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Georgia Heyward

Senior Research Analyst

Background

Georgia Heyward is a special projects lead at Edunomics Lab at Georgetown University.

Publications

Georgia Heyward

  • The Lens    

In Washington State, COVID-19 created a unique opportunity for charter-district collaboration

Georgia Heyward, Sean Gill

Charters and traditional schools are often portrayed as at odds with each other. But this collaboration shows that isn’t always the case—and it shows promise for the future.

  • Research Reports    

Toward Better Family and Educator Engagement: Lessons from COVID Relief Dollars

Georgia Heyward, Ashley Jochim, Heather Casimere

School systems interested in better approaches to engaging the public must not start from scratch.

  • Research Reports    

COVID–19 Showed Us How Important It Is to Focus on Adolescent Well-Being: Here is What School Systems Should Do

Georgia Heyward, Heather Casimere, Ashley Jochim

States and districts should be using this moment as an opportunity to reassess how they support adolescents and their families.

  • Research Reports    

How Eight Rural Districts Came Together to Redefine Postsecondary Success in the Midst of a Pandemic

Georgia Heyward

This brief explores how eight rural Colorado school districts increased youth access to internship and dual enrollment opportunities in the 2020-21 school year.

  • The Lens    

How 11 states are using emergency federal funds to make improvements in college and career access

Georgia Heyward, Betheny Gross

The Governor’s Emergency Education Relief Fund (GEER I and II) gave states $4.25 billion in discretionary federal dollars to support K–12 schools, higher education, and workforce initiatives.

  • The Lens    

“Don’t leave me out”: Schools should use insights gained from the pandemic to strengthen partnerships with high school families

Heather Casimere, Georgia Heyward

The need to better engage families became starkly apparent during a school year flipped on its head by a global pandemic.

  • Research Reports    

Promising Practices Drive Progress: Closing Learning Gaps for Students with Disabilities

Georgia Heyward, Sean Gill

This brief highlights six promising practices for serving students with disabilities after the pandemic.

  • Research Reports    

States and School Systems Can Act Now to Dismantle Silos Between High School, College, and Career

Georgia Heyward, Sarah McCann, Betheny Gross

We interviewed K–12, state, and nonprofit leaders who have been focused on redesigning education and career pathways about how their work has changed in the last year and what their priorities are as the nation emerges from the pandemic.

  • The Lens    

In thousands of districts, 4-day school weeks are robbing students of learning time for what amounts to hygiene theater

Robin Lake, Georgia Heyward

Earlier this month, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention made clear that good ventilation and consistent mask wearing are far more effective at preventing the spread of COVID-19 than disinfecting surfaces.

  • The Lens    

Help wanted: School systems must act now to support graduating seniors

Georgia Heyward, Sean Gill, Ashley Jochim

COVID-19 disrupted the already tenuous system of support for students graduating high school and going on to college or career. Students from low-income households and students of color have been hit hardest.

  • Research Reports    

How Schools Adapt during the Pandemic Can Reshape Adolescent Learning Experiences for Generations

Betheny Gross, Georgia Heyward, Sarah McCann

This brief, informed by interviews with school and system leaders in the New England region, suggests some efforts to reinvent schools before the pandemic have helped schools to navigate the current crisis.

  • Research Reports    

How Is School Enrollment in Washington State Shifting during COVID-19?

Sivan Tuchman, Georgia Heyward

This brief examines shifts in Washington State’s public school enrollment after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

  • Research Reports    

Putting Families at the Center: The Role of Parent Advocacy Groups during COVID-19

Georgia Heyward

As school systems nationwide struggle to deliver learning in a pandemic, parent advocacy groups are stepping up to help Black and Hispanic families who have often been left out of previous education policy making discussions.

  • Research Reports    

How States Can Better Prepare Students for Life After High School

Georgia Heyward

This report examines weaknesses states share in career and technical education and offers recommendations to improve career pathways for students.

  • The Lens    

Learning pods: Providing education equity for all families

Georgia Heyward

Parent advocacy groups are empowering families to reimagine public schools. But sometimes parents are simply opting out as the ultimate form of empowerment.

  • Research Reports    

Putting Families at the Center: The Role of Parent Advocacy Groups during COVID-19

Georgia Heyward

This brief profiles four parent advocacy groups that have been particularly effective in devising bold solutions during the pandemic crisis.

  • Research Reports    

What Does It Take to Educate Students with Mild to Moderate Disabilities in General Education Settings? Lessons from Washington’s Public Charter Schools

Georgia Heyward, Travis Pillow, Sivan Tuchman

This report includes in-depth case studies of five Washington State charter schools to understand their strategies for full inclusion of students with disabilities, and offers recommendations to school leaders and policymakers.

  • The Lens    

More districts should seize the opportunity to improve professional learning for teachers

Bree Dusseault, Georgia Heyward, Travis Pillow

Our nationwide scan found some promising efforts by school districts to support professional learning despite massive logistical hurdles and a tangle of red tape.

  • The Lens    

Leading states show how to set clear expectations for remote learning—more should follow their example

Georgia Heyward, Ashley Jochim, Cara Pangelinan

Last spring, fewer than half of the nation’s school districts expected teachers to deliver remote instruction, grade student work, and take attendance.

  • The Lens    

Student learning is an afterthought in many state reopening plans; that’s a huge mistake

Ashley Jochim, Georgia Heyward

Schools have once again been thrust into the national spotlight as education leaders wrestle with changing local health conditions and impossible politics.

  • The Lens    

The Wait for Fall Reopening Plans, and the First Details to Emerge

Bree Dusseault, Georgia Heyward

Parents, students, teachers, policymakers, and community members are all waiting for schools to release fall reopening plans. Four months into COVID-19, and just weeks out from the new school year, very few districts in our database report concrete expectations for the 2020-21 school year. 

  • The Lens    

Deficiencies in Spring and Summer Point to Where Districts Must Put Their Attention This Fall

Georgia Heyward, Bree Dusseault

School systems face a monumental challenge preparing for fall amid a public health and fiscal crisis. Vulnerable students can ill afford to repeat this spring, when the initial virus outbreaks and sudden closures caught schools unprepared. 

  • Research Reports    

Navigating Choice: How High-Touch Supports Can Address Educational Inequity

Georgia Heyward, Betheny Gross, Ashley Jochim

This brief presents findings from a preliminary analysis of 10 organizations with school navigator services.

  • The Lens    

How COVID-19 Is Forcing Innovation in High School-Industry Partnerships

Georgia Heyward

Everything about education changed in the spring of 2020. School partnerships with industry were no different. Schools had to rethink internships, job shadows, and mentorships.

  • The Lens    

Four Steps States Can Take to Level the Remote Learning Playing Field

Ashley Jochim, Georgia Heyward, Sean Gill

The COVID-19 crisis has laid bare some old truths: where you live and what school you attend has profound impacts on what students can expect to get out of public education.

  • The Lens    

Dear States: Don’t Leave Remote Learning to Chance

Bree Dusseault, Georgia Heyward, Ashley Jochim, Travis Pillow

Initial findings from the first month of CRPE’s in-depth reviews of district and charter school organizations’ responses to the COVID-19 crisis has revealed major gaps in learning opportunities available to students. 

  • Research Reports    

Seizing the Opportunity: Educating Students with Disabilities in Charter Schools

Michael DeArmond, Sean Gill, Betheny Gross, Georgia Heyward, Robin Lake

This report is the first step in developing an evidence base about how charter schools meet the needs of unique learners, how they can improve in this work, and what aspects of chartering as a governance model support or impede their ability to do so.

  • The Lens    

Propelling Career and Technical Education in a Portfolio System

Georgia Heyward

This post comes from the first edition of Re:portfolio, a publication with articles, news clips, and resources about the portfolio strategy.

  • The Lens    

Underserved Families Can’t Always Manage School Choice Alone

Georgia Heyward, Ashley Jochim

The goal of school choice is to give all families — especially families in underserved communities — access to high-quality schools that work for them.

  • The Lens    

What if High School Were Different?

Georgia Heyward

I am the oldest of four children. The youngest is my brother Stephen. Regular school was never a good fit for Stephen.

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