We Helped Two Schools Create Reopening Plans — Here Are Five Lessons
By Heather McManus, NewSchools Venture Fund & Jeff Shulz, Bellwether Education Partners Photo by Mark Rabe This post was originally published on Ahead of the Heard, the blog of Bellwether Education Partners. With school starting in most places in a few weeks, school and network leaders are under tremendous pressure to finalize their reopening plans. With […]
How One School Built Systems to Support its Most Vulnerable Students
By Antonio Tapia, Senior Associate Partner, NewSchools Venture Fund Photo: Neil Thomas As we wind down the most unconventional summer most of us have ever experienced, the nation’s attention has predictably shifted to the reopening of schools. Depending on your region, schools in your area are getting ready to implement a hybrid model or prepare […]
What are pandemic pods, and what do they mean for education?
By Jason Weeby, Director of Strategic Initiatives, NewSchools Venture Fund Occasionally, after the kids are in bed, my neighbor comes over to have a beer. Sitting six feet apart in my backyard, we compare notes on how we’re coping as we raise young kids during a pandemic and a national reckoning with racism. After the […]
Keep the older kids at home and use middle and high schools for elementary students
By Leo Bialis-White, Senior Associate Partner, NewSchools Venture Fund Updates! Back in May, Greg Richmond and Peter Cunningham were some of the first to advocate for reallocating secondary school buildings in The 74. Evidence about how children in different age groups transmit the coronavirus wasn’t out then, which only strengthens their argument. Emily Oster of ParentData blog came to a similar […]
Beyond survival: Planning for a world where equity work thrives
By Tiffany Cheng Nyaggah, Partner, NewSchools Venture Fund Equity-minded entrepreneurs gravitate to the exciting work of creating something new because they are deeply committed to building a more just and compassionate world. Earlier this year, few leaders would have imagined a threat to their organization arriving in the form of a pandemic, which would upend […]
School District Superintendents to Ed Tech: “Here’s how to work with us right now.”
By Justin Wedell, Associate Partner, NewSchools Venture Fund What should ed tech companies keep top of mind as they navigate our new COVID-19 reality? NewSchools recently brought together a diverse group of current and former superintendents from around the country to share their perspectives on this question. Our guests included: PJ Caposey, superintendent of Meridian […]
COVID-19 is Upending What “Schooltime” Means. And that’s a good thing.
By Leo Bialis-White, Senior Associate Partner, NewSchools Venture Fund One hundred and eighty days per year. Six and a half hours per day. For decades, the lines separating in-school and out-of-school time have been clear and immutable. Families, schools, after-school providers, and unions built everything around this static structure. Now, COVID-19 is radically changing the […]
Charter School Authorizers Must Rebalance Accountability, Flexibility, and Support During the Pandemic
By Miho Kubagawa, Partner, NewSchools Venture Fund When schools closed in March, I naively assumed that the biggest challenge public schools would face this upcoming school year would be how to open or reopen schools safely amidst a pandemic. However, the continued violence and systemic racism oppressing communities of color, especially Black communities, reached a […]
Three Principles School Leaders Can Use to Reduce COVID-19 Risk
By David Noah, Comp Sci High Jason Shaad, Charter School Growth Fund Miho Kubagawa, NewSchools Venture Fund Photo by Andy Falconer Are face shields just as effective as face masks? What does social distancing look like for early elementary school students? Should we take everyone’s temperature upon arrival? How often should playground equipment be cleaned? School […]
Our Moral Imperative: Racial Equity and the Public School System
By Frances Messano, senior managing partner, NewSchools Venture Fund Educators are preparing for a fall as their school communities — and the rest of the world — grapple with the twin pandemics of COVID-19 and systemic anti-Black racial injustice. As a national nonprofit that supports and invests in promising teams of educators and innovators who want to reimagine learning, […]