New COVID dashboard to provide early warnings for schools

Dashboard will track where COVID-19 is surging, and whether schools can open and stay open

Superintendents and their teams can analyze COVID trends in their own districts and surrounding schools with an online dashboard that will go live in September.

The dashboard should fill a critical gap in coronavirus information that has been challenging school leaders as they try to make decisions about online learning, in-person instruction and the other issues complicating the 2020-21 school year, says the coalition developing the database.

The dashboard will track where COVID-19 cases are surging, how the spread of the virus is impacting whether schools can open and stay open, and how leaders can adjust quickly and safely.

The partnership behind the dashboard includes AASA, The School Superintendents Association; the National Association of Secondary School Principals; the National Association of Elementary School Principals; Brown University professor of economics Emily Oster; and Qualtrics, an experience management company.


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The data should allow education leaders to create more sustainable, data-driven action plans as the school year progresses, the group says

Data collection for the database will start in early September, and the dashboard will be live and available to the public about a week later.

Qualtrics will help analyze data so education leaders and researchers can identify local COVID trends, such as early indicators of outbreaks.


DA’s coronavirus page offers complete coverage of the impacts on K-12.

Matt Zalaznick
Matt Zalaznick
Matt Zalaznick is a life-long journalist. Prior to writing for District Administration he worked in daily news all over the country, from the NYC suburbs to the Rocky Mountains, Silicon Valley and the U.S. Virgin Islands. He's also in a band.

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