Action Guides for States on Ed Equity During COVID + Hartford’s Approach to Keeping Schools Open

This weekly segment by Democrats for Education Reform CT looks at the top education stories Democrats are watching, providing bite-sized analysis and links to recent articles. On the roster this week: Action Guides for States on Ed Equity in the Time of COVID-19, Hartford’s Careful Approach to Keeping Schools Open.

Action Guides for States on Ed Equity In the Time COVID-19

This month, Education Reform Now—together with national partners The Education Trust, National Center for Learning Disabilities, Alliance for Excellent Education, Migrant Policy Institute, and Schoolhouse Connection—released a series of guides to help states develop plans and adapt to the COVID-19 pandemic. While Connecticut has delegated decision-making to local communities on how students learn this school year (in person, remote, hybrid), these guides, entitled State Action Guide: Educational Equity in the Time of COVID-19, reinforce that to ensure equal opportunity for all, public education decisions are more effective at a state-level. The coalition’s materials cover seven key topics, including Graduation and College and Career Readiness, School Funding, and Equity-Driven Approaches to Measure Student Learning.

State Action Guides: Educational Equity In The Time Of COVID-19

• Equity-Driven Approaches to Measure Student Learning

• Graduation and College and Career Readiness

• Teacher Diversity and Equity

• School Climates that Foster Students’ Social, Emotional, and Academic Development

• School Funding

Hartford's Careful Approach to Keeping Schools Open

After an increase in COVID-19 positivity rates in the city of Hartford and specifically on the campus of Trinity College earlier in the month, Mayor Luke Bronin and Superintendent Leslie Torres-Rodriguez warned of a possible option to shift to a hybrid model from a full time in-person schedule. Yet, on Monday, the City announced that infection rates had stabilized and that schools will remain fully open for the next few weeks. The Mayor explained what was at stake for many in these decisions about in-person learning, saying, “There’s a strong likelihood that the district will have to shift models at some point, but we know that for thousands of children and families, that shift will present enormous challenges, and we want to continue to offer a fully in-person educational option for as long as we responsibly can.”

• Coverage This Week of Hartford Schools (Courant) (NBC CT)

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