Teachers and school districts say they agree better teacher evaluations are needed, but they can't agree on the details. Disputes in Hawaii and New York could lead to revocation of lucrative federal grants and also force the Department of Education to take aggressive action.

Stocks ended up around close to where they started the year. Markets were mostly unfazed by the U.S. debt downgrade. But big changes in the European economy and governments in the Middle East made for a tumultuous year, when what sent the market into a tailspin often took place overseas.

Emlen Tunnell was the first black player voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He was also the first defensive specialist elected to the Hall of Fame, the first African American to be a scout and the first African American on a coaching staff. He played his last game 50 years ago on Saturday. And though he still ranks second all-time in interceptions, he is a casualty of the unfamiliarity football often has with its past.

For more than 50 years, the Merce Cunningham Dance Company surprised audiences by rethinking the relationship between music and movement — even what dancers could do. On New Year's Eve, the company disbands less than two years after its founder's death. That was Cunningham's wish. Some of Cunningham's long-time collaborators prepare to say goodbye.

The Justice Department is on track to post a record number of health care fraud prosecutions in 2011. Researchers say DOJ reported 1,235 new cases this year, the largest since they began tracking the crime 20 years ago. U.S. Attorney's Offices in Miami, Puerto Rico and Houston accounted for the biggest number of cases. And DOJ officials say recoveries in these cases are bringing lots of money back to the U.S. Treasury. But some onlookers say the federal government can do more to nip health care fraud in the bud by cutting off payments to fraudulent recipients before they happen.

Robert Siegel speaks with our regular political commentators, E.J. Dionne, of the Washington Post and Brookings Institution, and David Brooks, of the New York Times.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney looks like he's on top as the last weekend of the pre-campaign year finds Rep. Ron Paul and his troops having a day in the sun — and the rest of the GOP field in disarray.

For the long-term unemployed, getting a job isn't always the end of the story. In the next installment of NPR's Road Back to Work series, we check in with Randy Howland and Jennifer Barfield who both find themselves searching for work once again.

The struggle to keep the movement going, and activists engaged in work more incremental than immediate, is particularly acute right now in Iowa. Here, the Occupy effort has had a focus for the past few months: the presidential caucuses. But what happens after Jan. 3?

There have always been Haters, but with the ubiquity of the Internet, Haters now gather together, vent and feed on one another, and hone their craftiness — without ever leaving home. In fact, some people are going to hate this story, but that's OK, because haters gonna hate!