Ensuring All Students in Indiana Receive Their Fair Share of Funding
School-funding changes over the last decade have created funding inequities for Indiana’s students from low-income communities, students with disabilities, English language learners, and students in public charter schools—inequities which will likely be exacerbated by COVID-19. Students of color are disproportionately impacted by these funding gaps. This report examines what caused these inequities, including 2008 property […]
A Puget Sound-area charter school couldn’t open as planned—but it still found a way to support students
Like many students across the country, Walter Lopez started falling behind on his work when schools suddenly shifted to remote learning this spring. But this year, he gained access to a new support system that helped him catch up. He’s now a ninth grader at a charter school in Seattle, but two days a week, […]
We reviewed the school reopening plans for 106 districts around the country. Here’s how they square with reality
Perhaps as to be expected, districts’ already lackluster plans for the start of school have been beset by execution challenges, confusing and tardy federal guidance, and barriers to student access.
Special education must no longer be an afterthought
When districts closed last spring, students with disabilities were suddenly cut off from receiving legally mandated therapeutic services that allow them to participate in school. Some families reported not even hearing from their child’s special education teachers for the remainder of the school year. Facebook groups filled with stories from parents at their wit’s end, […]
What we learned from deep dives into six school systems’ COVID-19 response
For an analysis we published last week as part of the American School District Panel project, we looked closely at six districts and charter management organizations, hoping to understand why they took particular approaches to remote learning and how their experiences last spring affected their plans for the fall.
What Does It Take to Educate Students with Mild to Moderate Disabilities in General Education Settings? Lessons from Washington’s Public Charter Schools
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.
Ensuring All Students in Indiana Receive Their Fair Share of Funding
This report examines and offers recommendations to resolve Indiana’s student funding inequities.
Lessons from Remote Learning in Six School Systems
This report looks more deeply into a small number of districts and charter management organizations (CMOs), hoping to understand why they took particular approaches to remote learning and how their experiences last spring affected their plans for the fall.
Like the dinosaurs, public education as we know it is facing a meteor moment. We must adapt to a new model beyond what we know as ‘school’
Before the COVID meteor knocked them for a loop, school districts were the primary providers of child care, nutrition, recreation and education — not to mention the largest employers of adults — in their communities. By the time our crisis has passed, families, school staff and district administrators will have spent at least a full […]
More districts should seize the opportunity to improve professional learning for teachers
Our nationwide scan found some promising efforts by school districts to support professional learning despite massive logistical hurdles and a tangle of red tape. But we also see significant missed opportunities to improve support for teachers.
