Ideas for Teachers

November 2026 Student Forum Newsletter Issues

RESEARCH LINKS

Issue 1: $25 Minimum Wage

• Congress.gov: H.R.8555, “Living Wage for All”
• House.gov: “Workers & Labor Leaders Introduce the Living Wage for All Act.”
• Investopedia: “What Is a Living Wage? Definition, History, and How to Calculate it.”
• NAACP: “NAACP Applauds Reps. Ramirez & Mejia for Introducing Living Wage for All.”
• Competitive Enterprise Institute: “Living Wage for All Act leaves hourly workers behind”

Issue 2: Puerto Rican Statehood

• bvirtualogp.pr.gov: “Joint Resolution 66” (Starts in Spanish then translates to English) 
• Council on Foreign Relations: “Puerto Rico: A U.S. Territory in Crisis.”
• NAPREC: “Champions of Puerto Rico Statehood in Congress”  
• Latino Newsletter: “Republicans Once Supported Puerto Rico Statehood…” 
• CNW: “Puerto Rico governor formally asks US Congress to admit territory as 51st state.”

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Issue 1: $25 Minimum Wage

1. Do you think a minimum wage set at $7.25 an hour is sufficient to live off of?
2. Would raising the minimum wage to $25 an hour help workers better support their families and pay their bills?
3. Do you think a $ 25-an-hour minimum wage would harm small businesses and force layoffs?
4. Should workers be paid a living wage?
5. Would raising the minimum wage cause businesses to raise the cost of goods and services, making things more expensive?

Issue 2: Puerto Rican Statehood

1. Should Puerto Rico be admitted as the 51^st state of the United States?
2. Do you think granting Puerto Rico statehood would cause a balance of power issue in Congress?
3. Should Puerto Rico have the ability to vote in US elections and receive federal benefits?
4. Do you think adding Puerto Rico as a state would cost the American taxpayers too much money during a time that is already plagued with high inflation?
5. If the people of Puerto Rico, who are US citizens by birth, have voted to join the US as a state, should Congress stand in their way?