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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260113T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260113T163000
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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?
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260120T123000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260120T140000
DTSTAMP:20260403T140526
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
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260120T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260120T163000
DTSTAMP:20260403T140526
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
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260127T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260127T163000
DTSTAMP:20260403T140526
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
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260203T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260203T163000
DTSTAMP:20260403T140527
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
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260210T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260210T163000
DTSTAMP:20260403T140527
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
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260217T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260217T163000
DTSTAMP:20260403T140527
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
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260224T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260224T163000
DTSTAMP:20260403T140527
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
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260303T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260303T163000
DTSTAMP:20260403T140527
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
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260310T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260310T163000
DTSTAMP:20260403T140527
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
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260317T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260317T163000
DTSTAMP:20260403T140527
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
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260324T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260324T163000
DTSTAMP:20260403T140527
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
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260331T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260331T163000
DTSTAMP:20260403T140527
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
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260407T123000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260407T140000
DTSTAMP:20260403T140527
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
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260407T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260407T163000
DTSTAMP:20260403T140527
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
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