School Leadership

SAN DIEGO — When it comes to artificial intelligence, the good news for superintendents is that most people have some idea of what it is at this point.

“Who isn’t aware of it?” asked Susan Enfield, who recently resigned as superintendent of Washoe County Public Schools in Nevada and previously led Highline Public Schools in Washington.

Indeed, when asked if they had experimented with AI in their school districts, nearly all attendees raised their hands during a packed morning session at the National Conference on Education held by AASA, The School Superintendents Association, on Feb. 16.

Despite general familiarity, however, technical knowledge shouldn’t be assumed for district leaders or others in the school community. For instance, it’s critical that any materials related to AI not be written in “techy talk” so they can be clearly understood, said Ann McMullan, project director for the Consortium for School Networking’s EmpowerED Superintendents Initiative.

To that end, CoSN, a nonprofit that promotes technological innovation in K-12, has released an array of AI resources to help superintendents stay ahead of the curve, including a one-page explainer that details definitions and guidelines to keep in mind as schools work with the emerging technology.

Top-of-mind for many leaders is ensuring that, alongside any awareness of AI that exists in school communities, stakeholders also understand the technology’s limitations. Superintendents must inform teachers, parents and others in the community not just what AI can do for learning, but also clarify its limitations and any misconceptions about how it can and will be used, said Matthew Friedman, superintendent of Quakertown Community School District in Pennsylvania.

That even includes concerns educators may have that they’ll be replaced wholesale by AI teachers. That won’t happen, said Glenn Robbins, superintendent of Brigantine Public Schools in New Jersey. But the technology’s growing presence in everyday life and its importance in students’ future career paths could mean educators who don’t adapt will be replaced by those who know how to use AI effectively, he said.

“We have a responsibility on how to teach them to use this properly,” said Robbins, adding that kids today will likely have a future teammate in the workplace that is a machine or virtual entity.

What does proper AI use look like? 

AI — and specifically generative AI, in the context of the panel’s discussion — has clear limitations. This has been demonstrated in AI image generation where subjects have, for example, six or more fingers, or when AI-created texts contain fabrications when asked to produce an account of real events.

Because of this, district leaders must ensure staff, students, administrators, parents and the community understand these shortcomings, and that generative AI is a tool to glean ideas from rather than create a final product, said Friedman.

Robbins added that it’s also important to be aware that the free version of ChatGPT is typically about six months outdated in terms of the information that has been fed into it compared to the paid version. “Think about that for a second. When you type in ‘speaker of the house,’ who’s going to come up?”

Generative AI also has biases based on the information it has consumed, which can result in the technology producing “complete hallucinations,” said Robbins. AI hallucinations are defined by Google as “incorrect or misleading results that AI models generate.”

Robbins, in an example, cited an exercise he conducted with teachers to use ChatGPT to create a writing prompt for an English language arts class. He then had the educators paste the prompt back into ChatGPT and ask the AI tech to answer it. 

“Then if you do it again and say, ‘What did we do in class last week while we were working on this,’ it will make up a story about what was going on in class — once again, a complete hallucination that has nothing to do with the class.”

Comparing current generative AI to early versions of search engines and Wikipedia, Robbins stressed that students and educators should understand that you have to do your own background research to verify the information you get.

“Anything created by and used by humans is going to be flawed,” Enfield said. “I think that’s the moral of Glenn’s anecdotes there.”

The limitations of generative AI, she continued, underscore the ongoing importance of critical thinking skills. “To delve deeper and not just accept an initial answer is going to be important,” Enfield said.

The question of ethics and academic honesty

The concerns around ethics and cheating when using generative AI aren’t entirely unfamiliar in the historical context of education. With AI, Robbins said, the question often comes back to the familiar, “Are you just cutting and pasting?”

“Has anyone had that yet, where they just cut and paste the answer … and they forgot to take the quotations out?” asked Robbins, referencing the quotation marks that are added by default when text is copied and pasted from ChatGPT.

For educators, this creates more of an impetus to get to know students and understand how to personalize learning. When you know your students, no matter the grade level or subject, you also get to know their work, Friedman said. 

Enfield added that as a former high school English teacher, she knew what her kids’ work looked like and could tell if a student actually wrote a paper they submitted. Citing a 2023 Stanford University study, she also noted that students aren’t cheating any more now than they were before the advent of generative AI tools like ChatGPT.

Creating a culture of responsible AI use

When it comes to training educators to use these tools, Enfield said that first and foremost, superintendents must address the “fear factor” adults have — not just of learning something new, but of how students will use these tools.

Robbins echoed that sentiment, saying that teachers must also feel safe and supported in that they have legroom to experiment and fail. “You can roll this out, but if your teachers are petrified of you, they’re not gonna do it,” he said. 

To alleviate those concerns, he suggested that district leaders should showcase how they’ve experimented with the technology in their own time.

Additionally, district leaders should build capacity from within by identifying “champions” of generative AI use — who may be thinking 10 steps ahead of others — among their teachers, administrators, students and community members, said Friedman.

To keep parents and the community informed of what’s going on in schools, he also recommends holding events like monthly parent academies to educate people, and to reiterate that district leaders are there if families are uncomfortable with something or have concerns. “I can’t fix anything I don’t know about,” Friedman said.

Ultimately, he said, superintendents have to look at this from a bird’s-eye view without trying to tackle everything at once, and that makes leaning on colleagues and broader networks all the more crucial. 

“I know the common phrase in the superintendency is it’s a lonely job. But I can tell you that as you continue to build your network — and look around this room — there’s amazing resources all around you,” said Friedman. “Don’t feel like this is something that you have to go out and tackle on your own.”

SAN DIEGO — In the six years since the mass shooting at Florida’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, a number of states have enacted or considered variations of Alyssa’s Law. 

The legislation, named for 14-year-old victim Alyssa Alhadeff, requires schools to be equipped with silent panic alarm systems to directly notify law enforcement during emergencies. Variations of the law are currently in effect in New Jersey, Florida, New York, Texas and Tennessee.

But even in states where these alarm systems aren’t required, their use is proving to be a school safety game-changer, superintendents from Kansas and Maine told attendees Feb. 15 at the National Conference on Education held by AASA, The School Superintendents Association. And that's not just for lockdown-level incidents, but also for student and staff health emergencies, behavioral issues and other incidents.

“So many of us think this can’t happen in our district,” said Andrew Dolloff, superintendent of Yarmouth School Department in Maine. Two months after his district implemented a badge-based panic button system — in which teachers and staff wear an ID card-sized badge featuring a panic button on a lanyard — a shooting spree at several businesses in nearby Lewiston, Maine, killed 18 people.

His fellow panelists — Brent Yeager, superintendent of Olathe Public Schools, and Tonya Merrigan, superintendent of Blue Valley School District — lead suburban districts in Kansas that were impacted by the Feb. 14 Super Bowl victory parade shooting in nearby Kansas City. And Olathe Public Schools also experienced a school shooting in 2022 in which the school’s assistant principal, a resource officer and the shooter were injured.

Lowering response times reduces casualties in a major crisis situation, Dolloff said, but it’s also crucial in a staff-reported incident such as a health emergency, a fight, or a restraint and seclusion situation “that might be escalating beyond what is typical.”

“Time can be an asset or an adversary, depending upon how it’s applied,” said panel moderator Roderick Sams, chief development officer for Centegix, a panic alarm solutions provider.

All three panelists said safety belongs at the top of strategic plans. Blue Valley School District’s strategic plan, for instance, has three basic goals: to have an exemplary educator in every classroom, to prioritize health and well-being of every staff member and student, and to achieve academic success. 

“None of those goals can happen if people don’t feel safe,” Merrigan said. A crisis alert button “is just another layer that goes into that.”

Wearable crisis alert buttons make a difference

Yeager said one of the most powerful outcomes of adopting a wearable crisis alert solution is that the badge can be worn alongside another ID tag, and it’s just a button you push to get help. 

In the system adopted by Olathe, Blue Valley and Yarmouth, for instance, the number of button presses — three or eight — determines the type of response. 

Three presses signifies an isolated crisis such as a health emergency or a fight. Eight presses indicates a schoolwide, lockdown-level event.

Who receives the alerts is determined by district administrators. An isolated crisis, for instance, might go to a school nurse, a building administrator or a resource officer. A lockdown-level emergency could alert district-level administrators to notify law enforcement and trigger a lockdown from a phone-based app — or the alert can be set up with local dispatchers to go immediately to law enforcement and other first responders.

Discussing the differences between room-based, app-based and wearable panic buttons, Dolloff said his district examined all three options. He got feedback, including from his wife, a classroom teacher, who said that in a crisis situation, she might not know where her phone is or struggle in the moment to unlock the phone and find the app. Hitting a button on a badge three times would be much simpler, she told him. 

Principals in Yarmouth, Dolloff added, have had zero false alarms, as it takes three or eight pushes in rapid succession to send an alert.

In Olathe, Yeager said, the district previously used a walkie-talkie or phone system for these alerts — but in many cases, that would lead an isolated crisis to become disruptive to the entire school or part of the school. A silent panic alarm system, he said, doesn’t divert the attention of the entire building if not warranted.

Highlighting examples where wearable panic buttons have already saved lives by improving response times, Yeager shared the story of a band teacher who had a heart attack early one morning on a sports field. In the past, someone would have had to run to the school building and alert someone to get help, but in that instance, they were able to instantly signal for help then and there.

“Everyone feels like they can do something”

The ease of using a wearable panic button was central to its adoption in Blue Valley, Merrigan said. Some buildings in her district, for instance, have cinder block construction, which can create dead spots for cell or WiFi coverage, making it more difficult for a phone-based panic button app to be failproof.

Yeager echoed that sentiment, noting that wearable panic buttons enabled all 5,000 district staff members — from teachers to custodians to lunch staff to front office employees — to feel empowered. “Everyone feels like they can do something.”

During the buy-in and adoption process, the two most common areas of resistance all three district leaders faced were concerns from staff and union reps about tracking and skepticism from PTO members and other school stakeholders as to whether the tech would actually work to curb response times.

In terms of tracking, the system adopted by Olathe, Blue Valley and Yarmouth only tracks the location of users’ badges when an alert is actually sent — and the badges only work on school grounds when connected to the system’s network. A staff member can’t, for example, accidentally trigger a false alarm from home.

As for demonstrating that it actually works? Merrigan said that following a live demonstration for PTO and PTA reps to show how quickly the system would trigger a response, those present felt reassured. “There has not been pushback on this initiative in our district, and I don’t know if there’s anything else I can say that about,” she said.

Likewise, in Yarmouth — where the panic system is set up to automatically alert first responders including local law enforcement, firefighters, rescue services, sheriff’s department and state police — their lockdown response was accidentally triggered during a training session, bringing immediate calls to Dolloff from police, fire and rescue. Aside from that, he said there have been no other eight-button pushes in the district.

Data can suggest where attention, resources needed

With the system in use in Olathe, Blue Valley and Yarmouth, administrators also receive incident data by school and staff member. 

Across Blue Valley’s 39 campuses, Merrigan said, the more isolated three-push alerts have been triggered for behavior 118 times, 53 times for students running away, 65 times for medical issues, and seven times for physical altercations. On two occasions, the eight-button lockdown response was triggered for suspicious behavior, including a domestic disturbance involving an armed person behind the district’s early childhood center in January.

Administrators can also tell, for instance, who pushes the button more than anyone else and use that information to make data-driven decisions where more attention might be needed for behavioral support or professional development. Merrigan noted that 42 of her district’s behavior alerts had been triggered in one building, which led administrators to deploy more resources to that location.

In Olathe, Yeager said his team was able to use the data to see which employee triggered alerts more than anyone else in the district — in this case, a kindergarten teacher “who probably needs some behavior intervention support in the classroom.”

“You can just look at that and go, ‘Here are the classrooms. Here are the people who are pushing it the most. What do we need to do to get support for people in those classrooms?'” Yeager said. “Because of the data it produces, it’s created the opportunity to have pretty productive conversations not only about safety and security, but also about instruction and what we’re doing to support our students in crisis across the system.”

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By Solution Tree

Learn to love the superiority of And over Or

There are more than 5 million multilingual (ML) students in K–12 schools today, which represents approximately 10% of the total preK–12 student population (49.4 million)1. If spread evenly, most teachers in most schools would have 3–5 students in their classroom. I repeatedly hear teachers asking, “How can we support multilingual learners in the classroom without lowering the rigor of the lesson?” The good news is we are not looking at an either/or situation; rather, it can become a yes/and situation.

Teachers need not choose between rigorous lessons and sacrificing instructional time for the whole class to support ML students. Yes, we can keep the rigor for all, and we can utilize strategies that can be targeted to the specific needs of the ML student in the general education classroom.

Intentional and consistent use of vocabulary instruction, close reading, opportunities for dialog, and writing are practices that benefit students at all skill levels and, with additional planning, can be targeted to continual language development opportunities for ML students.

4 reliable practices that elevate learning for all

The instructional strategies that support multilingual learners are strategies that increase rigor and academic gains for all students. Teachers do not have to choose between serving multilingual learners and providing rigorous instruction for all. Classrooms where ML students thrive, offer consistent opportunities throughout the day for students to experience scaffolded and supported language practice.

1. Vocabulary (2–5 words in preparation for a close read)
2. Close Read (carefully selected academic reading passage utilizing the close reading strategy)
3. Dialog (students have the opportunity to participate in a structured and intentional dialog about the reading using the vocabulary words in preparation for writing)
4. Writing (students write sentences or paragraphs summarizing the reading using vocabulary words) 

These four practices may require a different approach to instruction and classroom structures. The lesson should engage students in peer work as they practice vocabulary, provide feedback during close reading and dialog, and prepare for writing. For instance, a 20-minute section of the lesson could include 2–4 minutes of vocabulary practice, 7–12 minutes with partners for close reading and dialog, and 3–4 minutes for a few summary sentences—or, when the passage is longer, students could participate in cooperative learning as part of the dialog process, concluding with a longer written response.  

Why dedicated instructional coaching is important to teaching

This is where instructional coaching comes into play. Every teacher can benefit from working with an instructional coach to sit shoulder to shoulder and co-plan lessons, model teaching, problem solve, brainstorm, and truly collaborate.

Partnering with an instructional coach can dramatically accelerate intentional changes in practice that create a productive learning environment for ML students. Schools that implement intentional professional learning that includes instructional coaching for each teacher enjoy rapid changes in the instructional experience for all students and often see measurable and observable student learning gains within the first school year of implementation. 

The instructional changes focus on 4 critical practices repeated throughout the day.  These practices benefit all students and, when individualized to the academic needs of each ML student, accelerate student learning.

Why critical ML engagement practices need to be constant

Imagine a school day where an English learner had the opportunity to dialogue, learn two or three new words, deeply comprehend a passage, and practice fluency most hours. In addition to any pull-out or push-in intervention, the exponential impact of multiple lessons across the day engaging students in these strategies would yield: 

• 4 to 6 chances to practice fluency and comprehension of passages
• Several minutes every hour for academic dialog practice
• Intentional instruction on 10 to 12 vocabulary words
• 4 to 6 chances to produce academic writing passages relevant to the subject matter

When every teacher becomes proficient in these strategies, teacher collective efficacy and teacher efficacy can be impacted. When these instructional strategies are intentionally built in across the day, ML students have the opportunity to practice English and build vocabulary.

When these instructional habits are cemented in every classroom across the school, by the end of the school year, each student will have practiced fluency and comprehension on more than 700 passages, engaged in 250–400 hours of academic dialogue, and learned 2,000 vocabulary words. You can see how this intentional approach closes learning gaps by expanding the opportunities for students to engage in these pivotal academic components.

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Sources:

1. Raise the bar: Pathways to multilingualism. | U.S. Department of Education. (n.d.). https://www.ed.gov/raisethebar/multilingualism-pathways
2. Brock, J. K., & Calderón, M. (2024). Coaching for multilingual student success: Intentional practices to accelerate learning and close achievement gaps. Solution Tree Press.

Only 42% of comprehensive support and improvement (CSI) plans seem to be in compliance with certain federal requirements, according to a report sent to Congress on Jan. 31 by the Government Accountability Office. 

CSI plans are developed by districts to serve as a guide to underperforming schools' improvement processes. They are required to include needs assessments, resource inequity identification, and evidence-based interventions, among other things. However, 28% of plans reviewed by the watchdog addressed only one or none of these issues.

There was wide variation in how districts addressed each of those elements. Some plans, for instance, discussed resource inequities that schools have limited opportunities to address — like which students faced homelessness or poverty — rather than evaluating whether school resources were being inequitably distributed. Overall, only 52% appeared to identify resource inequities at all. 

During the pandemic, the U.S. Department of Education put CSI and other support and improvement statuses mostly on pause. 

“The pandemic wreaked havoc on assessment systems,” education groups and civil rights organizations told Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona in an August 2021 letter.

Identification has since resumed, and more schools are being put on improvement plans.

Currently, about 2.5 million students attend K-12 public schools that have been identified for CSI, per GAO. Those schools are much more likely to serve mostly Black and low-income students, have higher student-teacher ratios, and serve students not proficient in reading or math.

Last week, Houston Independent School District released school ratings showing it had more "D" and "F" rated schools than schools receiving passing grades. It identified 26 schools that will receive district support in fall 2024 and said that up to 50 could end up needing support overall.

While Houston's situation differs from other districts' in that it is currently undergoing a state takeover, it is likely that additional school identification and potentially takeovers are on the horizon in other places.

Not only did the GAO report show that plans overseen by states and districts are lacking more often than not, but it also found the Education Department's local compliance monitoring should be improved. 

While the Education Department did successfully identify compliance issues in five out of nine states it monitored between February 2020 to July 2023, the GAO found, it still "may be limited by a weakness GAO identified in Education’s monitoring approach."  

Using 2019-20 federal data and CSI plans from June 2022, the government watchdog concluded that the department should update monitoring protocols to ensure CSI plans and funding applications are independently reviewed rather than relying on states and districts to select CSI plans for federal review. 

"Although the Department believes that its monitoring has adequately identified areas of non-compliance, it will begin selected CSI plans that are submitted as part of consolidated monitoring beginning spring 2024," wrote Mark Washington, deputy assistant secretary for the Education Department's Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, in its response to the GAO.

A clear vision for change and the willingness to reform traditional learning practices are helping six New England high schools work toward sustained improved outcomes for students, according to a study released Jan. 29, conducted by the Center for Reinventing Public Education and the Center for Public Research and Leadership.

The schools that were studied deliberately shifted school designs, instructional models and policies to embrace a vision that every student will go on to lead "a good life" that includes preparing them for success on their own terms, including whether that's college or a career right after graduation.

While pandemic-related school closures slowed some innovation efforts, it also strengthened the resolve for new high school approaches and awareness of inequities for marginalized students, the study said.

For the study, the nonprofit education research centers ​​conducted 266 interviews of students, educators and families from April 2022 to November 2023. The participants represented urban, suburban and rural schools. While the findings were not designed to represent all high schools nationally, the study said they can be relevant and actionable for anyone who wants to improve high school education.

"These schools revealed to us a challenging blueprint for the future of high school that many educators are already progressing toward," a report on the study said. 

That blueprint includes:

• The need for designing and strengthening instruction to offer flexibility without lowering expectations.
• Creating systems that support every student in developing a high-quality, individualized postsecondary plan.
• Leveraging data that measure the experiences and outcomes that point to student success.
• Building systemic capacity to sustain innovation over time.

Specifically, the study points to how the unnamed schools challenged traditional assumptions that all students should be on a path toward college. Researchers attributed that shift to the recognition of viable non-degree career pathways, as well as a greater focus on student and family priorities.

All of the schools studied had supports for students' mental health and wellbeing. Many of the students interviewed said they needed their schools to be supportive and flexible as they face hardships and competing demands that are often outside of their control.

Two of the schools studied offered individualized mentoring and counseling to ensure students felt “known” and cared for. Other schools had different approaches for making sure each student regularly touched base with an adult about progress, opportunities and extra support.

Regarding postsecondary preparation, one school had every student participate in at least one career-oriented class before graduation. Several other schools hosted workforce roundtables with local employers, helped students identify job shadow opportunities, and organized career nights for students and families. Another school launched a career center that will pilot new career-connected courses and learning opportunities.

While the study said there is optimism for high school reforms that include individualized and flexible supports, there are roadblocks to innovation that will require support from policymakers and community members. Some of the recommendations include the sharing of best practices, reviews of accountability systems, and improved access to free mental health counseling and transportation.

The U.S. Department of Education on Jan. 25 urged all school principals and district leaders nationwide to "educate the whole school community about the importance of safe firearm storage" by sharing information with parents and families, engaging with groups like parent organizations, and teaming up with local leaders to spread the word. 

The call came in a Dear Colleague letter that included a template letter for school leaders to send to their communities.

"As school principals and district administrators, you have credibility in your community and trust in your schools and districts that uniquely position you to help save lives," said U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona in the letter.

Senior Biden administration officials noted in a Jan. 24 press call ahead of the announcement that grants are available for schools to fund awareness efforts, such as through the U.S. Department of Justice's STOP School Violence Program. 

Their call to action is part of the administration's push to curb gun violence, including in schools. In 2020, firearms became the top cause of death among children in the U.S., outpacing motor vehicle deaths. Just over three-quarters of school shooters carried out attacks with guns brought from the home, according to a 2019 review of targeted school violence between 2008 and 2017 by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's National Threat Assessment Center.

"It's not the whole picture of student safety, but it's a crucial component that every education leader can use their trusted voices to elevate this issue to parents and to communities," said Cindy Marten, deputy secretary for the Education Department and former superintendent of San Diego Unified School District, during the Jan. 24 call with reporters.

'We need accountability'

The recommendations come a week after the Justice Department released a comprehensive and damning incident review of the 2022 mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. In the report, the department found "cascading failures" in first responders' handling of the attack, including by school law enforcement. The report also took issue with how the school handled safety measures leading up to the incident, for example circumventing door locks. 

On Jan. 24, senior administration officials, including some from the Department of Justice, also called for responsible gun ownership through safe storage laws, which it is encouraging states to pass in absence of other congressional action on gun violence. 

"And when there's tragedy, we need accountability," said one senior administration official. 

One such situation is playing out now in a Michigan courtroom. Following the 2021 school shooting in Oxford, Michigan, the shooter's parents were each charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter after the attack that left four students dead and seven others injured.

On Jan. 25, the same day the department called on educators nationwide to mobilize for safe gun storage, opening statements kicked off in the trial for the mother, Jennifer Crumbley.

"Even though she didn’t pull the trigger on Nov. 30 [2021], she's responsible for those deaths," said Oakland County assistant prosecutor Marc Keast, per news coverage. The parents "didn't do a number of tragically small and easy things that would have prevented this from happening," Keast said.

A trial for James Crumbley, the Oxford shooter's father, is tentatively scheduled for March. 

Educators have 'enough on their plates'

Education leaders have had mixed feelings about their role in promoting safe firearm storage and spreading awareness to parents and the broader community.

On one hand, educators have expressed wanting to play their part in curbing gun violence and keeping students safe. 

"We're really following the lead of principals all across the country who have already reached out to families and sent letters to their communities about safe storage of firearms," said a senior administration official. 

However, working with parents to urge the safe storage of firearms can be challenging for a variety of reasons, including all that is already on educators' plates.

"We often hear from principals that they want to do everything they can to keep their students and educators safe," said Stefanie Feldman, director of the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention. "But they shouldn't have to be experts on safe storage of firearms, and they have enough on their plates."

In 2021, shortly after the Crumbleys were charged, school safety and mental health experts noted that parents can become defensive if they feel they or their child are being treated unfairly. Or they might share information with school authorities and feel their concerns aren't taken seriously. 

"I was a school principal myself. I know how it can feel, 'Here we go. Just another thing now that we have to do,'" said Cardona in a White House town hall with principals on Jan. 25. "But … you are the messenger. You have the leverage."

The White House and U.S. Department of Education are urging schools to implement three strategies to improve student achievement: Increase student attendance, provide high-dosage tutoring and expand extended and summer learning.

In a Jan. 17 announcement, the Biden administration also said it would publish examples of activities from states, districts and education nonprofits that show progress made toward these strategies. Likewise, states should target any school districts not showing progress toward reducing achievement gaps with extra supports and resources.

Post-pandemic student progress — while showing signs of improvement for some student groups — has been stagnant or lower than expected for students from marginalized communities and those in the youngest grades. Although remaining American Rescue Plan funds can help with learning interventions, educators, families and policymakers say the challenge will be to sustain the investments after the federal COVID-19 emergency funds run out.

In a livestreamed event on Jan. 17 alongside governors, state education superintendents and the White House domestic policy advisor, U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona called this "a moment of truth in education in our country" with both "big challenges" and "immense opportunity."

Meeting or exceeding pre-pandemic achievement levels will "require additional bold actions" from states, districts and communities, according to the announcement from the White House and Education Department. Specifically, the announcement calls for greater state accountability for using evidence-based practices to help students accelerate learning and for tracking progress toward closing pandemic-related achievement gaps.

The Education Department will also hold states accountable for using Title I funds to support schools designated for improvement, as required under the Every Student Succeeds Act. The department released a resource on specific actions education communities can take for addressing chronic absenteeism, providing high-dosage tutoring and expanding access to extended and summer learning.

Charlene Russell-Tucker, commissioner of education for the Connecticut State Department of Education, spoke about how the state analyzed data to combat a chronic absenteeism rate that climbed to 24% during the 2021-22 school year and then dropped to 17.8% by October of last year.

To increase attendance, the state and its districts are also implementing home visits to encourage school-family connections. A state research collaborative was created with partner universities to study the impact on those programs. But there's much work left to do — the chronic absenteeism rate prior to the pandemic was just 9%, Russell-Tucker said.

"Chronic absence is an issue that we really have to pay attention to when we think about the nonacademic barriers to learning," Russell-Tucker said. "That's one that looms large."

Alabama State Superintendent of Education Eric Mackey said efforts in his state to boost summer camp access to 30,000 K-3 students have brought math and reading gains. He said the state is planning to use ARP funding to continue programming this summer, and the hope is that the state legislature will see the benefits and dedicate funding for future years.

"We focused on those students who are below grade level, need that extra help, and it just shows that it works," Mackey said.

In the District of Columbia, State Superintendent of Education Christina Grant shared how the school system dedicated $35 million for high-impact tutoring for about 13,000 students at around 100 school sites. This effort was coordinated through partners such as area universities, and extra staff helped schedule tutoring sessions.

"We know that students who have access to tutoring, they will meet their growth goals faster," Grant said.

WASHINGTON — District and school leaders have a vital role as advocates in the local, state and federal decision-making process for public school funding and other education programs, said the four finalists for National Superintendent of Year during a Jan. 11 panel discussion hosted by AASA, The School Superintendents Association. 

From making the most of federal pandemic relief funds, finding innovative revenue sources, and presenting a united front in legislative advocacy, the nominees touched on a range of fiscal issues during a conversation at The National Press Club.

Frederick Williams, superintendent of the 2,362-student Dublin City Schools in Dublin, Georgia, said advocacy is a team sport. His advocacy work is focused on ensuring money intended for public education goes to public schools.

"The passage of vouchers anywhere is a threat to public education everywhere," he said.

Kimberly Rizzo Saunders, superintendent of the 2,000-student Contoocook Valley School District in Peterborough, New Hampshire, said it is essential that superintendents, principals and central office staff be involved in the legislative process.

"We need to make sure that we have a base of core values that we are advocating from, and we need to partner with AASA and each other in order to make that happen in a meaningful and powerful way," said Rizzo Saunders, whose school district, along with other plaintiffs, sued the state of New Hampshire in 2019 for adequate funding for schools.

The finalists also spoke about the lessons they learned from managing an influx of federal funds from the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief allocations to help schools respond to pandemic-related setbacks. 

In the nearly 14,000-student Tomball Independent School District in Texas, Superintendent Martha Salazar-Zamora said the school system looked to spend its ESSER allocation effectively and efficiently, keeping in mind the district's strong belief that "every student needs to have a place to belong, a passion to pursue and a love for learning."

After a lot of review and discussion, the district looked at adding personnel to help students with learning loss, even while acknowledging that those positions might not be filled for the long term. 

Salazar-Zamora said, to her surprise, she's become an "enterprise superintendent." She explained that she has looked for sustainable revenue avenues that benefit students and the economic health of the district. For example, the district purchased a 70–acre property, part of which houses its career and technical education program and part of which the district leases to earn income.

Districts should look for unique ways to generate revenue, because "the students need those dollars, and we need to be creative in a way in which we perhaps never have had to in the past."

When asked about how districts are preparing students for life after high school graduation, Joe Gothard, superintendent of Saint Paul Public Schools in Minnesota, said for the past 11 years, as a leader in two districts, he has worked to make sure curricula are written in a way that responds to the global world students are living in.

Gothard explained that in the 33,000-school district, personalized learning plans are created for each student — starting in preschool.

"I think we have to take stock into the gifts and the assets and the ways that our students identify themselves and make sure that we are adaptive as a school system," he said.

This means creating an education system that meets students’ needs and desires, rather than making students fit into a specific mold for education.

"It's not happening by chance," Gothard said. "It's happening because we want to ensure that we know who our students are, and they know the opportunities that they have in our school district."

The 2024 National Superintendent of the Year will be announced during AASA’s National Conference on Education on Feb. 15 in San Diego.