A cadre of canines visits San Francisco Bay Area elementary schools, where struggling readers gain confidence and improve literacy by reading aloud to their furry friends. Readers of the Pack, a program run by the nonprofit 4Paws Learning and Wellness Center, sends certified therapy dogs and handlers to schools, libraries and after-school programs. “Young students […]

In many partnerships that bring businesses and schools together, a private or nonprofit third party serves as a bridge to the most successful collaborations. For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST) offers extracurricular STEM activities, including an international high school robotics competition, to more than 400,000 K12 students nationwide, with mostly school-based robotics […]

At Banneker High School in College Park, Georgia, dedicating a wing of six classrooms, an office and a conference room to just 139 ninth graders and their six teachers is an exercise in innovation. The wing is the foundation of a Junior Achievement (JA) pilot program called JA Magnet Business Academy, JA-MBA. Junior Achievement is […]

Districts are learning to do more with less. It’s a common theme explored in this round of District Administration’s triannual Districts of Distinction program. Educators constantly face new challenges that often require resources that may be in short supply. But this round’s honorees show a surplus of exemplary creativity, innovation and problem-solving skills that are […]