Essential education reporting across America

Diversity & Equity

A girl sits at a table in a school over a case of essential oils. A pair of scissors, paper, and other materials are on the table.
From Chalkbeat New York School segregation / integration
NYC school admission offers are out. Here’s what the numbers show.
This year’s offer data shows very little change in racial and economic diversity, particularly for high school, despite seeing the biggest admissions changes.
By Amy Zimmer and Julian Shen-Berro
 
A woman with dark hair works with a student who is looking up at her.
From Chalkbeat Colorado Chalkbeat En Español
Este distrito de Colorado encontró ayuda en Filipinas para resolver la escasez de maestros
En total, los maestros filipinos representarán alrededor de un 7% de los maestros del distrito el año que viene.
By Ann Schimke
 
Men and women wearing bright pink, green and yellow traditional clothing dance and play percussion instruments on a stage in Manhattan’s Times Square.
From Chalkbeat New York Diversity & Equity
Diwali inches closer to becoming a New York state and federally recognized school holiday
Also known as the “festival of lights,” Diwali is observed by Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, and some Buddhists as a celebration of light over darkness and good over evil.
By Reema Amin
 
Students sit in a classroom wearing masks while a teacher leads a lesson in front of a screen.
From Chalkbeat New York Community & Wraparound Programs
NYC’s Summer Rising program rejected 45,000 applicants, launching scramble for child care
With just a month until the school year ends, families are scrambling to find alternate summer programs for their children.
By Reema Amin
 
Teens sit at tables scattered around a classroom working on different projects.
From Chalkbeat New York Teaching & Classroom
It’s status quo for class sizes next year under new law, according to NYC’s draft plan
For future school years, education department officials are bracing for some big expenses to comply with the law.
By Amy Zimmer and Reema Amin
 
Students wait to enter the blue doors of their high school as faculty direct them on the first day of classes.
School segregation / integration School segregation / integration
A $10 million federal desegregation program is underway. Will schools apply?
A new school integration program is the result of years of advocacy but comes as some districts retreat from racial equity work.
By Kalyn Belsha
 
Preschoolers’ jackets and boots or shoes are lined up in their cubbies.
From Chalkbeat New York Community & Wraparound Programs
Families and advocates fear end of NYC’s first free child care program for undocumented immigrants
Mayor Eric Adams has proposed ending Promise NYC, which has provided free child care to 600 undocumented immigrant children.
By Reema Amin
 
woman in orange pantsuit reads to students
From Chalkbeat New York Early Childhood Education
Boosting salaries and extending hours: NYC Council makes list of demands to improve public preschool programs
City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams blasted the mayor’s approach to early childhood education, describing the system as “broken” and “in full crisis mode.
By Reema Amin
 
A student, wearing a yellow sweater, writes on a whiteboard that hangs on a bright yellow wall.
From Chalkbeat New York English language learners
With wave of asylum seekers, NYC schools struggle to provide mandated English instruction
As the city expects another wave of newcomer immigrant families, educators are worried it will become even more challenging to support English learners.
By Reema Amin
 
A girl in a light shirt and dark pants wearing a face mask walks towards a doorway in a colorful school hallway.
From Chalkbeat Philadelphia Broke in Philly
Racial slurs, dress codes, few Black teachers: How Black girls say Philly schools are failing them
Based on girls’ comments in focus groups, a Pennsylvania advocacy group is calling for more Black teachers and staff, an end to overly harsh dress codes that made one girl feel “sexualized,” and courses that highlight Black achievement.
By Nora Macaluso
 
Students raise their hands in the classroom, with the text “Plains Indians” projected on the white board at the front of the class.
From Chalkbeat New York Politics & Policy
Increased school funding and more charter schools included in New York state budget
In total, New York City schools will receive about 4% more in funding than last year.
By Reema Amin
 
Students and parents hold signs on the steps at the Department of Education’s Lower Manhattan headquarters to expand the Gifted & Talented program. Oct. 14, 2021.
From Chalkbeat New York Politics & Policy
City education council elections bring polarizing national issues to local school districts
Opponents — and even some of their endorsed candidates — say one well-organized parent group is turning Community Education Councils into forums for right-wing animosity over issues like critical race theory and the treatment of LGBTQ+ youth.
By Safiyah Riddle, THE CITY
 
A portrait of two Black teenagers sits in the center of a large illustration.
Diversity & Equity Diversity & Equity
False alarm: How Wisconsin uses race and income to label students ‘high risk’
The system, meant to flag students unlikely to graduate, may be incorrectly influencing how educators perceive students.
By Todd Feathers, The Markup
 
A close up of a woman in front of an American flag.
From Chalkbeat New York Charter schools
Charter schools emerge as key issue holding up New York’s state budget, as Hochul narrows her proposal
Lawmakers could solidify a final budget as early as this week, but charter schools have been a sticking point.
By Reema Amin
 
An elementary teacher walks with a student to another classroom outside.
From Chalkbeat Tennessee Teacher training
Tennessee school employees could skip implicit-bias training under bill headed to governor’s desk
Research suggests that implicit biases may contribute to racial disparities in education, but it’s less clear whether training employees makes a difference.
By Marta W. Aldrich
 
Regis University students gather outside for class during the first week of the 2020 fall semester.
From Chalkbeat Colorado Special education
Students with intellectual disabilities have trouble finding college support. Regis University has a new program to help.
Colorado has three other programs tailored to the learning needs of students with disabilities.
By Jason Gonzales
 
A close up of graduates wearing blue gowns and mortar boards with gold stoles.
From Chalkbeat New York College and career readiness
Timeline fast tracked for rethinking NY’s Regents exams and other diploma changes
A state-appointed commission will present its recommendations this November — moving up the timeline by at least a few months. The role of New York’s Regents exams remains a big question.
By Reema Amin
 
Several parents and their children wait outside of a school building before the start of a summer program. They are all wearing protective masks.
From Chalkbeat New York Community & Wraparound Programs
Summer Rising applications are now open. Here’s everything you need to know
In its third year, the program will again have 110,000 spots and will be open to any child in New York City — but there are a couple changes to the application process.
By Reema Amin
 
Students at P.S. 89 in Brooklyn await their families at the end of the school day during the last week of New York City’s 2020-2021 school year.
From Chalkbeat New York COVID Stimulus
As NYC enrollment has dropped, per-student spending has grown past $37K: report
The education department’s spending per pupil has increased by 46%, in large part due to the billions in federal COVID aid the district received as enrollment has dipped.
By Reema Amin
 
An inside view of the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC. United States on March 22, 2023.
First Person First Person
White students need more information about race and racism, not less
It’s not about making white children ‘feel bad.’ It’s about teaching them how to build a better future.
By Kathryn Wiley
 
A girl at a student desk writing on a piece of paper. A calculator is also on the desk.
From Chalkbeat Detroit Charters & Choice
New poverty research could bring more clarity to charter school comparisons
Detailed family income data has the potential to shape how schools are evaluated, staffed, and even funded.
By Koby Levin
 
Native American students dressed in colorful traditional regalia during a graduation ceremony.
From Chalkbeat Colorado Politics & Policy
Native American students’ right to wear regalia at graduation protected by Colorado bill
Federal law already protects Native American students’ right to wear regalia at graduation ceremonies. Advocates and tribal leaders say state legislation would ensure school leaders respect those rights.
By Jason Gonzales
 
The facade of Chicago Public Schools headquarters, with the district’s sign hanging on the wall behind windows with green silhouettes of students.
From Chalkbeat Chicago Diversity & Equity
Advocates want Chicago’s elected school board to mirror the district’s population, not the city’s
Two years after Gov. J.B Pritzker signed Chicago’s elected school board bill into law, it’s time for the general assembly to draw new district maps. Advocates and educators want the district mapped in a way that ensures representation for the Black and Latino students who attend CPS.
By Samantha Smylie
 
Parents and children, some in face masks, walk across an astroturf field with brick walkup apartment buildings in the background.
From Chalkbeat New York Student & School Performance
Want to tell NYC how you feel about your child’s school? The annual school survey is your chance.
Does your child feel safe at school? Progressing in reading and math? Do they feel a sense of belonging? New York City’s annual school survey, a massive undertaking, is your chance to share.
By Amy Zimmer
 
Hundreds of high school students stand outside of a school building.
From Chalkbeat New York Diversity & Equity
A proposed staff restructuring sparks student protests, teacher concerns at a Brooklyn charter school network
Administrators said they were working to address inequities in their staffing model, though students and teachers feared the restructure would have the opposite effect.
By Julian Shen-Berro
 
Two students in masks watch a cooking demonstration.
From Chalkbeat New York Community & Wraparound Programs
NYC’s summer youth jobs program will again have 100K spots. Here’s how to apply.
New features this summer include an effort to pair LGBTQ youth with affirming jobs and a small program to serve undocumented youth.
By Reema Amin
 
A group of six books is arranged side by side on a table, with two vases placed behind them.
First Person First Person
The books we ban are the books we need
“All Boys Aren’t Blue” might have brought my brother comfort, Jennifer Boulanger writes.
By Jennifer Boulanger
 
A teacher sits at a table with a kindergarten boy who is looking at a paper using a magnifying glass.
From Chalkbeat Colorado Special education
More than 1,000 Denver students missed speech therapy due to staff shortage, state finds
“Right now, for my son, the only option I have is to pull him out of school to take him to speech therapy,” one parent told the school board.
By Melanie Asmar
 
A young girl in a blue sweatshirt, her hair in cornrows, holds up a poster showing her reading lesson.
From Chalkbeat Colorado Aurora Public Schools
Aurora is hiring its first new superintendent in a decade. Here’s what’s at stake.
The next district leader will face a divided board while trying to meet the needs of one of the state’s most diverse communities, and raising their academic achievement.
By Yesenia Robles and Carina Julig
 
The Flatirons behind a classroom building on the University of Colorado campus in Boulder Colorado.
From Chalkbeat Colorado College and career readiness
Colorado universities could soon admit more out-of-state students if they boost in-state aid
A bill would incentivize universities to enroll more in-state students who benefit from a Colorado merit aid program, in exchange for enrolling more out-of-state students who pay higher tuition.
By Jason Gonzales
 
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