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Pandemic Data Tracking
After more than two years of disrupted schooling, our school systems must seek new ways of educating and supporting students, form new partnerships with their communities, and explore new ways to develop and deploy talent. To illuminate the work ahead, we must make sense of where we’ve been. This page catalogs the Center on Reinventing Public Education’s efforts to monitor how large school districts responded to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Some key themes emerge from our analysis:
- At every turn, school systems were caught flat-footed and responses were hampered by the faulty assumption that a return to normal operations was just a few weeks or months around the corner.
- The pandemic took everyone by surprise in spring 2020. That summer was a chance to prepare, but districts largely assumed students would return to classrooms in the fall—until spiking cases foiled their plans.
- This pattern repeated during the winter wave in late 2020 and subsequent surges of the Delta and Omicron variants in the following months, which complicated efforts to reopen schools and prompted new closures and lengthy quarantine periods in large urban districts.
- From Florida to Colorado, some large school districts launched robust remote learning efforts within days of closing their buildings in March 2020.
- Others, in cities like Las Vegas and Milwaukee, left students largely to their own devices, often relying on paper packets in lieu of online instruction.
- During the 2021-22 school year, the amount of instruction students could expect to receive and the health measures their schools put in place varied widely based on where they lived.
- Districts that tried to require masks or vaccines found themselves in battles with states that sought to forbid these measures—fueling uncertainty around health precautions. For example, San Antonio fought the state over a vaccine requirement, while multiple Florida districts fought the state on masks.
- Other states, especially in the West and Northeast, sought to require vaccinations of teachers and students—though in some cases they were forced to delay enforcement of these requirements.
- Districts found that staffing shortages – often across multiple departments and roles – impacted their ability to staff classrooms and even get students to school. Teachers and students in some cities staged student sickouts and protests. Chronic absenteeism and enrollment declines are now forcing some districts to consider closing schools while also feeling pressure to incentivize staff to stay.
- Operational stress and political turmoil drove high-profile leadership turnovers and superintendent departures in nine of the country’s largest 10 school districts since school closures began in February 2020.
- While many districts weathered the pandemic in a reactive stance, others used this moment to try to dismantle old, inequitable systems or provide new forms of student support. Indianapolis Public Schools is opening new permanent remote learning schools anchored in family feedback and implemented with community partners. Guilford County Schools has launched after-school learning hubs to re-engage high school students as well as a robust high-dosage tutoring program.
- Others, such as Baltimore City Public Schools and Jefferson County Public Schools in Kentucky, are using federal ESSER stimulus funds to provide comprehensive learning acceleration strategies and, in some cases, more family engagement and partnerships.
- Pre-pandemic organizational structures and longstanding innovation agendas supported district innovation—reminding us that innovation is possible when responding to crisis.
View the data
CRPE’s databases provide details about pandemic-related decisions and plans for 100 large and urban districts serving nearly 10 million students. Analysts collected publicly available data from district websites, board meeting records, and media reports on a weekly to biweekly basis, from March 2020 to September 2022. The sample varied over time but focused on large and urban school systems. It is not a representative sample; the school systems represented here skew larger and more urban than the nation’s as a whole.
CRPE evolved the topics and locations studied as the pandemic progressed in order to capture new and timely learnings. Data tracking evolved over time from immediate considerations (such as continuity of learning and technology access) to systemic conditions impacting students and families (such as school reopening, remote learning, health and safety policies, learning and socio emotional recovery, and ESSER spending strategies).
Our data are available for download, by year, below.
Learn from our analyses
Review CRPE’s in-depth analysis of district and state responses to the pandemic.
- All
- District Analysis
- Large and Urban Districts
- Remote Learning
- School Reopening
- State Analysis
- Health and Safety
- Technology
- Data and Assessments
- Representative Sample
- State Actions
- Summer Programs
- Educator Workforce
- Staff and Student Well-Being
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Learning acceleration and assessment strategies in 100 large urban districts
34 districts plan to incorporate tutoring, extended learning, small-group instruction and use of data. Are they succeeding?
How 100 large and urban districts are attracting and retaining staff
As part of CRPE’s ongoing review of how large districts are responding to the pandemic and planning to spend their federal COVID-19 relief dollars, we looked into how districts are planning to address staff recruitment and retention challenges.
Building upgrades, SEL: 100 large & urban districts plan their pandemic recovery
New review of ESSER spending plans shows districts favor facilities improvements, student & teacher supports; investments in staff, parents less clear.
School mask, vaccine mandates are mostly gone. But what if the virus comes back?
As 100 large districts gear up for a "normal" year, it’s not clear what will happen should another deadly COVID variant arise.
Remote learning options are shutting down as school reopens in fall 2022
Large districts more likely to keep pre-pandemic virtual programs than those created when Covid-19 closed schools and forced classes online
Enrollment drops, staff shortages cause budget whiplash for top school districts
The contrasting trends underscore the pandemic’s wildly variable impact on districts — and the key impact of enrollment on revenue
Many districts are doing less this summer to make up for lost learning
Even after an additional year to plan and more federal recovery dollars available, districts’ 2022 summer programs are mostly the same as last year.
How 100 large and urban districts are (and aren’t) engaging stakeholders
Districts are supposed to gather local feedback on how to spend their ESSER pandemic relief money. One year in, one out of three may not be complying.
Data From 100 Large Urban Districts Show Half Facing Shortages in Key Positions. Fixing That Will Mean Rethinking Teaching & Working in Schools
Our analysis of district information and local media reports finds 93 of 100 large and urban districts have mentioned staffing shortages in the 2021-22 school year.
How ready are schools for Omicron? December snapshot of 100 districts
Districts head into a winter break with little clarity on their newest wrinkle: how the omicron variant will affect their operations.
The state of the American district: Refocusing our state and local agendas on teaching, learning, and engagement
Surveys of a national panel of superintendents revealed that many districts are expanding nonacademic services, navigating an immediate staffing crunch and longer-range fiscal uncertainty when federal recovery funds expire, and expanding virtual schools.
Notes from our database: The latest on 2021-22’s rocky return to school
The scramble to reopen schools, keep students safe, and keep them learning hasn’t abated.
More masks, more vaccines, more online learning, but what about quarantines? The latest on school district fall reopening
More school districts are requiring masks and vaccines, and remote learning plans are more detailed as the threat of the Delta variant looms.
District update: Stronger health precautions, far more virtual options
School districts have stepped up health precautions and expanded virtual learning options as they prepare for students’ return to school.
State leaders must choose accountability over complacency in reopening plans
Schools around the country are once again scrambling to keep students learning in person against a rising tide of COVID-19 cases. Whether they succeed will…
How 100 large urban districts are wrapping family & community input into plans for spending federal emergency school relief funds
A first look at ESSER priorities indicated many districts may be struggling to reconcile public input with their own strategic priorities.
Bolder leadership needed to keep students safe and learning next year
Schools owe students a chance to gain back the learning opportunities they were denied last year. They cannot afford to squander another year because of tepid leadership and political squabbling.
How 18 top charter school networks are refining remote learning for the fall
18 leading charter school organizations are strengthening curriculum offerings and modifying schedules — although their plans are less detailed than districts’ on remote learning improvements or lessons learned from the spring.
School Districts Across the Nation Plan for An Uncertain Year Ahead
This brief gives a snapshot of how school districts across the country are currently planning for fall 2020, how they are planning for contingencies of COVID-19 spread, and how this varies based on district characteristics.
First look at ESSER priorities: Districts are placing their bets on what they know
A $189 billion infusion of federal COVID relief funding gives America’s school districts an unprecedented opportunity to invest in lasting improvements in public education and make their students whole after a year and a half of disruptions.
Now’s the time for states to invest in making online learning better
Many school districts have launched a full-court press to convince these families it’s safe to return to classrooms. But what should schools do about families who refuse to come back?
Most Students in Urban Districts Will Have Summer Learning Options, But Schools’ Plans May Miss the Mark
CRPE's latest review found that 97 of 100 reviewed districts have now announced some form of summer school programming.
What a diverse group of 20 school districts are doing right in their COVID-19 reopening plans
Districts across the country have devised new ways of supporting students, connecting with families and measuring progress despite the disruptions caused by the pandemic.
How 11 states are using emergency federal funds to make improvements in college and career access
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…
Many kindergartners aren’t showing up as schools reopen in person. How some large urban districts are trying to re-engage families
While most schools are back in person this spring, they continue to grapple with lagging enrollment. Pre-K and kindergarten have been hit especially hard.
Statewide assessment plans are unclear and neglect remote learners
Weeks away from the end of the school year, it’s still unclear whether assessment data will play a role in shaping academic and social-emotional intervention…
COVID-19 Revealed New Roles for Cities to Create a Continuum of Support for Youth and Families. They Shouldn’t End with the Pandemic
This brief examines the involvement of the 100 largest cities in the U.S. in creating learning pods during the pandemic.
Hindsight is 2024: A premortem on districts’ return to school
CRPE offers a premortem to give leaders pushing for change the foresight they need to overcome the barriers that threaten the lifespan of ambitious work.
The summer puzzle: Summer plans to date are lacking in key areas
CRPE’s review of 100 urban and large school districts for summer plans finds that, similar to last year, most summer school plans are vague. A significant majority lack explicit learning supports and feature incomplete or confusing messaging.
As urban districts prepare to reopen, most are not doing enough to communicate how they will keep students and teachers safe
As districts move to offer more in-person learning this spring, many teachers, parents and students remain hesitant, worrying whether schools — and their specific campuses and classrooms — are safe.
Districts quiet on how they plan to help students recover from a year of continued disruption
As more large and urban school districts welcome students back to campus, few are providing public details about how they plan to academically support students after a year of disrupted teaching and learning.
Community health, vaccination policies & local preference: How 100 districts are reopening after COVID-19 shutdowns
Urban districts across the country have taken a sharp turn toward in-person and hybrid learning in the start of 2021.
The kids are (really) not alright: A synthesis of COVID-19 student surveys
This brief from the Evidence Project synthesizes student surveys from the 2020–21 school year.
School Reopening Trends Offer Districts the Opportunity to Start Planning Beyond the Pandemic
Our latest analysis of school district learning models from March 1 to March 13 finds that a clear majority—57 percent—of the nation’s school districts report offering full-time in-person learning.
Vanishing in plain sight: Districts face barriers identifying and serving students experiencing homelessness
Students who are unhoused or in housing transition, an already vulnerable population before the pandemic, are falling even further out of sight in the 2020–21…
How Are School Districts Addressing Student Social-Emotional Needs during the Pandemic?
In this brief, we look at how our nationally representative sample of 477 school districts attended to students' social-emotional learning and well-being in fall 2020.
“Public Education Will Never Be the Same”: How COVID-19 Forced School District Leaders to Innovate on the Fly
In this brief, we summarize themes from an American School District Panel survey on innovation during COVID-19.
State Accountability Systems in the COVID Era and Beyond
This brief presents a set of ideas and themes to begin to inform challenges around testing and accountability during the pandemic.
What does ‘attendance’ mean for remote learners in a pandemic? How 106 districts are dealing with absenteeism, student engagement & grades
Our analysis of reopening plans in 106 large, high-profile districts finds that they have taken student engagement and attendance far more seriously this fall than they did after schools first closed last spring. But many school systems have struggled to create consistent rules, especially for remote learners.
U-Turn: Surge of COVID Cases Reverses Reopening Progress in America’s School Districts
Our December review of a statistically representative sample of 477 districts found 31 percent are operating in fully remote learning—a larger percentage than at any other point during the fall semester.
One size fits no one: Meeting the varied demands and needs of students
CRPE sought examples of districts providing outlets for students to provide feedback, and students taking advocacy into their own hands.
Reopening checkup: Filling the leadership vacuum will help schools focus on engaging students, addressing learning loss
The latest update of our analysis of 100 of the nation's highest-profile school systems suggests districts have been adapting as they go, but there is much work ahead.
One Step Forward, One Step Back: Public Health Fears Keep America’s School Districts on a Reopening Treadmill
This brief gives an update on our nationally representative sample of school district reopening plans.
Can public education return to normal after the COVID-19 pandemic?
Regardless of how long or short a time the current pandemic lasts, the “normal” in politics and schooling is unlikely to return anytime soon.
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.
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.
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.
What a diverse group of 20 school districts are doing right in their COVID-19 reopening plans
This summer, the Center on Reinventing Public Education partnered with the Collaborative for Student Success to convene experts in fields such as school system leadership, disaster response, public health and family engagement. They analyzed reopening plans in a diverse group of 20 school districts.
As many school districts reopen virtually, the opportunity gap widens for students living in poverty
As students and teachers begin the new school year, the opportunity gap for students living in poverty is likely to be wider than ever.
Urgent action by states, fed needed to clarify school reopening decisions
Schools around the country are shuttered again this fall as school systems continue to face chaotic conditions as result of the pandemic. As many students…
Tight or loose? It depends: District central offices in supporting school-based COVID-19 response
Our analysis of district responses nationwide in the spring found many districts that responded quickly used a “tight,” centralized response and strong leadership to set expectations and provide for the basic resource needs for all students.
How 18 top charter school networks are refining remote learning for the fall
Eighteen leading charter school organizations are strengthening curriculum offerings and modifying schedules — although their plans are less detailed than districts’ on remote learning improvements or lessons learned from the spring.
Politics, not science, driving many school opening plans
State and federal leaders must urgently issue clear and objective guidance to ensure school reopenings follow the science of the virus, not the politics of the moment.
Students experiencing homelessness are largely invisible in school reopening plans
The needs of students experiencing homelessness have been neglected in both the national dialogue on the impact of pandemic-related school closures and school districts’ plans for remote learning.
Leading states show how to set clear expectations for remote learning—more should follow their example
Last spring, fewer than half of the nation’s school districts expected teachers to deliver remote instruction, grade student work, and take attendance. Districts’ inaction appeared…
Rural school districts can be creative in solving the internet connectivity gap—but they need support
Gaps in access to the internet and instruction were evident in CRPE's analysis of rural districts. However, rural districts also devised innovative strategies to help put materials and instruction in the hands of students.
Restoring public education post-COVID
The only survivable posture for a state or school district is to acknowledge uncertainty. That means preparing for multiple scenarios and avoiding long-term commitments to contracts, people, and facilities that might be needed now but not later.
States: It’s not too late to guide districts on teaching and learning
One striking finding of the CRPE and Public Impact review of state reopening plans is what’s not there: the primary purpose of schools, teaching and…
We reviewed 86 districts’ reopening plans for the 2020-21 school year. Here’s some of what we found
Remote learning is no longer an unprecedented mode of delivery for most schools across America. For many students returning to class in the coming weeks, it will be back to school online.
School Districts Across the Nation Plan for An Uncertain Year Ahead
This brief gives a snapshot from July 27-31 of how school districts across the country are currently planning for fall 2020.
Getting Back to School: An Update on Plans from Across the Country
This brief gives a snapshot from August 17–21 of how school districts across the country are planning for fall 2020.
States must take decisive action to avert the coming education crisis
According to a new analysis of state reopening plans by CRPE and Public Impact, states have largely ceded their role in defining how school systems…
More districts opt for virtual learning; Senate HEALS Act out of touch with public health reality
After reviewing the latest plans from 106 districts and 18 charter management organizations—which serve over 10 million students—it’s clear that although many districts had been planning to open in-person on a regular or hybrid/rotating schedule, their plans have changed.
More districts are going remote; will they avoid spring’s missteps?
As districts and states grapple with whether and how to bring students back into classrooms, academic planning is getting short shrift and vulnerable groups, such as students experiencing homelessness and English language learners, appear to be especially shortchanged in district planning.
What Will It Take to Reopen Schools Amid the Pandemic? 5 Experts Weigh In on Learning Loss and Students’ Needs
This is the eighth in a series of invited responses to some of the big, unanswered questions facing America’s schools.
What Will It Take to Reopen Schools Amid the Pandemic? 5 Experts Weigh In on Accelerating Student Learning
This is the seventh in a series of invited responses to some of the big, unanswered questions facing America’s schools.
Student learning is an afterthought in many state reopening plans; that’s a huge mistake
Schools have once again been thrust into the national spotlight as education leaders wrestle with changing local health conditions and impossible politics. Against this backdrop,…
What Will It Take to Reopen Schools Amid the Pandemic? 5 Experts Weigh In on Politics and Education Reform
This is the sixth in a series of invited responses to some of the big, unanswered questions facing America’s schools.
Will States Step Up to Address Gaps in Access to Remote Learning This Fall?
It should surprise no one that this spring’s experiment with remote learning revealed huge gaps in access to education that divided low-income students from their…
What Will It Take to Reopen Schools Amid the Pandemic? 5 Experts Weigh In on What New Roles Teachers Should Play
This is the fifth in a series of invited responses to some of the big, unanswered questions facing America’s schools.
What Will It Take to Reopen Schools Amid the Pandemic? 8 Experts Weigh In on Families, Schools & Students’ Diverse Needs
This is the fourth in a series of invited responses to some of the big, unanswered questions facing America’s schools.
First District Reopening Plans Illuminate Tradeoffs and Confusion In Politically Charged Environment
Last week, school reopening was thrust into the national and political spotlight as President Donald Trump polarized the issue and Betsy DeVos, his education secretary,…
What Will It Take to Reopen Schools Amid the Pandemic? 8 Experts Weigh In on What Parts of Remote Learning — and In-Person Teaching — We Should Keep
This is the second in a series of invited responses to some of the big, unanswered questions facing America’s schools.
What Will It Take to Reopen Schools Amid the Pandemic? 6 Experts Weigh In on the Looming Fiscal Crisis and What Services Districts Should (and Shouldn’t) Cut
This is the first in a series of invited responses to some of the big, unanswered questions facing America’s schools.
Students Count: Highlights from COVID-19 Student Surveys
A lot has been asked of American students this spring. They have been away from their friends and at the mercy of schools unprepared to…
An Early Plan from a Must-Watch District: Reopening in Miami-Dade
The fifth-largest school district in the country was one of the earliest in the country to move instruction online, and by our account, it delivered one of the most robust plans.
Learning as We Go: Principles for Effective Assessment During the COVID-19 Pandemic
This paper summarizes the findings from a panel of assessment experts on diagnostic assessments and their role in helping educators and parents support student learning.
The Wait for Fall Reopening Plans, and the First Details to Emerge
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…
Deficiencies in Spring and Summer Point to Where Districts Must Put Their Attention This Fall
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,…
The Digital Divide Among Students During COVID-19: Who Has Access? Who Doesn’t?
Our research shows districts in rural areas have been significantly less likely to expect teachers to provide instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic. Schools with higher…
Too Many Schools Leave Learning to Chance During the Pandemic
We knew the sudden shift to remote learning would be hard. For the last two months CRPE followed a group of large, mostly urban school…
Districts Are Missing an Opportunity to Innovate as Most Take Traditional Approaches to Summer School
Note from the authors: We share our most recent COVID-19 findings during a critical moment, as the recurring impact of systemic violence against Black people…
Too Many Schools Leave Learning to Chance During the Pandemic
This brief summarizes our findings from a review of COVID-19 response plans of 477 school districts across the country.
How COVID-19 Is Forcing Innovation in High School-Industry Partnerships
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.…
Four Steps States Can Take to Level the Remote Learning Playing Field
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…
Summer Haze: School Districts Slow to Communicate What Will Happen After the School Year Ends
The end of an unusual school year is on the horizon, yet few districts have provided details on what, if any, summer learning opportunities their…
Still No Consistent Plan for Remote Learning for Hundreds of Thousands of Students at Some of America’s Biggest School Districts
Since the middle of March, when schools across the country closed to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus, the Center on Reinventing Public Education’s…
Federal Special Education Guidance is Clear; Now States Must Step Up
States are the first line of support to help schools translate federal special education guidance into practice. But our first-of-its-kind analysis shows the amount of…
Remote Classes Are in Session for More School Districts, But Attendance Plans Are Still Absent
Six weeks into COVID-19 school closures, and at roughly the midpoint of the final academic quarter of this school year, we are stepping back to…
The Power of “How Are You?”: Teacher Check-ins in Remote Learning
Last week, Fairfax County in Virginia delayed the launch of remote learning due to technical challenges. Earlier in the month, Los Angeles Unified School District…
Three Ways States Can Tap ESSA to Better Navigate the COVID-19 Crisis
The novel coronavirus has shaken the very foundation of the U.S. public education system and upended assumptions about what “schooling” means. With virtually every school…
Dear States: Don’t Leave Remote Learning to Chance
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…
Districts and CMOs Are Making Progress on Instruction and Monitoring, But Lag in Grading and Attendance
Nearly a month has passed since the majority of districts across the country closed. This week we continue to track progress toward remote learning. We…
How 18 Top Charter School Networks Are Adapting to Online Education, and What Other Schools Can Learn From Them
As public schools across the country build out remote learning plans to support students during school closures prompted by the novel coronavirus, some of the…
School Systems Make a Slow Transition From the Classroom to the Cloud
This is the first in a series of updates on our findings on school district response plans. See our latest analysis here. This week, some…
The Latest From a Nationwide Survey: Districts Continue to Struggle Toward Online Learning
This is the second in a series of updates on our findings on school district response plans. See our latest analysis here. Last week, we…
What We’re Learning from an Early Look at District COVID-19 Response Plans
This is the first in a series of updates on our findings on school district response plans. See our latest analysis here. Today, the Center on Reinventing…
Related projects
CRPE’s responsive data tracking work built upon and informed other CRPE projects. Explore related work:
The State of the American Student collects and synthesizes data over the course of the pandemic, cataloging the impact of systemic failures in public education’s response to Covid-19. It begins to chart a path to recovery and restitution for all students including a call to action for states and localities to define what recovery looks like and ensure an educational crisis of this magnitude cannot happen again.
The Evidence Project brings together researchers from around the country in order to narrow the gap between research and policy, offering a one-stop shop for evidence on teaching and learning, school, finance, and more.
The Canopy Project is designed to share knowledge sourced from hundreds of organizations about schools innovating during the pandemic. The project is a collaborative effort to surface a diverse set of innovative learning environments and document the designs they are implementing.
Think Forward: New England offers an in-depth look at post-pandemic recovery in New England high schools. CRPE’s research is designed to reveal whether and how federal dollars are being directed toward supporting a better adolescent experience, how high schools are innovating and adapting to advance equity, and the choices students are making about their futures after high school.
For promising ways districts and states are spending their federal dollars to support recovery and reimagining, visit the EduRecoveryHub, co-sponsored by CRPE, the Collaborative for Student Success, and the Edunomics Lab.
For big ideas about how to move to a more joyful, equitable, and resilient education system, see CRPE.org and in particular, our 25th anniversary series, Thinking Forward.
