Enrollment

A teacher with group of students standing in private school campus courtyard and talking
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School Choice & Charters More Young Kids Opted for Private School After COVID Hit
Newly released federal data shed light on where some students who left public schools during the pandemic ended up.
Mark Lieberman, December 6, 2023
3 min read
The Supreme Court is seen in Washington on Sept. 25, 2023. The new term of the high court begins Oct. 2, 2023.
The Supreme Court is seen in Washington on Sept. 25, 2023. The new term of the high court begins Oct. 2, 2023.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP
Law & Courts In New Term, Supreme Court Set to Tackle Case on School Board Members' Social Media Use
The docket for education cases looks more modest than last term, but cases on magnet schools and transgender students could be added.
Mark Walsh, September 28, 2023
11 min read
Indigenous Navajo high school students in the hallway of a high school.
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Equity & Diversity Schools Struggle to Properly Count Native Students. Some States Want Them to Try Harder
Michigan recently became the latest state to require the collection of data on Native K-12 students' tribal affiliations.
Mark Lieberman, September 5, 2023
7 min read
Illustration of a dollar sign falling over a cliff.
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Education Funding Explainer 3 Steps to Keep Tutoring Going When ESSER Money Runs Out
Schools may lose more than $1,200 per student as enrollment falls and federal COVID relief funds expire next year.
Sarah D. Sparks, August 28, 2023
4 min read
Close crop of the back of a pre-school girl's head showing her playing with foam puzzle pieces of shapes and numbers.
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Early Childhood What the Research Says 6 Challenges for Early Educators as Preschool Growth Halts
School enrollment for the nation’s youngest learners has nosedived—and could cause long-term problems.
Sarah D. Sparks & Gina Tomko, August 25, 2023
4 min read
Photo of an empty chair and table in a pre-k classroom.
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School & District Management What the Research Says Kindergarteners Haven't Returned. Here's How That May Prolong Academic Recovery
A third of schools' recent enrollment drop can't be explained by an aging population or switches to nonpublic schooling, a new paper finds.
Caitlynn Peetz, August 8, 2023
4 min read
Illustration of 2 hands cutting paper dolls with scissors, representing staffing layoffs.
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Budget & Finance School Administrators Are on the Chopping Block as ESSER Winds Down, Enrollment Drops
The expiration of COVID relief funds and enrollment declines are prompting districts to cut administration—even as experts advise caution.
Caitlynn Peetz & Mark Lieberman, August 7, 2023
6 min read
Miranda Pichardo, 6, reads with her mother, Karina, on Oct. 19, 2016, in Spring, Texas. Miranda's parents are fighting for Miranda, who has Down Syndrome, to be included more in "regular" classes where her parents feel she can develop much faster compared to the special education classroom. Students in special education have doubled in the last four decades, according to federal data.
Miranda Pichardo, 6, reads with her mother, Karina, on Oct. 19, 2016, in Spring, Texas. Miranda's parents are fighting for Miranda, who has Down Syndrome, to be included more in "regular" classes where her parents feel she can develop much faster compared to the special education classroom. Students in special education have doubled in the last four decades, according to federal data.
Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP
Special Education The Number of Students in Special Education Has Doubled in the Past 45 Years
The number of students in special education in the U.S. has doubled, from 3.6 million in 1976-77 to almost 7.3 million in 2021-22.
Eesha Pendharkar, July 31, 2023
4 min read
A Muslim girl and a Black boy are sitting beside each other in a tech classroom as they work with their own tablet computers.
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English-Language Learners Feds to Schools: Immigrant Students Entitled to Free Public Education, Regardless of Status
The U.S Departments of Justice and Education outline the obligations schools have to immigrant students.
Ileana Najarro, June 22, 2023
3 min read
A parent and child looking at 2 different schools
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School Choice & Charters 6 More States Will Soon Let Almost All Students Attend Private School With Public Money
So far this year, 14 states passed laws and lawmakers in 42 states introduced bills to expand private school choice.
Libby Stanford, June 15, 2023
7 min read
James Pan, the parent of an eighth-grader, speaks about a lawsuit he and other parents filed against the Fairfax County School Board over its plans to change the admissions process at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, an elite public schools regularly ranked as one of the nation's best on Nov. 5, 2020 in Fairfax, Va.
James Pan, the parent of an 8th grader in Fairfax, Va., speaks Nov. 5, 2020, about a lawsuit he and other parents filed against the Fairfax County district over its plans to change the admissions process at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology.
Matthew Barakat/AP
Law & Courts How a Court Ruling on a School’s Admission Policy Could Impact Others
Legal experts say a coming U.S. Supreme Court decision on race in college admissions could be relevant for the magnet school's policy.
Mark Walsh, May 25, 2023
8 min read
A group of fourth grade students complete lessons in Spanish in the Global Immersion Academy program at Mountain View Elementary School, on Sept. 18, 2022, in Morganton, N.C. With the inaugural class of the Global Immersion Academy (GIA) at at the school entering fourth grade this year, Burke County Public Schools is seeing more signs of success for its dual language program.
A group of fourth grade students complete lessons in Spanish in the Global Immersion Academy program at Mountain View Elementary School, on Sept. 18, 2022, in Morganton, N.C. With the inaugural class of the Global Immersion Academy (GIA) at at the school entering fourth grade this year, Burke County Public Schools is seeing more signs of success for its dual language program.
Jason Koon/The News-Herald via AP
English-Language Learners The Equity Question of Dual Language Programs
While interest in dual language programs is growing, questions remain over how to ensure English learners get first pick at seats.
Ileana Najarro, May 19, 2023
7 min read
Dr. Richard Tomko, Superintendent of Belleville Public Schools in Belleville, N.J., visits science teacher Paul Aiello’s Medical Academy Field Experience class on Tuesday, January 10, 2023. The Medical Academy’s class uses Anatamoge tables, an anatomy visualization system that allows students to garner a deeper, comprehensive understanding of the human body and medical tools to prepare them for careers in the medical field.
Richard Tomko, superintendent of Belleville Public Schools in Belleville, N.J., has expanded academic programs while restoring trust in the school system.
Sam Mallon/Education Week
Early Childhood Q&A An Investment in Early-Childhood Education Is Paying Off Big
Richard Tomko believes that expanding the early education pipeline buffers schools against enrollment loss and academic struggles.
Sarah D. Sparks, February 6, 2023
2 min read
Early Childhood Which States Offer Universal Pre-K? It's More Complicated Than You Might Think
Universal pre-K is growing in popularity. Here are the states that have already established universal preschool programs or policies.
Libby Stanford, January 25, 2023
2 min read