K-12 enrollment lagged projections by 2% in 2021, revealing college pipeline cracks

About 833,000 fewer public school seats were filled across the country, with several traditionally underserved demographics showing notable declines.

By Rick Seltzer • March 1, 2023

Ballooning teacher pension debt could hinder spending in areas like retention

Between 2001 and 2021, the share of retirement costs that serviced pension debt jumped from 17% to 69%, according to an Equable Institute report. 

By Naaz Modan • March 1, 2023

Explore the Trendline➔

Top 5 stories from K-12 Dive

K-12 Dive has gathered some a selection of our best coverage from 2024 so far as a one-stop resource on the trends to watch in the months ahead.

By K-12 Dive staff

Los Angeles school district confirms sensitive student data leaked

Health records and psychological assessments of about 2,000 students, including 60 current students, were exposed by last year’s ransomware attack.

By Matt Kapko • March 1, 2023

Maine rebuts Ed Department threat to withhold some federal funds

A February letter from the Education Department said the state could lose 25% of the funding it may reserve for administration of Title I for fiscal year 2022.

By Naaz Modan • Updated March 15, 2023

Principal, teacher turnover exceeds pre-pandemic levels

Principal turnover reached 16% in 2021-22, surpassing teacher turnover of 10% the same year, according to a RAND Corp. survey of district leaders.

By Anna Merod • Feb. 28, 2023

Efforts grow to support pathways for teachers and ed leaders of color

Better access to teacher prep programs is key to improving the recruitment of Black educators, said the National Center for Teacher Residencies.

By Anna Merod , Kara Arundel • Feb. 27, 2023

Pop Quiz: Test yourself on this week’s K-12 news

From more pushback on AP African American Studies to research on girls’ confidence, what did you learn from our stories the week of Feb. 20?

By Anna Merod • Feb. 24, 2023

Anchorage School District agrees to end seclusions, limit restraints

The agreement with DOJ follows several other agreements by districts to end discriminatory practices against students with disabilities.

By Kara Arundel • Feb. 23, 2023

More scrutiny focused on College Board’s AP African American Studies course

Other red states are joining Florida after the state’s controversial rejection of the course renewed national attention on curriculum censorship laws.

By Naaz Modan • Updated Feb. 24, 2023

Florida Ed Department pushing schools to ditch CDC survey

Orange and Duval County schools will not participate in the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System survey following objections from the state.

By Anna Merod • Feb. 21, 2023

AASA 2023: Is a change in focus on the horizon for NSBA?

The National School Board Association’s executive director also urged district leaders not to “take the bait” on culture war disputes.

By Roger Riddell • Feb. 21, 2023

States back away from school COVID vaccine requirement

So far, no state has mandated a student vaccine, and school districts aren't likely to either. Here’s why.

By Naaz Modan • Feb. 20, 2023

Universal school meals improve attendance for youngest students

Chronic absenteeism dropped by 5.4 percentage points for kindergartners who ate free school meals, per a Syracuse University study.

By Anna Merod • Feb. 17, 2023

Pop Quiz: Test yourself on this week’s K-12 news

From CDC vaccine guidance to the latest research on teacher layoffs, what did you learn from our stories the week of Feb. 13?

By Anna Merod • Feb. 17, 2023

Amid censorship pushes, meeting student demand for inclusive curricula grows challenging

One expert suggests educators can augment lessons by allowing students to talk about how details of their lives link to curriculum.

By Lauren Barack • Feb. 15, 2023

By the Numbers: What’s behind public school enrollment declines?

Over a third of public school enrollment loss between 2019-20 and 2021-22 is unaccounted for, according to an analysis by AP and Stanford University.

By Anna Merod • Feb. 14, 2023

How 3 districts are addressing student fentanyl use

Allowing students to carry naloxone and developing curriculum are among measures some districts are taking to combat synthetic opioid use.

By Kara Arundel • Feb. 14, 2023

Governors’ priorities align with prepandemic outlooks

School finance, teaching quality, and career and technical education were among the most popular topics in 2023 state-of-state speeches.

By Naaz Modan • Feb. 13, 2023

Seniority, performance most often weighed in teacher layoffs

Of the nation’s 148 largest districts, 31% said seniority is a key way to determine teacher layoffs, a report by the National Council on Teacher Quality finds.

By Anna Merod • Feb. 13, 2023

CDC recommends COVID-19 vaccine in routine immunizations for children 18 and under

While the recommendation does not mean states will require the shot, many localities look to CDC recommendations for guidance when setting policy.

By Naaz Modan • Feb. 10, 2023

Pop Quiz: Test yourself on this week’s K-12 news

From education nods in Biden’s State of the Union speech to the latest data on learning loss, what did you learn from our stories the week of Feb. 6?  

By Anna Merod • Feb. 10, 2023

Location, school culture, curriculum flexibility are top priorities for teacher applicants

Nearly 39% of teachers surveyed by SchoolCEO at least somewhat agreed salary and benefits mainly influenced decisions to work in their current district.

By Anna Merod • Feb. 10, 2023

Pennsylvania districts win equitable funding in right-to-education case

Similar cases have often been met with mixed results and have implications for how states fund under-resourced districts.

By Naaz Modan • Feb. 9, 2023

House ed hearing highlights areas of division, agreement

School choice, support for student gender identities and instructional approaches were among points of contention in the Wednesday session.

By Kara Arundel • Feb. 9, 2023

Bill would extend Family and Medical Leave Act benefits to 2.7M education support professionals

These workers would be eligible for FMLA protection if they work more than 60% of the total monthly hours expected for their role.

By Ginger Christ • Feb. 8, 2023