BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//LEO | Learning & Engagement Opportunities Network - ECPv6.15.3//NONSGML v1.0//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net X-WR-CALDESC:Events for LEO | Learning & Engagement Opportunities Network REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H X-Robots-Tag:noindex X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/New_York BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20250309T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20251102T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20260308T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20261101T060000 END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251202T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251202T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165629 CREATED:20251121T190915Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260106T221331Z UID:253428-1764687600-1764693000@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:Parents as Curators of Their Children's Education: Opportunities & Implications of a New Federal Education Tax Credit DESCRIPTION:During the webinar\, Derrell Bradford with 50 CAN: The 50-State Campaign for Achievement Now moderated a conversation exploring the opportunities and implications of the new federal scholarship tax credit\, and how people can get involved. This webinar was the fifth in a series exploring the emerging reality that more parents are actively curating the educational experiences of their children.  \nScott Palmer of EducationCounsel provided an overview of the new tax credit\, which allows individuals to donate up to $1\,700 per year and then receive a credit for contributions to scholarship-granting organizations (SGOs) that fund qualified elementary and secondary education expenses for eligible students. Palmer noted that as these contributions grow\, this tax credit could become the largest federal investment in education\, far more than Title I or other federal funds. He also described two potential pathways that states that opt in could take with it\, with the “narrow” pathway involving investments in private and religious school choice\, and the “broad” pathway involving investments in an ecosystem to expand access to more families for various resources\, including tutoring programs\, after school and summer learning\, and other opportunities.   \nRachel Canter of the Progressive Policy Institute outlined her concerns with the tax credit\, especially as it stands now without insight into the forthcoming regulations and guidance that will shape it. Canter stated that she believes the tax credit is unlikely to create major educational opportunities for low-income students and for public school students more broadly. Instead\, she believes that the way the program is designed makes it more accessible for private and religious schools to leverage. Canter described the challenges in forming a scholarship-granting organization that can receive and distribute scholarships to eligible students\, and the considerations nonprofits will need to weigh related to mission and budget as they determine whether to become SGOs. \nBen DeGrow of ExcelinEd stressed that these scholarship funds will be additive for education and not take away from any federal education funds that public schools already receive. DeGrow noted that this program already has precedent among the 20 states that have tax credit scholarship programs with this tax credit offering an opportunity for states and communities to shape it to align with their priorities:  “I do think ultimately the benefit of these types of programs is that they tap into local knowledge\, local awareness of communities\, individual donors\, philanthropy\, parents. Rather than trying to impose down a one-size-fits-all solution.” DeGrow noted that advocacy groups and state leaders could\, for example\, direct SGOs in their state to target support for higher-need students by expanding access to private school choice and other opportunities these students and their families cannot currently access. \nAugustus Mays of The Education Trust highlighted concerns about the new tax credit related to funding\, access\, effectiveness\, and accountability. Mays cautioned that this program could accelerate public school enrollment declines along with potential funding cuts\, school closures\, larger class sizes\, and fewer services to students who most need them. He also expressed concern that\, based on precedent of current state voucher programs\, most families that receive these scholarships will be affluent families or families who already attend private schools\, not lower-income families who most need them. Mays noted the lack of effectiveness of voucher-type programs in states including Florida and Indiana. He said they show little to no improvement in academic outcomes on average and urged investment in evidence-based strategies. Mays also highlighted the need for strong accountability and civil rights data\, including “equity guardrails” such as protections and services for students with disabilities among other student populations. He suggested that states that opt in provide guidance and frameworks on how public district schools can access these resources along with the types of services and programs they should offer to help the highest-need students. \nKaren Pittman of Knowledge to Power Catalysts said she is “cautiously optimistic” about the new tax credit as “a chance for us to actually reinvigorate the idea of public education by giving parents the flexibility that they want.” Pittman suggested that this tax credit could be a way to put back into parents’ pockets the $230 billion per year they are already spending on supplemental learning activities for their children\, and it could be a way to make more equitable the significant difference between what affluent parents and low-income parents spend on supplemental activities like after-school programs.  \nPittman described schools’ current role as “multiservice agencies” in providing core academics\, enrichment\, remediation\, and more\, and said the tax credit could support schools to do many of these functions more effectively and equitably. She also underscored the need for advocates to ensure that core federal education funding like Title I funds for low-income students do not decrease in the wake of this new tax credit and to use these funds to meet the full range of a community’s needs: “I think we need to do it in a sense of saying if we’re going to rebuild and use these flexible dollars\, let’s think about year-round community-wide services for young people and let’s think about the population….We can do this in an equitable way and I think we should.” \nPanelists also discussed their priorities for the federal regulations\, the hurdles around awareness\, access\, and infrastructure that need to be addressed\, and their plans and advice for how to get involved in influencing the design and implementation of the tax credit in the coming months.  \nThey noted that the U.S Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service issued a call for public comments on the implementation of this new tax credit with a deadline of Friday\, December 26. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n If you were able to attend the session\, we would love to hear your feedback! We appreciate your help in filling out the following form as we seek to learn and understand the perspectives\, ideas\, critiques and recommendations that better inform our key audiences. \n \n Share Feedback URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/pac-tax-credit/ CATEGORIES:Past Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/CASEYKINETIK2015_Wed01555-e1729489921480.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251209T123000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251209T140000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165629 CREATED:20251114T065128Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251213T061858Z UID:253284-1765283400-1765288800@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:Building Continuity: Sustaining Community Coalitions During Leadership Transitions DESCRIPTION:“We’ve built some really strong relationships. That has only happened because people trust that WAKE Up and Read is going to be there to provide the things that we say we’re going to provide. In order to do that\, we prioritized communication throughout all the transitions — transitions with our superintendent\, our senior director\, and our administrator inside of our core team. That has helped to reassure all of our stakeholders — everyone from our coalition members to the families that we serve\, to our school district partners and our community partners.” \n– Marissa Smith\, WAKE Up and Read \n\n \n \n \n \n \n This session began with Theresa Stacker of the NC Early Childhood Foundation describing the work of her organization\, including its role in supporting CGLR communities in North Carolina. She highlighted strategies for assisting and strengthening those communities during times of turnover in leadership. Marissa Smith of WAKE Up and Read in North Carolina shared several successful key strategies to focus on during transitions\, including staying true to the coalition’s mission\, maintaining trust with all stakeholders\, evaluating effectiveness of historical initiatives\, and developing a robust and intentional approach to key initiatives. \nThe conversation then moved to Iowa with Josie Manternach of the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque describing some of the ways her organization supports smaller communities in her region. Next\, CGLR’s Malai Amfahr who serves as the state lead in Iowa outlined four important components of support during change including awareness\, listening\, opportunities\, and reflection. She also described a nationwide initiative she developed for new communities and new community leads in the CGLR Network\, called Peer Circles\, which supports coalitions as they are getting started or transitioning through new leadership. \nThen\, the group discussed strategies for retaining institutional knowledge\, best practices for communication about leadership transitions\, and how to keep partners engaged and motivated through those transitions. \nBelow are links to the resources and publications highlighted during this webinar. \n\n\n\n\n\n\nCommunity Foundation of Greater Dubuque\nNC Early Childhood Foundation\nWAKE Up and Read\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n If you were able to attend the session\, we would love to hear your feedback! We appreciate your help in filling out the following form as we seek to learn and understand the perspectives\, ideas\, critiques and recommendations that better inform our key audiences. \n \n Share Feedback URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/leadership-transitions/ CATEGORIES:Crucible of Practice Salon,Past Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/eaf9e9c8-81e9-4fac-bbdc-c0908615fa5e-e1705963893660.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251209T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251209T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165630 CREATED:20251106T175732Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251213T063651Z UID:253145-1765292400-1765297800@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:Healthy\, Present\, and Learning: Cross-Sector Strategies to Reduce Health-Related Absences DESCRIPTION:  \nCo-Sponsored by \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n This GLR Learning Tuesdays conversation explored the critical connection between health\, attendance\, and early literacy. Moderated by Hedy Chang of Attendance Works\, the session introduced a forthcoming collaborative toolkit from Johns Hopkins Center for School Health\, Attendance Works\, the National Association of School Nurses\, and Healthy Schools Campaign: Prevent Health-Related Absences: Take Immediate Action to Advance Health\, Well-being\, and Attendance. \nToolkit authors — Elliott Attisha\, DO\, FAAP\, of Attendance Works; Beth Marshall\, DrPH\, MPH\, of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health; and Kimberly Stanislo\, DNP\, APRN-CNP\, LSN\, NCSN\, CPNP-PC\, of National Association of School Nurses — shared why it is important to prevent health-related absences and provided immediate\, actionable strategies that schools and health partners can use to reduce preventable absences and strengthen learning and literacy. \nThe Current RealityChronic absenteeism nearly doubled during the pandemic — reaching almost 30% of students — and remains elevated\, affecting nearly 1 in 4 today. The challenge is most acute for our youngest learners\, who are in the crucial window for building foundational reading skills. Data shows a clear “Nike swoosh” pattern: absences begin early\, and without early intervention in preschool and kindergarten\, they escalate over time. \nWhy Preventing Health-Related Absences MattersIn the post-COVID landscape\, rising anxiety\, depression\, and other behavioral health challenges are keeping more students out of school. These issues — compounded by longstanding health disparities — fall most heavily on economically disadvantaged communities and widen early achievement gaps. Many absences also stem from fear\, stress\, or a lack of connection at school; with nearly 40% of adolescents reporting they don’t feel close to others at school\, belonging is as essential as physical well-being. \nBecause families attribute more than half of absences to health-related causes — with root issues often tied to health care access\, housing instability\, and family stress — schools cannot solve this challenge alone. A public health approach that unites education\, health care\, and community partners; uses data for shared decision-making; and emphasizes proactive\, preventative strategies is essential to ensuring students can fully participate in early learning. \nToolkit Strategies to Address Health-Related AbsencesPreventing health-related absences requires a proactive\, whole-child approach rooted in four key strategies: \n\nStrategy 1: Prevention: Build healthy\, supportive school environments through clear policies\, routine screenings\, nutritious food\, after-school programs\, and strong relationships. School nurses and support staff are central to early identification and trust-building with families.\nStrategy 2: Messaging: Offer clear\, consistent\, culturally relevant guidance about attendance and when to keep a child home. Messages should be positive\, jargon-free\, aligned across sectors\, and delivered by trusted adults — helping families understand the whole-child benefits of showing up.\nStrategy 3: Identifying Health Needs: Use detailed attendance data and health information together to uncover root causes. When paired with screenings and assessments\, data helps schools spot issues like chronic illness\, anxiety\, or unmet basic needs so they can intervene early and effectively.\nStrategy 4: Collaboration: Adopt a team-based approach that brings educators\, school health professionals\, and community partners around a single\, coordinated plan. Collaboration reduces stigma\, improves referrals and support\, and addresses attendance patterns affecting groups of students — not just individuals.\n\nPractitioners Bringing the Work to LifeA panel of practitioners — Cristie Granillo\, Ph.D.\, MS\, M.Ed.\, of Loma Linda University Health\, California; Joey Millwood and Joy Schofield\, LCSW\, M.Ed.\, of Hall County Schools\, Georgia; and Hannah Sam of Waterbury Public Schools\, Connecticut — joined the conversation to share hopeful\, practical examples of communities putting these strategies into action. These district stories show that with coordinated\, whole-child approaches\, preventing health-related absences is truly achievable. \nSchools and districts across the country are showing what it looks like to put these strategies into action. At Kingsbury Elementary in Waterbury\, Connecticut\, leaders blend strong data practices with whole-child support — reviewing health and attendance needs before school begins\, reaching out to families early\, communicating clearly\, and nurturing a trauma-informed school climate rooted in positive relationships. \nIn Hall County\, Georgia\, a districtwide commitment to mental health equips all staff with training to recognize early warning signs and respond with empathy. Large-scale skills groups help students build mindfulness\, emotional regulation\, and resilience\, reducing anxiety and suicidal ideation while improving attendance. \nIn San Bernardino\, California\, community health and education workers reconnect students and families by meeting them where they are — literally. Through home visits\, they identify barriers such as transportation challenges or immigration-related fears\, make warm handoffs to clinical partners\, and coordinate support across agencies. These examples show how deeply intertwined health\, safety\, belonging\, and attendance are — and how whole-family\, cross-sector approaches can dramatically reduce chronic absenteeism. \nOvercoming Barriers to Collaboration \nPanelists acknowledged persistent challenges\, including siloed systems\, data-sharing limitations\, and insufficient school health staffing. They emphasized the need to strengthen health infrastructure\, use existing data more strategically\, and align goals under unified\, whole-child plans. \n“Attendance teams need to take a whole-child approach\, especially when viewing absences through a health lens. This means removing stigma and negativity and instead focusing on building trusting relationships. The guiding question becomes\, ‘How can we support you?’ rather than ‘Why aren’t you here?’ Ultimately\, the team is united around a shared goal: ensuring every student is healthy\, safe\, and ready to learn.” \n– Kim Stanislo\, National Association of School Nurses \nLooking AheadThe new toolkit will be available in mid-January on the Johns Hopkins Center for School Health website. The webinar closed with a shared message of hope: When schools\, health systems\, and communities work together\, sustainable reductions in chronic absence are possible — and every child can be healthy\, present\, and prepared to thrive. \n\n \n\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n If you were able to attend the session\, we would love to hear your feedback! We appreciate your help in filling out the following form as we seek to learn and understand the perspectives\, ideas\, critiques and recommendations that better inform our key audiences. \n \n Share Feedback URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/healthy-present-learning/ CATEGORIES:Learning Loss Recovery Challenge,Learning Tuesdays,Past Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/iStock_000022349130_Full-scaled-e1746518312363.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251216T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251216T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165630 CREATED:20251031T172142Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260105T203933Z UID:253048-1765897200-1765902600@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:Reaching their Full Potential: Plugging the Leaky Pipeline for High Achieving\, Low Income (HALO) Students DESCRIPTION:Co-Sponsored by \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n\n“This webinar is a blessing. I could’ve sat through an entire day listening to these presenters discuss this topic. I’m so excited to dig in and put this information into practice to support our schools\, families\, and students in the state of Texas. Thank you all so much!” \n\n\n\nThe quote above was posted in the chat at the end of this GLR Learning Tuesdays webinar and captures the impact of the discussion and the wealth of information and knowledge shared by a stellar panel. CGLR was proud to co-sponsor this session with the Thomas B. Fordham Institute\, who offered to share the important research they recently completed in the state of Ohio and the resulting report titled The Leaky Pipeline: Assessing the college outcomes of Ohio’s high-achieving low-income students. \nModerator Michael Petrilli of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute began the session by engaging report author Stéphane Lavertu of The Ohio State University’s John Glenn College of Public Affairs in a discussion of the findings from the Ohio study. Lavertu highlighted how the leaky pipeline begins as early as kindergarten and that\, in Ohio alone\, nearly 2\,000 HALO students should be going to college but are not. Panelist Aaron Churchill of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute shared the policy implications and how the insights from Ohio have bearing on and should influence policy development in districts\, states\, and the nation. A second top researcher\, Jonathan Plucker of Johns Hopkins University School of Education\, emphasized the large number of HALO students in classrooms across the country and the importance of recognizing their talent early in their educational careers: \n“We have found that these [HALO] students are in every single school and every single classroom\, even in the highest-poverty schools. And I think that’s a really important point because we’re talking about a lot of students who are advanced\, who deserve to be challenged when they come to school every single day….So think about all the students that we’re losing in this leaky pipeline….This country has a huge thirst\, a huge demand for talent. We generally are filling the demand now with people from other countries. That’s awesome. Yet we have just as many American students here who have the same skills\, who aren’t getting those opportunities.” \nPetrilli continued the conversation with an excellent panel of state leaders and local educators who described how their states\, districts\, and schools are implementing policies and strategies to ensure HALO students can access accelerated learning opportunities throughout their K–12 educational careers. Brenda Berg of BEST NC: Business for Educational Success and Transformation in North Carolina\, Aaron Daffern of the Dallas Independent School District in Texas\, and David Taylor of the Dayton Early College Academy in Ohio discussed policies that call for automatic enrollment in advanced classes based on results of universal screenings. They shared ideas and tips to advocate for these policies that ensure HALO students can access opportunities for learning that meet their talent. Taylor stressed that engaging parents is essential for encouraging students and that screening data can demonstrate the true potential of HALO students and their ability to succeed: \n“When a trusted adult sits down with a parent and says\, this is why we think your child needs to be doing more\, this is why we think your child needs to be taking a bigger risk — parents can’t wait. They can’t wait to sign their kid up. And really it comes down to the trust being built ahead of time. It is also really important to have empirical data in these conversations to be able to say this isn’t just my opinion. Here’s what the numbers say. That’s why it’s really important that we have universal screeners. You know\, very often people will say\, ‘Well\, but their behavior\, they haven’t gotten the best grades’ and we have to bring it back to: They have the potential\, they have the ability. We can actually see it demonstrated right here. If we don’t tap into their potential right now\, they’re not going to have that potential later on. I have yet to see a parent who hasn’t had that conversation and been really excited about the opportunity for the child. \n\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n If you were able to attend the session\, we would love to hear your feedback! We appreciate your help in filling out the following form as we seek to learn and understand the perspectives\, ideas\, critiques and recommendations that better inform our key audiences. \n \n Share Feedback URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/leaky-pipeline-fordham/ CATEGORIES:Past Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Providence_Photos_0697-e1733351362526.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251223T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251223T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165630 CREATED:20251205T055135Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260102T151823Z UID:253734-1766502000-1766507400@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:Building the Bridge: How Early Relational Health Fuels Early Learning and Third-Grade Reading Success DESCRIPTION:This week’s holiday rebroadcast\, Building the Bridge: How Early Relational Health Fuels Early Learning and Third-Grade Reading Success\, highlighted the critical connection between early relational health (ERH) — the mutual\, meaningful\, and affirming relationships between young children and caregivers — and early learning\, literacy\, and third-grade reading success. Anchored by the National Academies of Sciences\, Engineering\, and Medicine report\, Early Relational Health: Building Foundations for Child\, Family\, and Community Well-Being\, the session brought together several of the report’s authors and practitioners to translate its insights into action. \nGrounding in the Science of Early Relational Health \nThe first panel — David W. Willis\, MD\, FAAP\, of Nurture Connection\, Thrive Center\, Georgetown University; Elisabeth Burak\, MPP\, MSW\, of Center for Children and Families\, Georgetown University; Dominique Charlot-Swilley\, Ph.D.\, of Thrive Center\, Georgetown University; and Justin Lavner\, Ph.D.\, of University of Georgia — grounded the audience in the science of ERH. Panelists emphasized that relationships are foundational to brain development\, resilience\, and kindergarten readiness. ERH extends beyond health systems to early learning centers\, home visiting programs\, and community supports. Core principles include supporting family well-being\, embedding relational practices across systems\, grounding approaches in culture\, and treating ERH as a public good with cross-sector benefits. They underscored that ERH is built through ongoing cycles of relating\, rupture\, and repair\, and stressed that systems must act as relationship builders rather than solely service providers. Opportunities exist to translate the science into policy through promoting workforce development\, leveraging Medicaid and early childhood systems\, and investing in community infrastructure that nurtures connection. \nEarly Relational Health in Practice \nThe second panel — Lee Savio Beers\, MD\, FAAP\, of George Washington University; Margaret Caspe\, Ph.D.\, of National Association for Family\, School\, and Community Engagement (NAFSCE); Ron Ferguson\, Ph.D.\, of The Basics\, Inc.; Adrián Pedroza of Abriendo Puertas/Opening Doors; and Jade Woodard of Family Connects International — discussed opportunites for bringing ERH to life across systems. Their conversation centered on three themes: intentionally fostering connection\, cultivating trust within “surround sound” networks\, and ensuring targeted universalism and belonging. Panelists shared examples such as “Parent Cafés\,” community storytelling initiatives\, and The Basics’ community-wide relational projects. Trust was described as built on motives\, competence\, dependability\, and respect\, with programs like Family Connects’ home visits illustrating how trusted relationships connect families to broader supports. They emphasized that collaboration across sectors is critical but often challenged by siloed systems and structural barriers\, and that culturally responsive\, locally tailored approaches are essential for equitable relational support. \nERH and Early Literacy: Relational Learning as a “We” Experience \n“Those early moments of connection with shared reading\, storytelling\, pointing at the words together…these early moments of connection underscore that learning and education is a ‘we’ experience not a ‘me’ experience.” \n— David Willis\, MD\, FAAP\, Nurture Connection\, Georgetown University \nPanelists highlighted that early literacy is inseparable from relational health\, with shared reading\, storytelling\, and “serve and return” interactions creating relational learning spaces. Attention to peer dynamics\, social-emotional learning\, and positive relational moments fosters help-seeking and collective engagement. \nAcross both panels\, the message was clear: Learning is a shared experience\, and when relationships are placed at the center of policy\, practice\, and community life\, children are better prepared to thrive in school and beyond. Panelists concluded with a hopeful vision of a future in which relationships guide all systems that touch families\, serving as the foundation for learning\, literacy\, and lifelong well-being. \nLearn more about Nurture Connection and its work to advance early relational health.  URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/building-the-bridge-rebroadcast/ CATEGORIES:Partner Webinar,Past Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Copy-of-HOLIDAY-REBROADCAST.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251230T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251230T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165630 CREATED:20251205T061740Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260105T113910Z UID:253744-1767106800-1767112200@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:Holiday Rebroadcast: Screens in the First Five Years: What We Need to Know and Do DESCRIPTION:This December 29\, 2025 holiday rebroadcast\, co-sponsored by Children and Screens: Institute of Digital Media and Child Development\, sought to offer research-backed\, practical strategies to help families and those who support them make informed choices about technology use for infants and toddlers. The conversation was moderated by Kris Perry\, MSW\, of Children and Screens who began the webinar by grounding the discussion in the latest science. Dimitri Christakis\, MD\, MPH\, also with Children and Screens\, emphasized that “research has found that there are really no demonstrable benefits to screen use before the age of 18 months. And in fact\, very strong suggestions that there’s harm associated with early screen use for children that young.” Yet he also noted that ages 2 to 5 represent “the sweet spot of media research\,” where high-quality programming can foster both cognitive and social-emotional growth. Rachel Barr\, Ph.D.\, of Georgetown University added\, “High quality content has really long-lasting positive benefits\,” particularly for children from low-resourced homes\, who stand to benefit the most. Together\, these insights highlighted the importance of distinguishing between harmful overexposure and intentional\, developmentally appropriate use.  \nThe panelists then turned to the real-world challenges families face in navigating a crowded and often misleading marketplace of apps and media. Kathy Hirsh-Pasek\, Ph.D.\, of Temple University and the Brookings Institution shared findings from her research: “We did a study of the hundred most downloaded apps and…how many of them had real educational value? Well\, I’ll give you the answer. It was two.” Rachel Franz\, M.Ed.\, of Fairplay shared poll data indicating that the majority of families with children under age 6 “believed that screen time was essential or necessary for their child’s learning and development. This included parents of infants who don’t need screen time. And we were concerned by that because there really isn’t evidence that supports that claim that it’s necessary or better than learning with other humans.” Meanwhile\, Barr pointed to video chat as a powerful example of technology that supports relationships\, noting that during the pandemic\, “grandparents who engaged in lots of activities…felt closer to their grandchildren.” These examples underscored that the benefits of screens depend not only on content but also on context\, co-engagement\, and the preservation of human connection.  \nLooking ahead\, the panelists called for clear principles to guide families\, educators\, and policymakers\, including highlighting Children and Screens Guide for Early Child Development and Media Use. Christakis reminded participants that “young children need laps\, not apps\,” emphasizing that technology should never displace essential caregiver interaction. Hirsh-Pasek cautioned against premature adoption of advanced tools\, stating\, “with our youngest children\, those 3 and under\, the answer is an unqualified no” when it comes to AI-enabled toys. Michelle Kang of National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)\, reinforced the field’s commitment to developmentally appropriate practice\, affirming that “technology cannot be a substitute for the loving and nurturing and responsive relationship that an adult has with a child in an early learning environment. It can’t.”  URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/screens-rebroadcast/ CATEGORIES:Partner Webinar,Past Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Copy-of-HOLIDAY-REBROADCAST.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260106T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260106T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165631 CREATED:20251205T064141Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260111T133247Z UID:253752-1767711600-1767717000@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:Holiday Rebroadcast: Beyond Decoding NAEP: The Federal Role in Promoting Efficacy\, Equity\, and Accountability DESCRIPTION:This January 6\, 2026 session rebroadcast the final session of our “Decoding NAEP” series from 2025 that engaged state chiefs\, educators\, parents\, researchers\, and advocates in a deep-dive exploration of the 2024 scores from the National Assessment of Educational Progress — often called “The Nation’s Report Card.” \nIn this session\, panelists went beyond decoding the 2024 NAEP scores to explore the federal role in generating data to assess student progress. We also talked about the will needed from local\, state\, and national leaders to regain a focus on the importance of student outcomes. Panelists discussed why the U.S. Department of Education and its Institute of Education Sciences should continue to provide funding and support for research that reveals what is needed and what works for various student demographics. \nThe session began with a conversation between two former U.S. Secretaries of Education\, representing both sides of the aisle\, about the importance of federal leadership being committed to student outcomes. John King\, Jr.\, J.D.\, Ed.D.\, Chancellor of the State University of New York (SUNY) and U.S. Secretary of Education under President Obama from 2015–2017\, and Margaret Spellings\, President and CEO of the Bipartisan Policy Center and U.S. Secretary of Education under President Bush from 2005–2009\, discussed the importance of using data to drive action\, with Spellings noting: \n\nWhen we focus on every kid and we measure — yes\, that’s testing — and report that data\, hold it up\, learn from it\, and make it a central part of what we invest in\, we go in the right direction. \n\nKing emphasized the connection between educational outcomes and a strong workforce and the importance of federal leaders making this a priority: \n\nAnd at the end of the day\, for every employer\, they will not have the workforce we need if we do not provide students with the foundational skills\, particularly in English and math\, although obviously students need much more than that. But if they don’t have those things\, they surely aren’t going to be successful in the workforce….Today we really need our leadership to step up and restore the sense that improving educational outcomes is a national imperative. \n\nThe robust conversation on the federal role in promoting efficacy and accountability contiued as three prominent research and education leaders offered perspectives from both sides of the aisle. Michael J. Petrilli of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute\, Adam Gamoran\, Ph.D.\, of the William T. Grant Foundation\, and Ruth N. Lopez Turley\, Ph.D.\, of the Kinder Institute for Urban Research at Rice University and former member of the National Board for Education Sciences (2022–2025) began by reacting to what the former Secretaries shared. They also emphasized the importance of national research and data to identify and address inequities that impede student progress. Turley explained how federal data is used at the local level in her home community of Houston\, Texas: \n\nWe were using national-level data from the School Finance Indicators Database\, which uses the U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) data\, Census data\, etc.\, to develop estimates for how much per-pupil funding is needed for each school district across the country. So we found that most school districts in the state of Texas are underfunded in terms of what they would need to achieve national average test scores. But even more importantly\, we found that there are some school districts that were severely underfunded relative to others\, both in the region and in the state. And so there are huge inequities that we need to pay attention to [and the federal data is needed to identify these inequities]. \n\nAfter the initial broadcast of this session in September 2025\, CGLR produced\, The Nation’s Report Card: A Call to Action for Raising Achievement and Closing Gaps\, a report that synthesizes insights from across the nine Decoding NAEP sessions. Rather than declaring definitive conclusions\, this new report aims to broaden and deepen the national conversation about how to improve student outcomes ― especially for children growing up in economically challenged households. Featuring quotes and reflections from the 50 panelists who participated in the series\, the report invites researchers\, policymakers\, practitioners\, and advocates to treat NAEP as a catalyst for learning and problem-solving. CGLR plans to continue the conversation about NAEP in 2026\, leveraging this report to spark bold\, sustained action and engage an even wider community in shaping effective strategies to boost early school success. We hope you will join that conversation with us on LinkedIn\, sharing your insights and reflections on how strong data and sustained commitment can fuel progress and narrow gaps. Join us. URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/holiday-rebroadcast-beyond-decoding-naep/ CATEGORIES:Past Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Copy-of-HOLIDAY-REBROADCAST.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260113T123000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260113T140000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165631 CREATED:20251223T135117Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260123T210741Z UID:254425-1768307400-1768312800@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:The Science of Reading at Home: How States and Communities Are Supporting Families DESCRIPTION:This session explored ways states and communities are working with families to ensure that they both understand the strategies schools are using to teach their children to read and are familiar with tools they can use to help their children build their literacy skills at home. \nThe session began with Susie Estrada at the Utah State Board of Education\, who highlighted the history\, goals\, and strategies in the state around early literacy. Kelly Noorda with Promise Partnership Utah then talked about ways they are working with the Utah State Board of Education and other partners to support regional literacy nights with an event guide\, facilitation trainings\, and event support. \nNext\, Trish Brennan-Gac with Maryland READS provided a big picture description of the way the organization is working to support the shift to using a science of reading lens in teaching as well as the statewide reading ecosystem. She highlighted what they have learned through the work of the READ Strong network\, including strategies for working with communities and empowering parents and caregivers. Nancy Shockley with Moving Dorchester Forward\, the Local Management Board for Dorchester County\, Maryland\, spoke about the work in the county to engage families and the community as they build a system of care for children and families. \nJessie Coffey with the Nebraska Department of Education described Nebraska’s literacy efforts\, including a new Family Literacy Advisory Committee and a family literacy course. Brian Welch with the National Center for Families Learning and the Nebraska Statewide Family Engagement Center provided an overview of the four-component literacy model and ways partners throughout the state are working together to support family literacy. \nFollowing the presentations\, Jenny Atkinson of CGLR led the group in a discussion about successful strategies they have seen in other states and communities\, efforts to reach less engaged families and unexpected partners\, and supporters who have been helpful in their work. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n If you were able to attend the session\, we would love to hear your feedback! We appreciate your help in filling out the following form as we seek to learn and understand the perspectives\, ideas\, critiques and recommendations that better inform our key audiences. \n \n Share Feedback URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/the-science-of-reading-at-home-how-states-and-communities-are-supporting-families/ CATEGORIES:Crucible of Practice Salon,Parents,Reading & Math,Upcoming Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/dccdc34a-0d71-4730-bb0c-97165c62d719-e1690140705353.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260113T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260113T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165631 CREATED:20251215T064206Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260123T170722Z UID:254016-1768316400-1768321800@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:Beyond Disruption: What Comes Next for U.S. Education Policy? DESCRIPTION:This Learning Tuesdays conversation examined a rapidly shifting education policy landscape and what it means for early learning\, literacy\, and equity in 2026. Moderated by John Gomperts of CGLR\, this session brought together national policy leaders to reflect on the forces that reshaped education in 2025 and to explore where leaders should focus in the year ahead. \nPanelists — Jean-Claude Brizard of Digital Promise Global\, Denise Forte of The Education Trust\, Robin Lake of Center on Reinventing Public Education\, and Michael J. Petrilli of Thomas B. Fordham Institute  — shared insights on federal retrenchment\, rising state responsibility\, the future of research and assessment\, and the implications of these shifts for student outcomes\, particularly for young learners and historically underserved communities. \nPanelists agreed that 2025 marked a significant inflection point for U.S. education policy\, with several developments shaping the landscape entering 2026. \nDisruption of federal research and data infrastructure: Panelists underscored the pausing of nearly $900 million in Institute of Education Sciences-funded research and the scaling back of NAEP as watershed moments. Beyond stalled studies\, these changes threaten long-term research capacity\, evidence generation\, and transparency — particularly for early literacy\, instructional improvement\, and continuous learning across the field. \nA diminished federal role and growing uncertainty around enforcement: Participants noted a clear pullback in federal oversight\, including weakened enforcement of civil rights and special education protections. This shift raises serious concerns about safeguards for vulnerable learners at a time when achievement gaps remain wide and persistent. \nA broader recognition of declining student outcomes: While learning loss and achievement gaps have been evident for years\, panelists observed that 2025 brought a new level of public acknowledgment across political lines. Recent NAEP results\, in particular\, have made the trajectory of student outcomes increasingly difficult to ignore — creating conditions for education\, including early literacy\, to reenter the national spotlight. \nStates at the center of the action: A central theme throughout the conversation was the growing importance — and strain — of state leadership. \nAs the federal government steps back from direct involvement\, states are increasingly expected to lead on accountability\, funding decisions\, and system design. Panelists emphasized that while states have new flexibility and opportunity\, many lack the capacity to act alone. \nRobin Lake highlighted the need to look beyond traditional power structures for leadership\, elevating the role of community leaders\, intermediary organizations\, and cross-sector partnerships. She emphasized that progress is emerging where local and state actors are organizing clearly around shared priorities and articulating what support they need to succeed. \n“What I’m seeing is local leaders getting organized and saying to their state and federal leaders: Here’s what we need to make progress on the ground\, and here are the policies that can help. With the federal role stepping back\, this kind of clarity and leadership is where momentum is building.” \n– Robin Lake\, Center on Reinventing Public Education \nPanelists stressed the importance of identifying what is working across states\, understanding how resources are being organized\, and sharing those lessons broadly — while also establishing guardrails to ensure equity\, voice\, and transparency are not lost in the process. \nAccountability\, research\, and evidence: The future of federal accountability and research infrastructure emerged as a critical concern. \nPanelists explored what it could mean for the U.S. Department of Education to focus more narrowly on accountability tools such as assessment and data\, rather than operational programs. Jean-Claude Brizard emphasized that federal investment in research and development has historically played an irreplaceable role — and that uncertainty surrounding the Institute of Education Sciences has far-reaching implications for how the field generates\, trusts\, and uses evidence moving forward. \nWithout strong national data and research capacity\, panelists warned\, states and districts risk fragmentation\, uneven quality\, and diminished ability to identify and scale what works for young learners. \nTechnology\, artificial intelligence (AI)\, and emerging risks: Looking ahead\, panelists identified technology — and particularly AI — as both a major opportunity and a growing risk. While AI is advancing rapidly\, the federal government is largely absent from regulation\, placing greater responsibility on states and communities to define guardrails around privacy\, safety\, pedagogy\, and equity. \nPanelists stressed that technology strategies must begin with clear learning goals and strong instructional foundations\, rather than vendor-driven solutions — and that mental health\, social-emotional learning\, and student well-being must remain central in these discussions. \nImplications for early learning and literacy: Throughout the conversation\, panelists returned to the urgency of early learning and literacy. While the Science of Reading continues to gain traction\, full implementation remains uneven and deeply dependent on teacher preparation\, leadership capacity\, and sustained support. \nDeclining enrollment\, workforce shortages\, and fiscal pressures further complicate the path forward — making it even more critical to focus on evidence-based instruction\, coherent systems\, and transparent data that families and educators can trust. \nAs the session concluded\, panelists emphasized that uncertainty does not preclude action. While federal leadership may be receding\, meaningful opportunities remain at the state\, local\, and community levels to strengthen early learning\, protect equity\, and improve outcomes for children. \nPersistent declines in NAEP results — and the widening gaps they reveal — are increasingly shaping the broader national conversation about education. How the field responds now\, particularly in early literacy and school readiness\, will influence whether education reemerges as a shared priority and how solutions are framed in the years ahead. \nThe conversation closed with a shared call to focus less on policy noise and more on what matters most: ensuring young children have access to high-quality instruction\, supportive systems\, and the resources they need to thrive — no matter how the policy landscape shifts. \n\n\n\n  URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/beyond-disruption/ CATEGORIES:Learning Loss Recovery Challenge,Learning Tuesdays,More Hopeful Futures? ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Atlanta_Photos_0001-e1748497869964.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260120T123000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260120T140000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165632 CREATED:20251215T070811Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260124T152224Z UID:254023-1768912200-1768917600@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:Families at the Center: Shaping the Future of Education DESCRIPTION:“Families trust educators often more than educators trust families. So we need to create the conditions for educators to challenge their mindsets\, to actually learn what it means to effectively engage families. One of the things we often say here at Flamboyan is ‘Families are experts in their child. As an educator\, you are an expert in content and pedagogy so how you support the child is going to be different than how the parent or family supports the child.’ For us\, the most powerful family engagement investments are those that help change how systems are seeing families\, how educators are practicing this partnership\, and how leadership is defining success.”  \n–Emily Garcia\, Flamboyan Foundation \n\n \n \n \n \n \n Emily Garcia offered the above reflection as she described Flamboyan Foundation’s approach to family engagement\, noting that Flamboyan views families as an “all too often untapped asset” rather than as a “problem to be solved” as it works to help educators and systems better partner with families.  \nModerated by Gregg Behr of The Grable Foundation\, the conversation explored the robust and growing body of research affirming the positive outcomes of strong parent-educator partnerships\, the various ways that funders can strengthen those partnerships\, and future opportunities for systems-level changes to sustain and scale effective family engagement.   \nBehr began by inviting two leading researchers — Eyal Bergman\, Ed.L.D.\, of Learning Heroes and Emily Markovich Morris of the Brookings Institution — to share what they are investigating and learning about family engagement and its impact on student outcomes. Bergman provided highlights from the Phase 1 of the Family Engagement Impact Study that compared post-pandemic student attendance and achievement data for schools with stronger and weaker pre-pandemic family partnerships and offered a sneak peak into Phase 2 and future plans for Phase 3. Controlling for poverty\, race\, prior achievement\, and various community factors\, Phase 1 of the study found a 6.2 percentage point difference in chronic absence rates.   \n“The family engagement score actually showed a stronger relationship with chronic absence than poverty rates….This is a fundamentally good news story\, affirming that we can do a lot to counteract many of the effects of poverty in community if we invest in building strong relationships with families.”  \n–Eyal Bergman\, Ed.L.D.\, Learning Heroes  \nMorris described how the Center for Universal Education at Brookings has investigated family\, school\, and community engagement in 16 countries across six continents\, engaging more than 25\,000 students\, educators\, and family members to understand their respective beliefs on education and explore opportunities to partner and work together. She shared a new report by Brookings that examines perspectives on the risks and potential benefits of artificial intelligence (AI) in education along with tips for families to understand the research behind AI and its utilization in education. Morris underscored the importance of relational trust in forming strong home-school partnerships and shared that Brookings is creating a scale to help schools understand and measure relational trust.   \n“We found that care of families and educators was quite high across schools\, but the sticking point was often integrity and following through on promises….We found different cultures of listening across schools. Those schools that create two-way conversations that allow families to be heard were able to build this vision and this trust. And if they had this trust\, there was a critical connection to student outcomes and strong school climate.”   \n–Emily Markovich Morris\, Brookings Institution  \nBehr then invited Bibb Hubbard of Learning Heroes to join the conversation and share highlights from a decade of research at the organization and what that means for work on the ground and the efforts of philanthropy. Hubbard affirmed the importance of giving teachers the strategies\, tools\, training\, and time to effectively engage with families; of investing in families and ensuring they have a seat at the table and opportunity to express their vision and needs; and of funding more research that can inform action.   \n“As we are redesigning education and we have all of these opportunities with AI and different policies\, we need to make sure parents are centered in those conversations as codesigners….We have new opportunities through technology to do this\, but the system is still designed to keep parents and educators apart. We have to focus on what’s in front of us and what parents care most about\, which is their children’s academics\, their children’s life skills\, and setting them up for success. This is a moment of unprecedented opportunity.”  \n–Bibb Hubbard\, Learning Heroes  \nBehr then invited a panel of funders — Emily Garcia of Flamboyan Foundation\, Ambika Kapur of Carnegie Corporation of New York\, and Tarilyn Little of Carmel Hill Fund — to join the conversation. Kapur described Carnegie’s extensive previous investments in family engagement research and its efforts to strengthen the home-school connection\, build parent leadership and capacity\, and advance field knowledge and tools.   \n“Carnegie’s role was not around a single intervention but more around helping move the field from proof to practice and then to infrastructure. I think that helped normalize family voice as an essential part of our education system. Our work is not done — that’s for sure — but that evolution has helped raise a question for all of us: How do we deepen family power\, not just engagement\, especially in decision-making and policy?…How do we see them as essential partners?”  \n–Ambika Kapur\, Carnegie Corporation of New York  \nGarcia explained how Flamboyan functions in both philanthropic and programmatic spaces to help schools and systems design sustainable solutions that position families as true partners. She stressed that Flamboyan invests in sustainable change that builds the capacity of educators and education leaders to build strong relationships\, communicate effectively\, and partner academically with families.   \n“The research and data are clear; family engagement is an academic strategy. And yet\, all too often it is not funded or resourced in the same way….All too often we hear about family engagement as an add on or it’s shoved in a district’s communication office….We look for systems that are saying yes\, we believe in family engagement and here’s how it shows up in our office of teaching. Here’s how we’ve actually begun to assess for mindset in our talent and culture work.”  \n–Emily Garcia\, Flamboyan Foundation  \nLittle shared how Carmel Hill is advancing family engagement as a critical component of its efforts in New York City to promote learning in the classroom\, home\, and community. Carmel Hill invests in research\, capacity building\, and direct programming around family engagement\, including supporting a family ambassador approach that empowers local leaders to be messengers and advisors for families in the community and partnering with nonprofits\, cultural institutions\, and health care providers in order to go where families are to connect them with support.   \n“We have to find a way to bring an authentic family and parent voice into our practices\, into our policy\, and into our funding. If we don’t\, we run the risk of continuing the harmful pattern of treating families as passive receivers and not active partners. I think\, as funders\, if we are not getting on the ground and really listening\, given the power that we as funders have\, we can run the risk of powering the kind of harmful trends from the past that we are working very hard to move away from.”  \n–Tarilyn Little\, Carmel Hill Fund  \nThroughout the conversation\, the panelists returned again and again to the importance of building the capacity of pre-service and in-service educators to build strong relationships with parents and families. They referenced several entities that are leading the way in that effort\, including Arizona State University’s Mary Lou Fulton College for Teaching and Learning Innovation\, Digital Promise\, and NAFSCE as well as the states of Nevada and Colorado.    \n“To answer the question in the chat\, asking how we can get our higher education systems to build family engagement into the curriculum on the pre-service side\, I think there’s got to be demand for it. School leaders have to be saying\, I’m only going to hire teachers who have this skill\, who have this capacity\, who have this mindset.”  \n–Bibb Hubbard\, Learning Heroes  \n  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n If you were able to attend the session\, we would love to hear your feedback! We appreciate your help in filling out the following form as we seek to learn and understand the perspectives\, ideas\, critiques and recommendations that better inform our key audiences. \n \n Share Feedback URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/families-at-the-center/ CATEGORIES:Funder-to-Funder Conversation,Parents,Past Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Casey_Prov_KidsCount_2013_WED_00016-e1748500275197.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260120T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260120T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165632 CREATED:20251215T073724Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260131T142543Z UID:254029-1768921200-1768926600@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:Tutoring Works! Lessons & Insights From Local Programs & Practitioners DESCRIPTION:This session picked up on our series and our continued focus on tutoring as a critically important “Big Bets” strategy that is making a measurable impact on students learning recovery and acceleration. This week\, we were pleased to continue that exploration in a book talk with Liz Cohen of 50CAN and author of The Future of Tutoring: Lessons from 10\,000 School District Tutoring Initiatives. We also engaged four national\, state\, and local tutoring leaders in a discussion with Cohen to further unpack her findings and how they relate to their programming on the ground. \nI was thrilled to have the chance to moderate the discussion with Cohen about her engaging and actionable new book\, which covers the history of tutoring in the U.S.\, its major proliferation as a post-pandemic learning recovery strategy\, and her examination of so many school districts that made a big bet on tutoring by investing their ESSER dollars. I enjoyed asking her multiple questions about what has happened over the past five years and where we can go from here. Harkening back to CGLR’s session from last fall\, Implementation and Sustainability: What Makes High-Impact Tutoring Work and the series we plan to continue throughout 2026\, about successful implementation of Big Bet strategies\, Cohen shared what she identified as aspects of implementation that lead to success for a district: \n“I want to see someone who’s in charge of the [tutoring] program from the district. I want to see someone who has — as a significant part of their job — responsibility for overseeing tutoring implementation. I think if you don’t have leadership in the district\, then where do schools go when they have questions? Schools need to have guidance on how/when to schedule tutoring. Like\, when are you offering the tutoring and how? And how consistent is it? A lot of elementary schools in particular that have really adopted tutoring as a core practice have moved to a schedule that involves basically a period of the day that’s like an intervention block in which some kids are getting tutoring and some might be doing enrichment\, some might be doing some other small group. So you want to see some kind of model like that.” \nAfter my book talk with Cohen\, I had the opportunity to engage in discussion with four outstanding leaders from national\, state\, and local tutoring programs. Johnny Blount of Literacy Mid-South in Memphis; Sherri Flagg\, Ed.D.\, of Read United at United Way of Central Georgia; Crystal Rountree of Jumpstart for Young Children; and Kelli Soyer of the Iowa Reading Corps and the United Ways of Iowa each shared an overview of how their tutoring program works and the success they have achieved. These leaders also responded to what Cohen shared and asked her questions about her findings in connection to their work on the ground. This led to a robust and insightful conversation that went deeper into implementation\, the role of parents\, recruitment and training for tutors\, and more. Rountree expressed how a key element in the book resonates with her and the work of Jumpstart: \n“And Liz\, I will say one thing that really resonated with me in your book was how it frames tutoring as not just an emergency intervention\, but really as this core learning strategy. And from where I sit with young children who are on the ground with their tutors\, that distinction really does matter a lot. It changes how we design programs\, who we recruit\, and how we measure success. Something that has come up for us is that the work is really relational\, and tutoring works not just because of the academic content but also the caring adult that is working alongside the child.” \nMany more important ideas were discussed by the educators who came together for this GLR Learning Tuesdays webinar\, and we hope you found it informative and engaging. Please review the resources and the recording made available here for more information and plan to join us again next week for more insights on tutoring as a key learning recovery strategy and in all of our future sessions. \n\n\n\n \n\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n If you were able to attend the session\, we would love to hear your feedback! We appreciate your help in filling out the following form as we seek to learn and understand the perspectives\, ideas\, critiques and recommendations that better inform our key audiences. \n \n Share Feedback URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/tutoring-work/ CATEGORIES:Big Bets Working,Upcoming Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Horizons_DC_Program_0638.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260127T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260127T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165632 CREATED:20251217T193228Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260202T154242Z UID:254192-1769526000-1769531400@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:High-Impact Tutoring as a Remedy for Pandemic Lost Learning: LAUSD Settlement DESCRIPTION:As we move forward\, almost six years later\, from the beginning of what we call pandemic learning\, we still have a lot of very important questions to ask as we are here talking about what interventions are still needed and what really works. \n\nModerator Tracie Potts of Eisenhower Institute at Gettysburg College offered this important framing as she launched the January 27\, 2026 GLR Learning Tuesdays webinar\, High-Impact Tutoring as a Remedy for Pandemic Lost Learning: LAUSD Settlement. CGLR also looks forward to exploring this question — especially “what really works?” — throughout 2026 as we review successful implementation tactics for the “Big Bets” strategies that schools\, districts\, and states have implemented over the past 5–6 years. This week’s discussion focused on a very specific situation in California where a group of Black and Latino parents sued the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) in 2020\, claiming inequitable remote learning during the pandemic. In the settlement from this case\, the district agreed to implement three years of high-dosage tutoring\, along with evidence-based teacher development and family engagement\, and a robust set of additional strategies to re-engage chronically absent students and accelerate learning. \nPotts first engaged with three LA-area leaders who were integral to the case: Michelle Vilchez and Walt Rodríguez of Innovate Public Schools who served as the primary advocates and organizers for parents involved in the case\, and Edward (Ned) Hillenbrand of Kirkland & Ellis\, LLP who was one of the lead attorneys for the plaintiffs. Hillenbrand explained that the California Constitution includes explicit protections for public school students\, including the right to a free\, quality education and freedom from discrimination (race\, gender\, religion\, etc.). He explained how these protections enabled the lawsuit and then broke down the details of the case\, the parties involved\, the argument and factual allegations as well as the initial settlement and what it requires of the district. Vilchez and Rodríguez provided additional context about the concerns of parents during the pandemic and their need to find a way to have their voices heard. Vilchez explained: \n\nThe one thing that we have felt is common throughout our work in Los Angeles is that parents will be the first ones to tell you there is something wrong here. There is something not right. And that is a common thread regardless of black or brown or what region or district that they call home. And secondly is that they’re always ready to partner across divisions to be able to find suitable solutions for their children. \n\nIn his detailed review of the settlement\, Hillenbrand explained how experts and research were consulted to determine the outcomes — with tutoring being the leading intervention that parents had been requesting for their children\, which has also been proven effective to support learning recovery and acceleration when implemented effectively. His comments were followed by the insights of expert practitioner\, Sam Olivieri of Step Up Tutoring who provided more information on why tutoring is so important for learning recovery and additional background on the history of tutoring in Los Angeles and her organization’s long-standing partnership with the district. She also shared her anticipation for successful implementation of the case settlement in the coming months. Olivier’s optimism was matched by Adrián Sandoval of GPSN\, also a longtime partner of LAUSD who made it clear that although this case indicated the district provided inequitable distance learning during the pandemic\, district leaders actually put a great deal of effort and investment into implementation of innovations and strategies to support equitable learning recovery and have seen demonstrable gains: \n\nIt’s really important to recognize the gains the district has made since the pandemic. The district has had academic gains across the board\, many of which have outpaced other similar districts across the country\, and they have reached the pre-pandemic academic levels with regards to the outcomes on state testing. So that demonstrates that there has been some effort and some progress with regards to instruction and a path toward recovery. Despite those results\, we still know that the district overall has quite a lot of work to do to continue to improve. But we do want to name that those results that they’ve had thus far are not by accident. They are because of a concerted effort to provide targeted support. \n\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n If you were able to attend the session\, we would love to hear your feedback! We appreciate your help in filling out the following form as we seek to learn and understand the perspectives\, ideas\, critiques and recommendations that better inform our key audiences. \n \n Share Feedback URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/la-settlement/ CATEGORIES:Big Bets Working,Past Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Untitled-design-22-e1758603710120.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260203T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260203T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165632 CREATED:20260106T220626Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260209T235422Z UID:254545-1770130800-1770136200@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:Leveraging The Federal Education Tax Credit: State-Level Decisions That Will Shape Impact DESCRIPTION:My advice for people on the call is to make your voices heard at the state level about whether you like it or you dislike it or where you want them to improve upon it….I think it’s really important that you advocate to your state leaders about your thoughts on the program and how to shape it in a way to best meet the needs of students in your communities. \n– Christopher Duncombe\, Education Commission of the States \n\nChristopher Duncombe of Education Commission of the States offered the above advice during the February 3\, 2026 GLR Learning Tuesdays webinar\, a session that was co-sponsored by Alliance for Youth Thriving. The conversation — part of CGLR’s new series Leveraging the Federal Education Tax Credit: Opportunities and Challenges — explored how the Education Freedom Tax Credit enacted under H.R. 1 could play out at the state level\, highlighting key uncertainties\, tradeoffs\, and decision points facing governors and state leaders who have the choice to opt-in to this program. \nMerita Irby of Alliance for Youth Thriving moderated the discussion and framed the new series as an ongoing space where we hope to better understand the still-evolving tax credit\, and the role it could play in our communities.  \nThe conversation opened with Keri Rodrigues of the National Parents Union\, who grounded the discussion in how parents actually experience and understand these policies. Rodrigues emphasized that broad support for “school choice” often hinges on details\, noting that parents are far more supportive when funds can be used flexibly — including for extended learning opportunities for public school students — than when they are limited to private school tuition alone.  \nWhile clear that this policy is unideal\, she stressed that advocacy helped ensure the final language of H.R. 1 allowed funds to be used for a broader range of services beyond private school tuition alone. Rodrigues encouraged communities to proceed with caution\, closely analyze forthcoming regulations\, and weigh tradeoffs transparently.  \nRodrigues also urged local leaders and advocates to stay engaged\, pointing to community foundations and locally driven scholarship-granting organizations (SGOs) as one way communities could help ensure funds\, if used\, are utilized to meet local needs. \nBuilding on this\, Alexis Steines Rao of the Afterschool Alliance explained that while her organization does not support the policy\, it could nonetheless become a meaningful funding opportunity for afterschool and summer learning programs if states opt in. She highlighted the scale of unmet demand — with 23 million children currently waiting for access to afterschool programs — and stressed the importance of ensuring that any scholarships support comprehensive programs and reach students with the greatest need.  \nAt the same time\, she noted that many providers and funders remain unaware of the policy and that significant questions persist about infrastructure\, eligibility\, and participation\, all of which will depend heavily on forthcoming federal regulations. \nTurning to the state decision-making landscape\, Duncombe shared what Education Commission of the States is hearing from governors and other state leaders as they weigh their options. He noted that most early action has favored opting in\, particularly among states with existing tax credit scholarship programs\, but emphasized deep uncertainty around cost and growth. He also underscored that many states are waiting to decide until Treasury guidance clarifies how much discretion they will have over approving SGOs. \nOffering a contrasting perspective\, Jessica Levin\, Esq.\, of the Education Law Center and Public Funds Public Schools argued that the Education Freedom Tax Credit is fundamentally a federal voucher program whose harms outweigh any potential benefits for public school students. She warned that large\, multistate SGOs with established marketing and infrastructure are likely to capture most contributions\, making it highly unlikely that public schools or inclusive afterschool providers would meaningfully benefit. \nLevin closed the conversation with a reminder about the values that must continue to guide decision-making as states consider their next steps: \n\nWe do have to operate in the world that we’re living in\, but I don’t think we should lose the aspiration of what public education needs to be and should be and what’s already in the law and guaranteed to students\, which is an adequate and equitable public education for everybody. URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/parents-as-curators-the-federal-education-tax-credit-states-facing-opportunities-challenges/ CATEGORIES:Reading & Math,Upcoming Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/CASEYKINETIK2015_Wed01555-e1729489921480.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260210T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260210T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165633 CREATED:20260120T071509Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260318T042154Z UID:254608-1770735600-1770741000@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:Designing for Connection: Powering Parents to Support Learning at Home and School DESCRIPTION: URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/designing-for-connection/ CATEGORIES:Past Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Untitled-design-22-e1758603710120.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260217T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260217T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165633 CREATED:20260127T212148Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260225T165638Z UID:254660-1771340400-1771345800@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:Beating the Odds: Community Bright Spots Where Smart Implementation Drives Student Success DESCRIPTION:This session launched CGLR’s new series Precursors to Success and Impact\, which brings together our efforts to highlight bright spots and “Big Bet” strategies for accelerating learning recovery and advancement\, and zeros in on what it takes to successfully implement proven strategies. This series will focus “less on what to do and more on how to do what must be done; in other words\, how to successfully implement proven strategies.” As I explained in my introduction\, “We want to show that success is not only possible\, it is happening.” This week’s session gave us the chance to take a deep dive into implementation science while also hearing from “bright spot” districts and schools that are beating the odds through smart implementation of key strategies. \nThe discussion began with that deep dive into implementation science\, with Ximena Franco-Jenkins\, Ph.D.\, of the National Implementation Research Network at University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill defining implementation science as “the methods or techniques that we use to enhance the adoption\, implementation\, and sustainability of the evidence-based practice.” Franco-Jenkins shared this idea in a fun graphic showing one’s “plan” for implementation as a straight line next to the reality showing many divots and obstacles\, illustrating the many challenges that educators must get past to establish smooth implementation of an intervention. Franco-Jenkins further elucidated the importance of using implementation science to help address challenges and ensure that evidence-based practices are delivered effectively to students\, stating: \nImplementation science accounts for the challenges and the barriers of this real-world implementation. So we have and use tools and strategies to help mitigate those challenges and implement them with quality and really drive the outcomes. So implementation science is important because it really helps close the gap between what we know works and what actually happens in practice.…Too often strong programs or innovations don’t lead to better outcomes\, but this not because they are ineffective\, but because they aren’t implemented well. So implementation science really helps us accelerate that uptake of evidence-based practices\, supports that consistency and high-quality use across settings\, and helps the organizations or schools replicate\, scale\, and sustain what works over time. \nNext\, I had the opportunity to engage first with a national leader who has insights into implementation practices working for districts across the country and then with leaders from three “bright spot” communities who have been able to implement key “big bet” strategies and see real results for students. Raymond Hart\, Ph.D.\, of the Council of the Great City Schools shared the outcomes he has seen across districts and discussed the critical role of principals and school/district leaders in enabling smart implementation. Then\, Lindsey Blevins of Tuscaloosa City Schools in Alabama talked about how her district has successfully implemented statewide guidance for summer learning\, which she was able to demonstrate by sharing data on student gains. Alicia Sanborn followed with a discussion of the Fresno\, California\, Washington Unified School District’s successful implementation of tutoring in partnership with Ampact’s Reading and Math Corps. She shared how the backing from both district leaders and community partners has supported their effort. Finally\, Matthew Hornbeck of Hampstead Hill Academy in Baltimore\, Maryland\, reviewed his school’s integration of Public Impact’s Opportunity Culture and its commitment to providing teachers with coaching and training in support of continuous improvement in the classroom: \nWe have three full release coaches and those full release coaches have roughly 20 teachers under their wings\, and they meet with them for both support and supervision. You have a goal-setting meeting at the beginning of the year and you’ve got your midyear check-in and your end-of-year evaluation conference or outcomes conference. But it’s really the weekly meetings that they have while they’re in the classrooms every day [that make the difference.] URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/beating-the-odds/ CATEGORIES:Big Bets Working,Learning Tuesdays ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Atlanta_Photos_0678-e1734076561880.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260224T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260224T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165633 CREATED:20260212T205821Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260225T170748Z UID:254833-1771945200-1771950600@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:Children’s Savings Accounts & Emerging Federal Policy: Opportunities & Implications DESCRIPTION:Children’s Savings Accounts (CSAs) are a powerful driver of financial inclusion and long-term economic opportunity for young people as shown in a growing body research and experience over the past few decades. These programs help families build assets early\, cultivate a habit of saving\, and lay the groundwork for greater educational and financial success. In fact\, research shows that a child with as little as $500 in a CSA is several times more likely to enroll in and complete college than a peer with no savings. Over the past several years\, the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading has hosted sessions exploring the research behind these programs and the roles that philanthropy has been playing to foster their growth. With passage of H.R. 1 in 2025 establishing 530A accounts\, also known as Trump Accounts\, there is growing momentum and renewed attention on the critical importance of CSAs\, sparking us to return again to this issue. \n \n REGISTER\n \n \n \n \n \n Join us on February 24\, from 3-4:30 p.m. ET\, to hear from researchers\, practitioners\, and public officials who have been shaping\, implementing\, and studying CSAs across the country. We’ll explore what makes CSAs successful and how states and communities are harnessing their potential to expand opportunity for children growing up in economically challenged families. We will also consider the implications of this new federal program and the potential to align it with existing efforts to further their goals.\nWe hope you will join us for this timely and important conversation as we explore the potential of wealth-building accounts for children and youth. URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/child-savings-accounts/ CATEGORIES:Big Bets Working,Learning Tuesdays ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/AdobeStock_280940198_Preview-e1719348753899.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260303T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260303T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165633 CREATED:20260217T200806Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260225T182141Z UID:254884-1772550000-1772555400@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:More Than an Accessibility Feature: Same Language Subtitling (SLS)\, Learning\, and Literacy DESCRIPTION:What can same-language subtitling (SLS) realistically contribute to children’s literacy — and where are its limits? In this exploratory session\, leaders from research\, media\, technology\, and policy will examine what the strongest evidence supports\, where SLS functions best as a scaffolding strategy\, and what responsible implementation in U.S. children’s media could look like. This conversation will build on a 2022 session which highlighted early efforts to promote SLS in India and the measurable gains in child and adult literacy those efforts were delivering.  \n\n \n REGISTER URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/childrens-savings-accounts-emerging-federal-policy-opportunities-implications/ CATEGORIES:Big Bets Working,Learning Tuesdays ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/AdobeStock_229647792_Preview-e1771881193867.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260310T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260310T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165633 CREATED:20260217T201615Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260223T210823Z UID:254894-1773154800-1773160200@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:Parents as Essential Partners: Beating the Odds and Reducing Chronic Absenteeism DESCRIPTION:Three years ago\, as schools and districts grappled with the fallout from pandemic school closures and persistent chronic absence\, important new research found evidence that schools with strong family engagement were less likely to experience high chronic absence. The qualitative follow-up to that study\, set for release early next month\, reveals the factors that distinguish “bright spot” schools from their peers in the same communities. Join this session for a review of the 2023 study’s findings and a first look at the new report\, which explores the specific family engagement and parent partnership practices and mindsets that move the needle. You’ll also hear critical insights and reactions from CGLR national partners who are leaders in family engagement\, school attendance\, and lifting the essential role of parents as partners in achieving student outcomes.  \n\n \n REGISTER URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/parents-as-essential-partners-beating-the-odds-and-reducing-chronic-absenteeism/ CATEGORIES:Big Bets Working,Learning Tuesdays ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/AdobeStock_368278520_Preview.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260317T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260317T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165633 CREATED:20260217T201254Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260318T041607Z UID:254889-1773759600-1773765000@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:From Pipeline to Practice: Strategies to Build & Sustain a Diverse Teacher Workforce DESCRIPTION:As achievement gaps and evolving classroom needs place unprecedented pressure on our schools\, teacher development has emerged as a “big bet” for accelerating equitable academic recovery. Join CGLR and the William Penn Foundation as we kick off a new sponsored series of sessions examining the systemic challenge that is the teacher workforce pipeline\, moving beyond quick fixes to explore holistic solutions situated across the entire pipeline from initial attraction to long-term retention. Hear how community coalitions have approached this work and align stakeholders to bridge the gap between emergency permitting and full certification\, how grow-your-own programs are building a workforce that reflects the diversity essential for student success\, and how state policy and leadership is informing a sustainable system of educator development. Welcome: Stephanie Waller\, William Penn Foundation.Panelists: Ginny Johnson\, TNTP; Scott Gaiber\, Elevate215; Ginny Johnson\, TNTP; Hannah Putnam\, National Council on Teacher Quality; and Cindy Young\, University of Tennessee.Moderator: Lisa Roy\, Ed.D.\, Colorado Department of Early Childhood. \n\n\n \n\n \n REGISTER URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/from-pipeline-to-practice-strategies-to-build-sustain-a-diverse-teacher-workforce/ CATEGORIES:Big Bets Working,Learning Tuesdays,Upcoming Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/AdobeStock_179210193_Preview-e1738956272377.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260324T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260324T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165633 CREATED:20260317T051314Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260318T050918Z UID:255132-1774364400-1774369800@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:Leveraging the Federal Education Tax Credit: Identifying and Preparing Scholarship Granting Organizations (SGOs) DESCRIPTION:March 24\, 3–4:30 p.m. ET  Identifying and Preparing Scholarship-Granting Organizations (SGOs) Co-Sponsored by Alliance for Youth Thriving  The success of the new federal education tax credit will hinge not only on state policy decisions\, but also on whether strong\, trusted organizations are ready to steward funds responsibly and deliver real opportunities for students. Building on earlier sessions in this series that explored the policy landscape and state implementation choices\, this conversation turns to the organizations that will carry the work forward. Experts across education\, youth development\, philanthropy\, and intermediary networks will examine why scholarship-granting organizations (SGOs) are central to effective implementation and what it takes to prepare for this role — ranging from organizations just beginning to explore what it means to become an SGO to those already operating across multiple states. Participants will also gain a practical look at how one state with several active SGOs is navigating the landscape and what it would take to expand allowable uses of funds to meet broader student and community needs. Panelists: Donna Cooper\, Children First PA; Jackie Guglielmo\, ACE Scholarships; Chris Smith\, Boston After School & Beyond; Mike Taylor\, National Association of Education Foundations; and Brent Wake\, Indiana Afterschool Network.  Moderator: Merita Irby\, Alliance for Youth Thriving. \n \n REGISTER URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/leveraging-the-federal-education-tax-credit-identifying-and-preparing-scholarship-granting-organizations-sgos/ CATEGORIES:Learning Tuesdays,Upcoming Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/iStock-484794658-scaled.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260331T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260331T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165633 CREATED:20260318T043201Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260318T050938Z UID:255145-1774969200-1774974600@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:M Is for Marathon\, Not Miracle: How Mississippi Achieved Literacy Success for Students Through Smart Implementation DESCRIPTION:March 31\, 3–4:30 p.m. ET\nM Is for Marathon\, Not Miracle: How Mississippi Achieved Literacy Success for Students Through Smart Implementation \nEarlier this year\, the New York Times ran a feature on Mississippi and how the state “transformed its schools from worst to best.” The article asks and reveals answers to a very important question — “What is it doing right?” Asking what is going right is also central to the GLR Learning Tuesdays new series\, “Precursors to Success and Impact\,” where we plan to examine “bright spot” communities\, their “big bet” strategies\, and what they are doing right to carefully and intentionally implement key strategies and interventions to achieve measurable outcomes for students. Launched last month\, attendees of the first session had the opportunity to learn about the National Implementation Research Network’s approach to “active implementation” and gained an understanding of the key “drivers” that facilitate and ensure the success of education initiatives. On March 31\, we are excited to review the “Mississippi Marathon” to learn what the state’s Department of Education\, school district leaders\, and educators are doing on a daily basis to achieve success. This incredible growth in the state has mistakenly been termed a “miracle” when it is actually a marathon of carefully executed steps and system changes that we look forward to learning about in this session. \nPanelists: Kelley Bendheim\, ExcelinEd; Kim Benton\, former Mississippi State Superintendent of Education; Adrian Hammitte\, Ph.D.\, Jefferson County School District\, MS; Tyler Hansford\, Ed.D.\, Union Public School District\, MS; Angela Rutherford\, Ph.D.\, School of Education\, University of Mississippi; Gray Tollison\, Mississippi Senate.\nModerator: John Gomperts\, Campaign for Grade-Level Reading. \n \n REGISTER\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n  URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/m-is-for-marathon-not-miracle-how-mississippi-achieved-literacy-success-for-students-through-smart-implementation/ CATEGORIES:Upcoming Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Stock-3-e1773808014628.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260407T123000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260407T140000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165633 CREATED:20260318T044355Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260318T051206Z UID:255149-1775565000-1775570400@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:Out of the Box Ideas: How United Way Partners Are Changing the Lives of ALICE DESCRIPTION:April 7\, 12:30–2 p.m. ET\nOut of the Box Ideas: How United Way Partners Are Changing the Lives of ALICE (Asset Limited\, Income Constrained\, Employed) Families and Communities\nALICE is an acronym for Asset Limited\, Income Constrained\, Employed—describing the growing number of families who are unable to afford the basics of housing\, child care\, food\, transportation\, health care\, and technology. These workers often struggle to keep their own households from financial ruin\, while keeping our local communities running. ALICE has grown from a pilot project to a national initiative. By redefining what it means to be poor\, ALICE data and research is helping to build a more accurate picture of financial insecurity. In this session\, ALICE partners will share the “out of the box” solutions that are igniting action across the country and changing the national dialogue about financial hardship. \nPanelists: Stephanie Hoopes\, Ph.D.\, National Director\, United for ALICE; United Way ALICE Partners\, TBD.\nModerator: John Gomperts\, Campaign for Grade-Level Reading. \n \n REGISTER URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/out-of-the-box-ideas-how-united-way-partners-are-changing-the-lives-of-alice/ CATEGORIES:Upcoming Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/shutterstock_1352058026.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260407T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260407T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T165633 CREATED:20260318T045107Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260318T051252Z UID:255152-1775574000-1775579400@leo.gradelevelreading.net SUMMARY:New Pathways Through School: Understanding Virtual Schools in Today’s K–12 Landscape DESCRIPTION:April 7\, 3–4:30 p.m. ET\nNew Pathways Through School: Understanding Virtual Schools in Today’s K–12 Landscape \nVirtual schools have grown rapidly in recent years\, becoming an increasingly visible part of the expanding set of K–12 learning options available to families. In this GLR Learning Tuesdays conversation\, panelists will provide a clear overview of what virtual schooling is — and is not — including how it differs from homeschooling and microschooling\, the range of models that exist\, and what research tells us about their effectiveness. Speakers will also examine the policies and conditions driving growth in several states and discuss what this evolving landscape means for families\, particularly those in economically challenged communities. \nPanelists: Shiren Rattigan\, Colossal Academy; Mickey Revenaugh\, Connections Academy; John Watson\, DLAC; Julie Young\, Julie Young Education\, LLC; and others TBD. \n \n REGISTER URL:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/event/new-pathways-through-school-understanding-virtual-schools-in-todays-k-12-landscape/ CATEGORIES:Upcoming Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://leo.gradelevelreading.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Stock-6-e1773808043768.jpeg END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR