Community Engagement

Cougar Mountain Middle School was built next door to Timber Ridge at Talus, a senior living community. It’s resulted in an intergenerational partnership between students and the senior residents. Pictured here on Oct. 30, 2025, in Issaquah, Wash.
Seventh grader Tori Thain, 12, talks about chess with Bob Fritz, a resident at the Timber Ridge senior living community and a VOICE mentor at Cougar Mountain Middle School in Issaquah, Wash., on Oct. 30, 2025. These intergenerational relationships have been found to boost students' social-emotional skills.
Kaylee Domzalski/Education Week
Student Well-Being & Movement Want to Improve Tweens' Social Skills? Enlist Senior Citizens' Help
When a middle school was built adjacent to a retirement community, unlikely friendships grew.
Elizabeth Heubeck, January 26, 2026
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9 min read
Students at Glover Middle School in Spokane, Wash. sing karaoke during Falcon Time on Dec. 3, 2025.
Students at Glover Middle School in Spokane, Wash., sing karaoke during Falcon Time on Dec. 3, 2025. The district has gone all-in on engaging extracurriculars and activities.
Kaylee Domzalski/Education Week
Student Well-Being & Movement One District's Battle to Curb Cellphones and Get Kids to Engage in Real Life
Spokane's leaders are pushing extracurriculars to help students strengthen in-person social skills.
Alyson Klein, January 26, 2026
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12 min read
Edenton, N.C. - September 5th, 2025: Sonya Rinehart, principal at John A. Holmes High School, stopped to briefly speak with former student (graduated) Jataziun Welch that is working with a local business downtown Edenton.
Sonya Rinehart, the principal of John A. Holmes High School in Edenton, N.C., stopped to briefly speak with former student Jataziun Welch, who is working with a local business in downtown Edenton on Sept. 5, 2025. School leaders have been viewed as community leaders, too. Here are five ways they can embrace the role.
Cornell Watson for Education Week
Families & the Community Five Ways Principals Can Act Like Community Ambassadors
Here are tips for how principals can best support their community.
Jennifer Vilcarino, November 26, 2025
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3 min read
Sylvelia Pittman stands for a portrait outside of Nash Elementary School in Chicago on Oct. 30, 2025.
Sylvelia Pittman stands for a portrait outside of Nash Elementary School in Chicago on Oct. 30, 2025. She spoke with Education Week about the fears she is grappling with regarding immigration raids and federal agents' increased presence near her school.
Jim Vondruska for Education Week
School Climate & Safety Q&A Inside the Fear at Chicago Schools Amid Federal Immigration Raids
Sylvelia Pittman has never experienced something like the current federal crackdown in her city.
Ileana Najarro, October 31, 2025
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5 min read
Illustration of woman teacher vetting artificial intelligence for classroom.
Weiyi Zhu/iStock/Getty
Artificial Intelligence 5 Best Practices for Crafting a School or District AI Policy
Nearly half of educators say their school or district does not have an AI policy.
Jennifer Vilcarino & Arianna Prothero, October 29, 2025
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4 min read
Edenton, N.C. - September 5th, 2025: Sonya Rinehart, principal at John A. Holmes High School, walks downtown Edenton.
Sonya Rinehart, the principal at John A. Holmes High School, walks downtown in Edenton, N.C., on Sept. 5, 2025. In small towns, principals balance school management with ambassadorial acts, forging ties that support students and local growth.
Cornell Watson for Education Week
School & District Management In Small Towns, Principals Wear Many Hats—Including 'Ambassador'
Small-town principals juggle daily duties with serving as ambassadors to their communities.
Elizabeth Heubeck, September 9, 2025
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5 min read
A team of people, employees carrying giant pencil, study time. Get to work. Growing knowledge. Contemporary art collage.
iStock/Getty Images
School & District Management Opinion Public Education Is in Trouble. Here's Who Can Help
Here’s how K-12 leaders can work together more effectively.
Jennifer Perry Cheatham, Sophia Roy & Leah Rubin, August 29, 2025
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5 min read
Conceptual illustration of classroom conversations and fragmented education elements coming together to form a cohesive picture of a book of classroom knowledge.
Sonia Pulido for Education Week
Equity & Diversity Opinion How to Keep Supporting Students in a Hostile Political Environment
Protecting kids outside of school may be beyond educators' means, but here are ways we can help them.
Larry Ferlazzo, June 26, 2025
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10 min read
Human hands created secure environment for children via home roof gesture. Adults taking care of vulnerable students.
Mary Long/iStock + Education Week
School & District Management Opinion Denver Superintendent: Why We Sued the Federal Government
Education leaders shouldn't remain apolitical in the face of immigration enforcement changes and other threats from the Trump administration.
Alex Marrero, May 9, 2025
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6 min read
a red paper airplane winds around obstacles made of wadded up pieces of paper
iStock/Getty
School & District Management How Superintendents Can Prioritize the Political Part of the Job
The superintendency is increasingly a political role, experts said.
Evie Blad, March 20, 2025
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4 min read
A group of families approaches their school. Representing the intersection of the school/family connection.
Vanessa Solis/Education Week + iStock/Getty Images
Policy & Politics Opinion I Fought for Public Education. What I Learned From Its Detractors
Without community buy-in, education reforms can weaken support for public schools.
Heather Harding, March 19, 2025
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5 min read
The United States Capitol building as a bookcase filled with red, white, and blue policy books in a Washington DC landscape.
Luca D'Urbino for Education Week
Student Well-Being & Movement Opinion An NFL Franchise Is Tackling Chronic Student Absenteeism. Here's How
Athletes understand why showing up every day to work matters. Can they persuade students?
Rick Hess, March 18, 2025
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8 min read
Custom illustration by Stuart Briers showing a wrench that is filled with a blue abstract tech image of lines and dots, adjusting a cracked yellow school building. The light blue background reveals a subtle clock image.
Stuart Briers for Education Week
Artificial Intelligence From Our Research Center AI Has Taken Classrooms by Storm. School Operations Could Be Next
Generative AI tools could help schools with operational tasks like budgeting, transportation, data analysis, and even zoning.
Mark Lieberman, December 9, 2024
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7 min read
School Climate & Safety Spotlight Spotlight on Reimagining School Safety: A Holistic Approach
This Spotlight will help you examine strategies to create safe learning environments that promote student well-being and academic success.
December 2, 2024
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