Pension Costs Are Draining School Budgets. Here’s What States Can Do
Student enrollment is falling at public schools across the country, impacting funding streams and threatening financial solvency, as schools continue to be on the hook for considerable fixed costs like loans or debts. Having to pay out teacher pensions (mostly using current revenue to pay retired teachers) is contributing to this growing problem. But even […]
AI Early Adopter Districts: The Promises and Challenges of Using AI to Transform Education
Artificial intelligence is already reshaping how school districts plan instruction, support teachers, and engage students. AI has the potential to transform the education delivery model and address learning gaps—but without more support, guidance, and resources, it could have the opposite effect. This study examines how 27 “Early Adopter” school districts approached systemic AI adoption during the […]
CRPE and the Walton Family Foundation Support $2.6M in Grants to Study Pandemic Recovery
TEMPE, AZ — Over the past four years, CRPE’s Evidence Project has tracked the pandemic’s impact on students and school system recovery efforts. These collective efforts are far from complete—and face persistent challenges. In August 2024, with generous support from the Walton Family Foundation, CRPE made a public call for proposals to help accelerate the […]
Remaking Ed Schools from the Ground Up
One of us (Carole) was recently asked what a world without colleges of education would look like. Carole’s response: “I’m not sure the world would miss us.” And she spoke as the dean of one of the largest colleges of education in the country. There has been no shortage of documentation of how schools of […]
How Team-Based Staffing Models Relate to Teacher Decision-Making Influence and Turnover
Introduction Key Findings Data and Methods Implementation of the Next Education Workforce Elements Teacher Decision-Making Influence Relationship between Team Membership and Decision-Making Influence with Teacher Turnover Conclusion Introduction For over a century, the “egg-crate model of schooling,” which isolates each teacher in an individual classroom, has shaped the teaching profession. Some researchers have argued that […]
Red State Metro Districts Hit by Private School Choice Plans
I was shocked recently when I read about school enrollment declines in Salt Lake City. Both the public elementary schools I attended are among the many slated for closure, and the district is slowly losing about 3% of its enrollment every year. These trends preceded the state’s commitment to ESAs, which threaten to accelerate the […]
Retooling Educator Preparation for the Future of Learning
The United States faces a serious workforce challenge—not just in raw numbers, but in how we prepare and support talent across sectors. As economist Tony Carnevale has emphasized, our economic future depends on a nimble, adaptive workforce. But the systems designed to develop that workforce—including our education system—remain rooted in outdated models. This is especially […]
America Can’t be Great Without Good Schools: How Policymakers Can Create More of Them
A policy agenda for K-12 schools 1. Take a reasonable middle ground in the culture wars 2. Invest in systems that keep students safe 3. Help schools provide the academic preparation students need 4. Use accountability systems to benchmark results and protect against educational neglect Reality check: Education reform can only succeed with teacher support […]
Picking Up the Pieces of Federal Education Programs: Can Block Grants Help Marginalized Learners?
The Trump administration is following the Project 2025 agenda, vowing to turn federal education programs into block grants or issue blanket waivers that would let states see money in any way they want. The results might not be what the Trump movement hopes, or what educators fear. Much will depend on whether local actors who […]
Launching Districtwide Innovation: Lessons Learned from a Year of Pursuing Bold Ideas for Systemic Change
What does it really take to pilot bold, systemwide innovation in public education? Over the 2023–24 school year, CRPE partnered with 11 districts across the country to support and study their “Bold Ideas”—ambitious initiatives designed to make student learning more joyful, individualized, and relevant. These pilots weren’t just tech upgrades or isolated experiments. They were […]