Background: COVID-19 screening testing (ST) can detect asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic cases, allowing for prompt identification of cases and close contacts. This study examined parents' and school staffs' knowledge and attitudes toward to a pilot school-based ST program in a school district in southern Arizona. Methods: In May 2021, online…

COVID-19 placed a significant burden on urban students of color and their families. Changing environmental, community, and schooling factors influenced students' ability and desire to attend school regularly. To ensure that students would attend school, district and school leaders were challenged with creating school environments and cultures that…

Engrossed House Bill 1121, signed into law during the 2021 Legislative session and codified in RCW 28A.230.320, provides the State Board of Education (SBE) the authority to establish an emergency waiver program to allow school districts and local educational agencies (LEAs) to waive certain high school graduation requirements on an individual…

Background: As the COVID-19 pandemic spread, school district administrators in the United States were faced with difficult decisions regarding the implementation of virtual or in-person learning to reduce risk of infection throughout student and staff populations. While a coordinated effort with surrounding districts would be most beneficial when…

The COVID-19 pandemic creates unprecedented conditions for K-12 teaching and learning, and education leaders everywhere are working quickly to make the best policy decisions possible. Knowing that the current context is dramatically different than previous school years and that students' access to learning from home varies, how should schools…

Media reports suggest that parent frustration with COVID school policies and the growing politicization of education have increased community engagement with local public schools. However, there is no evidence to date on whether these factors have translated into greater engagement at the ballot box. This paper uses a novel data set to explore how…

School closures, inequitable technology, and diminished access to educational support negatively impacted learning for all students during the COVID-19 pandemic but more so for students with disabilities. In anticipation of learning loss for all students, the Florida Department of Education (FLDOE) mandated each school district to develop an…

Since the COVID-19 pandemic emerged in March 2020, districts across the nation have faced the difficult task of reopening school sites safely for in-person instruction and keeping them open as community infection rates have risen and fallen. It is useful to learn from the efforts of districts that have been able to reopen schools--and keep them…

Because the pandemic exacerbated chronic absenteeism in many parts of the country, the need to understand how schools can improve student attendance has never been greater. Accordingly, this study breaks new ground by examining high schools' contributions to attendance after accounting for individual students' prior absenteeism and other…

St. Philip's College is the only community college in the nation that is both a Historically Black College (HBCU) and a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI). The college has a long history of evolving to serve the local population in San Antonio, Texas. Currently, more than 50 percent of St. Philip's students are Latinx, 29 percent are White, and 12…

Since the COVID-19 pandemic emerged in March 2020, districts across the nation have faced the difficult task of reopening schools safely and keeping them open as community infection rates have risen and fallen. It is useful to learn from the efforts of counties and districts that have been able to reopen schools--and keep them open safely--using…

Background: This paper considers a new policy and statistical framework for evaluating K-12 schools and policies that aligns with diversity, equity, and inclusion values. The new approach broadens the standard approach to accountability and evaluation by combining features of evaluation and multi-level growth models with approaches used in systems…

Throughout the school year, recommendations were revised several times to reflect what was currently known about the SARS-CoV-2 virus and best public health practices as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS). The situation surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic…

The COVID-19 pandemic forced America's public schools to close in the latter half of the 2019-20 school year. Schools' reopening plans vary for 2020-21. We reviewed the reopening plans for all 50 states, as well as the largest 120 school districts in the United States with a particular focus on reopening modalities, mask-wearing guidance, the…

Since the COVID-19 pandemic emerged in the United States in March 2020, districts across the nation have faced the difficult task of reopening schools safely and keeping them open. It is useful to learn from the successes of districts that have used multilayered mitigation strategies to reduce the risk of in-school transmission. This brief…