This article challenges and explores an after-school literacy tutor program in a semi-urban midwestern state. As after-school programs continue to be widely used across the United States, there is also continued efforts to engage students in continued academic learning after school. Hynes and Sanders (2011) studied the experiences of various…

In-school suspensions represent one of the most frequently employed components of school exclusionary discipline systems, and they are also largely left up to the discretion of principals. The purpose of this study is to investigate in-school suspension disparities across student racial/ethnic groups, with a focus on differences between school…

Using U.S. Department of Education 6-year college graduation rate data for 17 cohorts (1996-2002) to (2012-2018), adverse impact on Black students as compared to White students was evaluated for all 50 states and D.C. Potential relationships between state adverse impact and Black population percentage, geographic location, and political…

We examined factors that lead to the attrition and retention of special education teachers (SETs) based on gender, race, and geographical location. Factors leading to SETs intent to stay or leave teaching is commonly overlooked in research, particularly when controlling for gender and race. Thus, we reviewed survey data of 778 SETs, controlling…

Special education services are crucial for enhancing outcomes and well-being among autistic students. Unfortunately, many racially and ethnically minoritized and girl autistic youth face challenges in timely and accurate identification. National-level data reveal autism prevalence rates differ across student gender, race, and ethnicity hindering…

Bachelor's degrees are important marks of progress for both individuals and society. Compared with noncollege graduates, individuals who hold a bachelor's degree have higher lifetime earnings, lower odds of unemployment, and better health outcomes. This report uses the 2005-2009, 2010-2014, and 2015-2019 American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year…

This brief highlights the urgent need to address chronic absenteeism among American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) students in the United States. It explores the challenges that AI/AN students and their families face in terms of regular school attendance. Systemic barriers, unwelcoming?school environments, biased disciplinary practices, and a…

This study investigated the Advanced Placement (AP) college readiness indicator among gifted secondary students in Texas during 2019-2021 as related to COVID-19. Utilizing publicly available administrative data from the Texas Education Agency and a hierarchical linear model, the paper identifies changes in Texas school districts' college readiness…

Struggles for educational equity in the United States (US) and South Africa (SA), particularly with regard to race, class, and ethnicity, remain significant and have become even more critical during and following the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns. Many scholars have focused on the daily struggles of school-aged children, indicating that millions…

In 2018, a resurgence of youth activism burst forth calling for widespread climate action. The contemporary youth climate movement is a cogent case to unpack how political participation of youth is shaped by schools. In this study we use administrative data from public schools in New York City (n=1,313) to examine two measures of youth…

This policy brief is one in a series which examines selected topics related to Wisconsin's educator workforce. This brief presents a descriptive profile of Wisconsin's principal and assistant principal labor force over the past 20 years in terms of key attributes such as counts of both types of administrators, selected demographic characteristics…

Mental health disorders, such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, anxiety, and behavioral conditions, are common in school-aged children in the United States. Frontline treatments for mental health disorders can include medication, counseling or therapy, or both, depending on the condition and the age of the child. This report describes…

The purpose of this descriptive study was to examine enrollment in string orchestra instruction across Texas. Three central research questions guided the investigation: (a) How well is orchestra represented in districts and schools across the state of Texas? (b) What are the characteristics (FRPL eligibility, locale, student race/ethnicity,…

This study examines the characteristics of school shootings and investigates the relationship between perpetrators' race and how shootings are reported by the media. Findings, utilizing data from the Center for Homeland Defense and Security, demonstrate differences by race in the characteristics of school shootings and media reporting of school…

The School Librarian Investigation--Decline or Evolution? (SLIDE) project is a federally funded study of the almost 20% national decline in the number of full-time equivalents (FTEs) of school librarians between 2015 and 2019, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. In this update to the project's original research, school…