Despite ongoing reports of teacher shortages, superintendents are having to make tough personnel decisions as COVID-era budget surpluses turn to post-pandemic shortfalls that have been compounded by enrollment declines.
"Increased exposure to same-race teachers is associated with improved course grades, attendance, grit and self-management, and the likelihood of being selected for gifted-and-talented programs," FutureEd's report says.
"We are a district on the rise now," says Putnam County Schools Superintendent Rick Surrency, after taking graduation rates from 54.9% to 92.5%. "We just passed a bond referendum of $300 million to essentially rebuild every school in our district."
Many things make Missouri's Lee's Summit R-7 School District special, according to its Superintendent David Buck. But at the center of it all are the students.
After taking the helm at Allenbrook Elementary School in 2020, she quickly turned the school from a below F level to nearly a B, making it the number one growing elementary school in the district.
Interactive Education Recovery Scorecard shows the difference between 2019 and 2022 test scores in some districts "was essentially zero" while students elsewhere fell much further behind. Scorecard should help superintendents recalibrate their plans to tackle learning loss, say the researchers at Harvard and Stanford universities who conducted the analysis.
"We have had a lot of success and we have a lot to be proud of," says Virginia Superintentendent Rick Clemons. "But there are a lot of things that still need to be done."
