Chalkbeat

Other Ways to Give

2020-04-30T16:18:16+00:00

Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news organization. Your tax-exempt donation to Chalkbeat helps us provide local-first reporting in underserved communities across the country. In addition to our membership program, here are other ways that you can support Chalkbeat.

If you’d like to make a donation by check, please make it out to “Chalkbeat” and mail to:

ATTN: Chalkbeat

450 7th Avenue, 32nd Floor

New York, NY 10123

If you’d like to transfer funds directly from your account, please email Kendra Irving at finance@chalkbeat.org for details.

Donor Advised Funds

Donor Advised Funds (DAFs) allow you to combine the most favorable tax benefits with the flexibility to support your preferred causes. If you’d like to recommend a grant to Chalkbeat directly from your DAF, please use the links below or view more options here:

DAF Direct (Fidelity Charitable, BNY Mellon, Schwab Charitable)
Vanguard Charitable
American Endowment
Jewish Community Federation & Endowment Fund
Silicon Valley Community Foundation
T. Rowe Price Program for Charitable Giving

Gifts of Stock or Securities

If you would like to make a donation of stock or securities, please provide your brokerage firm with the following information.

Vanguard Brokerage Services
Vanguard Account #64122120
DTC# 0062
Chalkbeat’s TIN 90-0915846
Contact at Chalkbeat: Kendra Irving, CFO
Please contact Kendra Irving at finance@chalkbeat.org with any questions related to transferring the securities. Please send an email to Kendra with the name of the stock, number of shares, and fund designation on the date of transfer to ensure that Chalkbeat can properly credit and acknowledge your gift.
Donating appreciated shares offers you a two-fold advantage. First, you avoid paying capital gains tax on the increase in value of your security. Second, you receive an income tax deduction in the calendar year of your donation.

Legacy Gift

One way to support Chalkbeat’s accountability reporting is through a legacy gift providing a future gift to Chalkbeat through your financial or estate plans. Here is some sample language that you can use in your will to make a Legacy Gift to the Chalkbeat:

I give, devise, and bequeath [the sum of _____ USD (or other currency) OR _____ percent of the rest and residue of my estate] to the Chalkbeat, Inc. (tax identification number 90-0915846), a charitable corporation organized under the laws of the State of New York, United States, currently located at 450 7th Avenue, 32nd Floor, NY, NY 10123, to be used for its general charitable purposes at its discretion.

For personal service, we invite you to contact membership@chalkbeat.org.

Comments Policy

2020-04-17T15:56:19+00:00

We want our comments forums to be a place for productive conversation about what is and isn’t working in education today. We value the insights that our commenters share with us and with one another, and we want to encourage constructive debate that deepens our education coverage.

This comments policy is a guide for how the Chalkbeat staff and readers can work together to achieve these goals.

We hope you will:

Share relevant personal experiences that help illuminate the issue
Ask questions about something you didn’t understand or something that wasn’t clear in the story
Suggest ideas for how to follow up on a story or suggest other story ideas
Point out perspectives that are missing from the story
Point out an inaccuracy in the story
Respectfully respond to other commenters to share your opinion and spur debate
Like other comments that you think add something useful to the conversation
Send us an email about comments that violate our policy
Keep your comments brief. If you’d like to write something longer, submit a First Person post.

Please don’t:

Attack a particular racial, ethnic or religious community
Disparage people of a certain gender or sexual orientation
Personally attack others, including other commenters and the Chalkbeat staff
Make comments that are libelous
Impersonate someone else
Create a fake identity to praise yourself, friends or an organization you represent
Post a comment that is not relevant to the story or the broader topic
Post inaccurate comments
Use profane language
Monopolize the conversation

We reserve the right to delete comments or block users who violate our policies. Contact us if you want to submit a correction or critique of our coverage.

First Person Guidelines

2020-04-17T15:33:36+00:00

Chalkbeat publishes personal essays in a series we call First Person. Our goal is to elevate the voices of students, educators, parents, advocates, and others on the front lines of trying to improve public education.

We’re not looking for traditional opinion pieces. We’re seeking essays centered around the writer’s personal experience or observation. Our pieces are usually around 800 words.

Strong First Person essays have a conversational tone, presenting specific examples from the author’s life and connecting those examples to larger issues.

We’re always looking for pieces that...

Consider a news event’s real-life impact on students, educators, and schools.

Provide a unique personal perspective about an issue people are talking about.

Are vulnerable in acknowledging uncomfortable emotions and experiences, and the lessons that emerged as a result.

Take on conventional wisdom about education, or about being an educator, a student, or a parent of a student.

Discuss the complex educational choices students and families face.

Speak to the lived experience of educators.

Shed light on an untraditional educational experience.

Recount formative classroom experiences, why they were significant, and what changed as a result.

Take a look at our archive for even more examples.

First Person pays $125 per published piece.

Please note that First Person does not run:

Traditional op-eds that approach an issue solely from a pro/con perspective.
Academic submissions that don’t speak to a personal experience.
Pieces that focus on promoting a specific organization, tool, or program.

Interested in writing a piece? Send your questions, pitches, or drafts to firstperson@chalkbeat.org.

Not sure if your idea will work? Nervous about writing? Please reach out — we will work with you.

Our Staff

2020-04-17T13:58:10+00:00

Leadership Team

Left to right: Elizabeth Green, Kendra Irving, Amy Rosenblum, Sarah Darville

Elizabeth Green COFOUNDER & CEO egreen@chalkbeat.org

Elizabeth Green is the CEO and co-founder of Chalkbeat. She is also the cofounder of the American Journalism Project, the first venture philanthropy firm dedicated to local news. Elizabeth’s book Building a Better Teacher was a New York Times bestseller and notable book of 2014. She has also written about education issues for The New York Times Magazine, U.S. News & World Report, and other publications. Elizabeth has been a Spencer Fellow in education journalism at Columbia University and an Abe Journalism Fellow studying education in Japan.

Kendra Irving CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER kirving@chalkbeat.org

Kendra Irving is a CPA with over twenty years of experience as a finance executive overseeing complex financial reporting and analysis efforts. Prior to joining Chalkbeat, she held the roles of Vice President at the John Gore Organization and Director at HBO where she headed the finance functions with focus on strategic partnering and people-focused leading. Her financial management and business acumen have supported critical long-term business and financial decisions. She started her career at Ernst & Young, LLP as an auditor of clients in the consumer products industry and nonprofit sector. Kendra is a graduate of the University at Buffalo and holds an MBA from NYU.

Amy Rosenblum CHIEF REVENUE OFFICER arosenblum@chalkbeat.org

Before joining the Chalkbeat team, Amy Rosenblum built a career over 20 years focused on developing strong and thriving nonprofit organizations. Combining a passion for community-based work with the pragmatism of a business background, she worked as a researcher, fundraising, consultant, and small business owner. Growing up as the daughter of a journalist, Amy’s thrilled to bring her experience full circle to work with Chalkbeat. She holds a BA from Wesleyan University in Middletown, CT and an MBA from the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado – Boulder.

Outside of work, you can find her hiking and playing with her husband, kids, and dogs along the trails in Boulder, CO.

Sarah Darville CHALKBEAT EDITOR-IN-CHIEF sdarville@chalkbeat.org

Editorial

Marta W. Aldrich SENIOR STATEHOUSE CORRESPONDENT, CHALKBEAT TENNESSEE maldrich@chalkbeat.org

Reema Amin REPORTER, CHALKBEAT CHICAGO ramin@chalkbeat.org

Krishnan Anantharaman STORY EDITOR kanantharaman@chalkbeat.org

Aleksandra Appleton REPORTER, CHALKBEAT INDIANA aappleton@chalkbeat.org

Melanie Asmar SENIOR REPORTER, CHALKBEAT COLORADO masmar@chalkbeat.org

Ethan Bakuli REPORTER, CHALKBEAT DETROIT ebakuli@chalkbeat.org

Matt Barnum INTERIM NATIONAL EDITOR mbarnum@chalkbeat.org

Caroline Bauman DEPUTY MANAGING EDITOR FOR ENGAGEMENT cbauman@chalkbeat.org

Kalyn Belsha SENIOR NATIONAL REPORTER kbelsha@chalkbeat.org

Gabrielle Birkner FEATURES EDITOR AND FELLOWSHIP DIRECTOR gbirkner@chalkbeat.org

Catherine Carrera BUREAU CHIEF, CHALKBEAT NEWARK ccarrera@chalkbeat.org

Elaine Cromie PHOTO EDITOR ecromie@chalkbeat.org

Hannah Dellinger REPORTER, CHALKBEAT DETROIT hdellinger@chalkbeat.org

Michael Elsen-Rooney REPORTER, CHALKBEAT NEW YORK melsen-rooney@chalkbeat.org

Cara Fitzpatrick STORY EDITOR cfitzpatrick@chalkbeat.org

Jessie Gomez REPORTER, CHALKBEAT NEWARK jgomez@chalkbeat.org

Jason Gonzales HIGHER EDUCATION REPORTER, CHALKBEAT COLORADO jgonzales@chalkbeat.org

Susan Gonzalez EDITOR, SOCIAL AND PLATFORMS sgonzalez@chalkbeat.org

Eric Gorski MANAGING EDITOR FOR LOCAL NEWS egorski@chalkbeat.org

Catherine Green NEWSLETTER EDITOR cgreen@chalkbeat.org

Eba Hamid-Rivera DIRECTOR OF AUDIENCE ehamid-rivera@chalkbeat.org

Lori Higgins BUREAU CHIEF, CHALKBEAT DETROIT lhiggins@chalkbeat.org

Eddie King DATA ANALYTICS MANAGER, eking@chalkbeat.org

Mila Koumpilova SENIOR REPORTER, CHALKBEAT CHICAGO mkoumpilova@chalkbeat.org

Dale Mezzacappa SENIOR REPORTER, CHALKBEAT PHILADELPHIA dmezzacappa@chalkbeat.org

Carrie Melago MANAGING EDITOR FOR LOCAL NEWS cmelago@chalkbeat.org

Erica Meltzer BUREAU CHIEF, CHALKBEAT COLORADO emeltzer@chalkbeat.org

Amelia Pak-Harvey REPORTER, CHALKBEAT INDIANA apak-harvey@chalkbeat.org

Kae Petrin DATA AND GRAPHICS REPORTER kpetrin@chalkbeat.org

Mónica Rhor STORY EDITOR mrhor@chalkbeat.org

Yesenia Robles REPORTER, CHALKBEAT COLORADO yrobles@chalkbeat.org

Emiliana Sandoval MANAGING EDITOR FOR STYLE AND STANDARDS esandoval@chalkbeat.org

Ann Schimke SENIOR REPORTER AND COMMUNITY EDITOR, CHALKBEAT COLORADO aschimke@chalkbeat.org

Julian Shen-Berro REPORTER, CHALKBEAT NATIONAL jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org

Carly Sitrin BUREAU CHIEF, CHALKBEAT PHILADELPHIA csitrin@chalkbeat.org

MJ Slaby BUREAU CHIEF, CHALKBEAT INDIANA mslaby@chalkbeat.org

Samantha Smylie STATE EDUCATION REPORTER, CHALKBEAT CHICAGO ssmylie@chalkbeat.org

Laura Testino REPORTER, CHALKBEAT TENNESSEE ltestino@chalkbeat.org

Andrew Ujifusa STORY EDITOR aujifusa@chalkbeat.org

Becky Vevea BUREAU CHIEF, CHALKBEAT CHICAGO bvevea@chalkbeat.org

Melissa Villanueva EDITORIAL OPERATIONS MANAGER mvillanueva@chalkbeat.org

Tonyaa Weathersbee BUREAU CHIEF, CHALKBEAT TENNESSEE tweathersbee@chalkbeat.org

Thomas Wilburn SENIOR DATA EDITOR twilburn@chalkbeat.org

Amy Zimmer BUREAU CHIEF, CHALKBEAT NEW YORK azimmer@chalkbeat.org

Alex Zimmerman REPORTER, CHALKBEAT NEW YORK azimmerman@chalkbeat.org

Business Operations

Touré Bridges DIRECTOR OF PEOPLE OPERATIONS tbridges@civicnews.org

Tiahna Fletcher PEOPLE OPERATIONS ASSOCIATE tfletcher@chalkbeat.org

Bethanie Glaser SENIOR DIRECTOR, STRATEGY & EXPANSION bglaser@chalkbeat.org

Katie Jimenez-Gray MANAGER, OFFICE OF THE CEO kjimenez-gray@chalkbeat.org

Cynthia Haynes-Williams PROSPECT STRATEGY AND RESEARCH MANAGER chaynes-williams@chalkbeat.org

Joanna Kadieva SENIOR DIRECTOR OF PHILANTHROPY, LOCAL MARKETS jkadieva@civicnews.org

Stephanie Massawa ACCOUNTING MANAGER smassawa@chalkbeat.org

Isaiah McGregory DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT, LOCAL MARKETS imcgregory@chalkbeat.org

Esther Odle FINANCE OPERATIONS ASSOCIATE eodle@chalkbeat.org

CJ Ortuño VP OF PHILANTHROPY cortuno@chalkbeat.org

Nicholas Ratcliffe DIRECTOR OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY nratcliffe@chalkbeat.org

Liz Richards GRANTS MANAGER lrichards@civicnews.org

Anakaren Rios STAFF ACCOUNTANT arios@chalkbeat.org

Angela Shaker JUNIOR SPONSORSHIPS MANAGER ashaker@civicnews.org

Laura Wendorf CHIEF OF STAFF, REVENUE lwendorf@chalkbeat.org

Matt Yabor SENIOR DIRECTOR OF EARNED REVENUE myabor@chalkbeat.org

Learn about the Votebeat editorial team here.

Careers at Chalkbeat

2020-04-15T16:22:44+00:00

Awards

2020-04-10T18:19:41+00:00

2022

Colorado Press Association

Best Education Story – First Place: How one Colorado Republican shaped what students will learn about the Holocaust (Erica Meltzer)

Green Eyeshade Awards (SPJ Southeastern US)

Digital Media Presentation – Second Place: How the age-appropriate debate is altering curriculum in Tennessee and nationwide (Marta W. Aldrich, Kae Petrin, Thomas Wilburn, Dan Lyon)

Politics Reporting – Third Place: Collection of stories on book bans and Hillsdale charters (Marta W. Aldrich)

Education Writers Association Awards

News – Winner: Rethinking What Students Learn, One State at a Time (Marta W. Aldrich, Kalyn Belsha, Erica Meltzer, Stephanie Wang)

Beat Reporting – Finalist: Beat Reporting (Kalyn Belsha)

Visual Storytelling – Finalist: Visualizing the “Age Appropriate” Curriculum Debate (Marta W. Aldrich, Dan Lyon, Kae Petrin, Thomas Wilburn)

EGF Accelerator’s Eddie Prize – Finalist: Challenges and Opportunities in Colorado Higher Education (Jason Gonzales, Chalkbeat and Open Campus)

Excellence in Journalism (SPJ Detroit)

Collaborative Coverage, – First Place: The $6 billion question: Will COVID relief funds help Michigan students recover? (Ethan Bakuli, Koby Levin, Isabel Lohmann- Bridge Michigan, Lily Altavena- Detroit Free Press)

Education Reporting – Second Place: Not ‘present,’ and paying a steep cost (Ethan Bakuli, Koby Levin)

Chicago Headline Club Awards (SPJ Peter Lisagor)

Best Feature or Human Interest Single Story– Winner: Inside a Chicago high school’s year of uncertainty (Mila Koumpilova)

New York Press Club Journalism Awards

Feature Reporting NYC Metro- Internet – Winner: NYC families struggle with school refusal (Amy Zimmer)

Best in Indiana Journalism (SPJ Indiana)

Non-Deadline Story or Series – Third Place: Coverage of Rebuilding Stronger (Amelia Pak-Harvey, Cam Rodriguez)

Coverage of Government or Politics – Second Place: Education issues at the Statehouse (Aleksandra Appleton)

Education Reporting – Second Place: Covering students in Indianapolis (Amelia Pak-Harvey)

Best Newsletter – Third Place: Chalkbeat Indiana

Radio Public Affairs – First Place: Politics and non-partisan school board elections collide: Interest in running for Indianapolis school board drops to new low (Amelia Pak-Harvey, Cam Rodriguez, Elizabeth Gabriel, WFYI )

Top of the Rockies (SPJ Colorado)

Education: Feature – First Place: Driving a decade of progress, Hispanic students made huge gains in high school graduation (Yesenia Robles, Cam Rodriguez, Thomas Wilburn)

Politics: Feature – Second Place: ‘One voice’: A new approach to governance is dividing the Denver school board (Melanie Asmar)

Education: News – Third Place: As pandemic wanes, Denver looks to make up missed special education services (Melanie Asmar)

Beat Reporting – Third Place: Denver Public Schools coverage (Melanie Asmar)

Extended Coverage – Third Place: Universal preschool in Colorado (Ann Schimke)

Best Solutions Journalism – Third Place: Reading instruction in Colorado (Ann Schimke)

Enterprise Reporting – First Place: Chasing Progress with Colorado News Collaborative:

Driving a decade of progress, Hispanic students made huge gains in high school graduation (Yesenia Robles)
Colorado has big gaps in who finishes college. Can a post-pandemic push turn the tide? (Jason Gonzales)

Excellence in Journalism (SPJ NJ)

Best In-Depth Digital Reporting – First Place: Bus driver shortage leave some Newark students with disabilities behind (Catherine Carrera)

Special Category: Best Digital Covid Coverage – First Place: Pandemic 360 (Catherine Carrera, Patrick Wall, Alex Zimmerman)

LION Publishers Awards

Public Service: School Board Text Messaging Service (Chalkbeat Teamwide)

2021

Colorado Press Association

Best Education Story – First Place: He’s 11. By his mom’s count, he’s had more than 30 interactions with armed officers at school. (Melanie Asmar)

Best Education Story – Second Place: Two Hispanic brothers wanted to go to college in Colorado. Here’s why only one made it. (Jason Gonzales)

Best Public Service Project – First Place: Education in a Pandemic (Yesenia Robles, Erica Meltzer, Melanie Asmar, Ann Schimke)

Best Public Service Project – Second Place: Higher Education (Jason Gonzales)

New York Press Club Journalism Awards

Internet: Special Event Reporting NYC Metro – Winner: A (remote) day in the life of NYC third graders (Alex Zimmerman, Amy Zimmer, Christina Veiga, Reema Amin)

Education Writers Association Awards

Investigative Reporting – Finalist: Chicago fell behind on plans for students with disabilities during COVID-19. New data show the depth of the problem. (Samantha Smylie)

Feature Stories – Finalist: Covid Shutdowns: One Year Later (Patrick Wall, Stephanie Wang, Sarah Darville, Kalyn Belsha, Alex Zimmerman, Lori Higgins, Melanie Asmar)

Beat Reporting – Finalist: Chicago Beat Reporting (Mila Koumpilova, Chalkbeat Chicago)

Chicago Headline Club Awards (SPJ Peter Lisagor)

Best Education Reporting: Chicago’s public education comeback: The effort to re-engage 100,000 students (Cassie Walker Burke, Yana Kunichoff, Mila Koumpilova)

Excellence in Journalism (SPJ Detroit)

Education Reporting – First Place: High teacher turnover is hurting Michigan’s most vulnerable students (Koby Levin, Gabrielle LaMarr Lee)

Education Reporting – First Place: Michigan schools struggle to come back from the pandemic (Tracie Mauriello)

Education Reporting – Second Place: ‘I don’t want to forget him’: How a close-knit Detroit school coped with the death of a mentor and role model (Lori Higgins)

Education Reporting – Second Place: A look inside an all-out effort to get kids back in school (Lori Higgins)

Excellence in Journalism (SPJ Keystone Pro Chapter)

Online News – First Place: Anti-Asian attacks at a Philadelphia school led to landmark ruling over a decade ago. Did anything change? (Dale Mezzacappa)

Online News – Second Place: Behind bars: School inside Philly’s juvenile center feels brunt of city’s gun violence (Johann Calhoun)

Online News – Third Place: What’s at stake in Pennsylvania’s gubernatorial race? Educators say teaching race, racism in schools. (Johann Calhoun)

Top of the Rockies (SPJ Colorado)

Politics: Feature – Third Place: Colorado education interests spend millions on lobbying mostly to retain, gain funding (Erica Meltzer, Jason Gonzales, Sandra Fish)

Education: News – First Place: A Colorado principal put an 8-year-old boy in a hold until he passed out. State law has ‘no teeth’ to force changes (Melanie Asmar)

Education: Feature – First Place: Two Hispanic brothers wanted to go to college in Colorado. Here’s why only one made it. (Jason Gonzales)

Education: Feature – Second Place: He’s 11. By his mom’s count, he’s had more than 30 interactions with armed officers at school. (Melanie Asmar)

Beat Reporting – Second Place: Educational Justice (Melanie Asmar)

General News – Second Place: Adams 14 School District (Yesenia Robles)

Online News Association

MJ Bear Fellow: Caroline Bauman

2020

Top of the Rockies (SPJ Region 9)

Public Service – Second Place: Public service education in a pandemic (Marta Aldrich, Melanie Asmar, Kalyn Belsha, Jason Gonzales, Gabrielle Lamarr Lemee, Erica Meltzer, Sam Park, Yesenia Robles, Ann Schimke)

Education: News – First Place: Behind closed doors: When it comes to seclusion and restraint, Colorado schools ‘are investigating themselves’ (Melanie Asmar)

Education: Feature – Third Place: A governor eager to reopen, COVID cases declining — and half of Colorado students are online. What happened? (Erica Meltzer)

Excellence in Journalism (SPJ Detroit)

Young Journalist of the Year – Winner (tied): Koby Levin

Education Reporting – Second Place: Michigan bills bet diagnosing dyslexia early will boost reading skills (Koby Levin)

Education Reporting – Third Place: ‘Mom, I’m not feeling it’: Families overwhelmed by online learning turn to home schooling (Koby Levin)

Colorado Press Association

Best Education Story – First Place: Behind closed doors: When it comes to seclusion and restraint, Colorado schools ‘are investigating themselves’ (Melanie Asmar)

Education Writers Association Awards

News – Winner: Guidance From DeVos Means More Coranavirus Relief for Private Schools (Matt Barnum)

News – Finalist: Coverage of the Coronavirus and New York City’s Schools (Reema Amin, Christina Veiga, Alex Zimmerman, Chalkbeat New York)

Beat Reporting – Finalist: Indiana Beat Reporting (Stephanie Wang, Chalkbeat Indiana)

Public Service – Finalist: Demystifying Chicago’s Local School Councils (Yana Kunichoff, Chalkbeat Chicago)

Public Service – Finalist: Reading Curriculum in Colorado Schools (Ann Schimke, Chalkbeat Colorado)

Newswomen’s Club of NY Front Page Awards

Education: Specialized Reporting – Winner: How safe is the air inside your NYC classroom?: (Amy Zimmer, Christina Veiga, Gabrielle LaMarr LeMee)

Editor & Publisher EPPY Awards

Best Collaborative Investigative/Enterprise Reporting – Finalist: How remote learning upended instruction for NYC students with disabilities and their families (Alex Zimmerman, Chalkbeat New York and THE CITY)

Best Use of Social Media/Crowd Sourcing – Winner: How remote learning upended instruction for NYC students with disabilities and their families (Alex Zimmerman, Chalkbeat New York and THE CITY)

Deadline Club (NYC Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists)

Newspaper or Digital Enterprise Reporting – Winner: Exposed to lead as a baby, Bishop now struggles in school. Could an evaluation used in Flint help NYC students like him? (Reema Amin)

LION Publishers Awards

Best Investigative Report Large Newsroom – Winner: Hidden dropouts: How Indiana schools can write off struggling students as home-schoolers (Dylan Peers McCoy, Chalkbeat Indiana)

Collaboration of the Year – Winner: Pandemic High: How one of Chicago’s largest schools rebuilt itself for cyberspace (Mila Koumpilova, Chalkbeat Chicago and The Chicago Tribune)

Collaboration of the Year – Winner: How remote learning upended instruction for NYC students with disabilities and their families (Alex Zimmerman, Chalkbeat New York, and THE CITY)

Coronavirus Coverage – Finalist: Chalkbeat teamwide

Best Solutions Project of the Year – Finalist: Ready or Not (Lori Higgins, Patrick Wall)

2019

Education Writers Association Awards

Investigative Reporting – Winner: Indiana’s Hidden Dropout Crisis (Dylan Peers McCoy, Chalkbeat Indiana)

Feature Stories – Finalist: Ready or Not: Are Students From Struggling Cities Ready for College? And Are Colleges Ready for Them? (Lori Higgins, Patrick Wall)

Beat Reporting – Finalist: Coverage of Denver Public Schools (Melanie Asmar, Chalkbeat Denver)

Beat Reporting– Finalist: Coverage of Indianapolis Public Schools (Dylan Peers McCoy, Chalkbeat Indiana)

Excellence in Journalism (SPJ Detroit)

Education Reporting – Second Place: The push to turn around a struggling Detroit school system (Lori Higgins)

Education Reporting – Second Place: Ready or Not: What happens when students from Detroit enter college (Lori Higgins)

Chicago Headline Club Awards (SPJ Peter Lisagor)

Best Email Newsletter: Cassie Walker Burke and Yana Kunichoff

Best Breaking News Story: Chicago teachers strike ends after 11-day standoff (Cassie Walker Burke, Yana Kunichoff, Philissa Cramer, Sharon Noguchi, Kalyn Belsha, Ariel Cheung)

Green Eyeshade Awards (SPJ Southeastern US)

Politics Reporting – Third Place: (Marta W. Aldrich)

Best in Indiana Journalism (SPJ Indiana)

Investigative Reporting – Second Place: Hidden Dropouts (Dylan Peers McCoy)

Coverage of Government or Politics – Third Place: Governor’s Commission Meets Behind Closed Doors (Stephanie Wang)

Education Reporting – Second Place: Indiana Virtual School Scandal (Stephanie Wang)

Coverage of Children’s Issues – Second Place: Obstacles to Pre-K Expansion (Stephanie Wang)

Coverage of Minority’s Issues – First Place: Race and Education (Stephanie Wang)

Colorado Press Association

Best Education Story – Second Place: Handcuffed in Denver in the fifth grade: ‘Whenever I shut my eyes, I saw the cuffs’ (Melanie Asmar)

Michigan Press Association

Government/Education News – First Place: Inside a turbulent year in Detroit’s charter schools (Koby Levin)

News Enterprise Reporting – First Place: Inside Detroit’s efforts to address one of the biggest obstacles to better schools: sky-high absenteeism (Erin Einhorn, Lori Higgins)

News Enterprise Reporting – Third Place: In Detroit, a push to use African-American history and culture to help students succeed (Lori Higgins)

Best Writing – Second Place: If we don’t learn from this one, shame on us: Lessons from a Detroit charter school that was set up to fail (Koby Levin)

Feature Story – Second Place: The view from room 117: How one Detroit teacher is helping her fifth-graders read like fifth-graders (Koby Levin)

News Photo – Second Place: The children of 8B: One classroom, 31 journeys, and the reason its so hard to fix Detroits schools (Anthony Lanzilote)

The Tennessee Commission on Children and Youth (TCCY)

The John Seigenthaler Making KIDS COUNT Media Award - New Media: Chalkbeat Tennessee

LION Publishers Awards

Best Coverage of Underserved Communities: How it feels to be Javion: 16 and struggling to read in Chicago Public Schools (Chalkbeat Chicago)

Best Breaking News Coverage – Finalist: Strike over: Denver school district, teachers union sign tentative pact raising teacher pay (Chalkbeat Colorado)

Citizens’ Committee for Children of New York

The Samuel P. Peabody Award: Pre-K parity in New York City (Christina Veiga)

2018

Green Eyeshade Awards (SPJ Southeastern US)

Politics Reporting – First Place: Memphis teachers and students recall Martin Luther King’s assassination 50 years later (Marta W. Aldrich, Caroline Bauman, Laura Faith Kebede)

Michigan Press Association

Best Website – Honorable Mention: Chalkbeat Detroit

Government/Education News – Third Place: The Detroit school district has been using a curriculum that’s ‘an injustice to the children of Detroit’ — but it’s not alone. (Erin Einhorn)

Colorado Press Association

Public Service – First Place: Year of the Teacher (Melanie Asmar, Erica Meltzer, Yesenia Robles, Ann Schimke)

Best Education Story – First Place: In Denver’s gentrifying neighborhoods, some middle-class parents are avoiding the school down the block (Melanie Asmar, Erica Meltzer, Yesenia Robles, Ann Schimke)

Best Feature Story – Second Place: Rising test scores and dwindling trust: Denver’s Tom Boasberg leaves a complicated legacy (Melanie Asmar)

Best Education Story – Second Place: Rising test scores and dwindling trust: Denver’s Tom Boasberg leaves a complicated legacy (Melanie Asmar)

Best Sustained Coverage – Second Place: Adams 14 school district (Yesenia Robles)

Chicago Headline Club Awards (SPJ Peter Lisagor)

Best Online Start-Up – Winner: Chalkbeat Chicago

Best in Indiana Journalism (SPJ Indiana)

Education Reporting – Second Place: Indiana Education (Shaina Cavazos)

Education Reporting – Third Place: Education Coverage (Dylan Peers McCoy)

Coverage of Children’s Issues – First Place: Early Childhood Education Coverage (Stephanie Wang)

Coverage of Minority’s Issues – Second Place: Race in Education (Stephanie Wang)

Silurians Press Club Journalism Awards

Minority Affairs Reporting – Medallion: Middle School Integration in New York City (Christina Veiga, Samuel Park)

2017

AERA Awards for Excellence in Education Research

Excellence in Media Reporting on Education Research: Matt Barnum

Colorado Press Association

Best Website – First Place: Chalkbeat Colorado

Best Series – Second Place: Jeffco School Closures (Yesenia Robles)

Education Writers Association Awards

Beat Reporting – Winner: Erin Einhorn, Chalkbeat Detroit

Single-Topic News or Feature – Winner: The Portfolio Model (Matt Barnum, Laura Faith Kebede, Dylan Peers McCoy)

Investigative Reporting – Finalist: The Broken Promise of Indiana’s Online Schools (Shaina Cavazos)

Best in Indiana Journalism (SPJ Indiana)

Coverage of Children’s Issues – Second Place: Preschool expansion in Indiana (Shaina Cavazos)

Education Reporting – Second Place: Dylan Peers McCoy

Coverage of Minority Issues – Third Place: Newcomer School (Dylan Peers McCoy)

Investigative Reporting – Third Place: Indiana Online Charter Schools (Shaina Cavazos)

General Website Excellence – Third Place: Chalkbeat Colorado

2016

Education Writers Association Awards

Ronald Moskowitz Prize for Outstanding Beat Reporting: Erin Einhorn, Chalkbeat Detroit

Beat Reporting – Winner: Erin Einhorn, Chalkbeat Detroit

Beat Reporting – Finalist: Melanie Asmar, Chalkbeat Colorado

Best in Indiana Journalism (SPJ Indiana)

Coverage of Minority Issues – Third Place & Features Writing – Third Place: The end of busing in Indianapolis: 35 years later, a more segregated school system calls it quits (Shaina Cavazos)

Top of the Rockies (SPJ Region 9)

Education: General Reporting – Second Place: Why Aurora Public Schools wants to kick this online charter school out (Nicholas Garcia)

Politics: Enterprise Reporting – Second Place: State board met illegally with commissioner (Nicholas Garcia)

Education: Enterprise Reporting – Third Place: For a longtime Denver charter school, one more chance at rebirth (Melanie Asmar)

2015

Education Writers Association Awards

Ronald Moskowitz Prize for Outstanding Beat Reporting: Patrick Wall, Chalkbeat New York

Beat Reporting – Winner: Patrick Wall, Chalkbeat New York

Investigative Reporting – Finalist: Colorado’s First School-by-School Immunization Database (Ann Schimke)

Best in Indiana Journalism (SPJ Indiana)

Non-Deadline Story or Series – First Place: Lost in Translation (Shaina Cavazos, Hayleigh Colombo, Scott Elliott, Stephanie Wang – IndyStar, Eric Weddle – WFYI)

Education Reporting – First Place: The basics of school funding: Difficulty defining fairness (Scott Elliott, Shaina Cavazos)

Journalism Website – Second Place: Chalkbeat Indiana

Education Reporting – Third Place: Rich school, poor school: IPS push to even out funding could bring big changes (Dylan Peers McCoy)

Investigative Reporting – Third Place: School offered $100 rewards for new students (Hayleigh Colombo)

2014

Education Writers Association Awards

Investigative Reporting – Winner: The revolving schoolhouse door: Principal turnover in Denver, investigated (Monique Collins, Sarah Glen, Kate Schimel)

Single-Topic News or Feature – Finalist: A Promise Unfulfilled at Manual High School (Nicholas Garcia, Alan Gottlieb, Kate Schimel)

Best in Indiana Journalism (SPJ Indiana)

Coverage of Minority Issues – First Place: Tough discipline at state takeover schools falls more heavily on minority children (Shaina Cavazos, Scott Elliott)

Education Reporting – First Place: Key learning community aims to rekindle past glory (Scott Elliott)

Coverage of Minority Issues – Second Place: Washington Township embraces International Baccalaureate to help serve English language learners (Shaina Cavazos)

Education Reporting – Second Place: Indiana superintendent hoping film will launch an education movement (Hayleigh Colombo)

2013

Education Writers Association Awards

Single-Topic News or Feature – Second Prize: Education Issues in NYC Mayor’s Race (Philissa Cramer, Sarah Darville, Geoffrey Decker, Patrick Wall)

2011

Education Writers Association Awards

Journalism Blogging – Second Prize: GothamSchools (Chris Arp, Jessica Campbell, Philissa Cramer, Rachel Cromidas, Sarah Darville, Geoffrey Decker, Elizabeth Green, Anna Phillips, Maura Walz)

2010

Education Writers Association Awards

Journalism Blogging – First Prize: GothamSchools (Philissa Cramer, Kim Gittleson, Elizabeth Green, Anna Phillips, Maura Walz)

Community Blogging – First Prize: Classroom Tales: A Diary, GothamSchools (Ruben Brosbe, Philissa Cramer)

2009

Education Writers Association Awards

Blogs – First Prize: GothamSchools (Philissa Cramer, Elizabeth Green, Anna Phillips, Maura Walz)

Events

2020-04-09T13:57:59+00:00

Hello! Our events page has moved. You can find it here.

Contact Us

2020-04-06T20:58:46+00:00

Contact our network team:

Sponsorships, jobs board, or our calendar of events: sponsor@chalkbeat.org
Corrections or concerns about our stories: corrections@chalkbeat.org
Philanthropy and major donors: grants@chalkbeat.org
Membership and online donations: membership@chalkbeat.org
Subscription and newsletter questions: community@chalkbeat.org
Questions about our republication policy: mediarights@chalkbeat.org
Events and summer camp guide support: listingsupport@chalkbeat.org
Chalkbeat employment questions: careers@chalkbeat.org
Pitch a First Person submission: firstperson@chalkbeat.org
Pitch a national story or submit a tip to the national team: national@chalkbeat.org

Send a tip or contact a local team:

Chicago: chicago.tips@chalkbeat.org

Colorado: co.tips@chalkbeat.org

Detroit: detroit.tips@chalkbeat.org

Indiana: in.tips@chalkbeat.org

National: national@chalkbeat.org

Newark: newark.tips@chalkbeat.org

New York: ny.tips@chalkbeat.org

Philadelphia: philly.tips@chalkbeat.org

Tennessee: tn.tips@chalkbeat.org

Our mailing addresses are:

Chalkbeat Colorado, 2101 Arapahoe Street, Denver, CO 80205

Chalkbeat Indiana, 525 S Meridian St, Suite 1E9, Indianapolis, IN 46225

Chalkbeat Chicago, Detroit, National, Newark, and New York, 450 7th Avenue, 32nd Floor, NY, NY 10123

Chalkbeat Philadelphia, 30 S. 15th Street, 15th Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19102

Chalkbeat Tennessee, 516 Tennessee Street, Suite 219, Memphis, TN 38103

Nominate Your Community

2020-04-06T20:51:31+00:00

How to be a source

2020-04-06T20:47:30+00:00

This guide will help you share your tips and experiences with Chalkbeat.

What to expect from Chalkbeat

One of Chalkbeat’s aims is to foster a nuanced conversation about education changes among a diverse community of educators, policymakers, students, and parents. We promise to treat every source with the respect and dignity they deserve. We promise to provide a welcoming and trusting environment for all to share their story. Each story we hear from the community is important, and we will do our best to tell it accurately.

Connect with Chalkbeat!

Need to get in touch with us? Send us an email to tips@chalkbeat.org, or send a secure text message via the Signal app to (908)-827-1448.

What makes a good tip?

Chalkbeat’s mission is to tell the important story of improving schools in communities that have historically lacked access to a quality education. When we evaluate stories for their newsworthiness and decide how to approach them, we consider our mission.

A good tip for a Chalkbeat reporter relates to how educational practices, policies, and laws affect students from low-income homes and other underserved groups. Your tip should let us know why you think the story you’re telling us about is important, and, ideally, should be supported with documentation or other evidence. Chalkbeat is especially interested in how local education issues fit into the bigger, national debate about education.

A few examples of good news tips:

My school has been trying a new approach to teaching math, and we think it’s working based on internal data.
I think a school board member is acting unethically. Here’s proof, including emails.
Our new suspension policy is being enforced unevenly; here’s some data from a recent PTO meeting that shows just how bad it is.
I have inside knowledge about internal education department practices I believe should be public knowledge.

Know the rules about “off the record”

You’ve probably heard the phrase “off the record” and “background” thrown around before. But what do they mean and how does it work?

On the record: Whenever you’re talking to a reporter, you’re usually automatically “on the record.” This means that a reporter can quote what you say in a story, including your name and title. We strive to publish information that’s on the record because we value transparency. We will always identify ourselves as Chalkbeat reporters.
Off the record: When you tell a reporter something “off the record,” that means the reporter can’t use the information you provide in a story. The reporter may discuss with you other strategies to confirm the information and will never disclose — directly or indirectly — that you provided the initial tip. If you want something “off the record,” be sure to say that up front, and make sure the reporter agrees to go off the record.
Anonymous: When you tell a reporter something on the record, but you don’t want to be identified by name, you serve as an anonymous source. We only grant this in special cases. You may discuss anonymity with our reporters, but you should know that they will likely try to work with you to provide at least some identifying information in any story that includes quotes or information from you. We seek to avoid including anonymous sources in our stories because it weakens our credibility as a news organization if we cannot demonstrate to readers why the information we report is reliable. Even if you do not agree to be quoted and we don’t grant anonymity, the information you provide can help us better understand the stories we are telling. Here’s an example of how Chalkbeat used an anonymous source.

Chalkbeat reporter Melanie Asmar, left, at a press conference.

Regardless of whether you want to be on or off the record, you should never hesitate to reach out to Chalkbeat. Every reporter here will work with you to determine the best and safest way to share your information.

While these guidelines are fairly well established among journalists, some reporters use the terms in slightly different ways. When talking with any reporter, be sure to set clear parameters on your relationship.

Know the rules about open records

If you’re a government employee, such as a teacher or a central administration employee, your email is likely subject to state open records laws. That means anyone can peek inside your work email if they file such a request. For security, we recommend you email confidential tips from a private account. In extremely sensitive instances, you may consider setting up an entirely new email account to communicate with us.

Other pro tips on being a good source:

Let reporters know the best way and time to reach you.
If a reporter shares his or her deadline with you, try your best to get back to the reporter beforehand.
This might sound like common sense, but don’t make something up. If you don’t know the answer to a reporter’s question, that’s OK. Just tell them.
If you’re sending in photos, please make sure they’re as high resolution as possible.
Check out these nine additional tips for helping journalists during breaking news events, courtesy of the journalism think-tank Poynter.

Don’t have a news tip but have something important to say? Chalkbeat wants to hear about that too!

While holding the powerful accountable is an important part of Chalkbeat’s mission, it’s only one facet of what we do. Chalkbeat exists to elevate the voices of educators, parents, students, and other stakeholders. We do this through publishing personal essays in a series we call “First Person.”

We’re always on the lookout for compelling pieces for our First Person series. If you’re thinking about submitting a piece, here are our submission guidelines.

Chalkbeat also features award-winning teachers in a series called “How I Teach.” If you or someone you know has been recognized as an excellent teacher, send an email to gbirkner@chalkbeat.org to be considered.

A student at DSST Cole Middle School in Denver raises his hand.

Got a question for Chalkbeat?

Send it our way! No question is too big or too small for Chalkbeat reporters to check out for our readers.

Email

Chalkbeat has a general email to collect tips and story ideas from readers: tips@chalkbeat.org.

Each bureau also has its own tips email address:

You can also find individual reporters’ emails on our staff page.

Text and messaging

Chalkbeat is on Signal, the encrypted text messaging app. Our number is 908-827-1494. To ensure your message is encrypted, use the app; do not text directly from your phone.

You can also send a private message to any of our Facebook accounts.

U.S. Postal Service

Snail mail still works — and can be very secure. (Authorities need a warrant to intercept and open mail in transit.) If you’re concerned about security, include your tip and supporting evidence in an envelope without a return address, and drop the package in a sidewalk box, not your neighborhood post office. Do not use your school’s or company’s mailroom.

Our mailing addresses are:

Chalkbeat Chicago, 303 East Wacker Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60601

Chalkbeat Colorado, 2101 Arapahoe Street, Denver, CO 80205

Chalkbeat Detroit, 440 Burroughs Street, Suite 315, Detroit, MI 48202

Chalkbeat Indiana, National, and New York, 450 7th Avenue, 32nd Floor, NY, NY 10123

Chalkbeat Newark, 142 Lafayette Street, Newark, NJ 07105

Chalkbeat Philadelphia, 30 S. 15th Street, 15th Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19102

Chalkbeat Tennessee, 516 Tennessee Street, Suite 3219, Memphis, TN 38103

Become a Chalkbeat Sponsor

2020-04-06T20:40:24+00:00

Join the growing number of companies and organizations who have successfully marketed their products and services to district and charter officials, school leaders and administrators, teachers, and education advocates with Chalkbeat sponsorships.

To learn more, visit our media kit or contact us at sponsors@chalkbeat.org.

Terms of Use

2020-04-06T20:30:27+00:00

Last updated on March 31, 2022

These terms and conditions govern your use of the Chalkbeat website, offered by Chalkbeat Inc. (“Chalkbeat”, “us”, “our” or “we”). These Terms of Use (this “Agreement”) constitute a legal agreement between you and Chalkbeat. The content on our site is delivered by Chorus, a product of Vox Media, and their interaction with you is described in these Terms of Use and Privacy Notice.

GENERAL RULES AND DEFINITIONS

1.1 If you choose to use Chalkbeat.org (the “Site”), including any of the features of the Site, whether provided by Chalkbeat or a third party (collectively, the “Services”), you will be agreeing to abide by all of the terms and conditions of this Agreement and these Terms will remain in effect while you use the Services. This Agreement includes the provisions in this document as well as those in the Privacy Policy.

1.2 We may change, add or remove portions of this Agreement at any time, which shall become effective immediately upon posting. It is your responsibility to review this Agreement prior to each use of the Site and by continuing to use the Site, you agree to any changes. If any of these rules or any future changes are unacceptable to you, you must stop using the Site. If you use the Site in any way after a change to the Agreement is effective, that means you agree to all of the changes. Except for changes by us as described here, no other amendment or modification of this Agreement will be effective unless in writing and signed by both you and us.

1.3 We may change, suspend or discontinue any aspect of the Services at any time, including the availability of any Services feature, database or content. We may also impose limits on certain features and services or restrict your access to parts or all of the Services without notice or liability.

CONTENT ON THE SERVICES

2.1 All materials published on or through the Services (including, but not limited to news articles, photographs, images, illustrations, audio clips and video clips, also known as the “Content”) are protected by copyright, and owned by Chalkbeat or licensed to Chalkbeat by the party credited as the provider of the Content.

2.2 You shall abide by all additional copyright notices, information, or restrictions contained in any Content accessed on or through the Services.

2.3 The Services and the Content are protected by copyright pursuant to U.S. and international copyright laws. You may not modify, publish, transmit, participate in the transfer or sale of, reproduce, create new works from, distribute, perform, display, or in any way exploit, any of the Content or the Services (including software) in whole or in part, except as provided in Section 3.1 of this Agreement. The Site may allow you to copy or download certain Content, but please remember that even where these functionalities exist, all the restrictions in this Agreement still apply.

REPUBLISHING OUR CONTENT

3.1 Content consisting of stories may be republished using Chalkbeat’s republish button that appears in each of our stories’ share toolbars, as long as you abide by the following rules:

Please only edit our story to reflect references to time (e.g. “today” to “yesterday”), location (e.g. “New York” to “here”) or editorial style.
If you publish our story online, please include all of the story’s links.
Please publish the author’s name using the following format: by Sarah Darville, Chalkbeat New York. Please also link back to our home page, https://www.chalkbeat.org, in that credit line.
If you’re republishing our Content online, you have to include our tracking tag. When you click the republish button and copy and paste the HTML code of our story into your CMS, it will include the tracking tag automatically. This tag allows us to know who is sharing our stories and how many page views the stories get.
If you want to publish an excerpt of our story, you must still use the tracking tag built in to the republish function. Re-using our Content without the tracking tag is prohibited. You are always welcome to link to our Content!
If you’d like to translate a story into another language, please contact us at mediarights@chalkbeat .org.
Chalkbeat is not responsible for Content found on blogs, platforms, websites or other media that republish, reblog or repost Content by Chalkbeat. Chalkbeat does not endorse blogs, websites, bloggers, journalists, or writers who reblog or repost works available on the Site. Chalkbeat does not compensate bloggers, journalists, or writers who reblog or repost our Content. Chalkbeat is not responsible for any mistranslations of our Content.
Please note that Chalkbeat considers the publication date to be the date marked on the story.
Please note that Chalkbeat does NOT allow republication of copyrighted material from other media organizations (e.g. material not owned by Chalkbeat or licensed to Chalkbeat pursuant to Section 4.5 of the Terms of Use). Republication of material from other media organizations requires separate permissions from them directly.

USER GENERATED CONTENT

4.1 By making a submission on or through the Services (i.e., user-generated content) (a “Submission”), you are consenting to its display and publication on or through the Services and for related online and offline promotional uses.

4.2 You shall not upload, distribute or otherwise publish any Submission that is illegal, abusive, obscene, indecent, profane, threatening, defamatory, in violation of copyright or trademark laws, invasive of privacy or otherwise injurious to third parties, including other users of the Site. No Submission may consist of or contain software viruses, political campaigning, commercial solicitation, chain letters, mass mailings or any form of “spam”; and you may not use a false e-mail address, impersonate any person or entity, or otherwise mislead as to the origin of your Submission.

4.3 You represent, warrant and covenant that no Submission will (a) violate, plagiarize, or infringe upon the rights of any third party, including copyright, trademark, privacy or other personal or proprietary rights; or (b) contain libelous or otherwise unlawful material.

4.4 You acknowledge that any Submission you make may be edited, removed, modified, published, transmitted and displayed by Chalkbeat, and you waive any rights you may have in having the material altered or changed in a manner not agreeable to you.

4.5 You agree that by making any Submission you grant Chalkbeat a non-exclusive, royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide and fully assignable and sublicensable license to use, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, allow for republication, translate, edit, reformat, create derivative works from, distribute and display that Submission in any media now known or hereinafter developed.

4.6 You are solely responsible for the content of your Submissions. Chalkbeat does not and cannot review every Submission and is not responsible for the content of these messages.

USE OF THE SERVICES

5.1 You may not access or use, or attempt to access or use, the Services to take any action that could harm us or a third party. You may not access parts of the Services to which you are not authorized. You may not attempt to circumvent any restriction or condition imposed on your use or access, or do anything that could disable or damage the functioning or appearance of the Services, including the presentation or display of advertising. Being exposed to advertising is a condition of accessing the Services.

5.2 The Services contain links to other related websites, resources, and advertisers. Since we are not responsible for the availability of these outside resources, or their contents, you should direct any concerns regarding any external link to such site.

THIRD PARTY WEBSITES, SERVICES, AND SOFTWARE

6.1 Your use of any third party websites, content, data, information, applications, goods, services or materials (collectively, “Third Party Services”) does not constitute an endorsement by Chalkbeat, nor does it incur any obligation, responsibility or liability on our part. We do not verify, endorse, or have any responsibility for Third Party Services and any third party business practices (including, without limitation, their privacy policies), whether the Services’ or our logo and/or sponsorship identification is on the Third Party Services as part of a co-branding or promotional arrangement or otherwise. Accordingly, we encourage you to be aware when you leave the Services and to read the terms and conditions and privacy policy of each Third Party Service you use.

DISCLAIMER AND LIMITATION OF LIABILITY

7.1 You hereby indemnify, defend and hold harmless Chalkbeat and all officers, directors, owners, agents, information providers, affiliates, licensors and licensees (collectively, the “Indemnified Parties”) from and against any and all liability and costs, including, without limitation, reasonable attorneys’ fees, incurred by the Indemnified Parties in connection with any claim arising out of any breach by you of this Agreement or any false or misleading representation or warranty under this Agreement. You shall cooperate as fully as reasonably required in the defense of any such claim. Chalkbeat reserves the right, at its own expense, to assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter subject to indemnification by you.

7.2 Chalkbeat does not represent or endorse the accuracy or reliability of any advice, opinion, statement, or other information displayed, uploaded, or distributed on or through the Services by any user, information provider or any other person or entity. You acknowledge that any reliance upon any such opinion, advice, statement, memorandum, or information shall be at your sole risk. WE ARE NOT LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, LOSS OR INJURY THAT RESULTS FROM YOUR USE OF, OR INABILITY TO USE, THE SERVICES OR YOUR BREACH OF ANY PROVISION OF THIS AGREEMENT. THE SERVICES AND ALL DOWNLOADABLE SOFTWARE ARE DISTRIBUTED ON AN “AS IS” BASIS WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, WARRANTIES OF TITLE OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. WE DO NOT GUARANTEE OR WARRANT THAT THE SERVICES ARE FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS. YOU HEREBY ACKNOWLEDGE THAT USE OF THE SERVICES IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK.

PRIVACY POLICY

Our privacy policy (“Privacy Policy”) is hereby incorporated by reference into this Agreement. The Privacy Policy may be updated from time to time at our discretion and changes will be effective upon our posting them to the Site. A copy of the Privacy Policy can be found here.

COMMUNICATIONS BETWEEN CHALKBEAT AND USERS

9.1 Chalkbeat reserves the right to send e-mail to you for the purpose of informing you of changes or additions to the Services.

9.2 Chalkbeat may contact you via e-mail regarding your participation in user surveys, asking for feedback on current Services or prospective products and services. This information will be used to improve the Services and better understand our users, and any information we obtain in such surveys will not be shared with third parties, except in aggregate form.

MISCELLANEOUS

10.1 This Agreement contains the final and entire agreement between us regarding your use of the Services and supersedes all previous and contemporaneous oral or written agreements regarding your use of the Services. Our failure to enforce any provision of this Agreement against you or to respond to a breach by you shall not in any way waive our rights to subsequently enforce any provision of this Agreement against you.

10.2 This Agreement will be governed by and construed in accordance with New York law. You may not assign, delegate or transfer these Terms or your rights or obligations hereunder, in any way (by operation of law or otherwise) without Chalkbeat’s prior written consent. We may transfer, assign, or delegate these Terms and our rights and obligations without consent.

10.3 At Chalkbeat’s sole discretion, it may require you to submit any disputes arising from this Agreement, including disputes arising from or concerning its interpretation, violation, invalidity, non-performance, or termination, to final and binding arbitration under the Rules of Arbitration of the American Arbitration Association applying New York law. YOU AGREE THAT BY USING THE SERVICES, YOU AND WE ARE EACH WAIVING THE RIGHT TO TRIAL BY JURY. ANY ARBITRATION UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL TAKE PLACE ON AN INDIVIDUAL BASIS; CLASS ARBITRATIONS AND CLASS ACTIONS ARE NOT PERMITTED AND, BY ENTERING INTO THIS AGREEMENT, YOU ARE GIVING UP THE ABILITY TO PARTICIPATE IN A CLASS ACTION.

10.4 Correspondence regarding this Agreement should be sent to contact@chalkbeat.org.

10.5 If you believe that your work has been copied in a way that constitutes copyright infringement, please provide us the following information. Please be advised that to be effective, the Notice must include all of the following:

a physical or electronic signature of the person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive copyright that is allegedly infringed;
a description of the copyrighted work that you claim has been infringed;
a description of where the material that you claim is infringing is located on the Site;
your address, telephone number, and email address and all other information reasonably sufficient to permit us to contact you;
a statement by you that you have a good faith belief that the disputed use is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and
a statement by you, made under penalty of perjury, that the above information in your Notice is accurate and that you are the copyright owner or authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.

Notices of claimed copyright infringement should be directed to:

By mail:

Chalkbeat Inc.
450 Seventh Ave, 32nd floor
NY, NY 10123

Attention:
Kendra Irving
Chief Financial Officer
(718) 930-9909

By email: kirving@chalkbeat.org

Privacy Policy

2020-04-06T20:23:21+00:00

Last updated on June 11, 2022

This page contains Chalkbeat Inc.’s (“Chalkbeat”, “us”, “our” or “we”) privacy policy (this “Privacy Policy”), which explains how we collect, use, disclose, and protect the information that we obtain from you. We respect your privacy and are committed to protecting it through our compliance with this Privacy Policy. The content on our site is delivered by 3rd party vendors: Vox Media and Perfect Sense DBA Brightspot, their interaction with you is described in these Vox Media Privacy Notice and Brightspot Privacy Policy. Your use of Chalkbeat’s website is at all times subject to our Terms of Use, which incorporates this Privacy Policy.

This Privacy Policy applies when we collect data from users (“you”) through our website, emails related to the use of our website, and features controlled, whether partially or otherwise, by us (the “Features”). If a Feature is co-branded or developed by a third party, the third party’s privacy policy may also apply.

“Personal Information” includes information that alone or when in combination with other information may be used to readily identify, contact, or locate you (e.g., name, address, telephone number, email address, and location) and also includes information referred to as “personally identifiable information” or “personal information” under applicable data privacy laws, rules or regulations. We do not consider Personal Information to include information that does not allow a third party to identify you. This Privacy Policy does not cover the practices of companies we don’t own or control or people we don’t manage.

Please read this Privacy Policy carefully to understand our policies and practices regarding your information and how we will treat it. By using or accessing the Features in any manner, you agree to this Privacy Policy and you hereby consent that we will collect, use and share your information as described in this Privacy Policy. If you do not agree with our policies and practices, please do not use our Features.

This Privacy Policy may change from time to time. Your continued use of our Features after we make changes will be deemed an acceptance by you of those changes, so please check this Privacy Policy periodically for updates. Please note that if you’ve opted not to receive legal notice emails from us (or you haven’t provided us with your email address), those legal notices will still govern your use of the Features, and you are still responsible for reading and understanding them. Use of information we collect is subject to the Privacy Policy in effect at the time such information is collected.

HOW WE COLLECT INFORMATION

1.1 You can visit the Features without identifying yourself or revealing any of your Personal Information. In a few areas on the Features, we ask you to provide Personal Information in order to enhance your use of the Features or for other purposes, such as facilitating correspondence with you, registration to use certain features of the Features (e.g., the jobs board, the events calendar, the newsletter, etc.), or completing transactions, such as donations. In other cases, we collect Personal Information you post through the Features. It is always your choice whether or not to provide that Personal Information. If you choose not to provide requested Personal Information, you may not be able to use certain functionalities of the Features. We will not collect additional Personal Information outside of what is provided for in this Privacy Policy or use the Personal Information we collected for materially different, unrelated or incompatible purposes without providing you notice.

1.2 When you make payments through the Features, such as when making a donation, you may need to provide Personal Information, such as your credit card number and billing address. That information will be provided directly to our third-party payment processor, and we will not have access to and will not collect or maintain your credit card information.

1.3 The Features may collect location data to provide location-related functionality (“Location Data”). We and our service providers may also collect your usage activity and preferences (“Usage Data”). We may link Location Data and Usage Data to other information we have collected about you.

1.4 We and third parties, including but not limited to providers of social media, software, mailing, survey, and advertising services, may use cookies, pixel tags, web beacons or other similar technologies to operate the Features. These technologies may collect and store Personal Information as well as usage statistics and other non-personal information. Browsers allow you to block and delete cookies. However, if you do that, the Features may not work properly. By using the Features, you are authorizing us to gather, analyze, and retain data related to the provision of the Features.

1.5 If we combine or associate information from third parties with Personal Information that we collect through the Features, we will treat the combined information as Personal Information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.

Categories of Sources of Personal Information

We collect Personal Information about you from the following categories of sources:

You

When you provide such information directly to us.
When you use our Website.
When you send us an email or otherwise contact us.
When you use the Website and such information is collected automatically.
Through website cookies.
If you use a location-enabled browser, we may receive information about your location.

Third Parties

Vendors
We may use analytics providers to analyze how you interact and engage with the Website, or third parties may help us provide you with customer support.

2. HOW WE USE INFORMATION

2.1 We use information, including Personal Information, to complete a transaction with you or do something else that you have asked us to do, and we may provide it to third parties to allow us to facilitate the Features. For example, if you request support or other information, we may need to use Personal Information to respond to your request. We may use and retain any data we collect to provide and improve our Features. We may also use and retain any data we collect in the following use cases:

Fulfilling our legal obligations under applicable law, regulation, court order or other legal process, such as preventing, detecting and investigating security incidents and potentially illegal or prohibited activities.
Protecting the rights, property or safety of you, Chalkbeat or another party.
Providing support and assistance for the Website.
Improving the Website.
Doing fraud protection, security and debugging.
Carrying out other business purposes stated when collecting your Personal Information or as otherwise set forth in applicable data privacy laws.

2.2 We may use information, including Personal Information and data collected through cookies and similar technology, to provide online advertising on the Features and for our fundraising, advertising or marketing purposes. Cookies are small pieces of data – usually text files – placed on your computer, tablet, phone or similar device when you use that device to access our Features. We may also supplement the information we collect from you with information received from third parties, including third parties that have placed their own cookies on your device(s). Please note that because of our use of cookies, the cookie does not support “Do Not Track” requests sent from a browser at this time. California residents see section 7.4 for information about “Do Not Track”

2.3 We use the following types of Cookies:

• Essential Cookies. Essential cookies are required for providing you with features or services that you have requested. Disabling these Cookies may make certain Features unavailable.

• Functional Cookies. Functional cookies are used to record your choices and settings regarding our Features, maintain your preferences over time and recognize you when you return to our website.

• Performance/Analytical Cookies. Performance/Analytical cookies allow us to understand how visitors use our website. They do this by collecting information about the number of visitors to the website, what pages visitors view on our website and how long visitors are viewing pages on the website. Performance/Analytical cookies also help us measure the performance of our advertising campaigns in order to help us improve our campaigns and the website’s content for those who engage with our advertising. For example, Google LLC (“Google”) uses cookies in connection with its Google Analytics services. Google’s ability to use and share information collected by Google Analytics about your visits to the Website is subject to the Google Analytics Terms of Use and the Google Privacy Policy. You have the option to opt-out of Google’s use of cookies by visiting the Google advertising opt-out page at www.google.com/privacy_ads.html or the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on at https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout/.

You can decide whether or not to accept cookies through your internet browser’s settings. Most browsers have an option for turning off the cookies feature, which will prevent your browser from accepting new cookies, as well as (depending on the sophistication of your browser software) allow you to decide on acceptance of each new cookie in a variety of ways. You can also delete all cookies that are already on your device. If you do this, however, you may have to manually adjust some preferences every time you visit our website and some of the Features may not work.

2.4 At any time, you can opt-out of receiving any communication from Chalkbeat by either: (a) contacting us at contact@chalkbeat.org and requesting to have your name removed from our mailing list; or (b) clicking the “unsubscribe” link in any email from us.

2.5 We may create anonymized, de-identified and aggregated data from Personal Information collected through the Features, including by removing information that makes the data personally identifiable to a particular user, and use or share it with third parties for our lawful business purposes, including to analyze, build and improve the Website and promote our business, provided that we will not share such data in a manner that could identify you.

2.6 We use Location Data to provide location-based functionality.

2.7 Any user-generated content submitted on or through public Features will be treated as being non-confidential and nonproprietary, and we will be free to use such information for any purpose whatsoever. In doing so, we may edit your user-generated content for clarity or brevity and identify you by name and location as the author of the user-generated content if that information has been provided.

2.8 Any information you share in a public forum, including any Personal Information, is public information and may be seen, collected, or used by anyone, including third parties that do not adhere to this Privacy Policy. We are not responsible for events arising from the distribution of any information you choose to publicly post or share through the Features. We may use Personal Information and non-personal information about you to identify you with a posting in a public forum.

3. HOW WE SHARE INFORMATION

3.1 Our service providers and research institutions with which we collaborate may have access to your Personal Information and other information, for the purpose of performing services on our behalf. All such service providers and such research institutions who have access to your Personal Information are required to keep the information confidential and not use it for any other purpose than to carry out the services they are performing for us or as otherwise required by law. We may also use third-party service providers to help us analyze certain online activities. We do not share any Personal Information about our users with these third parties, and these third parties do not collect such information on our behalf. However, we retain the right to share your Personal Information with third parties for marketing purposes.

3.2 The content you share on the Features may be displayed on the website or you may elect to post information through links to social media services. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of other users who will view and use the information.

3.3 We may allow our affiliates, vendors, and suppliers to have access to aggregate statistics about our users, traffic patterns, and related Features information. These aggregate statistics do not include Personal Information.

3.4 We may access, preserve, and disclose your Personal Information, other account information, and content if we believe doing so is required or appropriate to comply with government reporting requirements, law enforcement requests, and legal processes such as a court order or subpoena; or to respond to your requests; or to protect your, our, or others’ rights, property, or safety.

3.5 Information about our users, including Personal Information, may be disclosed and otherwise transferred to an acquirer, or successor or assignee of Chalkbeat as part of any merger, acquisition, sale of assets, or similar transaction, as well as in the event of an insolvency, bankruptcy, or receivership in which information is transferred to one or more third parties as one of our business assets.

3.6 We may also disclose your Personal Information with your permission or as communicated to you at the point of collection of this information.

4. HOW WE PROTECT INFORMATION

4.1 We maintain safeguards that are designed to improve the integrity and security of Personal Information in our custody and control. While we strive to protect your Personal Information, we do not ensure or warrant the security of any information you transmit to us, and you do so at your own risk. We also cannot guarantee that such information may not be accessed, disclosed, altered, or destroyed by breach of any of our safeguards.

4.2 If you post Personal Information online that is accessible to the public, you may receive unsolicited messages from other parties for which we are not responsible.

4.3 You provide us with this data at your own risk; no data transmitted over the Internet can be guaranteed to be completely secure.

5. THIRD-PARTY SITES

5.1 Please be aware that other websites that may be accessed through the Features may collect Personal Information about you. These third-party websites may send their own cookies and other tracking devices to you, log your IP address, and otherwise collect data or solicit Personal Information. This Privacy Policy does not cover the information practices of those third-party websites. You should read the privacy policies and terms and conditions of linked or referenced sites that you enter.

6. CHILDREN’S PRIVACY

6.1 The Features are not intended for or directed to persons under the age of 13.

6.2 Consistent with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, we do not knowingly collect information from children under 13 without obtaining verifiable parental consent. If you are a parent or legal guardian and believe that your child under 13 years of age has volunteered Personal Information on the Features, and you do not consent to our possession of it, you may alert us at contact@chalkbeat.org and we will delete that child’s Personal Information from our systems.

6.3 If we learn that Personal Information on children under 13 has been collected without verifiable parental consent, we will take appropriate steps to remove that information from our database.

7. CALIFORNIA USERS/ NEVADA USERS

7.1 California residents may opt-out of our disclosure of Personal Information to third parties for their direct marketing purposes. It is important to note that this opt-out does not prohibit disclosures made for non-marketing purposes.

7.2 If you are a California resident, you have the additional right to receive: (a) information identifying all third-party companies to which we have disclosed Personal Information pertaining to you and your family for those companies’ direct marketing purposes, within the past year; and (b) a description of the categories of Personal Information disclosed.

7.3 To opt-out of the disclosures referenced in Section 7.1 or to obtain the information referenced in Section 7.2, please email your request to contact@chalkbeat.org.

7.4 Internet browsers can be configured to send “Do Not Track” signals to the online services that you visit. California Business & Professions Code Section 22575(b) (as amended effective January 1, 2014) provides that California residents are entitled to know how Chalkbeat, Inc. responds to “Do Not Track” browser settings.

There currently is no consensus among industry participants as to what “Do Not Track” means in this context. Therefore, like many websites and online services, the Services do not alter their practices when they receive a “Do Not Track” signal from a visitor’s browser. To find out more about “Do Not Track,” please visit here.

7.5 If you are a Nevada resident, you have the additional right to opt-out of the sale of certain Personal Information to third parties who intend to license or sell that Personal Information. You can exercise this right by contacting us at contact@chalkbeat.org with the subject line “Nevada Do Not Sell Request” and providing us with your name.

8. INTERNATIONAL USERS

8.1 The Features are hosted through servers located in the United States and are intended for visitors located within the United States.

8.2 By providing any information, including Personal Information, on or to the Features, you consent to its transfer, storage, and processing within the United States. This is true regardless of whether you are located in a region of the world with laws governing data collection and use that are different and potentially stricter than the laws of the United States.

9. UPDATE OR DELETE PERSONAL INFORMATION

9.1 To update any of your Personal Information we hold about you, to request that we delete any information about you that we have obtained from the Features, or to communicate your consent choices regarding your Personal Information, you may contact us at contact@chalkbeat.org.

9.2 Your right to access or update your Personal Information is subject to applicable legal restrictions. We may take reasonable steps to verify your identity before granting access or updating your Personal Information.

9.3 We may retain your Personal Information for as long as the website is active or as needed to provide you with the Features, and to maintain a record of your transactions for financial reporting and compliance purposes. Additionally, we will retain and use your Personal Information as necessary to comply with our legal obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements.

CONTACT US

Please contact us with any questions or comments about this Privacy Policy, your Personal Information, or our use and disclosure practices, by email at contact@chalkbeat.org or by writing to us at the following address:

Chalkbeat Inc.

450 Seventh Avenue

32nd Floor

New York, NY 10123

Republish our stories

2020-04-06T20:22:08+00:00

Our mission is to give people the information they need to make smart, informed decisions related to education. Unless otherwise noted, Chalkbeat stories are free to republish through a Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 license. Simply click the “Republish” button on the story you’d like to republish and follow these additional rules:

You may not edit the story except to reflect updated references to time (e.g., modifying “today” to “yesterday”), location (e.g., changing “here” to “New York”), or editorial style (if your publication uses honorific titles, for example).
If you publish the story online, include all of the story’s links.
Include a byline using the following format: by [Firstname] [Lastname], Chalkbeat [Location]. For example: by Christina Veiga, Chalkbeat New York. If the story came from our National desk, please use the following format: by [Firstname] [Lastname], Chalkbeat. For example: by Matt Barnum, Chalkbeat.
Please include this line at the top of the story: “This story was originally published by Chalkbeat. Sign up for their newsletters at ckbe.at/newsletters”.
The words “originally published” must link back to the original post on our site.
When including the link to the original story, please update the link URL to include rel=”canonical”. For example: <a href=”URL” rel=”canonical”>Story headline</a>
Any photos or other media credited to Chalkbeat may be republished as long as you provide proper credit. You may also run your own photos with the Chalkbeat story. Media from third-party organizations (e.g., Getty Images, Denver Post) require separate permissions from them directly. You are solely responsible for identifying and licensing third-party content. Chalkbeat expressly disclaims any liability arising out of your unauthorized use of third-party content.
At the end of the story, include the following line, as seen in the HTML and plain text: “Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news organization covering public education,” with a canonical link back to the original story.
For print outlets, the above rules apply except for embedding links. Include our main url — chalkbeat.org — in the line at the end of the story: “Chalkbeat (chalkbeat.org) is a nonprofit news organization covering public education.”
If you republish in print, please let us know at mediarights@chalkbeat.org
Chalkbeat is not responsible for content found on blogs, platforms, or websites that reblog or repost content by Chalkbeat. Chalkbeat does not endorse blogs, websites, bloggers, journalists, or writers who reblog or repost works available on Chalkbeat. Chalkbeat does not compensate bloggers, journalists, or writers who reblog or repost works by Chalkbeat. Chalkbeat is not responsible for any mistranslations of Chalkbeat content.
Please note that Chalkbeat considers the publication date to be the date marked on the story.
If you share the story or a link to the story on social media, please tag us on Twitter and Facebook (@chalkbeat).

Code of Ethics

2020-04-06T20:19:49+00:00

Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news organization covering educational change efforts in local communities across the country. Our mission is to provide deep, local coverage of education policy and practice to inform the decisions and actions that lead to better outcomes for children and families, especially those in low-income communities.

This mission demands that our readers and sources alike be able to have the utmost confidence in the accuracy of our journalism; the fairness of our reporting process; and the independence of our news judgments from the influence of advocates and financial supporters.

One way we protect our commitment to accuracy, integrity, and independence is by actively designing a business model that relies on diversified streams of support. Our revenue sources include major donations from foundations and individuals; contributions from readers; paid sponsorships that appear on our website and email newsletters; paid sponsorships of our live events; and a paid jobs board. We believe the more diverse our revenue sources, the more solid our independence and the stronger our prospects for long-term sustainability.

In addition to building a business model that bolsters our independence, we have also adopted a code of ethics to govern the conduct of our team members and those we work with.

The Chalkbeat code of ethics draws inspiration from those of other nonprofit news organizations, including the Marshall Project, ProPublica, Texas Tribune, and the Center for Investigative Reporting, and from those of professional organizations such as the Education Writers Association and the Society for Professional Journalists. Our code of ethics also reflects longstanding values and standards of practice of the journalism profession. Exceptional circumstances may require exceptions to this code, and we will revise it as our experiences and norms in journalism and digital media evolve.

Any team member inside Chalkbeat who has questions or issues raised in these policies is encouraged to bring them to their supervisor or editor. When in doubt, we suggest asking.

Our stories are accurate.

Journalism must be accurate, fair, and clear if readers are to trust it. To build trust, Chalkbeat journalists will:

Check facts; correct errors transparently and swiftly; and learn from mistakes so that they aren’t repeated. If you find an error, email corrections@chalkbeat.org.
Never plagiarize and never deliberately distort facts or context, including visual information. (Plagiarism and deliberate distortion are grounds for discipline, including termination.)
Identify the sources of their reporting, whether the information comes from people, documents, or exclusive reporting that appeared elsewhere.
Seek independent verification from multiple sources to confirm (or contradict) claims, especially those made by public officials or anyone with an agenda beyond merely reporting the truth.
Work to the best of their ability to assess evidence and claims without bias, always examining ways in which personal experiences and values may shape our reporting.
Provide context that readers need to make sense of the facts.
Acknowledge areas of uncertainty, which will always exist despite our best efforts to resolve them.

Our newsgathering is conducted comprehensively, ethically, and transparently.

Reporting about schools involves developing sources who do not interact frequently with journalists, including children and educators whose work has historically taken place outside of public view. To ensure that we minimize harm while maximizing truth, Chalkbeat journalists:

Identify ourselves to sources openly and accurately, never misrepresenting ourselves to get a story. When we seek an interview, we identify ourselves as Chalkbeat journalists and explain how our reporting might be used.
Avoid using unnamed sources whenever possible. When sources who are providing insights that others could also provide seek to keep their name out of our reporting, make every effort to speak to someone else.
Recognize that educators can be vulnerable to negative consequences of speaking to the press, and so it may be appropriate to cite unnamed educators when reporting about the effects of programs or policies on the classroom. Editors should make that call, and a story should never rely on a single unnamed educator to provide such insights.
Show compassion for those who may be affected adversely by news coverage. Use special sensitivity when dealing with children and inexperienced sources or subjects. In the case of writing about elementary and middle school students, Chalkbeat journalists will make every effort to reach the parents, guardians, or advocates of students in three cases: when they speak to the student without an adult’s knowledge; when the student will receive prominent attention in our story; and when a student is providing information that could reflect negatively on themselves or others.
Explain why a source is not named when using an anonymous source is unavoidable and appropriate, and negotiate with those sources to provide readers with as much information as possible about them so that readers can assess the sources’ reliability.
Share information about sources with editors, so that editors and reporters can jointly assess whether and how to use the information they have provided. Any anonymous quotes must reflect conversation between a reporter and editor.
Have clear conversations with sources about how to use the information they provide, especially when the sources do not have significant media experience. Clarify a source’s expectations for keeping information “off the record,” “on background,” and other statuses because those terms can mean different things to different people.
Give people the right to respond to reporting that might portray them in a negative light, and explain to readers the efforts we went to seek a response in cases where sources do not respond.
Actively seek sources who lack access to broad public platforms, in addition to documenting the claims of those with influence and power.

Our journalism reflects our independent conclusions.

Education debates can be highly polarized, and Chalkbeat provides balanced, unbiased, fact-based coverage aimed at informing the public conversation. To ensure that we remain independent and trustworthy, Chalkbeat team members involved in newsgathering, shaping stories, or overall program strategy will not:

Seek or accept secondary employment, political involvement, and other outside activities — particularly related to education policy issues — that could compromise integrity or cause the perception of compromised integrity.
Accept gifts, favors, fees, free travel, and special treatment from sources and potential sources. When attending events or conferences put on by sources or potential sources that offer free gift bags, reporters should decline to take any item of more than nominal value.
Pay for access to news, either with money or other favors.
Work on stories, projects, or initiatives in which they have a personal connection, vested interest or financial interest. This policy extends to the involvement and activities of a business partner, spouse, or domestic partner. In cases where reporters have an indirect personal connection to a story, we will always err on the side of disclosing to let readers make an independent judgment.
Give favored treatment to sponsors and donors. Team members will resist pressure from inside or outside Chalkbeat to influence coverage because of an advocacy agenda or financial need.
Participate in political activities such as marches and demonstrations. We will not make donations to candidates or lobbying groups.

Additionally, Chalkbeat team members will:

Disclose the relationship whenever we produce stories that involve Chalkbeat board members or financial supporters who have given more than $1,000. When these situations arise, editors and reporters are responsible for identifying the conflict and producing a disclosure.
Adhere to principles that protect our journalism from the influence of sponsors and donors, as outlined below.

Our donors and sponsors do not influence our reporting.

Chalkbeat is open to a wide range of financial support because we believe the more diverse our revenue sources, the more solid our independence. We have adopted a set of principles that enable us to accept this support while safeguarding our reporting from the influence of our supporters.

Major contributions from foundations and individuals: Accepting funds from foundations and individuals is a necessity for Chalkbeat’s financial viability, but those who contribute do so knowing that our only duty is to our mission. In some cases, we accept funding to cover certain topics, if we were going to cover those topics anyway. We never accept funding for specific story ideas. Feedback from major supporters is treated like that of any entity: we listen to the feedback, but ultimately, decisions about our editorial direction are Chalkbeat’s alone. We recognize that foundations are sometimes major players in the stories we cover, and we don’t shy away from covering these stories. When we cover the work of foundations that support Chalkbeat, we disclose the relationship for the sake of full transparency.
As a news organization that values transparency, Chalkbeat will always disclose the sources of gifts larger than $1,000 — both to staff and to readers.
Website and newsletter sponsorships: Sponsors cannot influence our decisions about what to cover and how. We acknowledge sponsors on our websites and in our newsletters. We reserve the right to reject a sponsorship if we believe the content is misleading, fraudulent, or distasteful, and in no way does a sponsorship represent an endorsement from Chalkbeat. Chalkbeat requires people-first language when referring to persons with disabilities and will not run sponsorships that reinforce negative racial, ethnic, or gender stereotypes. All content will be clearly labeled to be distinguishable from Chalkbeat’s editorial content.
Events sponsorships: Event sponsors are recognized at events and in Chalkbeat’s marketing materials, but they do not co-create or influence event content. If sponsors make announcements or distribute materials at events, Chalkbeat will describe this as a paid sponsorship.
Jobs board: Chalkbeat’s jobs board is a service to our community of readers. Job postings do not represent an endorsement from Chalkbeat of particular organizations, and the composition of postings on our jobs board does not, at any time, reflect our preferences or opinions.
Donations from readers: Chalkbeat gladly accepts contributions from our readers. As with other donations, there is no expectation that supporting Chalkbeat will influence reporting decisions.
Sponsored content and dedicated emails: Sponsors may also reach Chalkbeat readers in the form of sponsored articles on Chalkbeat.org and dedicated emails. The views expressed in any sponsored content, whether articles or emails, do not reflect those of Chalkbeat, and sponsors have no role or influence in Chalkbeat’s editorial decisions. Chalkbeat editorial staff has no involvement in writing this content. Chalkbeat will always identify the organization paying for the content on the article page, within the email, and/or in any related social media promotion. When the sponsored content is an article about a Chalkbeat-specific promotion, such as a Chalkbeat contest, Chalkbeat will be listed as the sponsor and Chalkbeat’s logo will be displayed.

We acknowledge that new revenue strategies will be developed in the future that may require additional enumeration of relevant ethical policies. We assume, however, that the underlying principles will be the same, even as our strategies for serving our audience and generating revenue develop.

First adopted 2015. Updated 2020.

Our Supporters

2020-04-06T20:16:04+00:00

All those who contribute commit to helping us preserve our editorial independence. They agree that Chalkbeat’s only duty is to our mission and that editorial decisions are ours alone. To read more about our code of ethics, click here. The following list represents all donors who have given $1,000 or more to Chalkbeat in the last two fiscal years.

Adam & Jill Barkin
Akerman LLP (In Kind)
Allen Hilles Fund
Altman Foundation
Amanda Bennett
Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Foundation
Ann Marie and Terry Horner
Arnold Ventures
Asher Woodbury
Benificus Foundation
Bezos Family Foundation
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Bloomberg Philanthropies
Bohemian Foundation
Booth Ferris Foundation
Boykin Curry
Brett Family Foundation
Brinson Foundation
Buell Foundation
Carnegie Corporation of New York
Carson Foundation
Chana Joffe-Walt
Charles Lewis
Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies
Charles H. Revson Foundation
Chrissy Kind
Christopher Gabrieli
Citizen’s Committee for Children of New York
Community First Foundation
Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan
Community Foundation of New Jersey
Cooley LLP (In Kind)
Crown Family Philanthropies
Davis Wright Tremaine Legal Services (In Kind)
Debra and Paul Applebaum
Democracy Fund
DIOP
Donley Foundation
Donnell-Kay Foundation
Doug and Wendy Kreeger
Durst Family Foundation
EdChoice
Elaine Berman
Eli Lilly and Company Foundation, Inc.
Elizabeth Haas Edersheim (In Kind)
Emma Bloomberg
Emma Bowen Foundation
Fleetwood Foundation
Fox Family Foundation
Fry Foundation
Fund for Nonprofit News at The Miami Foundation
Gail Klapper
Gates Family Foundation
Gavin Susman
Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation as a recommendation from the New Jersey Local News Lab Fund of the Community Foundation of New Jersey
GF Foundation
Georgia Elliott
Greater Philadelphia Nonprofit Repositioning Fund
Hearken
Heckscher Foundation for Children
IMC Foundation
Independence Public Media Foundation
J.R. Hyde III Family Foundation Donor Advised Fund of the Community Foundation of Greater Memphis
Jerry Glick
John Bantivoglio
Jonathan and Jeannie Lavine Family Fund
Jonathan Logan Family Foundation
Julia S. Vlock
Karen Turner (In Kind)
Kresge Foundation
La Vida Feliz Foundation
Lenfest Community Listening and Engagement Fund
Leonard T. Mendonca
Lilly Endowment Inc.
Lumina Foundation
Maher Foundation
Margulf Foundation
Mark Cannizzaro
McDougal Family Foundation
Memphis Education Fund
Mitchell and Elaine Yanow Charitable Trust
Naomi and Michael Rosenfeld
Nararo Foundation
New York Community Trust
Noyes Foundation
Olser, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP (In Kind)
Overdeck Family Foundation
Patricia Kind Family Foundation
Polk Bros. Foundation
Poynter-Koch Media and Journalism Fellowship
Prudential Foundation
Quinn Family Fund of the Community Foundation of Greater Memphis
Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation
Richard M. Fairbanks Foundation, Inc.
Rick Smith
Rob Gary and Chris Watney
Robert J. Yamartino and Maxine Sclar
Robert R. McCormick Foundation
Robert Oiumette
Rose Community Foundation
Samuel S. Fels Fund
Scott Pearl
Shearman & Sterling (In Kind)
Silicon Valley Community Foundation
Simone Coxe
Spencer Foundation
Steans Family Foundation
Sue Lehmann
Susan and Charles Sawyers
Thalla-Marie and Heeten Choxi
The Anschutz Foundation
The Assisi Foundation
The Beacon Fund
The Caswell Jin Foundation
The Colorado Health Foundation
The Colorado Trust
The Denver Foundation
The Glick Fund, a fund of the Central Indiana Community Foundation
The Indianapolis Foundation, a CICF affiliate
The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation
The Joyce Foundation
The Moriah Fund
The Nicholson Foundation
The PCLB Foundation
The Philadelphia Foundation
The Skillman Foundation
The Walton Family Foundation
The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation
United Way for Southeastern Michigan
Urban Child Institute
Victoria Foundation
W.K. Kellogg Foundation
Walentas Foundation Ltd.
Wend Ventures
Wice Family Fund
William Penn Foundation
Winston & Strawn, LLP (In Kind)
Wyncote Foundation

About Chalkbeat

2020-04-06T19:39:11+00:00

Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news organization committed to covering one of America’s most important stories: the effort to improve schools for all children, especially those who have historically lacked access to a quality education.

We are mission-driven, in that we believe that every child deserves an excellent education, and that a strong press is vital to making that happen. Yet we are also fiercely independent, in that we do not take a position on the best path for achieving equity.

Because we believe that education is fundamentally a local issue, our coverage is rooted in local communities. To date, we report from and about eight locations: Chicago, Colorado, Detroit, Indiana, Newark, New York, Philadelphia and Tennessee. (If you’d like to see Chalkbeat come to your community, let us know.) Read more about our history and mission.

As a nonprofit, Chalkbeat’s support comes from a diverse mix of sources, including sponsors who pay for opportunities to share messages with our readers and donors who believe in our mission. As most local news sources shrink, creating more so-called “news deserts,” Chalkbeat is building a sustainable model that is local, substantive, and independent. View our current supporters and learn more about becoming a sponsor.

Chalkbeat is a Civic News Company newsroom. Learn more about Civic News Company here.

Our Values

Our mission demands that our readers and sources alike be able to have the utmost confidence in the accuracy of our journalism; the fairness of our reporting process; and the independence of our news judgments from the influence of advocates and financial supporters.

In addition to building a business model that bolsters our independence, we have also adopted a code of ethics to govern the conduct of our team members and those we work with.

At Chalkbeat we value:

1. One essential story: We believe that all children deserve access to a quality education — one that prepares them for the duties of citizenship in a democracy and connects them to economic opportunity. We are passionate about cultivating the expertise and constant curiosity necessary to tell the vital and nuanced story of education in America with authority.

2. Power in independence: Our unique impact as journalists lies in our ability to tell the full and complete story, without consideration of profit, ideology, or advocacy. We can tell the truest story, and make the greatest possible difference, if we take no predetermined position on how to achieve better schools. We work hard to build a business model that safeguards our independence.

3. Going local: We don’t do flyovers and never parachute in. We put down roots in the communities we cover and work with our readers as well as for them. We cover local people, institutions, and systems like they’re as important as the president, because in education, they are.

4. Impact: Writing stories is not enough. We are on a mission to get the full truth to the maximum people at the moments of greatest consequence. We do everything we can to bring stories, people, and stakes alive for readers so they can engage in informed action and debate.

5. Antiracism: We acknowledge and condemn the ongoing legacy of racism in U.S. public education and in the institution we are part of, the press. We commit to standing against racism as we build our organization and conduct our work.

6. Openness and diversity: We write about people who have historically lacked access to a quality education. In doing so, we hope to amplify their voices and help empower them. We won’t succeed unless our team and our reporting represent and are truly open to the communities we cover.

7. Investing in ourselves: We strive to connect every member of our team with the opportunities and challenges they need to learn and grow. We can only tackle our audacious goal if we invest in our team’s ability to achieve it.

Our Leadership

Left to right: Elizabeth Green, Kendra Irving, Amy Rosenblum, Sarah Darville

Elizabeth Green, Co-Founder and CEO

Kendra Irving, Chief Financial Officer

Amy Rosenblum, Chief Revenue Officer

Sarah Darville, Chalkbeat Editor-in-Chief

Our Boards

Meet our Board of Directors

From left to right (top): Jill Barkin, Elizabeth Green, Shani Hilton, Kang-Xing (KX) Jin, (bottom) Gideon Stein, Karen Wishart, and Roberto Yañez.

Jill Barkin

Board Member | Chair, Governance Committee

Director of Education, The Beacon Fund

Elizabeth Green

Board Member

CEO & Co-Founder of Chalkbeat

Shani Hilton

Board Member

Managing Editor for New Initiatives, Los Angeles Times

Kendra Irving

Board Secretary

Chief Financial Officer of Chalkbeat

Kang-Xing (KX) Jin

Board Member | Audit Committee

Vice President of Engineering, Facebook

David Rousseau

Board Member

Publisher and Executive Director, Kaiser Family Foundation

Ann Sardini

Board Member

President and Founder, In Progress Advisors

Gideon Stein

Board Chair

President, The Moriah Fund; Board Treasurer, Narrative 4; Chairman, Write Label

Karen Wishart

Board Treasurer | Chair, Finance Committee

EVP & Chief Administrative Officer at Urban One

Roberto Yañez

Board Member | Chair, Audit Committee

President and General Manager, Univision Local Media

Meet Chalkbeat’s reader advisors

In addition to our Board of Directors, Chalkbeat also has a dynamic and diverse reader advisory board that guides our coverage, holds us accountable for meeting our goals, and helps us build strong relationships in the communities we cover. If you’re interested in joining the board when the next opening becomes available, please apply here and contact us.

Current members:

Janine Scott, our reader advisory board chair, is a high school math teacher at Davis Aerospace High School in Detroit.

Sanda Balaban is a civic educator based in New York City.

Aisha Brown is a home visitor and community advocate based in Detroit.

Pam Glynn is an education consultant based in Chicago.

Amber Gonzalez-Cortes is a multilingual instructional coach based in Gypsum, Colorado.

Dr. Nancy Hernandez is a bilingual specialist in higher education and scholarship access for first generation and Latino students based in Denver.

Alli Lee is a learning experience designer and strategist based in Dallas, Texas.

Cynthia Masson is an active public school parent of two children based in New York City.

Catherine Miller is an administrator of a public middle school in the Bronx, New York.

Dorie Turner Nolt is a communications consultant and a former education journalist based in Washington, D.C.

Christopher R. Rogers is a Ph.D candidate at the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education and is based in Chester, Pennsylvania.

Cesar Roman is a parent, advocate, and community organizer based in Indianapolis.

Dr. Alexios Rosario-Moore is an assistant adjunct professor of urban education policy at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Joy-Nicole Smith is a school board member with Minot Public Schools and based in North Dakota.

Financial Reports

Annual Reports

MORI: Chalkbeat’s Platform for Tracking Impact

In 2014, Chalkbeat developed and started using a WordPress plugin for tracking impact. We called it MORI — Measures of Our Reporting’s Influence. As we wrote then, MORI grew out of one of our key beliefs: Journalists can make a difference, but the ability to measure the difference we make can multiply our impact over time. If we can document how, why, when, and where we made a difference, we are more likely to repeat our success.

The latest version of the MORI Impact Tracker is now available as an open source release, a WordPress plugin free to download and install today.

We hope this release continues the public conversation around how news organizations can track and report impact, and look forward to working with developers from other organizations as we continue to develop the MORI Platform.

Find out more about how to contribute to MORI’s development.
Learn more about why we built MORI in our 2014 white paper What We Talk About When We Talk About Impact [PDF]
Email us at mediarights@chalkbeat .org to ask questions or learn more.

Nominate Your Community

Chalkbeat is an innovative new model for local journalism about a topic that matters. Right now Chalkbeat works in eight cities, with reporters on the ground producing daily coverage of education. We want your help picking our next community! To nominate your community, email us at expansion@chalkbeat.org.

Introducing Chalkbeat’s new brand identity

2019-11-13T05:01:43+00:00

You may have noticed Chalkbeat looks a bit different today. Nope, we didn’t get a new haircut. We got a new brand identity!

As Chalkbeat embarks on our strategic plan for 2025, we recognized the need for a new visual identity that reflects who Chalkbeat is now — and for a design system dynamic enough to grow with us as we expand from seven locations to 18 in the next five years.

After talking with readers, we landed on four features that make Chalkbeat Chalkbeat: local, innovative, inclusive, trustworthy.

We are local. Each of our bureaus represents a community, and we wanted to design the site so that those communities could dive deeper into the issues that matter most to them. Throughout our site, you’ll find easier ways to find local stories and topics.

We are innovative. As one of the largest nonprofit newsrooms in the country, Chalkbeat is defining how to solve the local news crisis by reimagining what a local newsroom can look like. Instead of bundling multiple topics (sports, crime, education, classifieds) in one location, we report on a single subject across many locations, which has allowed us to connect local communities of parents, educators, and curious citizens who care deeply about education. To reflect this trait, our new branding has a modernized aesthetic. Our palette is still bold — just like our journalism — but we’ve chosen less bright tones that feel more mature. And we’ve simplified our layouts, so they’re easier to scroll through on mobile.

We are inclusive. At Chalkbeat, we believe every child deserves an excellent education, and through our journalism, we’re working to build an informed and engaged community that will improve schools for all children, especially those who have lacked access to a quality education. Each year, our local bureaus host listening events to hear directly from stakeholders. Our First Person series gives voice to diverse perspectives, so that we can have powerful conversations about challenging issues. And we are committed to hiring a diverse staff that reflects the students, teachers, and parents we report for and with. Like our journalists, our product team is committed to inclusivity. We tested our new colors to ensure they’re easy for readers with color blindness to distinguish and read — tests our old color palette failed time and again. We also optimized the reading experience on our article pages with larger fonts and research-backed optimal line-lengths.

We are trustworthy. Our newsrooms are nonpartisan and fiercely independent. That means we do not pick sides or have a predetermined position on how to achieve better schools. And our business model is built to safeguard that independence by creating a diverse array of revenue sources, being transparent about who supports us, and following a strict code of ethics. We’ve added new features, so that our journalists can highlight topics of interest for their local community, and particular stories that readers shouldn’t miss. And we chose a sleek, yet traditional serif font for our base text to give our stories gravitas.

While you see our reporters’ bylines every day, you don’t always hear about the folks behind the scenes who help make their work possible:

Gabrielle LaMarr LeMee, a digital Swiss Army knife, who thought about our readers’ needs in every decision she made while designing and building our new site
Chris Hickerson, our code master, who worked tirelessly to clean up our code and build new features to improve our internal workflows and highlight content for readers
Chris Schwing, the fantastic designer who helped us identify our unique personality and transformed it into our new brand identity
And a special thanks to Kary Perez, whose name you might recognize from our membership emails, for her thoughtful insights and for connecting us with readers to test our new website before launch.

Thanks to the team for bringing this work to life — and to our readers for holding us accountable to our mission. We can’t wait to hear what you think!