn’t fill that empty hole in you,’ Jethro said.

Throwing one more jab at his now-award-winning cousin, he added that Ed ‘was the least likely person in the whole family, both sides, to ever make it. And he made it.’

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And made it he has. Ed is a global superstar, with four Grammy Awards, seven Brit Awards, and an Emmy Award alongside selling over 150 million records worldwide.

‘I’m happy and I’m doing my music, very successful on my own,’ Jethro said in response to his cousin’s accolades, reiterating he is not jealous. 

‘I have creative control. I can do whatever I like. I can release when I like. I can do my own artwork. I don’t have to submit to the label.’

Aside from Ed, Jethro claimed he has collaborated on music with notable acts like Macy Gray, Chris Brown and has a new song called Destiny with rapper Future.

However, he and Ed stopped working together about seven years ago.

At the time, he claims Ed’s label Warner Music Group demanded that Jethro remove Ed’s name and likeness from a song titled Raise Em Up which was recorded in 2010. It was also featured in the 2013 movie All Stars.

‘I just felt like I was used, abused, and accused. And he discarded me after he got what he wanted,’ Jethro told the Daily Mail.

‘I just want people to know what type of person Ed really is inside. And that’s a coward. And he did this to me. I’ve been feuding with him for seven years.’

During their final conversation nearly a decade ago, Jethro said he angrily told his cousin, ‘You should just keep everything, Ed. You just have everything. Keep all the publishing, all my writing. Say it was you.’ And they never spoke again.

Their feud quietly bubbled behind-the-scenes for a few years until Ed released a track called A Little More, in which he sings: ‘I used to love you / Now every day I hate you just a little more (little more) / Life got better when I lost you.

‘But every day I hate you just a little more and more and more / Blame it on your history / And say it’s not your fault / I can’t call you crazy/ ‘Cause you could be diagnosed.’ 

Jethro said family members told him that Ed had shared with them that the diss track was indeed about him, though, of course, we cannot be sure without Ed acknowledging. The pop-blues song also came at a time in which Jethro was dealing with severe mental health issues.

‘When he put out that song,’ Jethro claimed it felt like ‘he was kicking me when I was down.’

‘I was seeing devil’s faces and people with three eyes and melting and I was having a proper breakdown. And then he comes out with that song and just was kind of mocking it to a certain degree … And then he’s writing all these horrible things about me and that’s going to trigger me. So, he triggers me.’

That’s why Jethro said he doesn’t feel guilty about speaking out against Ed amid the Macklemore situation. It’s, in a way, payback.

He’s also set to release his own diss track, titled Eject, in which he’ll further address his ongoing feud with his famous cousin.

The turmoil has divided the Sheeran family terribly, the Daily Mail has learned.

Jethro said he no longer speaks to Ed’s father, John, who is his uncle, and claimed that some of his family is ‘upset with Ed,’ while others continue to get their ‘free Tuscany holidays’ and mooch off of the Perfect crooner.

‘Being a millionaire and having fame doesn’t make you right,’ Jethro said.

‘My true family and all my friends, and everyone knows him, that’s ever met him through me, know what I did for him, and they just think he’s completely out of order and they see him for what he is.’

When asked if he’d ever make amends with Ed, Jethro said he is shutting that door for now but ‘who knows’ about the future. 

‘I’m just disappointed and I think that’s the best word. I’ve got no hate for him. I wish him success,’ he said.

‘Remember, when he’s number one and got all this great success, I’ve still got songs with him that I own, so it helps me. And I’m proud of him. I just don’t like him as a person.’

Speaking directly to Ed, Jethro concluded: ‘I wish you the best from my heart, but just far away from me. That’s it.’ 

The Daily Mail has contacted representatives for Ed who declined to comment. 

The pop star appears to be wanting to move forward with his life. He still has about 17 days left in his Loop tour and shows no signs of calling it off despite public backlash.

Meanwhile, Macklemore announced Thursday that he has launched his own separate Free Palestine tour with dates in Dublin, Paris and London.