Warning: This story contains graphic descriptions of child sexual abuse.

Going to high school in Dutchess County, New York, in the 1960s, there was no late bus. For one star athlete at Our Lady of Lourdes High School, that meant regularly hitchhiking the 25 miles between school and home after practice.

It was during those lonely treks, he said, that his new coach and gym teacher, Vincent Dutkowski, would stalk him in his car, offering to give him a ride, trying to coax him back to his apartment. By this point, Dutkowski had already sexually molested him multiple times, he said, grabbing his buttocks and his testicles in pickup basketball games in the school gym, plucking out his pubic hair. A few times, when he was alone with Dutkowski in his office, the coach would pull down his gym shorts and his jock strap and fondle him. 

鈥淚鈥檇 be walking down Market Street in Poughkeepsie and he鈥檇 pull up next to me,鈥� the man, in his 70s, told 社区黑料 in March, asking not to be identified because of the sensitive nature of his story. 鈥淗e called me Irish. 鈥業rish. Get in the car.鈥� And I’m a 17-year-old kid trying to maintain my varsity status, starting status, and he’s the coach. Also he is 鈥� was 鈥� 6鈥�3鈥�, 240 pounds. At the time, I’m barely 6 feet and 160. So he鈥檚 a huge man.鈥�

Once trapped in the car, he said, Dutkowski鈥檚 hands were everywhere, groping his genitals through his clothes and 鈥渢alking all sorts of really filthy sexual talk.鈥� The young athlete started altering his route home, taking different downtown streets so his coach wouldn鈥檛 find him. But sometimes he did. 

The last ride he took, he said, Dutkowski turned left toward his own apartment instead of right toward the bridge and flipped open his coat to expose his penis. The student yelled at the 36-year-old man to stop the car and let him out and he scrambled away. 

After that, he said Dutkowski benched him, even though it was his senior year and he had started every game of his high school career. He was humiliated and couldn鈥檛 understand why no other adult ever asked him what happened. When he tried to quit the basketball team, he said, the coach told him he wasn鈥檛 going to play him but if he stayed, 鈥淚鈥檒l leave you alone and you can pitch (baseball) in the spring time 鈥� and we keep this between the two of us.鈥�

That鈥檚 where it sat for 39 years until the alleged victim, by then a successful lawyer and civil litigator, decided to confront it. He said he deposed himself for two hours on videotape and sent a verified statement to the Archdiocese of New York and Our Lady of Lourdes. It was 2004 and he got a letter back from the archdiocese鈥檚 general counsel telling him the statute of limitations had run out on his complaint. 

It was too late.

An 鈥業nsane鈥� Number of Cases 

In 2019, New York state passed the Child Victims Act, which allowed any living survivor of childhood sexual abuse to bring a civil case during a two-year lookback window and permanently extended the statute of limitations from age 23 to 55 for future civil cases.

That opening resulted in 10,787 cases being filed by 14,592 plaintiffs. Among them is the former Our Lady of Lourdes student, one of at least five who named Coach Dutkowski, a who died in 2012 , as their abuser.  

Elements of the complaints against Dutkowski 鈥� an alleged serial predator who moved among schools, using his power and authority to coerce and silence his victims 鈥� run throughout the Child Victims Act cases. To understand the full scope of the role schools played in those nearly 11,000 lawsuits, 社区黑料 searched all 62 New York counties and combed through thousands of court documents, identifying at least 1,973 complaints that accuse a school, educator or other district personnel.

That means that more than 18% of all the New York state cases 鈥� or nearly 1 in 5 鈥� attest that a child was sexually abused, assaulted or raped by an adult who had access to them through their school. 

In many counties, that share was even higher: In Suffolk County, for example, 36% of all cases involved schools and in the Bronx, nearly 40%. And in Franklin County, on New York鈥檚 far northern border, survivors in an overwhelming 75% of the CVA cases filed accused school employees of abuse.

The numbers from 社区黑料鈥檚 analysis are considerably higher than the 13.4% of cases attributed to K-12 schools in a more narrowly focused review of the New York Child Victims Act cases done by the advocacy organization . They also provide greater context to the frequently cited estimate that 1 in 10 K-12 students will be subject to sexual misconduct by an adult by the time they graduate, according to a and mandated by the No Child Left Behind Act.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 an insane number for one period of time where a window was open,鈥� said Kathryn Robb, director of the Children’s Justice Campaign at the advocacy organization 鈥淎nd how many possibly couldn鈥檛 file after the window had closed.鈥�

Robb, who spent over a decade helping to draft and pass the New York bill, added that because so few survivors ultimately report their abuse, the tally of school-based complaints is likely a significant undercount. But the number who did come forward, she said, 鈥渁llows a justified alarm to be sound[ed] for both the public 鈥� parents, grandparents, people, guardians 鈥� and also our lawmakers and leaders.鈥�

社区黑料’s investigation reveals the sheer magnitude of cases involving New York educators although the vast majority of teachers, administrators and school personnel do not sexually harm the children in their care. At the same time, the cases present a rare level of visibility for the former students whose pain and trauma went unrecognized when they were young.

By delving into scores of cases, 社区黑料 was also able to glean what it is about schools themselves 鈥� their physical structure, their institutional practices, the dynamics among the adults who work there 鈥� that contributes to children being preyed upon, year after year and decade after decade, in a place where they are legally required to be.

The alleged abusers in these cases held an array of roles across all types of schools 鈥� public, private, residential and religious. The accused were classroom and special education teachers, bus drivers, school psychologists, priests, maintenance workers, coaches, principals, school doctors and occupational therapists. Victims ranged from pre-schoolers in a in New York’s Catskill Mountains to on Long Island.

In the most egregious cases, alleged perpetrators assaulted students for decades, amassing hundreds of victims. Multiple teachers were credibly accused of sexual abuse in one school, and then permitted to quietly move on to a new one.  

The abuse detailed in the complaints spanned nearly 70 years, with some reported incidents dating as far back as the 1950s and others as recently as 2018. In many cases, school leaders had reportedly been told of previous or ongoing abuse and turned a blind eye, allowing it to continue unchecked, 社区黑料 found. 

Numerous students alleged their teachers facilitated their abuse by allowing their adult perpetrators to regularly pull them out of class and take them to a private office, empty classroom or other secluded area in the school where they were sexually assaulted. 

Complaint after complaint describes how the physical abuse came after periods of grooming, some that lasted years. This included encouraging students to stay back after school for extra help, offering rides home and finding ways to get enmeshed in young people鈥檚 personal relationships 鈥�  鈥淗e crawled into your life. He got complete trust,鈥� one survivor told 社区黑料 of his alleged abuser.

In extreme cases, the students either babysat for or lived with their abusive teacher or principal.

All the complaints state that the victims suffered lasting harm from what they endured as children. A key underpinning of the Child Victims Act is that those who are subjected to sexual abuse at a young age are often unable to speak of it publicly until well into adulthood and long after the civil statute of limitations would have lapsed. 

鈥淭he number one (pattern) is that they all feel it was their fault. That they feel guilt. That they feel that they caused this. They feel they can鈥檛 trust anyone in authority,鈥� said attorney Cynthia LaFave, who is handling some 470 Child Victims Act cases in partnership with the firm Jeff Anderson & Associates. 鈥淚t has given them so much depression, anxiety. A lot of them now have substance abuse disorders because that鈥檚 their way of escaping it.鈥�

The former Our Lady of Lourdes student, a grandfather of five, passed away in late August without seeing his case resolved. He told 社区黑料 earlier this year that he had yet to share what happened to him in high school with his adult sons and the way he told his wife was to have her watch his self-made deposition. He was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and traced addiction issues he developed in his 40s to his teenage years.

鈥淪omewhere along there, towards the 1990s, I became an alcoholic and that affects your marriage, your kids and my job,” he said. “(The abuse) was the impetus. If I was on the edge of a cliff, genetically or whatever, those events pushed me off to become an alcoholic.鈥�

The New York archdiocese declined to comment on the allegations against Our Lady of Lourdes or Dutkowski. The coach’s accuser did note that the church offered to pay for therapy sessions after he first notified them of his complaint in 2004.

At least have passed similar lookback windows or age limit revival laws for child sexual abuse claims in the last 20 years, including California and West Virginia. But New York, which is now looking to against school-based child sexual abuse, has produced by far the greatest number of cases. Seven years later, the vast majority still await resolution. 

Of the 10,787 CVA cases filed in New York courts, roughly 8,000 had progressed beyond the initial filing as of February 2026. Of those, just under 3,000 had been settled or otherwise disposed of, leaving nearly 63% still pending, according to 社区黑料鈥檚 analysis of public records obtained from the New York State Office of Court Administration. That means victims, who may now be in their 60s or 70s and have waited most of their lives to seek justice, are still waiting.

Marci Hamilton, a University of Pennsylvania professor and Child USA鈥檚 founder, sees great value in the civil cases. They get at not just the alleged perpetrator, she said, but the institutions, like schools, that protect the abuser and their own reputations. That creates an opportunity to change a deep-seated culture of secrecy and self-preservation.

鈥淲hat we’re trying to do with these windows is catch up: catch up to all those victims that were abused and were given no access to justice,” she said. “But the real goal is to make sure it doesn’t happen again, so that we’re not just seeing a wave of thousands of lawsuits, (one) after another.鈥�

鈥榃here鈥檚 the Justice?鈥�

James Marsh is a leading attorney in child sex abuse cases whose clients include survivors of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. His Manhattan-based Marsh Law Firm has represented roughly 1,000 of the Child Victims Act plaintiffs.

鈥淭he fact that there were so many cases in so many different places really illustrates the scope of this problem, both historically and ongoing,鈥� Marsh told 社区黑料, referring specifically to school-based abuse. 鈥淭his is a problem that has not gone away.鈥�

In July, the what it called 鈥渁 national K-12 initiative to crack down on sexual predators in schools,鈥� citing instances where schools failed to investigate credible reports of abuse or allowed accused perpetrators to change roles or transfer schools. The administration, which recently  that investigates sexual abuse claims, said it was targeting 20 districts it suspected of falling short. None are in New York.

The 1,973 CVA cases involving New York schools were spread over 54 counties with the largest number in Manhattan, or New York County, with 345; the Bronx with 256 and Brooklyn, or Kings County, with 227. 

When looking at all the CVA cases, the highest volume can be found in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Nassau counties. Those places also have among the most cases that were still unresolved. Nearly 80% of all complaints that were at one point active in Brooklyn were still pending, as were 79% of those in Manhattan and three-quarters of those in the Bronx, according to 社区黑料鈥檚 analysis.

The exception is Nassau County on Long Island where the courts have cleared more cases than anywhere else in the state, resolving 606 of 681 cases, leaving just 11% still pending. Over 100 of the Child Victims Act cases brought in Nassau name schools.

Attorneys and advocates say the long delays are due to a backlog created by the pandemic, a dearth of judges, battles between defendants and their insurance companies over who is liable for payment and an otherwise overwhelmed court system.

That’s of little comfort to Bob Druger, who first filed his case against the Syracuse City School District in 2019, alleging years of abuse by a counselor and track coach nearly 40 years earlier. Over the past seven years, he said, his case has dragged on, cycling through numerous judges. 

He gave the first part of his own deposition 鈥� a grueling process for many survivors 鈥� two years ago, and is still waiting to complete that critical pre-trial step.

鈥淚鈥檓 so disappointed in the legal system,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hey made these laws to get some kind of justice 鈥� whatever that is 鈥� but where鈥檚 the justice? 

Druger’s case is one of 26 school-based complaints filed under the Child Victims Act in Central New York鈥檚 Onondaga County. Of the 163 total number of cases that had moved forward there by February 2026, 74% remained outstanding. 

Serial Predators and Serially Abusive Schools

Rudy Tremaroli first ran a church- and school-affiliated community center in the 1960s and then moved over to Mount Carmel school where he was given a private office and worked as a janitor and basketball coach. 

Tremaroli is accused of abusing hundreds of children over three decades. Several of the CVA complaints describe him as “one of the most prolific pedophiles in the history of the Archdiocese of New York.” 

Other court documents recount: “In the middle to late 1980s, in an effort to convince a victim that his repeated sexual assaults were appropriate, Tremaroli bragged that he had seen the penises of most of the male students at Our Lady of Mount Carmel School for the past thirty (30) years.”

In his various roles, he would allegedly befriend and groom students who were using the gym before and after school and on weekends, ask them about their interest in girls, isolate them from their peers and sexually assault and abuse them. The abuse ranged from groping and kissing to forcing children to perform oral sex and sodomizing them with a cigar holder, a sports trophy and a screwdriver handle, according to court records. It took place on school and church grounds, at the community center and at Tremaroli鈥檚 home. 

He also forced his victims to pose for naked photos, creating a substantial collection of child pornography, which the complaints allege church officials removed from Tremaroli’s apartment after his death. He was later accused of distributing the images to Mount Carmel鈥檚 principal, James Irwin, who allegedly helped Tremaroli photograph his victims.  In the CVA cases, Irwin is accused of , a second grader in 1991. He was arrested in 2000 in Westchester County and criminally charged with seven felony counts of promoting an obscene sexual performance by a child. He later pleaded guilty, .

allege that both the school and the New York archdiocese were aware of Tremaroli鈥檚 ongoing abuse, yet they did nothing to stop it. The complaints say Tremaroli鈥檚 鈥渞eign of terror鈥� did not end until his death in 1992. Lawyers for Mount Carmel and the archdiocese denied any wrongdoing in their court filings.

The archdiocese declined to comment on the Tremaroli cases for this story. The sprawling entity, which encompasses Manhattan, the Bronx, Staten Island and seven counties north of New York City, in May offered to to settle claims filed by 1,300 survivors under the Child Victims Act.

Accused serial abusers like Tremaroli can be found across all types of schools in the CVA cases.  According to court records, they include:

, a fifth-grade teacher in Erie County鈥檚 Kenmore-Town of Tonawanda Union Free School District, who was named in 35 Child Victim Acts cases, accusing him of sexually abusing dozens of boys from 1962 until 1992. Werner鈥檚 behavior was allegedly so bold that his 11- and 12-year-old victims said they and their classmates had to 鈥渞egularly and repeatedly鈥� watch as he assaulted boys in the classroom. At least one survivor recounted another teacher walking into the room, seeing him being fondled by Werner and walking out. Without the benefit of insurance money, the district paid to settle the cases in 2022, borrowing $10 million of that sum. It acknowledged that the alleged misconduct by Werner, who  at age 91, 鈥渋s reprehensible 鈥� both now and back then.鈥� They said multiple administrators from 30 years ago testified that if they had known about their colleague鈥檚 alleged abuse, they would have acted. A district spokesperson told 社区黑料 no witnesses could identify evidence that the district was notified about Werner鈥檚 alleged misconduct prior to the CVA lawsuits being filed and it was a 鈥渂usiness decision鈥� to settle given the 鈥渆xtreme costs鈥� of facing 35 separate trials. Chris O鈥橞rien, the plaintiffs鈥� attorney, said a former PTA mom gave a sworn deposition where she recounted that the teacher had molested her 11-year-old son and being assured by him that it wouldn鈥檛 happen again. The principal died in 2015, according to The Buffalo News.

 a child psychologist at a New Hyde Park middle and high school on Long Island whose sexual behavior toward students was so blatant that both kids and teachers openly referred to him as 鈥淔esta the Molester.鈥� More than 20 former male students brought cases naming Festa and the Herricks Union Free School District and multiple complaints assert that in 1978, 鈥�79 and 鈥�81, students and parents separately reported sexual abuse and assault by Festa to school administrators, but nothing was done. Festa remained in his job for a dozen years, allegedly abusing multiple students, until his 1993 arrest and indictment in a separate case involving 11 child sex-abuse charges. Festa, who died in 2011, pleaded guilty to three counts of sodomy. The district, which denied any wrongdoing in court filings, declined to comment on the Child Victims Act allegations.  

, a third-grade teacher, was the subject of 44 complaints filed against him in Islip鈥檚 Bay Shore Union Free School District. Bernagozzi is accused of abusing male students in the classroom and when he would take them on outings to baseball games, local beaches and Broadway shows. In February, he was convicted in a separate criminal case of sexually assaulting three former students, with the Suffolk County district attorney as 鈥渙ne of the most prolific serial pedophiles of our time.鈥� In May, the 77-year-old Bernagozzi was sentenced to in prison. As of January 2025, the Bay Shore district had paid out just over $55 million to settle 17 of the CVA cases naming the former longtime teacher. It has since settled an additional 24 cases for an undisclosed amount, according to the plaintiffs鈥� attorneys. A case that went to trial resulted in a $25 million verdict against the district in November 2024. In March 2025, ; his ruling is currently being appealed. 

Bernagozzi is one of a number of predatory teachers accused of leveraging his charisma and connections to garner a reputation among families as 鈥渢he teacher to get,鈥� as one victim, L.J., recently described him to 社区黑料.

L.J., who had Bernagozzi as a teacher in the mid-1980s, requested to be identified only by his initials, saying his children don鈥檛 know what happened to him as a boy. L.J. recalled his initial excitement to learn he鈥檇 be in Bernagozzi鈥檚 third-grade class and 鈥渧ery quickly (being) made the teacher鈥檚 pet.鈥� His seat was at the front of the room 鈥� directly in front of Bernagozzi, sometimes even sitting on his lap 鈥� and he gained special privileges not bestowed on other students.

Swiftly smaller boundary crossings escalated into full-blown sexual abuse, he said, both in the school building and on outings Bernagozzi would plan for L.J. and other boys. He would also put on plays that required the boys in his class to wear tights, and 鈥渄uring lunch break or after school he would put the tights on you,鈥� L.J. said. 鈥淗e kept baby powder with him. So he powdered you up, skin-to-skin, and let his fingers go wherever.鈥� 

After one particularly traumatizing encounter, L.J. said he reported the abuse to his mom, who promptly went to the school to confront both the principal and Bernagozzi. L.J.鈥檚 mom gave a sworn deposition and also testified about those conversations with Bernagozzi and the principal, who is now deceased, brought by another Child Victims Act plaintiff against Bay Shore schools.

After his mother took action, L.J. said the physical abuse stopped immediately, but Bernagozzi was not fired and he had to remain in the man鈥檚 class for the rest of the year. The report also came at a cost: He said Bernagozzi cornered him in a hallway, grabbed him and 鈥減ut the fear of God into me,鈥� asking, 鈥淲hat did you say? Who did you tell?鈥� His doting affection disappeared.

鈥淚 was no longer the fair child I was earlier. I was moved away from his desk. No attention,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t went from having access to a candy drawer and marking your own papers to being completely ignored and isolated.鈥�

L.J.鈥檚 reaction to this shift as a small boy has led to lasting shame and confusion: 鈥淚 almost craved his attention 鈥� all the attention, whether it be the abuse and everything else 鈥� when he shunned me. I would try to rub his back and all this stuff. That fucked me up for a while, just in my own head,鈥� said the now-lawyer, who recalls decades spent self-sabotaging and questioning his worth.

Today, he describes his school鈥檚 action as 鈥渢he exact playbook of what not to do,鈥� saying it facilitated and enabled not only his abuse, but that of dozens of other boys. 

鈥淚 swear to God, I still am getting chills right now, that there were multiple victims after me 鈥� after they knew,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nd then I found out that other people before me had told them, and some teachers or (the) principal had said something. And that, to me, is evil.鈥�

Neither the Bay Shore school district nor its attorney responded to requests for comment. 

Bernagozzi鈥檚 criminal attorney, Steve Politi, told 社区黑料 that his client 鈥渧ehemently denies ever doing anything sexually inappropriate to anyone ever. So that covers anyone who is saying anything from any time period 鈥� That includes males, females, adults, children, everyone. He鈥檚 never done that in his whole life.鈥�

When asked about Bernagozzi鈥檚 recent conviction on five charges, including sodomy and sexual conduct against a child, Politi said 鈥渁n appeal will be starting immediately,鈥� because the trial was 鈥渦nfair.鈥� He said his client was deprived of his right to a fair trial, including 鈥渁 distortion of the evidence and horrific rulings by the court.鈥�

The Child Victims Act cases reveal instances where a single individual, like Bernagozzi, is at the center of the alleged sexual abuse for many years and others where the alleged abusers change over time, but the school remains the constant factor across decades. 

This is especially true of residential schools where the abuse seems endemic to the institutions where it allegedly occurred. 社区黑料 found over 200 CVA cases filed against residential treatment centers and facilities. These plaintiffs, sent there as children by social services, Family Court or their home districts to live and attend school, were highly vulnerable. Many were already traumatized, dealing with various disabilities or mental illnesses, while the adults who worked there had full control over their young lives. 

These cases include:

, founded in 1862 as a boarding school for troubled children, operated a therapeutic residence and a special education school on its New Windsor campus until it was shut down by the state Education Department in 2009. The state found an ongoing host of safety and educational violations that it deemed In 2007, the institution came under fire when two female staffers were arrested on charges of raping two 16-year-old male students.  One of the women pleaded guilty to statutory rape and was sentenced to three months in jail, while the other was convicted of endangering the welfare of a child and sentenced to a year in jail.  While the CVA complaints maintain such alleged acts were part of a decades-long pattern, McQuade鈥檚 then-CEO told a local newspaper he thought it was the .  McQuade has since been named in at least 11 Child Victims Act cases with allegations of sexual abuse involving multiple staffers spanning from the 1960s to the 1990s. 

, founded in 1854 by the De La Salle Christian Brothers as a place for 鈥渙rphaned and abandoned boys,鈥� is named in at least 34 complaints that spanned from 1950 to 2010. The victims, who ranged in age from 8 to 18, were sent to the Albany therapeutic residence and school by the courts as an alternative to juvenile detention or by social service agencies. Their alleged abusers were both male and female and comprised religious and lay staff members, including priests, brothers, counselors, teachers, adult head dorm prefects, a teacher鈥檚 aide and a coach. One became a trustee of the school and another was honored with a memorial service at LaSalle after his death in 2007. The school bills itself as offering 鈥渟pecialized treatment鈥� for families and youth dealing with trauma, including sexual abuse. 

, located on 180 acres in Westchester County, was founded in 1851 as the New York Juvenile Asylum to provide residential care to orphans and 鈥渄elinquents.鈥� It moved to a farm in where a was created to educate its at-risk, all-male population. Children鈥檚 Village is named in at least 52 CVA complaints, spanning from 1965 to 2009. The cases allege ingrained patterns of sexual assault and rape, where younger, weaker boys were preyed upon both by older students and adult staff in a ritual called 鈥減lucking.鈥� Many of the complaints attest that the victims told adult employees 鈥� counselors and teachers, among others 鈥� about the attacks, but that nothing was done. In at least one instance, a victim says he sought protection from an adult, who then started sexually abusing him as well. One lawyer whose client arrived at Children鈥檚 Villagedescribes the abuse he allegedly suffered there as occurring at 鈥渁 stunning scale over a period that amounted to pure torture.鈥�

Neither Children鈥檚 Village nor its attorney nor the lawyer representing McQuade Children鈥檚 Services responded to requests for comment. St. Christopher鈥檚, Inc., which also operated a residential treatment center and school in Westchester, took over McQuade and then filed for bankruptcy in 2024 in the face of . Children鈥檚 Village, which contracts with the Office of Refugee Resettlement , is also now for alleged mistreatment and physical abuse of these young people.

A LaSalle spokesperson pushed back against any assertion that students placed in its residential school were particularly vulnerable to sexual abuse, saying throughout its 172-year history LaSalle 鈥渉as not wavered from its core values and role as a refuge for troubled youth. It has offered care and support to tens of thousands of young people. It is well-known and respected in both local and national circles for its program and treatment of youth suffering from childhood trauma.鈥� 

He said the school did not become aware of any sexual assault allegations against its employees 鈥� including the staffer who went on to become a trustee or the one who had their memorial service at the school 鈥� until the CVA cases were filed many years later. 

Amos Guiora is a law professor at the University of Utah and director of the , which works to criminalize bystanders and enablers of abuse. He argues that in not directly responding to these alleged violations, schools and their employees actively empower those who do harm. 

鈥淚f we don鈥檛 address the ecosystem of enabling, not a damn thing will change,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he teachers know they can get away with it, because they know the school’s prioritization is not the child, but the school. The perpetrator is the indirect beneficiary.鈥�

Hamilton, of UPenn and Child USA, sees far-reaching reverberations when institutions place the adult first. 

鈥淲hen someone is identified, you’re potentially protecting 100 children,鈥� she said. 鈥淪o it’s not just this one important adult, it’s all the children 鈥� in the past, present and future.鈥�

鈥楪rooming is a Process, Not an Act鈥�

In the fall of 1980, a Syracuse University graduate student named Conrad Mainwaring started coaching and counseling students at the local high school, a quick seven-minute drive from campus, according to

There, Mainwaring, a former Olympic track athlete for Antigua and Barbuda, began working with a 17-year-old Nottingham High School senior: Bob Druger, the plaintiff who has spent the last seven years awaiting a resolution to his Child Victims Act case.

As a swimmer and cross country runner, Druger, now 63, remembers his early excitement to work with Mainwaring, who he described as 鈥渧ery well-spoken and fast talking,鈥� with an English accent. Druger was impressed by his Olympic career and purported connections to other acclaimed athletes. If you wanted to be a star, Mainwaring told students, you had to work with him.

Mainwairing quickly “infiltrated” Druger鈥檚 friend group and life, he said, giving him books to read, telling him he was 鈥渘umber one in his squad, you鈥檙e above, you鈥檙e different from other people,鈥� and even attending family dinners at his house, including with his father, who taught biology at Syracuse for 50 years.

鈥淟ooking back at the amount of energy and time he put into me 鈥� I don鈥檛 know how he could do anything else,鈥� Druger said, recognizing the groundwork that was being laid for his abuse.

Quickly, the interactions turned sexual 鈥� both in the counselor鈥檚 office at the high school and back at Mainwaring鈥檚 Syracuse dorm room. The 29-year-old would tell Druger it was all part of his training to build mental fortitude and ultimately help him succeed as an athlete. 

Sometimes, the abuse would occur 鈥渋n the middle of the school day in the office, giving me a blow job and hypnotizing you to make you think it鈥檚 OK,鈥� said Druger. 鈥淢asturbating you or whatever.鈥�

Druger describes the sexual assaults as 鈥渁lmost mechanical.鈥� While Mainwaring was abusing Druger, he鈥檇 talk to him, telling him the acts would 鈥減ush you to uncomfortable situations and the more you can tolerate it mentally, you can use that for your 鈥� sport,鈥� he said.

The manipulation was so powerful that for years, Druger said he didn鈥檛 realize that what happened to him was abuse. Until recently, when he connected with other survivors and identified his experience as assault, he hadn鈥檛 told a soul about it 鈥� not even his wife. Coming to terms with the reality, he said, has meant his 鈥渨hole world is sort of rocked apart.鈥�

And even now, the physical element feels like 鈥渁 tiny part of it.鈥�

鈥淚t was more like emotional, mental, spiritual abuse than anything else,鈥� he said, adding, 鈥淗e just kind of put a spell on you, and made you believe.鈥�

Druger describes his response as 鈥渉ard to understand, unless you’re in it,鈥� yet his story shares a trait seen throughout the roughly 2,000 accounts reviewed by 社区黑料: a potent grooming process.

Authors of one found that grooming behaviors were present in 100% of the 24 school-based abuse cases they examined.

Based on court documents and interviews with dozens of experts, it is more common than not for survivors to take years 鈥� even decades鈥� not just to report abuse, but also to recognize it as such, at least in part because of that calculated and predatory process.

While there is no universally accepted legal definition of grooming 鈥� and federal law doesn鈥檛 designate it as a distinct crime at all 鈥� 20 states have moved to pass laws specifically defining it as the process of manipulating a child in order to gain their trust and sexually abuse them. It is criminalized as a felony in 18 of those states, including Wyoming and Missouri, which passed legislation in March 2026, according to

is not one of them, and doesn鈥檛 currently criminalize or define grooming children, though there are a patchwork of laws that criminalize elements of it, like enticing a child under 17 into a secluded area or car for sexual purposes.

鈥淲hat I see anecdotally with my education cases is a lot of grooming. A lot of stuff that鈥檚 hard for me to prove,鈥� said attorney Kat Thomas, who represents Druger and other survivors. The Child Victims Act didn鈥檛 close any of New York鈥檚 grooming law loopholes, Thomas said. 

Even in states where legislation does exist, it can be challenging to recognize and prosecute it on the ground.

鈥淕rooming is a process, not an act, and it involves behaviors that looked at individually 鈥� like gift-giving, emotional dependency 鈥� 鈥� [are] ambiguous,鈥� said Jessica Schidlow, senior policy analyst and legislative counsel at Enough Abuse.

These behaviors only become legible as grooming once they are looked at in retrospect or as a pattern, she said. And legislation that requires proof of sexual intent, 鈥渕isses the window where intervention could actually prevent abuse. So it鈥檚 really that fine line in the middle that is very difficult to get at,鈥� she added.

Even four decades later, it鈥檚 hard for Druger to parse through exactly what impact Mainwaring had on his life.

鈥淚 always thought I did better because of Conrad鈥� he said, because through his grooming process, Druger got more invested in school.

Now an acclaimed eye surgeon in Syracuse, Druger has degrees in biology, psychology and chemical engineering from Syracuse, as well as an MD and a Ph.D. in molecular biology and biochemistry. He also owns a martial arts gym and 鈥渨ork(s) out like mad.鈥�

鈥淚 just have a million things that I鈥檓 doing, and so you sort of say, 鈥榃ell, that鈥檚 successful.鈥� But, you know, maybe I鈥檓 doing that 鈥斺�� he paused, his voice breaking, as he began to cry. 鈥淪orry. It鈥檚 hard to talk about all of this,鈥� he added, pausing again. 鈥淢aybe I鈥檓 doing that to block out the other shit.鈥�

鈥淓specially this thing,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 just too overwhelming.鈥�

Crossing Boundaries

The grooming process frequently begins with seemingly innocuous conversations or texting that can eventually escalate into physical abuse, said Charol Shakeshaft, distinguished professor emerita at Virginia Commonwealth University and a leading researcher on childhood sexual abuse. Her for the U.S. Department of Education includes the widely cited 1-in-10 students statistic on the incidence of K-12 sexual misconduct.

To stop the practice in schools, it鈥檒l take a combination of thoughtful laws and mandatory institutional policies that define grooming behaviors and require training and reporting, she said. 

Without those, it鈥檚 easy for other adults in the building to dismiss behaviors they might flag as questionable, but not necessarily identifiable as abuse 鈥� a practice numerous advocates, survivors and experts reported as common.

Shakeshaft, who authored , said adults in schools will cross a boundary and, if they鈥檙e not called on it, they鈥檒l normalize their behavior and then cross another boundary and another until they 鈥渆nd up in a physical, sexual relationship with the students.鈥�

鈥淚’m not saying that it’s the fault of the school that people cross boundaries and sexually abuse kids, but what I am saying is that by not doing the supervision, the training, we provide an environment in which abuse can occur,鈥� she added.

This common practice of 鈥渢urning a blind eye鈥� to childhood sexual abuse comes from a number of places, experts told 社区黑料. In some cases, it emanates from a misconception about who typically abuses kids: so many have been taught to fear 鈥渟tranger danger,鈥� that they鈥檙e 鈥渘ot going to ever question the teacher in the next classroom,鈥� said Faith Colson, a survivor advocate who made a delayed report to police seven years ago about the abuse she experienced as an Illinois high school student in the early 2000s.

In others, teachers are fearful that a report could ruin their colleagues’ future and they don鈥檛 feel they have sufficient evidence to risk that. And even when complaints of inappropriate behavior are escalated, schools often choose to handle them internally because they don鈥檛 鈥渨ant the scandal,鈥� said attorney Jeff Herman, whose firm Herman Law has handled some 2,000 Child Victims Act cases. 

鈥淚 don鈥檛 think that the people in my school acted with malice. I don’t think there was a cover-up,鈥� said Colson. 鈥淚 don’t think they wanted me to be abused or (were) actively trying to help him abuse me, but by ignoring those inappropriate behaviors 鈥� by doing nothing, they were communicating to him they would do nothing. And so that emboldened (him).鈥� 

In other cases, however, it appeared the accused teachers acted with complete license, flaunting their sexual abuse of students. One particularly , alleges that three teachers across a middle and high school in Central New York 鈥榮 Oswego County, separately and together, sexually assaulted four girls, ages 12 to 15, between 1967 and 1974. 

On some occasions, one of the accused teachers, James Middaugh, would allegedly assault two of the girls at once, forcing them to both perform oral sex on him then vaginally rape one in the other鈥檚 presence. In two separate incidents, Middaugh and another of the teachers, Jerry Frare, are accused of abusing two of the victims simultaneously in the back of Middaugh鈥檚 car.

Marsh, whose firm represented the women, called it 鈥渙ne of the most shocking cases I think I鈥檝e ever seen.鈥�

Middaugh, Frare and the third accused teacher, Ronald Smith, behaved so carelessly and flagrantly, according to the complaint, that the sexual abuse was essentially an open secret in the Phoenix Central School District. At one point, another teacher approached one of the girls and allegedly said, 鈥淩on Smith said you weren鈥檛 a virgin.鈥� 

Middaugh also once publicly confronted one of the girls 鈥渋n a jealous rage鈥� about 鈥渁nother boy,鈥� according to the court documents, screaming that she was a 鈥渇ucking slut鈥� and a 鈥済oddamn whore.鈥� The complaint says this was observed by another teacher and that other district employees and volunteers knew Middaugh and Frare were meeting the underage girls at a local bar 鈥渢o fraternize outside of school.鈥�

During a long phone interview in June, Frare forcefully denied all the allegations against him, saying, 鈥淭here is not a single thing in that whole report that’s true about me. Every single sentence that my name is in, is untrue.鈥� The first time he read the complaint back in 2020, he said: 鈥淢y lungs collapsed. I lost my breath.鈥�

He confirmed having taught one of the plaintiffs, Janet Russo, and remembered her as a good student, but denied ever having any inappropriate contact with her. 鈥淚 have no idea,鈥� where the allegations came from, he added.

Frare acknowledged having been close friends with Middaugh 鈥� he recalled them going bowling together on snow days and the older teacher being in Frare鈥檚 1983 wedding party 鈥� but said charges that the two simultaneously sexually assaulted students in Middaugh鈥檚 car were 鈥渞idiculously untrue.鈥� He said Middaugh drove a 鈥渓ittle sports car鈥� back then, a two-seater. He laughed and said 鈥渦ntrue鈥� about the assertion that he and Middaugh would socialize with their female students at a local bar. 

Frare, who taught with Middaugh at Dillon Middle School, said he never saw or had any knowledge of him engaging in inappropriate relationships with students, describing him as a 鈥渧ery well-respected鈥� and “charismatic” teacher. He said he did not remember Smith, a music teacher and the band director, at all. The complaint alleges that in 1974, when she was 13, both Smith and Frare sexually abused Janet Russo.

Middaugh, who died , taught in the Phoenix schools for 13 years. Public records obtained by 社区黑料 show he lost his license in January 1994 on 鈥渕oral character鈥� grounds after the New York state Education Department learned that during his time there he 鈥減rovided two 8th grade students with cigarettes and alcohol and had sexual contact with said students which included sexual intercourse and oral sex.鈥�

That same month, Smith鈥檚 license was revoked on the same grounds after the department found that during his 1976-77 school year at Phoenix 鈥渉e engaged in a sexual relationship with a tenth grade student, which included several instances of sexual intercourse and oral sex which occurred on school grounds. Some two years later similar allegations were made by several additional complainants which resulted in Ronald L. Smith鈥檚 resignation from the district effective April 23, 1979.鈥� Smith died in 2025.

Frare, now in his mid-70s and retired after a 30-year teaching career in another district, did not go through the same process, although public records show he voluntarily surrendered his license in February 2025, not long before the Phoenix CVA cases .

In a September phone call, Frare said he agreed to relinquish his license based on 鈥渂ad advice鈥� from an education lawyer. Again denying the abuse allegations, he said he made the choice thinking it would allow him to avoid a legal fight, that it 鈥渨ouldn鈥檛 come to light鈥� and would have no real impact on his life since he stepped away from the classroom years ago.

“I think back now, and I certainly made a mistake in doing that,” he said. “I should have just stood my ground 鈥� like I will have to do now 鈥� and make sure that the truth comes out.”

Attorneys with Marsh Law Firm would not discuss the cases鈥� disposition.

Christopher Byrne, then-interim superintendent of Phoenix Central School District, said in May that while they take all allegations 鈥渧ery seriously,鈥� the district was not able to comment on specific legal cases. 鈥淥ver the years,鈥� he added, 鈥渟chool policies, reporting requirements, employee training, and student protections have evolved significantly, and the district continues to follow all state-mandated child protection and reporting protocols.鈥�

The state Education Department findings on Middaugh and Smith suggest that others in the small, rural district with may well have been aware of the alleged abuse. Colson, the Illinois survivor, wants educators to understand the need to act in those circumstances.

“You have to say something, because you may be the only person that sees it and doing nothing keeps the child trapped,” she said. “They cannot save themselves.鈥�

This is particularly true because perpetrators often target the most vulnerable students with the fewest resources, according to a number of attorneys who represent survivors.

This includes, 鈥渒ids who are poorer, who are on scholarships, who are the youngest in their class, who don鈥檛 live in the same part of town, whose home lives aren鈥檛 stable, etc.,鈥� Daniel Mullkoff, a partner at Wang Hecker, wrote in an email to 社区黑料.  鈥淵oung people who are already fighting to just make their way in the world and get a leg up are the ones who often are subjected to the worst, tragic abuses.鈥� 

Evading Punishment, Time After Time

After graduating from Nottingham High, Druger enrolled as a freshman at Syracuse University, where Mainwaring鈥檚 abuse continued for at least another three years, he said. It didn鈥檛 stop until the coach left Syracuse in 1985 to work in admissions at Colgate University, about 40 miles away.

What Druger didn鈥檛 know at the time was that his schools weren鈥檛 the first places Mainwaring reportedly had gone to abuse boys. Nor would they be close to the last.  

A 2019 ESPN investigation uncovered of Mainwaring鈥檚 abuse across two continents, four states and dozens of years 鈥� though Druger said he鈥檚 since connected with scores more.

鈥淓very place he went, he was found out, kicked out and he would set up shop (at) the next place,鈥� said Druger.

In this way, Druger鈥檚 story embodies another commonality of countless cases of educator sexual abuse: a practice colloquially known as 鈥減assing the trash,鈥� in which the accused adult is allowed to quietly resign or retire before moving onto another school. According to one widely cited estimate, perpetrators on average move to before they are stopped. 

社区黑料 discovered dozens of such cases. According to court records, they include: 

, a band teacher at Stokes Elementary School in Rome, New York, was offered 鈥渞etirement with no criminal charges filed against him,鈥� after an 11-year-old student reported that he sexually abused her in 1989-90, according to A separate filing alleged that Carletta similarly abused other elementary school students while teaching at another school within the same district 15 years before. While Carletta was able to move onto yet another school 鈥� this time a pre-K 鈥� without ever facing accountability, the student was punished and 鈥渇orced to be in a separate self-contained class room,鈥� according to the complaint. When reached by phone in June, Carletta sounded confused at times, saying 鈥渋t鈥檚 a little hard to remember鈥� events from three decades ago. But he adamantly denied all allegations, saying they were 鈥渃ompletely untrue. I have never sexually abused any student.鈥� He also asserted his belief 鈥渢hat entire situation鈥� is 鈥渄ead and buried by now.鈥� In , a school counselor said she interviewed the plaintiff at the time she first came forward about the alleged abuse by Carletta and then, at the district鈥檚 request, five other female students who described the same 鈥渋nappropriate sexual ‘TOUCHING’ and ‘RUBBING'” by the band teacher. She said she took copious notes, which she was directed to hand over to the assistant superintendent. She never saw the notes or the students again, she stated, adding, 鈥淭o my knowledge, no action was taken against Mr. Carletta nor to protect female students from what he was doing to them.鈥� The case was .

alleged they were abused repeatedly in the late 1970s and early 鈥�80s by , who was hired to teach in their elementary school less than a year after being criminally charged and sentenced for sodomizing a student at his previous New York school. When he applied to Tri-Valley Central School District in rural Sullivan County in 1972, Wales was still on criminal probation, according to the complaint, and he asked in writing that the district not contact his employer 鈥� a home builder where he took a job after being forced to leave teaching and where his boss was aware of his arrest record. Tri-Valley apparently honored that request and also did not attempt to contact his former district. Wales was, this time at school, and charged with sexually abusing male students. where he served one year in jail, Wales provided the district attorney with he admitted to sexually abusing over his years at Tri-Valley Elementary School, . The district prevailed in the case, both in the lower court and The appellate court ruled Tri-Valley didn鈥檛 have an obligation to further investigate Wales鈥檚 background when they first hired him because his teaching license was valid and he provided letters of recommendation from his old district. It also found there was not enough evidence to show the district could have foreseen that Wales was a sexual threat to children, notwithstanding community speculation about why he spent so much time alone with young boys outside of school, taking them fishing and having them come to his house. The district did not respond to requests for comment. When reached in July at his Florida home and asked about his child sex abuse convictions and his teaching career, Wales responded, 鈥淭hat鈥檚 very nice, but I鈥檓 91 years old and I鈥檓 not interested.鈥�

, the coach and gym teacher from Our Lady of Lourdes High School, was hired there despite having been charged and convicted of molesting two students at a Wayne, New Jersey, public school three years before, according to court records. He eventually went to prison for while teaching in South Carolina 鈥� decades after allegedly abusing the former player who he benched and other students at Our Lady of Lourdes and Seton Catholic High School in New York in the 1960s and 鈥�70s.

A case involving New York City’s prestigious Dalton School shows not only how an accused abuser can escape accountability, but continue to prosper. A former student at the Manhattan private school that in 1986, when she was 14 years old, she was offered free tuition and housing at the home of the headmaster, Gardner Dunnan. As part of the arrangement, she was supposed to act as the family鈥檚 helper. 

The girl鈥檚 childhood had been difficult, so when this opportunity arose, her family leapt at what seemed like an unrivaled chance to 鈥渇undamentally 鈥� improve (their daughter鈥檚) prospects in life,鈥� according to court records. 

In the fall of her freshman year, without any formal application process, the Brooklyn teen enrolled at Dalton and moved in with the approximately 45-year-old headmaster and his family. At first she was grateful for this setup, which provided 鈥渢he first real stability she experienced in her childhood,鈥� according to records. But this false sense of safety was quickly shattered when Dunnan began sexually assaulting her in September 1986, according to the complaint.

Dunnan sexually abused her on four separate occasions between September and January of the following year, in his apartment and at the family鈥檚 second home in New Jersey, the complaint says. The first time it happened, the girl alleged she was walking from the bathroom back to her room in a towel, just after showering. The headmaster was lying on the couch in the living room and called her over. He pulled her on top of him, removed her towel and began to grope her and 鈥渞ub her naked body.鈥�

The night Dunnan assaulted her for the final time, he allegedly entered the girl鈥檚 darkened bedroom in the Manhattan apartment, climbed on top of her and thrust his genitals against hers through their clothes. It was then that his wife walked past the room. Moments later, the complaint states, Dunnan ran out and the girl heard shouting. Later that night, his wife kicked her out.

The girl moved back in with her father 鈥� nearly two hours away from Dalton 鈥� and after her academics took a hit that spring, transferred to a different high school. In the decades since, she has 鈥渟uffered intense emotional harm,鈥� according to court records, believing the assaults were her own fault and keeping the abuse a secret. 

A decade later, in 1997, Dunnan was forced to resign from Dalton after he had an affair with a  married teacher whom he supervised. The board cited  鈥�,鈥� in pushing him out. The headmaster, meanwhile, chalked up the professional violation to his 鈥渆motional and personal needs.鈥�

Despite the circumstances of his exit, the president of the board of trustees for his work, and he was immediately hired as an advisor to the provost of Columbia University, who was then a Dalton board member. He went on to run The School at Columbia University, a private K-8 school created by the university, according to his . As recently as 2017, Dunnan was working as the academic dean at another New York City private school, Avenues, followed by a one-year stint as a senior advisor at Success Academy Charter Schools. He lists himself as still working as a college admissions consultant. 

鈥淚鈥檓 particularly proud of the fact that almost all of the students I have worked with have found a school that is a perfect fit for them,鈥� he boasts on his profile.

Dunnan, who in court filings, did not respond to requests for comment. The plaintiff settled her case sometime around 2021 for an undisclosed amount. 

A Dalton spokesperson said in a written statement that he was limited in what he could share about specific allegations because of the litigation and out of respect for student privacy. He went on to describe the safeguards now in place.

 鈥淒alton has clear policies and boundary guidelines for appropriate interactions with students, which are published annually in the employee handbook. In addition, we conduct pre-employment screening and ongoing training of all employees,鈥� he said. 鈥淐urrently, at the time of hire, all employees are fingerprinted, and we conduct a background check. Every two years all employees complete a mandated reporter training, and annually they attend boundaries and sexual harassment prevention trainings.鈥�

Many of the incidents of alleged abuse in the CVA complaints occurred before New York state made criminal background checks mandatory for public educators in , but numerous experts and advocates say background checks alone do not go far enough. Since many allegations are handled internally or are never prosecuted, they leave no criminal paper trail. 

A 2010 U.S. Government Accountability Office found four key factors that lead to 鈥減assing the trash,鈥� including performing inadequate background checks and failing to follow up or inquire about 鈥渢roubling information regarding criminal histories鈥� on job applications

The 2015 Every Students Succeeds Act was meant to help combat this practice by including a directive that any K-12 institution receiving federal funding needed to institute safeguarding policies, yet most states have yet to respond, according to research conducted by .

Only have passed legislation to strengthen hiring practices and screen out educators who might be sexual safety risks or to make sure current employees engaged in misconduct are disciplined appropriately. Of those, only 13 states require school administrators to contact former employers to ask about a candidate鈥檚 history.

New York is not one of them. To this day, the state has no law beyond traditional fingerprinting, and employees are not always included in that mandate.

Druger, the former Syracuse student, holds his high school鈥檚 hiring practices 鈥渂latantly responsible for a lot of what happened. It was their job to protect me and they didn鈥檛 鈥� If anyone had done even a half-ass job, I would never have met Conrad, and I wouldn鈥檛 be involved in any of this.鈥�

The Syracuse City School District did not respond to requests for comment. At the time of the 2019 ESPN investigation, of Mainwaring ever having been a staff member or a sanctioned volunteer in the district. Syracuse University told 社区黑料 it could not comment because of the ongoing litigation.  

After decades of being passed from school to school and state to state, Mainwaring was eventually sentenced to in prison in 2024 for abusing young boys decades before at a Massachusetts summer camp. Even then, the criminal conviction was only possible because of a stipulation that stops the clock on the commonwealth鈥檚 statute of limitations if the perpetrator leaves the state.

New York is a Legal Outlier 

While advances in code of conduct policies, criminal background checks and mandated reporting laws have helped to protect some students over the past three decades, 社区黑料鈥檚 reporting found that significant loopholes still remain 鈥� especially in New York. 

In October 2025, Enough Abuse and Prevent Child Abuse America did a of five recommended types of child abuse laws. New York had passed only three: mandating child sexual abuse education in schools; establishing a child sexual abuse task force and requiring student safety poster laws. Missing was employing standard screening tools, beyond a criminal background check, to prevent schools from hiring abusers.

The state is also a significant outlier in that it doesn鈥檛 specifically criminalize educator sexual misconduct. This means that once a student turns 17, the age of consent in New York, it is no longer illegal for their teachers to engage in a sexual relationship with them. This leaves older students, who can remain enrolled in public school up until they鈥檙e 21, unprotected. Many of these students tend to be those with disabilities, leaving young people already at a heightened risk with the fewest protections against abuse, said Terri Miller, president of the advocacy organization S.E.S.A.M.E. 

It also puts the Child Victims Act, which seemingly protects all children until they鈥檙e 18, at odds with the age of consent, meaning, 鈥淵ou have some really murky law and litigating it can get complicated,鈥� according to Helene Weiss, a partner at Marsh Law Firm who represents survivors. 

In comparison, 39 states and D.C. have adopted statutes that specifically criminalize the sexual abuse of children by anyone working in or associated with schools and by people in positions of authority over a student, many beyond the age of consent, according to Enough Abuse. In Massachusetts, where the age of consent is 16, the governor signed into law in  July.

While New York has no such prohibitions on educators, the state does criminalize sexual relationships in so-called vulnerable 鈥渢reatment-provider鈥� contexts, like doctors and patients.

鈥淎 patient, by law, is incapable of consent. 鈥� but that doesn鈥檛 exist with teachers (and students)?鈥� said an incredulous Thomas, Druger鈥檚 attorney. 鈥淟ike what? How the hell? If anything, it鈥檚 even worse.鈥�

The state also on the prevalence of child sexual abuse. And once abuse has been found, educator disciplinary records are particularly challenging to access in New York, unlike in where that information is easily found online.

鈥淲hile you can get the disciplinary records of (N.Y.) podiatrists, hairdressers, lawyers, doctors, you cannot get the disciplinary records of teachers online,鈥� said Marsh. 鈥淭here鈥檚 no place to even look for them 鈥� regarding the professionals that have the most contact with children.鈥�

Further obscuring access to information about many of these cases are the nondisclosure clauses written into some settlement agreements, according to numerous attorneys and survivors who spoke with 社区黑料 about this issue.

鈥淐onfidential settlements are not out of the ordinary, but ones that limit survivors from speaking about their experiences, even with family members, can have a chilling effect,鈥� said Weiss. 鈥淭hey can discourage other survivors from coming forward, shield institutions from accountability and prevent communities from understanding whether misconduct is isolated or systemic.鈥� 

While some attorneys argued that NDAs can help to protect survivors, most interviewed by 社区黑料 pointed to them as yet another tool for silencing victims, one that allows abuse to occur behind a veil of secrecy. Private schools almost universally request these confidentiality agreements when settling CVA cases, multiple attorneys said.

As these cases have worked their way through the courts, critics have raised concerns about, sometimes jeopardizing funding for today鈥檚 students in order to hold accountable teachers from decades ago.

As of October 2024, New York City alone paid over $160 million to settle more than 150 general Child Victims Act cases 鈥� most of them filed against its Department of Education, according to an investigation by the news organization . They found that in some cases, the educators named in suits were still employed and teaching, even as the city paid to settle abuse claims.

Some schools are insured for these types of incidents, but a number of insurance companies have refused to make payments, citing the school鈥檚 negligence or the age of the cases 鈥� a practice and legal experts have criticized. 

In November, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul that allows school districts to issue bonds for up to 30 years 鈥� instead of 15 鈥� to pay for CVA claims, in an attempt to give schools greater flexibility and financial stability.

Advocate Michelle Denault, in Illinois, said critiques around the high costs of settlements are disturbing, noting, 鈥淚t’s one of those things that I really struggle with 鈥� that we’re worried about our wallets instead of fixing our culture.鈥� 

Witnessing decades of past abuse and a steady drumbeat , those close to the issue argue hefty financial consequences may be the only thing capable of forcing change or accountability.

鈥淭he reality in this space is that adults prefer and protect adults, and the need of the adult being accused is always so much more important than the need to make sure they don鈥檛 do it again,鈥� said Hamilton. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 why we have an epidemic of cover-up, not just child sex abuse.鈥�

Disclosure: Amanda Geduld attended Dalton School and graduated in 2011. Her father, Buzzy Geduld, is a former member of Dalton鈥檚 board of trustees and led its investment committee. Their involvement with the school came after former headmaster Gardner Dunnan鈥檚 tenure.

The law created an opportunity for individuals to seek justice from their accused abusers and the institutions that shielded them by temporarily setting aside the statute of limitations that would have otherwise barred their civil complaints.

But the Child Victims Act also opened a much wider window, one that allows for a clearer understanding of how child sexual abuse occurs at a systemic level across many decades. That is what 社区黑料 set out to uncover by combing through the almost 11,000 New York cases that were filed and identifying, examining and analyzing the ones that involved schools.

Here are the top five things we discovered:

Nearly 1 in 5 of the Child Victims Act plaintiffs allege school-based abuse

社区黑料 identified at least 1,973 complaints that accuse a school, educator or other district personnel. That means that more than 18% of all the New York state cases 鈥� or nearly 1 in 5 鈥� attest that a child was sexually abused, assaulted or raped by an adult who had access to them through their school. The numbers from 社区黑料鈥檚 analysis are considerably higher than the 13.4% of cases attributed to K-12 schools in Child USA鈥檚 of New York鈥檚 Child Victims Act. They also provide greater context to the frequently cited estimate that 1 in 10 K-12 students will be subject to sexual misconduct by an adult by the time they graduate. In some New York counties, the percentage was far greater: In Suffolk County, for example, 36% of all cases involved schools and in the Bronx, nearly 40%. And in Franklin County, on New York鈥檚 far northern border, survivors in an overwhelming 75% of the CVA cases filed accused school employees of abuse.

New York leads in the number of cases, and the majority of them remain unresolved

At least have passed similar lookback windows or age limit revival laws for child sexual abuse claims in the last 20 years, but New York has produced by far the greatest number of cases. Seven years later, the vast majority still await resolution. Of the 10,787 CVA cases filed in New York courts, roughly 8,000 had progressed beyond the initial filing as of February 2026. Of those, just under 3,000 had been settled or otherwise disposed of, leaving nearly 63% still pending, according to 社区黑料鈥檚 analysis of public court records. Brooklyn and Manhattan had the biggest backlogs, with nearly 80% of their cases still pending. Nassau County on Long Island had the best track record, clearing 606 of its 681 cases, leaving just 11% still pending. 

Serial abusers and serially abusive schools

社区黑料 was able to identify the patterns that produced some of the most egregious accounts of sexual abuse and alleged predators: namely that victims were resoundingly ignored. Virtually all of the cases involving school-based serial abusers 鈥� teachers or other school staffers accused of sexually assaulting, raping and sodomizing dozens of students across decades 鈥� also included accounts of students and sometimes their parents, telling school principals and others in power about the abuse and nothing being done. In some cases, including that of a Catholic elementary school coach and janitor in the Bronx accused of sexually assaulting hundreds of boys between the mid-1960s and the early 鈥�90s, the abuse appeared to be an open secret in the larger community, as well. 鈥淏esides, he was so loved in the neighborhood, even though everybody knew. Everybody knew in the neighborhood what was going on 鈥� but he was loved by all of the adults,鈥� one plaintiff said in his deposition. Similarly, the hundreds of cases filed against residential treatment centers, where at-risk students live and go to school on the same campus, assert that children confided in multiple adults, including government social workers assigned to their cases, begging in vain for protection from abuse they could not escape.

New York is a legal outlier

A now pending in the New York state Senate would criminalize grooming and predatory misconduct toward a child enrolled in school, but 社区黑料鈥檚 reporting found that significant loopholes still remain in the state with the greatest number of CVA cases. Right now, New York doesn鈥檛 specifically criminalize educator sexual misconduct. This means that once a student turns 17, the age of consent in New York, it is no longer illegal for their teachers to engage in a sexual relationship with them. In comparison, 39 states and D.C. have adopted statutes that specifically criminalize the sexual abuse of children by anyone working in or associated with schools and by people in positions of authority over a student, many beyond the age of consent, according to Enough Abuse. New York also on the prevalence of child sexual abuse. And once abuse has been found, educator disciplinary records are particularly challenging to access in New York, unlike in where that information is easily found online. 鈥淲hile you can get the disciplinary records of (N.Y.) podiatrists, hairdressers, lawyers, doctors, you cannot get the disciplinary records of teachers online,鈥� attorney James Marsh told 社区黑料. 鈥淭here鈥檚 no place to even look for them 鈥� regarding the professionals that have the most contact with children.鈥�

Lasting damage

The Child Victims Act recognizes that those who were sexually abused as children are typically unable to speak about it until well into their adulthood, when the criminal and civil statutes of limitations have already lapsed. The pain and trauma of that early abuse was still very much present in all the survivors that we spoke to for this story. One, assaulted as a third grader and now in his late 40s, told us that the very process of pursuing his CVA case brought back the self-destructive behaviors he thought he had quieted years earlier. He also sends his own children to private school: 鈥淚 distrust school districts.鈥� Another survivor, a grandfather of five who had yet to tell his adult sons what happened to him in high school, said he was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and developed addiction issues in the 1990s: 鈥淚f I was on the edge of a cliff, genetically or whatever, those (abusive) events pushed me off to become an alcoholic.鈥� Bob Druger, an acclaimed Syracuse eye surgeon with multiple other advanced degrees and his own martial arts studio, connects his intense level of professional achievement and constant workouts to his abuse. 鈥淚 just have a million things that I鈥檓 doing, and so you sort of say, 鈥榃ell, that鈥檚 successful.鈥� But, you know, maybe I鈥檓 doing that聽鈥斺�� he paused, his voice breaking, as he began to cry. 鈥淪orry. It鈥檚 hard to talk about all of this. 鈥aybe I鈥檓 doing that to block out the other shit. Especially this thing. It鈥檚 just too overwhelming.鈥�

This was just the latest in a string of disturbing incidents involving this educator that I had witnessed and reported to my bosses throughout the school year, hoping they would investigate and intervene. To my knowledge, nothing was ever done: the educator was protected; the school was protected; the student was not.

My interest in writing an investigative story about school-based sexual misconduct 鈥� and the systems and players that allow it to persist 鈥� was largely born from that experience. New York鈥檚 Child Victims Act opened an avenue to do that deep-dive reporting. First passed in 2019, the law extended both the criminal and civil statutes of limitations for child sex abuse claims moving forward while creating a lookback window for adult survivors to sue their alleged childhood abusers and the institutions that shielded them.

That second chance was seized upon by more than 14,000 plaintiffs who filed nearly 11,000 complaints between 2019 and 2021. We wanted to know the extent to which schools and educators were implicated in those allegations, which went as far back as the 1950s and stretched to as recently as 2018. For me, that meant manually combing through thousands of court records using the New York State Court Electronic Filing system. 

Between January 2024 and May 2026, I searched Child Victims Act cases in all 62 New York counties, asking the filing system to identify those that included the word 鈥渟chool鈥� in the defendant鈥檚 title. I read through those complaints to determine whether it fit our definition of school-based abuse, meaning the alleged perpetrator had access to the child through their role as a school employee.

In a vast number of cases, the alleged assault also occurred on school grounds 鈥� an empty classroom, private office or other secluded area in the building 鈥� but it often carried over to other locations: a teacher’s car, a class outing or an overnight school trip.

Recognizing some cases had been missed in that first attempt, I later asked the AI tool Claude to make a list of all residential treatment centers in New York state either currently operating or that had been operating at some point over the past 75 years. I then searched the court filing system for each of these facilities to see if they had been named in a Child Victims Act case. Once those cases were identified, either my editor, Kathy Moore, or I read through those additional complaints.

After culling out duplicates, I was able to identify at least 1,973 complaints that accuse a school, educator or other district personnel. That means that more than 18% of all the New York state cases 鈥� or nearly 1 in 5 鈥� attest that a child was sexually abused, assaulted or raped by an adult who had access to them through their school. In some counties, that percentage was much higher. 

We were able to create an interactive map showing how all these cases were distributed across New York state, the country鈥檚 fourth most populous and a widely divergent place that encompasses New York City, home to , and Hamilton County in the Adirondack Park, the most in the eastern United States with just 5,000 people. The five counties that comprise NYC accounted for 5,285 CVA cases; Hamilton County had just one.

We also created a searchable database so that readers can examine the scores of school-based complaints and other related court filings on their own.

A further analysis allowed us to break down the school-based cases by type: public, private, residential or religious. Catholic schools played an outsized role in the last category. One of the most painstaking parts of the process involved cases where the accused abuser was a priest, who served roles in both the church and its parish school. We only included such examples if the clergy member was clearly identified as acting in a school-based capacity 鈥� as a teacher, counselor or administrator, for example 鈥�  and primarily had access to the student because of that position. In most of these cases, we also confirmed that the abuse occurred on school 鈥� rather than church 鈥� grounds.

For over 100 of these more convoluted cases, I did a second review and then Moore did a third.

We counted almost all abuse allegations that occurred at residential treatment or private boarding schools where the line between students鈥� living and educational space is fluid and accused abusers often move freely between the two. We did not include cases in those settings where the alleged abuse was solely student on student, though many of the residential treatment complaints assert that children were being simultaneously raped and assaulted both by their peers and the adults on campus charged with protecting them. We did count the cases that also implicated adults.

The narratives in all the Child Victims Act complaints are disturbing, but reading through nearly 2,000 of them gave me visibility into the victims鈥� pain and trauma. It also allowed me to detect patterns that underscore alleged school-based abuse: adults who dismiss or ignore complaints, enabling the worst serial predators to abuse children for decades; the institutional set-up that seemingly turns some schools into breeding grounds, meaning the adults and the students change, but the abusive behavior does not; and the instinct to protect the adult鈥檚 career and the school鈥檚 reputation over the child鈥檚 safety. 

This tendency allowed accused abusers to quietly resign rather than be held accountable, the complaints charge. Many of them moved on to new schools, only to repeat the alleged predatory pattern. 

We made extensive efforts to reach out to every school, district and living person named in our story at least twice, by phone and email, when contact information was available. In cases where this wasn鈥檛 possible, we attempted to locate individuals through personal websites, their former employers, LinkedIn, LexisNexis and other people search engines. We also used the court records to identify attorneys for each defendant we name in the story and reached out to them at least twice, by phone and by email, with a detailed list of our findings. 

For cases where we did not successfully make contact, or where the individual is deceased, we noted that in the story. For some alleged perpetrators, I filed public records requests with the state Education Department for their licensure information, discipline records and retirement payouts. For one, I traveled to Central New York to question him about the allegations in person. I tracked down and spoke to another, a 91-year-old retiree criminally convicted of child sex abuse in two separate New York public school districts, now living in Florida. 

I interviewed over three dozen advocates, attorneys, professors and survivors across the state and country. Finding CVA plaintiffs in school-based abuse complaints who were willing to be part of this story was challenging. Victims carry heavy shame 鈥� two of the survivors in our story have yet to tell their own children what happened to them 鈥� and they run the risk of possibly harming their ongoing legal fight or endangering their financial settlement, many of which have confidentiality or nondisclosure agreements attached. 

The identities of all anonymous survivors quoted in our story are known to me and my editor, and all of their legal cases were reviewed.

For a majority of these plaintiffs, there is no end in sight to their civil cases. The law was meant to give victims, who were dismissed or silenced as children, another chance at justice, but five years after the lookback window closed, that promise remains unfilled. Public record requests I filed with the New York State Office of Court Administration asking for the total number of cases filed by county and their disposition allowed us to reveal for the first time that nearly 63% of all the Child Victims Act cases that moved beyond the initial filing were still pending as of February 2026. In some counties, 75% to 80% or more remained unresolved.

New York is one of at least 30 states that have enacted lookback windows or age limit revivals laws, but it has by far produced the greatest number of cases. I wanted to determine if there are particular elements to New York鈥檚 laws that have led to such high levels of sex abuse accusations against educators. I waded through statutes to determine the patchwork of prevention and enforcement regulations that exists in different states around sexual abuse in schools. It turns out that New York鈥檚 fall short by several measures, including a failure to recognize how child victims are groomed by their abusers or to protect students once they reach age 17.

A now pending in the state Senate would criminalize grooming and predatory misconduct toward a child enrolled in school. In first-degree cases, school-based abusers would be added to the sex offender registry. Schools would be required to train staff on grooming and update their mandatory reporter training for sex abuse offenses. And it would strengthen background screenings for prospective hires, requiring schools to review employment history.

Many thanks to the attorneys, advocates and experts who spent countless hours helping me to understand this complex and ongoing issue. My deepest gratitude goes to the survivors who trusted me and 社区黑料 with their stories and encouraged us to share them in the hopes they will make schools 鈥� and the young people in them 鈥� safer from sexual abuse than they were.

Two decades after Hurricane Katrina, the legacy of New Orleans鈥� radical education experiment is still contested. Was it a success? The final episode of Where the Schools Went grapples with this question head on.

Doug Harris, chair of Tulane University鈥檚 Department of Economics and founding director of the Education Research Alliance for New Orleans, has led the team studying the city鈥檚 schools for years. Their findings show both real progress and persistent gaps: higher graduation rates, more students going to college, stronger test scores, but uneven results and questions about whether the momentum can last. 

We talk with Doug about how to make sense of this data and what lessons other cities might take from it:

But of course, data can only go so far. In the second half of this episode, we return to voices you鈥檝e heard from throughout Where the Schools Went to test those findings. 

Chris Stewart reflects on how New Orleans became the center of a national fight over education policy, with critics and champions battling on social media and in statehouses over whether the 鈥渟ystem of schools鈥� model would spread. 

Former principal and school founder Alexina Medley, who led a school both before and after Katrina, describes her pride in how far the city has come, but also cautions that the impact of COVID means it now faces a new crossroads. 

Dana Peterson, CEO of New Schools for New Orleans, calls accountability the city鈥檚 greatest legacy while cautioning that progress should not be mistaken for success. 

And John White, the former state superintendent, argues that the deepest lesson is about the importance of coherence and its ability to empower educators, hold them to clear standards, and resource schools fairly.

Finally, I share some of my own reflections. As a veteran of the education wars who left school leadership burned out, I found that reporting for this series helped me to reconnect with the purpose of schools and the people who run them. This story, and the city of New Orleans more broadly, offers a lesson not only in how to build better schools, but also in how to practice a better kind of politics.

Listen to the final episode above. 

Where the Schools Went is a five-part podcast series from The Branch, produced in partnership with 社区黑料 and MeidasTouch. Listen at or .

After Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans dismantled its public school system in a way no other American city had tried. Neighborhood zones disappeared. The elected school board was stripped of most authority. What emerged was a patchwork of independent charters with near-total autonomy. In the early years, there was energy and innovation, but also chaos. Families had to navigate dozens of separate enrollment processes. Students with disabilities could be turned away or underserved. Discipline practices meant that the city鈥檚 schools were ranked among the highest in the nation in suspensions and expulsion rates.

Over time, a new approach began to take shape. Leaders in the state-run Recovery School District started to ask which parts of a school system truly needed central oversight. Guided by principles of equity, accountability, and parent choice, they began to stitch together a more coherent structure. OneApp, a single citywide enrollment process, replaced the maze of school-by-school applications. A centralized expulsion system curbed abusive discipline practices.

Perhaps the most significant change came in special education. After a lawsuit from the Southern Poverty Law Center, the city overhauled how it identified and served students with disabilities. Funding was restructured so schools taking on the highest-need students received more resources. That shift made programs like Opportunities Academy possible, a groundbreaking school for young adults with intellectual disabilities that combines life skills classes with student-run businesses.

By the late 2010s, New Orleans had built a system that left most day-to-day decisions to schools but took a firm hand where fairness and access were at stake. Enrollment became more transparent. Suspension and expulsion rates dropped. Special education services improved dramatically.

In this episode of Where the Schools Went, we hear from the architects of these changes and the educators who made them work. Their story is not one of rebuilding the old district, but rather deciding which levers to pull, which to leave alone, and how to make the few things a system must do work uncommonly well.

Listen to episode four above, and watch for the final chapter debuting Sep. 9. 

Where the Schools Went is a five-part podcast series from The Branch, produced in partnership with 社区黑料 and MeidasTouch. Listen at or .

Before Hurricane Katrina, teaching in New Orleans was more than a job. It was a pathway to the middle class; a profession led by veteran Black educators with deep roots in the city and protected by one of the South鈥檚 most powerful teachers鈥� unions. The United Teachers of New Orleans had fought for higher pay, stronger benefits, and job security. But those protections also made it hard to remove ineffective teachers and left principals with little control over who worked in their buildings.

After the storm, the entire teaching force was dismissed. More than 7,000 educators lost their jobs in a single stroke, many learning the news from the evening broadcast. 

The layoffs wiped out decades of experience and dealt a heavy blow to the city鈥檚 Black middle class. Some of those educators came back, determined to reopen their schools under extraordinary conditions. At Warren Easton Charter High School, staff taught on the second and third floors while the first floor remained under water. Still, the majority of dismissed educators never taught in the city again.

Into the gap came a wave of new recruits, many in their twenties, many white, and often from outside Louisiana. Programs like Teach For America promised energy and results. Principals could now hire quickly, replace teachers just as fast, and push for immediate improvement. 

Some schools thrived under the new flexibility. Others struggled with constant turnover and cultural gaps between teachers and the communities they served.

Today, the city鈥檚 teaching force is more diverse and more local than it was in the years after the storm. Yet a new challenge looms: how to attract and keep enough teachers willing to do the hard, often unglamorous work of helping students succeed. In the third episode of Where the Schools Went, you will hear from veteran educators, school leaders, and newcomers about how the city rebuilt its classrooms, what was gained, what was lost, and why the question of who teaches still shapes the future of its schools.

Listen to episode three above, and watch for the next chapter debuting Sep. 2. 

Where the Schools Went is a five-part podcast series from The Branch, produced in partnership with 社区黑料 and MeidasTouch. Listen at or .

After Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans faced two urgent questions: Which schools would be rebuilt, and who would run them? In the Ninth Ward, few fights were as big as the one over George Washington Carver High School, a community anchor with deep history and proud traditions.

When the state chose Collegiate Academies, a high-performing charter network led mostly by people from outside of the city, the pushback was swift. Alumni rallied. Students staged a walkout during Collegiate Carver鈥檚 first year. The arguments weren鈥檛 primarily about academics, but about who gets to shape the future of a place like Carver, and whether a model built for results could ever feel like home to the people who had kept the school鈥檚 spirit alive. 

For many, the fight over Carver came to represent a larger fight over what kind of New Orleans would rise after the flood.

In time, the picture shifted. 

In this episode, you鈥檒l hear from alumni, educators, and advocates about what can happen when people who once saw each other as opponents realize they鈥檙e fighting for the same thing. As Carver began pairing academic gains with a return to the traditions that had long defined the Green and Orange, something beautiful began to grow. 鈥淓pisode Two: The Battle for Carver鈥� traces that bumpy path and draws lessons that extend far beyond one school.

Listen to episode two above, and watch for the next chapter debuting on Aug. 26.聽

Where the Schools Went is a five-part podcast series from The Branch, produced in partnership with 社区黑料 and MeidasTouch. Listen at or .

When Hurricane Katrina made landfall in New Orleans in August 2005, it destroyed homes and flooded neighborhoods. Eighty percent of the city was submerged, 1,800 people were killed, and hundreds of thousands of people were displaced. It also upended a public school system already collapsing under the weight of decades of failure. 

In the years that followed, the system was not just rebuilt; it was radically reimagined.

The debut installment of revisits the years leading up to the storm and the questions New Orleans was already grappling with. Crumbling buildings, failing academics, and deep corruption had eroded trust with the public 鈥� so much so that the FBI had even set up shop inside the school district鈥檚 central office. The below episode explores the question: What happens when a public institution fails the people it was built to serve? 

And what should come next?

We hear the story from the people who lived it, like former school district employee Ken Ducote, who used code names and classic cars to pass documents to the FBI. We learn about the students who had to leave school to use the bathroom at Taco Bell, because the ones in their building were constantly broken. And we meet the valedictorian who was barred from graduating after failing the math exit exam 鈥� for the fifth time.

In episode one, we talk about what loss really meant after the storm and the rituals and routines that helped bind communities together. We hear from a child who couldn鈥檛 find his mother for more than a month, a teacher who sheltered with her family in a room in a church basement and the students who, even in new classrooms in new cities, hid under desks every time it rained.

But this isn鈥檛 just a story about what was lost or broken. It鈥檚 about what people built in the aftermath. Just days after the storm, a team of New Orleans educators reunited with their students in Houston, many of them living in the Astrodome, and opened a school for them. This new campus quickly grew into a community for kids who had lost nearly everything in their lives.

The episode doesn鈥檛 settle the debate about what came next. But it begins to unpack the competing beliefs surrounding New Orleans鈥� post-Katrina school reforms. Some hail the transformation as miraculous, a turnaround that turned one of the nation鈥檚 worst-performing districts into a national model. Others view it as a betrayal: a dismantling of community control, the displacement of Black educators, and the erasure of local identity. This episode is the first of five chapters that will help you decide which, if any, of those narratives is correct.

Listen to episode one above, and watch for episode two debuting on Aug. 19. 

Where the Schools Went is a five-part podcast series from The Branch, produced in partnership with 社区黑料 and MeidasTouch. Listen at or .

Mary Koslap-Petraco, a pediatric nurse practitioner who exclusively treats underserved children, said when she heard the news Thursday morning she was immediately filled with 鈥渁bsolute dread.鈥�

鈥淚 have been following him for years,鈥� she told 社区黑料. 鈥淚鈥檝e read what he has written. I鈥檝e heard what he has said. I know he has made a fortune with his anti-vax stance.鈥�

She is primarily concerned that his rhetoric might 鈥渟care the daylights out of people so that they don鈥檛 want to vaccinate their children.鈥� She also fears he could move to defund a program under the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that provides vaccines to kids who lack health insurance or otherwise wouldn鈥檛 be able to afford them. While the program is federally mandated by Congress, moves to drain its funding could essentially render it useless.

Koslap-Petraco鈥檚 practice in Massapequa Park, New York relies heavily on the program to vaccinate pediatric patients, she said. If it were to disappear, she asked, 鈥淗ow am I supposed to take care of poor children? Are they supposed to just die or get sick because their parents don’t have the funds to get the vaccines for them?鈥� 

And, if the government-run program were to stop paying for vaccines, she said she鈥檚 terrified private insurance companies might follow suit. 

Vaccines for Children is 鈥渢he backbone of pediatric vaccine infrastructure in the country,鈥� said Richard Hughes IV, former vice president of public policy at Moderna and a George Washington University law professor who teaches a course on vaccine law.

Kennedy will also have immense power over Medicaid, which covers low-income populations and provides billions of dollars to schools annually for physical, mental and behavioral health services for eligible students.

If Kennedy moves to weaken programs at HHS, which experts expect him to do, through across-the-board cuts in public health funding that trickle down to immunization programs or more targeted attacks, low-income and minority school-aged kids will be disproportionately impacted, Hughes said. 

鈥淚 just absolutely, fundamentally, confidently believe that we will see deaths,鈥� he added.

Anticipating chaos and instability

Following a contentious seven hours of grilling across two confirmation hearings, Democratic senators Kennedy鈥檚 confirmation on the floor late into the night Wednesday. The following morning, all 45 Democrats and both Independents voted in opposition and all but one Republican 鈥� childhood polio survivor Mitch McConnell of Kentucky 鈥� lined up behind President Donald Trump鈥檚 pick.

James Hodge, a public health law expert at Arizona State University鈥檚 Sandra Day O鈥機onnor College of Law, said that while it was good to see senators across the political spectrum asking tough questions and Kennedy offering up some concessions on vaccine-related policies and initiatives, he鈥檚 skeptical these will stick.

鈥淲hatever you’ve seen him do for the last 25 to 30 years is a much, much greater predictor than what you saw him do during two or three days of Senate confirmation proceedings,鈥� Hodge said. 鈥淓rgo, be concerned significantly about the future of vaccines, vaccine exemptions, [and] how we鈥檙e going to fund these things.鈥�

Hodge also said he doesn鈥檛 trust how Kennedy will respond to the consequences of a dropoff in childhood vaccines, pointing to the current in West Texas schools.

鈥淭he simple reality is he may plant misinformation or mis-messaging,鈥� he said.

During his confirmation hearings, Kennedy tried to distance himself from his past anti-vaccination sentiments stating, 鈥淣ews reports have claimed that I am anti-vaccine or anti-industry. I am neither. I am pro-safety 鈥� I believe that vaccines played a critical role in health care. All of my kids are vaccinated.鈥�

He was confirmed as Linda McMahon, Trump鈥檚 nominee to head the Department of Education, was sitting down for her first day of hearings. At one point that morning, McMahon signaled to possibly shifting enforcement to HHS of the 鈥� a federal law dating back to 1975 that mandates a free, appropriate public education for the with disabilities 鈥� if Trump were to succeed in shutting down the education department.

This would effectively put IDEA鈥檚 under Kennedy鈥檚 purview, further linking the education and public health care systems.

In a post on the social media site BlueSky, Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, she is 鈥渃oncerned that anyone is willing to move IDEA services for kids with disabilities into HHS, under a secretary who questions science.鈥�

Keri Rodrigues, president of the National Parents Union and a parent of a child with ADHD and autism, told 社区黑料 the idea was 鈥渁bsolutely absurd鈥� and would cause chaos and instability. 

Kennedy鈥檚 history of falsely asserting a link between childhood vaccines and autism 鈥� a disability included under IDEA coverage 鈥� is particularly concerning to experts in this light.

鈥淵ou obviously have a contingent of kids who are beneficiaries of IDEA that are navigating autism spectrum disorder,鈥� said Hughes, 鈥淐ould [we] potentially see some sort of policy activity and rhetoric around that? Potentially.鈥�

Vaccines 鈥� and therefore HHS 鈥� are inextricably linked to schools. Currently, all 50 states have vaccine requirements for children entering child care and schools. But Kennedy, who now has control of an agency with a $1.7 trillion budget and 90,000 employees spread across 13 agencies, could pull multiple levers to roll back requirements, enforcements and funding, according to 社区黑料鈥檚 previous reporting. And Trump has signaled an interest in that mandate vaccines.

鈥淭here’s a certain percentage of the population that is focused on removing school entry requirements,鈥� said Northe Saunders, executive director of the pro-vaccine SAFE Communities Coalition. 鈥淭hey are loud, and they are organized and they are well funded by groups just like RFK Jr.鈥檚 .鈥�

Kennedy will also have the ability to influence the makeup of the committees that approve vaccines and add them to the federal vaccine schedule, which state legislators rely on to determine their school policies. Hodge said one of these committees is already being 鈥渞e-organized and re-thought as we speak.鈥�

鈥淲ith him now in place, just expect that committee to start really changing its members, its tone, the demeanor, the forcefulness of which it’s suggesting vaccines,鈥� he added.

Hughes, the law professor, said he is preparing for mass staffing changes throughout the agency, mirroring what鈥檚 already happened across in Trump鈥檚 first weeks in office. He predicts this will include Kennedy possibly asking for the resignations 鈥渙f all scientific leaders with HHS.鈥� 

Kennedy appeared to confirm that he was eyeing staffing cuts Thursday night during on Fox News鈥檚 鈥淭he Ingraham Angle.鈥�

鈥淚 have a list in my head 鈥� if you鈥檝e been involved in good science, you have got nothing to worry about,鈥� Kennedy said.

The world is a messy place. Most of us figure this out by the time we hit adulthood: However compelling our convictions, however good our intentions, humans are constantly tripping into one another. What looks like virtuous, upstanding behavior through our eyes 鈥� always looks different to others. Worse yet, sometimes the Good Thing to Do in a moment can be all but impossible to discern. Do you tell the truth now, even if that causes your friend pain? Do you tell them later, even if your delay hurts many more people? Do you turn to violence to stop the violence of others 鈥� and if so, how much?聽

Pretty much every moral tradition is clear that harm to children is among the gravest misdeeds. This isn鈥檛 complicated. Children merit unique protective cushions because of their enormous potential. How they develop now will shape their 鈥� and our 鈥� future. Further, children cannot deserve harm. They鈥檙e morally blameless 鈥� . As messy as the world is, it鈥檚 obvious that adults shouldn鈥檛 hurt children. Further, systems that are somehow violating this 鈥� bombing them, shooting them, starving them, injuring them 鈥� are also fundamentally wrong. There are no legitimate excuses. End of discussion. 

Hold that close to your heart as you reflect on the Trump administration鈥檚 recent decision to open K鈥�12 campuses to armed enforcement actions. For 14 years, the U.S. federal government had recommended that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents should steer clear of 鈥溾�� like schools, but also churches, hospitals and other community centers. Immediately after taking power, , opening schools across the country to immigration raids. 

To understand the behind this change, it鈥檚 worth understanding why officials ever avoided conducting enforcement at these locations. It鈥檚 not that federal leaders were reluctant to carry out U.S. laws, rather, it鈥檚 that they wanted to separate the potentially dangerous, complex work of immigration enforcement activity from disrupting children鈥檚 daily lives. 

As , 鈥淲e can accomplish our law enforcement mission without denying individuals access to needed medical care, children access to their schools, the displaced access to food and shelter, people of faith access to their places of worship, and more. Adherence to this principle is a bedrock of our stature as public servants.鈥�

Again: Protecting kids is a paramount moral concern. And in 2025, it鈥檚 clear that U.S. adults have collectively failed in that task. Today鈥檚 K鈥�12 students have weathered the academic and social strains of a deadly global pandemic. They attend school in an era when campus shootings are regularly in the news and natural disasters amplified by climate change have decimated their communities and shuttered their classrooms in places like , and . They’ve watched violent assaults on representative government being not just normalized as part of U.S. politics 鈥� but excused and even celebrated by the leaders of one of our major political parties. Is it any wonder that children鈥檚 mental health ?

The kids are not all right. This is a terrible moment to introduce more uncertainty and instability into their lives. At least one major district is pushing back. Denver Public Schools this week to keep ICE agents out of schools, with the school board president noting, “Scared children can鈥檛 learn.”

Obviously, the Trump administration鈥檚 new ICE-in-Your- Classrooms policy could be stressful for children of immigrants, who are uniquely sensitive to the possible consequences of these raids. Research has that increased immigration enforcement activity around children of immigrants . In the weeks since Trump鈥檚 order, , regardless of the specific state of their family鈥檚 documentation, . 

And yet, this new policy affects all children. , 鈥淭his administration is breaking with the idea that schools should be an accepting and reassuring space for young people.鈥� Children don鈥檛 have to have an immigrant parent to struggle with this moment. It鈥檚 hard to imagine how armed law enforcement activity on campus could help them feel safer or help them learn more, especially as the most recent round of math and reading scores have confirmed that the country鈥檚 students are falling further off pace, academically speaking. 

Of course, that鈥檚 perhaps the point. The new administration鈥檚 K鈥�12 education plans are thin (at best) when it comes to proposals for improving how schools support children鈥檚 academic achievement. , Trump and his deputies are and . 

This won鈥檛 make communities safer or improve kids鈥� academic performance. Research , shows that are major to their . It also has found that culturally and linguistically diverse kids are some of U.S. schools鈥� best students, whose presence appears to academic achievement . 

If this debate still seems complicated: remember that the world鈥檚 messy. U.S. immigration laws, , should be enforced. Meanwhile, our kids 鈥� currently overcoming generationally awful obstacles 鈥� deserve to feel safe and secure enough to focus on learning. 

But anyone who reflects on those two public priorities and concludes that children鈥檚 well-being is of secondary importance is betraying the depravity of their moral compass. They are showing that they do not, however much they protest, understand what it means to put students first. 

Conor P. Williams is a senior fellow at the Century Foundation, a Founding Partner at the Children鈥檚 Equity Project, and a father to three public school students. These views are his alone and do not reflect his employers or any organizations with which he may be affiliated. 

A quarter of the 13-18 year olds in the study used devices for two hours each school day, which lasts around seven hours. The averages outnumber minutes allotted for lunch and period breaks combined, showing youth are distracted by phones throughout huge chunks of class time. 

, is the first to accurately paint a picture of adolescent phone behavior by using a third party app to monitor usage over four months in 2023. Previous studies have relied on parent surveys or self-reported estimates.聽

鈥淭hat鈥檚 pretty alarming 鈥� It’s too much, not only because of the missed learning opportunity in the classroom,鈥� said researcher Lauren Hale, sleep expert and professor at Stony Brook鈥檚 Renaissance School of Medicine. 

鈥淭hey’re missing out on real life social interaction with peers, which is just as valuable for growth during a critical period of one’s life,鈥� she told 社区黑料. 

Hale and the other researchers鈥� early findings come from 117 teens for which they had school data, just one slice of a pool from over 300 participants, which will be analyzed and used to consider how phone usage impacts sleep, obesity, depression and other outcomes. 

Teens most often used messaging, Instagram and video streaming platforms. While most spent about 26 minutes on Instagram, in one extreme case, a student was on the app for 269 minutes 鈥� nearly 5 hours 鈥� during the school day.

Data reveal particular groups of students are using their phones more than their peers: Girls and older kids, aged 16 to 18, spent a half hour above the average 1.5 hours; and Latino and multiracial students spent on average 15 minutes above average. 

Additionally, though researchers cannot hypothesize as to why based on the descriptive data, kids who have one or more parents with a college degree used smartphones less during the school day. 

The findings are particularly concerning given young people missed key social years with peers during the pandemic, the impact of which is felt in ways big and small, like being hesitant to work with peers in groups.

Teachers in contact with Hale since research went public in early February say of the 1.5 hour average, 鈥渢hat鈥檚 too low an estimate. They think we underestimated.鈥�

is among several districts with plans to institute a cellphone ban, though such bans are inconsistently implemented and new research from the UK suggests bans alone .

鈥淭hese results are consistent, supportive evidence of anecdotal stories from across the country about kids missing out on learning and social opportunities. [They] can help justify efforts to provide a coherent smartphone policy for schools,鈥� said Hale, adding that such policy should not be left up to individual teachers to enforce.

It was October 2022 when Los Angeles schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho made a false assurance about a massive ransomware attack on the country鈥檚 second-largest school district 鈥� and the leak of thousands of highly sensitive student mental health records 鈥� that set me off.

Published reports that the breach exposed students鈥� psychological evaluations, Carvalho said, were 鈥渁bsolutely incorrect.鈥� The dark web proved otherwise: On a shady corner of the internet, I revealed, hackers used the detailed, very confidential records about Los Angeles children as leverage in a sick ploy for money. After my story ran, L.A. schools acknowledged publicly that some 2,000 student psych evals were indeed exposed by the Vice Society ransomware gang. 

And so began my descent down the rabbit hole, marking the early days of an in-depth investigation I published Tuesday and supported by a grant from the .

What I found is that as educators take steps to protect themselves, their school districts and their reputations after cyberattacks, they employ a pervasive pattern of obfuscation that leaves students, parents and teachers 鈥� the real victims of the hacks and subsequent data breaches 鈥� in the dark. 

I spent a year (OK, more than a year) learning everything I could about more than 300 K-12 school cyberattacks since the pandemic pushed students into online learning and educators became lucrative targets for hackers. I reconfigured a crappy old laptop to track ransomware gangs on the dark web and to analyze the reams of sensitive files published to their sketchy leak sites. I obtained thousands of public records from more than two dozen school districts. I used the government procurement database GovSpend to uncover school spending after attacks, including ransom payments made to cyberthieves in Bitcoin. I scoured news reports, state data breach disclosures and district websites for public confirmations and, oftentimes, denials 鈥� sometimes even after their students鈥� and employees鈥� personal information had already been published. 

My reporting documented that educators routinely offered incomplete, misleading or downright inaccurate information about cyberattacks 鈥� and the risks that subsequent data breaches pose to students, parents and teachers for identity theft, fraud and other forms of online exploitation. 

The hollowness in schools鈥� messaging and the mechanisms that leave school communities clueless are no coincidence. Staring down a cyberattack and the prospect of being sued over the leak of sensitive information, school leaders turn to insurance companies, consultants and privacy lawyers to steer 鈥減rivileged investigations,鈥� which keep key details hidden from the public. Often contacted before the police, the paid consultants who arrive in the wake of a cyberattack are portrayed to the public as an encouraging sign, trained to handle the bad actors and restore learning.

But what isn鈥檛 as apparent to students, parents and district employees is that these individuals are not there to protect them 鈥� but to protect schools from them. 

School cybersecurity expert Doug Levin had this to say about our investigation: 鈥淔or institutions whose mission is to lift up and protect children and youth, it is unconscionable that they are incentivized to cover up the criminal acts perpetrated against them by malicious foreign actors.”

K-12 cyberattacks in focus: Now you can fall down the school cyberattack rabbit hole, too! Use our new search feature to read about how incidents unfolded in your own community, complete with investigative reveals you won鈥檛 want to miss. 

Emotional support

This story was brought to you with invaluable editing and guidance from 社区黑料鈥檚 Kathy Moore.

And Matilda.

All Alaska students could be provided free breakfast and lunch at school, under a new bill in the Alaska Legislature.

Democratic Rep. Maxine Dibert of Fairbanks prefiled the legislation, , ahead of the legislative session that began on Tuesday. The bill would direct the state to provide sufficient funding to all districts to have breakfast and lunch for any student who requests it, free of cost.

鈥淚鈥檝e seen the effects of feeding our kids, and especially during COVID, when all kids got lunches and breakfast at no cost,鈥� said Dibert, who has been a teacher. 鈥淪o it was just very enlightening, and I would love to see that again for our families and for our students and for our school staff.鈥�

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During the COVID-19 pandemic, federal relief funding allowed schools to provide free meals due to federal waivers. But those funds sunsetted in 2022, resulting in some

, over half of Alaska鈥檚 students 鈥� 51% 鈥� were eligible for free or reduced price meals. An estimated 46%, or roughly 48,000 students, were enrolled to receive free school meals.

As an elementary school teacher in Fairbanks for 22 years, Dibert said she herself sometimes paid for her students to eat, rather than see them go hungry.

鈥淥ver the years, if a student didn鈥檛 have enough money, or their bill wasn鈥檛 paid, oftentimes I would even pay with my account,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know entirely how big those bills got, because I was on the classroom side of it. But I did really not like seeing kids come into the classroom sad that they couldn鈥檛 get breakfast or lunch.鈥�

Dibert, who is Koyukon Athabascan, also cited the current Yukon River salmon crash leaving communities and families who subsisted and shared fish going without.

鈥淢y grandparents lived out on the Yukon River, and as a child, they would always send us salmon from the Yukon River. And we always would have food on our table, lots of salmon,鈥� she said. 鈥淪o with no salmon on the Yukon, I know that鈥檚 a hardship to feed families, and it鈥檚 costly to families. So in that aspect, this bill could be very beneficial to ease the pain there, to help feed kids.鈥�

Education and health researchers point to universal free meals having for students, including improved academic performance, attendance and student health outcomes.

Dibert said the bill is in the beginning stages of the legislative process, so details will be worked out, but she hopes the program would also promote local foods on school menus, like salmon or moose. 鈥淚t would be working district by district, for sure,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 want it to be canned, you know, protein, like, one grain, one fruit.鈥�

The allocations to school districts would also vary by region and food prices, she said, accommodating notoriously higher grocery prices in Alaska鈥檚 rural areas.

She said funding the proposal could include some federal or municipal contributions as well.

鈥淚t鈥檚 not that much to have the opportunity to feed our kids,鈥� she said.

Last year, the Legislature axed funding for making reduced-priced lunches free for low-income students, The estimated $480,000 in funding was to be taken from the Department of Corrections, but lawmakers voted against it.

Once the bill has been formally introduced during a House floor session, it will next be assigned to relevant committees for discussion and debate in the coming weeks.

is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Alaska Beacon maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Andrew Kitchenman for questions: info@alaskabeacon.com.

This week, President Donald Trump that had been in place since 2011 that discouraged U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement from making arrests in 鈥減rotected areas鈥� like schools, medical centers and places of worship.

Oklahoma schools Superintendent Ryan Walters said in a TV interview posted Friday that he would help the Trump administration in 鈥渁ny way they see fit鈥� to carry out immigration enforcement, including ICE raids in schools.

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鈥淔or years the liberal media has been vilifying Republicans for separating illegal immigrant children from their parents,鈥� Walters said in a news release Friday afternoon. 鈥淣ow they want us to explain why we鈥檇 let ICE agents into schools. The answer is simple: we want to ensure that deported parents are reconnected with their children and keep families together.鈥�

Chicago Public Schools said ICE agents attempted to enter an elementary school on Friday, but the school denied them entry. However, the it was one of its agents in the area investigating a threat, not ICE conducting immigration enforcement.

Walters has proposed a rule at the state Education Department, which he leads, that would or legal immigration status during enrollment.

His proposal would not prohibit any students from attending public schools, but districts would have to report to the Education Department the number of undocumented children they enroll.

Walters said Friday he intends to share this information with the federal government to assist with immigration enforcement.

鈥淭he first step is getting them the information,鈥� Walters said in an interview with Tulsa TV station KTUL. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 part of what they flagged is, you know, schools haven鈥檛 been working with law enforcement on this. Well, in Oklahoma, we鈥檙e going to work with law enforcement. We are going to work with the Trump administration.鈥�

The Oklahoma State Board of Education, which Walters also heads, is expected to vote Tuesday on the proposed immigration rule. If it passes, the state Legislature would have the choice of voting on it or allowing the governor to decide whether to approve it. The rule would carry the force of law if OK鈥檇 by the Legislature or governor.

Gov. Kevin Stitt鈥檚 office remains focused on deporting undocumented immigrants who committed crimes unrelated to their immigration status, spokesperson Meyer Siegfried said.

鈥淕overnor Stitt supports the strong enforcement of immigration laws and believes we have a responsibility to know who is in our state and how taxpayer dollars are being spent,鈥� Siegfried said.

The office of the Senate president pro tem did not return a request for comment Friday. House Speaker Kyle Hilbert鈥檚 office declined to comment on a rule that hasn鈥檛 yet passed a board vote to be submitted to the Legislature, nor did he remark on potential ICE involvement in schools.

Walters initially suggested the rule last month as a way to gauge current and future needs for English learner programs and other school resources to accommodate immigrant children.

Advocates of Oklahoma immigrant communities warned citizenship checks in schools could dissuade undocumented families from enrolling their children in public education.

Schools should be a safe haven from immigration enforcement, said Juan Lecona, a member of the Oklahoma City Public Schools Board of Education.聽

鈥淭his is not about red or blue,鈥� Lecona said Friday. 鈥淚t鈥檚 about the future of our students. Let them learn. Let them become whoever they want to be in the future. By doing this, you are breaking up families, and on top of that, how are the schools going to benefit from it?鈥�

Lecona is the first immigrant to serve on the Oklahoma City school board. His parents brought him to the U.S. from Mexico when he was a child in 1990 with a legal visa and permit, he said. Once that paperwork expired, he became undocumented.

Lecona is now a U.S. citizen with children attending the Oklahoma City district. As a school board member, he represents a majority Latino area in the city鈥檚 south side.

He said immigrants living in his community are afraid and 鈥渄on鈥檛 know what to do.鈥�

鈥淚鈥檓 concerned for my community, our working people, because that鈥檚 what we want. We just want to work and achieve our American dream,鈥� Lecona said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not here to cause trouble.鈥�

Oklahoma City Superintendent Jamie Polk has said the district has no plans to collect students鈥� immigration status. The district administration did not return a request for comment on Walters鈥� statements Friday.

is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Oklahoma Voice maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Janelle Stecklein for questions: info@oklahomavoice.com.

Some Iowa representatives want to ban margarine and certain food dyes from schools with a bill modeled closely after a law passed last year in California.

was discussed in an education subcommittee Wednesday. Representatives decided to amend the bill, which as introduced included margarine, Red Dye 40 and Yellow Dye 7, to be 鈥渕ore closely conforming鈥� to the .

Rep. Jeff Shipley, R-Fairfield, who chaired the subcommittee, to ban margarine and hydrogenated vegetable oils from schools. The 2023 proposal passed its subcommittee, but did not advance.

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Rep. Heather Matson, D-Ankeny, opposed the margarine element of the bill, and argued research supports margarine is 鈥渏ust as healthy as butter.鈥�

鈥淚f you鈥檙e arguing that corn oil and soybean oil is fundamentally unhealthy for our kids, that鈥檚 also an important part of the conversation to have, because that is kind of what we鈥檙e saying in here,鈥� Matson said.

Matson said after further research into California鈥檚 law and the years of research from the state into associated health effects, she is 鈥渙pen to a conversation鈥� about restricting the color additives.

Matson also questioned why the Iowa bill specified just Red Dye 40 and Yellow Dye 7, the latter of which, according to comment submitted by the International Association of Color Manufacturers, is not used in food or beverages.

The California law outlaws the dyes Blue 1, Blue 2, Green 3, Red 40, Yellow 5 and Yellow 6. The law also regulated the percentage of fats, sugars and saturated fats that could comprise a school meal, though these elements were not part of the Iowa representatives鈥� discussion.

Matson pointed out the California law passed years after the state funded an in which the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment found synthetic food dyes can be linked to hyperactivity and neurobehavioral problems in children.

Matson said she was unwilling to sign off on the bill as is, but would be 鈥渨illing to have a conversation on a bill that would be more thoughtfully put together.鈥�

Rep. Brooke Boden, R-Indianola, said she was 鈥渆xtremely glad鈥� the issue of food dye additives was before her and that she鈥檇 be the first to vote in favor of removing the synthetic dyes.

鈥淚 have a child who sees a neurologist, who asked us to remove food dye, and it significantly changed my child鈥檚 life,鈥� Boden said.

Boden noted there has been movement on this effort at a federal level as well with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration鈥檚 recent ban of .

Representatives for Rural School Advocates of Iowa, Urban Education Network of Iowa, and Iowa State Education Association, who registered as undecided on the bill, said they felt positively about the direction of the bill, but wanted to know more information about how it would be implemented in Iowa schools and if there would be additional costs.

Shipley moved to amend the bill to more closely resemble the California law, and to keep margarine in the bill 鈥渇or now,鈥� noting it might be reasonable to split the issues into separate bills later.

鈥淚 think these are conversations that people of Iowa are wanting to have, and so I think it is incumbent on us to reflect that and make sure we are having as wide ranging a dialog as possible,鈥� Shipley said.

is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Iowa Capital Dispatch maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Kathie Obradovich for questions: info@iowacapitaldispatch.com.

It鈥檚 official: After months of voicing concerns about the effects of cellphones on student mental health and learning, Gov. Kathy Hochul proposed a $13.5 million plan to help districts implement a ban.

Hochul said her plan would help create a 鈥渄istraction-free鈥� learning environment during the school day. The money aims to help cover associated costs that districts might incur, such as paying for digital pouches that lock devices or additional staff to collect phones each day. Covering the potential costs was one of the issues that forced New York City to put the brakes on its own ban, and it remains to be seen how far the governor鈥檚 proposed allocation will go.

On Tuesday, Hochul included the proposal in her $252 billion state 2026 budget, which would send $37.4 billion to schools across the state 鈥� , or 4.7%, from the prior year鈥檚 budget. It builds on focused on affordability outlined by Hochul during her State of the State address last week.

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The governor鈥檚 budget proposal marks the start of negotiations with lawmakers over how the state should allocate its funding for the next fiscal year, which begins in April.

Under Hochul鈥檚 cellphone proposal, students would be required to disconnect from devices from 鈥渂ell to bell,鈥� including during class time, lunch, and in the hallways. The policy would go into effect at the start of the next school year, with districts able to decide the specifics of how they would store phones and ensure compliance, according to Hochul鈥檚 office.

鈥淥ur kids will finally be free from the endless disruptions of social media and all the mental health pressures that come from it,鈥� she said during her speech at the State Capitol.

Students with disabilities, as well as others who rely on digital devices for medical reasons or translation purposes, would be allowed exemptions from the policy.

In New York City, the Education Department appeared poised to implement on student cellphone use in schools last summer but later after intervention by Mayor Eric Adams.

Jenna Lyle, a spokesperson for the Education Department, said Tuesday that the department was 鈥渓ooking forward to partnering with the Governor鈥� on the issue.

鈥淭he feedback we have heard from our school communities has been clear: access to cell phones in the classroom distracts from learning, divides attention, and significantly impacts our students鈥� mental health,鈥� she said in a statement. 鈥淔ollowing our engagement with parent leadership groups last spring, in partnership with the Health Department, we鈥檝e been working on an evaluation to better understand both how schools are implementing policies to restrict cell phones, and lessons learned from those implementations.鈥�

Currently, the city鈥檚 schools can over whether and how to restrict student cellphone use. At the end of last school year, about 350 schools already had bans in place, with an additional 500 planning to implement them this year, city officials previously said. Some schools provide students with locking Yondr pouches, while others collect phones or employ alternative strategies.

Those pouches, though, can cost schools $30 per student in the first year, according to the company. Yondr CEO Graham Dugoni noted the company offered 鈥渧olume discounts鈥� in a statement and praised Hochul鈥檚 proposed cellphone ban.

鈥淲e look forward to supporting more school communities across New York in creating successful phone-free learning environments,鈥� he said.

Adams, who has expressed some concerns about adopting a citywide policy on the issue, previously told reporters that the city would comply with any state mandate.

NYC could lose out under school funding formula proposal

Hochul鈥檚 proposed budget also called for updates to the state鈥檚 school funding formula, an issue expected to take center stage in education budget discussions this year. Known as Foundation Aid, the formula was originally created in 2007, and in some cases relies on decades-old data to determine how much funding is sent to school districts.

For years, advocates, lawmakers, and other education officials have to the formula, with some arguing it requires . But the governor鈥檚 proposed updates 鈥� which were among the suggestions put forward by the state鈥檚 Board of Regents and issued by the Rockefeller Institute 鈥� could potentially result in New York City receiving a smaller funding increase, advocates warned Tuesday.

For one change, Hochul called for replacing the 2000 Census poverty rate with the most recent Census Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, or SAIPE, data. The formula should also stop using federal free- and reduced-price lunch eligibility as a basis for measuring student need, the governor said, instead switching to broader 鈥渆conomically disadvantaged鈥� student counts.

鈥淭his will ensure that state dollars go to students who need them the most,鈥� Hochul said.

But according to the more than 300-page report issued by the Rockefeller Institute last month, switching from the 2000 Census Bureau poverty count to three-year average SAIPE data would decrease New York City鈥檚 Foundation Aid funding by a projected $392 million. (The city鈥檚 schools would still see an overall increase to Foundation Aid funding.)

Kim Sweet, executive director of the nonprofit group Advocates for Children of New York, said even when combined with the swap to using economically disadvantaged student counts, the proposed changes would result in less overall funding for New York City schools.

鈥淭he current federal poverty threshold for a family of four is just $32,150,鈥� she said in a statement. 鈥淭rying to make ends meet on $30,000 means something very different for a family in New York City than elsewhere in the State.鈥�

Hochul鈥檚 proposal did not include several changes to the formula sought by city advocates and officials, such as additional funding for , or extra dollars to implement the state鈥檚 for New York City schools.

The city鈥檚 Education Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on how the proposed changes were expected to impact local schools.

The governor鈥檚 budget proposal would also modify the formula to send additional aid to low-wealth school districts, as well as ensure that every district receives an annual increase of at least 2%, state officials said. The proposed modifications would result in an increase to Foundation Aid of roughly $1.5 billion, or 5.9%, according to officials.

Early college funding, free school meals, and other proposals

Hochul鈥檚 other proposals included establishing a $64.6 million 鈥淐ollege in High School Opportunity Fund,鈥� allocating $340 million for universal free school meals, increases in funding for child care programs, and more.

The proposed 鈥淐ollege in High School Opportunity Fund鈥� would seek to build institutional support for the model, which provides high school students with a chance to take college courses and receive additional mentorship opportunities while earning their diplomas. Across the country and the state, the model has seen success at improving college matriculation rates and other measures of academic achievement among high school students.

As she unveiled her budget proposal, Hochul also addressed concerns about the 鈥渃loud of uncertainty鈥� posed by President Donald Trump鈥檚 administration, as the president vowed to slash federal funding during his campaign.

鈥淐hanges at the federal level will create new challenges for our state,鈥� Hochul said, warning Republicans could cut 鈥渃ritical funding streams for Medicaid, education, child care, utility assistance,鈥� and more.

鈥淭hose who are hurt need to raise their voices, and direct that anger at Washington, and push their members of Congress to fight for them,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ecause New York and other states will simply not be able to shoulder these costs on our own.鈥�

Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news site covering educational change in public schools.

School districts across Los Angeles County have announced plans to close all or some schools as multiple fires spread across the Los Angeles area.

In total, nearly two dozen school districts have announced full or partial closures. However, some that had closed Wednesday announced that they’d be able to reopen on Thursday, in spite of bad air quality.

Alhambra Unified

All schools remain closed Thursday, Jan. 9.

Superintendent Denise Jaramillo  that district staff need more time to inspect schools for safety.

“While our campuses have fared relatively well thus far, the air quality is expected to remain poor due to excessive dust from the winds and smoke from the fires,” Jaramillio wrote.

The statement also said 鈥渁 significant number of our staff members are currently under evacuation orders, which will impact school operations and staffing levels.鈥�

Families are advised to limit outdoor activities and keep phones and other devices charged in case of power outages.

Arcadia Unified

All schools remain closed Thursday, Jan. 9.

All district events and services will continue to be closed and canceled, including athletics, and after-school programs.

鈥淥ur maintenance, facilities and operations departments, and district staff continue to work to secure campuses as much as possible and do everything they can, but at this time, campuses are not safe to resume school activities,鈥� the district 

The district asked families not to call schools and 鈥渋nundate phone lines that need to be clear for communications with local authorities.鈥�

The district will continue to post updates online,  and in a recorded message on the emergency phone hotline鈥�(626) 821-1783.

Azusa Unified

Schools will reopen Thursday, Jan. 9.

“After thoroughly assessing all school sites, we can confirm that our campuses are safe for students and staff to return,” the district said  on its website. “The high winds caused several downed trees across our school sites and a large amount of dust, debris, and foliage. Crews are currently addressing these issues and will continue this work. Please be assured that safety is our top priority, and our school sites are safe and ready for students and staff to return.”

Baldwin Park Unified

Schools will reopen Thursday, Jan. 9.

“Power has been restored across all BPUSD campuses, and our teams have conducted safety assessments to ensure a safe environment for students and staff,” wrote Superintendent Froilan N. Mendoza .

Outdoor activities will be limited, however.

Bonita Unified School District

Most schools will reopen Thursday, Jan. 9.

In a statement posted to social media, the district said power had been restored at all but three campuses: Ekstrand Elementary, La Verne Heights Elementary, and Oak Mesa Elementary, which will remain closed.

Burbank Unified

All schools remain closed through Friday, Jan. 10.

The district, which is close to the Eaton Fire, said  that it would not offer childcare or after-school activities.

Charter schools

Various closures Thursday, Jan. 9.

The California Charter School Association announced that  in the area are closed including all campuses of:

Green Dot Public Schools announced the closure of four campuses on :

• Animo Ellen Ochoa Charter Middle School
• Animo Jackie Robinson Charter High School
• Animo Ralph Bunche Charter High School
• Animo Jefferson Charter Middle School

Duarte Unified

All schools remain closed Thursday, Jan. 9.

In , the district cited concerns about fires, poor air quality, hazardous travel conditions, and power outages in Duarte in deciding to keep schools closed.

El Monte City School District

Schools will reopen Thursday, Jan. 9.

“Outside of losing a couple of small trees, minor damages, and some power issues, all schools are secure and ready for students and staff to return,” the district said .

Garvey School District

All schools remain closed Thursday, Jan. 9.

Superintendent Anita Chu said  that it plans to re-open Friday.

Glendale Unified

All schools remain closed through Friday, Jan. 10.

Child care and district offices . The district offers tips for helping families cope with the fires and stay safe.

The district  the accessibility of roadways and air quality in its decision to close schools.

Glendora Unified

Schools remain closed Thursday, Jan. 9.

While the district had anticipated reopening schools Thursday, “unfortunately, power remains down at four sites and internet and communication services are unavailable throughout the district,” it .

The school will provide grab-and-go lunches from 11 a.m. to noon at:

• Glendora High School: 1600 E Foothill Blvd., Glendora
• Stanton Elementary School: 725 S Vecino Dr., Glendora

La Ca帽ada Unified

All schools remain closed through Friday, Jan. 10.

鈥淭he devastating wildfires and winds are tragically impacting our community,鈥� the district . 鈥淧lease remain safe and connected. We will work together as a strong and loving community to build back and support each other.鈥�

Las Virgenes Unified

All schools remain closed Thursday, Jan. 9.

In a  posted to the district’s Facebook page earlier this week, Superintendent Dan Stepenosky said that Southern California Edison had turned off the power at a number of schools.

Los Angeles Unified

All schools will be closed on Thursday, Jan. 9.

The district  that all schools and offices will be closed Thursday, while some essential employees will report to work.

Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said in a press conference that unpredictable winds and ongoing fires prompted the shutdown.

鈥淎 number of clouds of smoke, dust, have permeated into our communities, making conditions less than desirable, and in some instances, downright dangerous,鈥� Carvalho said.

The district is preparing for the possibility of online learning Friday, Jan. 10 and will announce a decision about whether to extend school closures by 4 p.m. Thursday afternoon.

Resources

The district will distribute meals to LAUSD students from 8鈥�10 a.m. Thursday at:

• Mulholland Middle School鈥� 
• Sepulveda Middle School鈥� 
• Hollenbeck Middle School鈥� 
• South Gate High School鈥� 
• Fremont High School鈥� 
• Harry Bridges Span School鈥� 
• Marina Del Rey Middle School鈥� 
• Sonia Sotomayor Arts and Sciences and Magnet-鈥� 

Families may receive two meals per student.

Students can find academic support through LAUSD’s .

Mental health

• For students and families: Student and Family Wellness Resource Line, (213) 241-3840, from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.
• District employees:  and a 24/7 support line at 800-882-1341

The Palisades fire reached the campuses of three LAUSD schools.

Palisades Charter Elementary School and Marquez Charter Elementary School were destroyed.

鈥溾�奧e were on site and could not believe what we were witnessing,鈥� Carvalho said. He said the school鈥檚 700 students will be relocated.

In addition, Carvalho said that a large portion of Palisades High, which is not currently in session, was destroyed.

Monrovia Unified

All schools remain closed Thursday, Jan. 9.

Superintendent Paula Hart Rodas cited high winds and power outages in .

鈥淥ur team is continuing to assess the damage caused by the windstorm and will provide an update on the status of our schools tomorrow,鈥� Rodas wrote.

Mountain View School District

Schools will reopen Thursday, Jan. 9.

“Though we experienced some damage, including downed trees, limbs, canopy failures, and fencing displacement, our facilities have held up well overall,” the district .

It did warn of air quality problems, however. “We may be in the unhealthy range. Therefore, we will continue to assess the situation and take appropriate measures to ensure the safety of our students and staff, including providing indoor locations for students to remain during breaks,” the statement said.

Pasadena Unified

All schools remain closed through Friday, Jan. 10. 

As the  the district announced school closures would extend through the end of the week.

鈥淭his allows our teams time to assess the conditions of our facilities and for our employees, students, and families to begin reestablishing some normalcy,鈥� Superintendent Elizabeth Blanco 

The district is also suspending grab-and-go meals because the facility where the food is stored is within a mandatory evacuation zone.

Rosemead School District

Schools will reopen Thursday, Jan. 9.

The district said in an  that air quality would be monitored.

“Air filtration systems will be running in all classrooms throughout the day, and masks will be available to any student or staff member who wishes to use one,” the statement said. “All schools will also follow ‘rainy day schedules,’ which will limit outdoor activities. Activities during recess and lunch will be adjusted accordingly to ensure student safety.”

San Gabriel Unified

All schools remain closed Thursday, Jan. 9.

Superintendent Jim Symonds that high winds are forecasted through Wednesday evening and poor air quality is expected from smoke, ash and dust.

鈥淲e will continue to monitor conditions and hope to return all students and staff to campuses on Friday, January 10 so long as conditions improve,鈥� Symonds wrote.

He said while campuses have 鈥渇ared well thus far,鈥� staff need time to inspect facilities.

San Marino Unified

Schools remain closed Thursday, Jan. 9.

Despite hopes to reopen, Superintendent Linda de la Torre said in a  that in addition to safety concerns, “approximately 60% of our workforce live near or in areas currently under evacuation orders due to fires exacerbated by the windstorm. Many of our valued employees have been evacuated or are otherwise dealing with significant challenges, and our thoughts are with them and their families during this difficult time.”

Santa Monica-Malibu Unified

All schools remain closed Thursday, Jan. 9.

Santa Monica-Malibu USD announced late Wednesday afternoon that that all schools will remain closed Thursday because of ongoing safety concerns and poor air quality.

“We watch with all of you in disbelief the devastation and displacement caused by the Palisades fire, which continues to grow and evade containment,” Superintendent Antonio Shelton wrote in a statement.

The district has collected  and is offering grab-and-go meals for students on Thursday from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. at:

• Lincoln Middle School鈥� . (drop-off area on California Avenue)
• JAMS Clubhouse Boys and Girls Club Of Santa Monica鈥� . (off 17th Street)
• Santa Monica High School– .  (7th and Michigan)
• Malibu High School鈥� . (admin building parking area)

The district anticipates deciding by Thursday afternoon whether schools will remain closed through the end of the week.

South Pasadena Unified

All schools remain closed Thursday, Jan. 8.

The closure includes the district office, before- and after-school programs and activities.

鈥淎 significant percentage of our employees and neighbors are under evacuation orders, evacuation warnings, or have lost their homes,鈥� Superintendent Geoff Yantz .

鈥淥ur hearts go out to everyone who has experienced hardships.鈥�

Yantz said it is difficult to safely operate schools without enough staff.

The decision to close schools was made in consultation with neighboring districts and the Los Angeles County Office of Education.

Temple City Unified

All schools remain closed Thursday, Jan. 9.

“Thank you again for your patience as we prioritize the health and safety of our school community,” the district .

It has not yet made a determination about Friday.

Valle Lindo

Schools will reopen Thursday, Jan. 9.

In a , Superintendent Elizabeth Evans alluded to the poor air quality.

“In light of the ongoing fires and air quality concerns,” she said, the district will put several safety measures in place:

• Outdoor activities, including physical education classes, will take place indoors.
• Nutrition, recess, and lunch periods will also be held indoors.
• Masks will be available upon request at school offices.
• Student services staff will be available to support students who have concerns.

More fire coverage

These fires are fast-moving and straight up frightening. For the most up-to-date information about the fire you can check:

Palisades Fire

Eaton Fire

Hurst Fire

One thing is clear from the stories that populate this year鈥檚 list: Many of America鈥檚 schools are still grappling with the academic struggles that followed the pandemic 鈥� as well as the end of federal relief funds, which expired this fall. Student enrollments have yet to recover and many districts are facing 鈥� or will soon face 鈥� tough decisions about closures.

Meanwhile, some educators are testing innovative ways of teaching math, reading and science, hoping to gain back some of the academic ground lost since the COVID shutdowns. Technology is also playing a pivotal role in this post-pandemic world, with communities weighing the impact of cellphones and artificial intelligence on student learning and mental health.

November鈥檚 election 鈥� which featured debates over school choice, Christianity in public schools and the fate of the Department of Education 鈥� also made headlines here at 社区黑料. And, as calls for cracking down on immigration grew even louder, we dug deep into the hurdles facing immigrant students and schools. 

Here鈥檚 a roundup of our most memorable and impactful stories of the year:

Exclusive: Thousands of Schools at Risk of Closing Due to Enrollment Loss

By Linda Jacobson

Long before districts close schools, enrollment loss takes a toll on staff and families, from combined classes to the loss of afterschool programs. This exclusive analysis by Linda Jacobson, based on Brookings Institution research, found that more than 4,400 schools lost at least one-fifth of their students during the pandemic 鈥� more than double the number during the pre-COVID period. The detailed look shows how the crisis is playing out at the school level and which districts face tough decisions about closures and cuts. 

Unwelcome to America鈥�: Hundreds of U.S. High Schools Wrongfully Refused Entry to Older, Immigrant Student

By Jo Napolitano

社区黑料鈥檚 16-month-long undercover investigation of school enrollment practices for older immigrant students revealed rampant refusals of teens who had a legal right to attend, shutting a door critical to success in America. Senior reporter Jo Napolitano called 630 high schools in every state and D.C. to test whether they would enroll a 19-year-old Venezuelan newcomer who had limited English language skills and whose education was interrupted after ninth grade. 鈥淗ector Guerrero鈥� was turned down more than 300 times, including 204 denials in the 35 states and D.C., where high school attendance goes up to at least age 20. 社区黑料鈥檚 investigation revealed pervasive hostility and suspicion toward these students in a particularly xenophobic era and a deeply arbitrary process determining their access to K-12 education.

Interactive: Which School Districts Do the Best Job of Teaching Kids to Read?

By Chad Aldeman

It’s not news that low-income fourth graders are years behind their higher-income peers in reading. But poverty is not destiny, and some schools and districts hugely outperform expectations. Working with Eamonn Fitzmaurice, 社区黑料鈥檚 art and technology director, contributor Chad Aldeman set out to find districts that are beating the odds and successfully teaching kids to read. From Steubenville City, Ohio, to Worcester County, Maryland, and across the country, click on their interactive map to find the highfliers in your state. 

Whistleblower: L.A. Schools鈥� Chatbot Misused Student Data as Tech Company Crumbled

by Mark Keierleber

In early June, a former top software engineer at ed tech startup, AllHere, warned Los Angeles district officials and others about student data privacy risks associated with the company鈥檚 AI chatbot “Ed.” The LA Unified School District had agreed to pay AllHere $6 million for the chatbot and the spring rollout of Ed was highly publicized, with L.A. schools chief Alberto Carvalho calling the chatbot鈥檚 student knowledge powers 鈥渦nprecedented in American public education.鈥� But, as Mark Keierleber reported, red flags soon began to emerge. The company financially imploded and its founder Joanna Smith-Griffin left the company. In November, federal prosecutors indicted her, accusing of defrauding investors of $10 million.

America’s Most Popular Autism Therapy May Not Work 鈥� and May Cause Serious Harms

by Beth Hawkins

Today, a child鈥檚 new autism diagnosis is frequently followed by a referral to a variation of an intervention called applied behavior analysis, or ABA, and four decades of pressure from parents and advocates has created a sprawling treatment industry. Yet, even as providers and lobbyists jockey to strengthen ABA’s dominance, autistic adults and researchers increasingly say there鈥檚 alarmingly little proof it鈥檚 effective 鈥� and mounting evidence it鈥檚 traumatizing. In an exclusive investigation, Beth Hawkins spoke with families, teachers and scholars about the growing controversy surrounding autism鈥檚 鈥済old standard鈥� treatment. 

A Cautionary AI Tale: Why IBM鈥檚 Dazzling Watson Supercomputer Made a Lousy Tutor

by Greg Toppo

In 2011, IBM’s Watson supercomputer crushed Jeopardy! champions, raising hopes that it could help create a powerful tutoring system that would rival human teachers. But the visionary at the head of the effort watched as the project fizzled, the victim of AI’s inability to hold students鈥� attention. As new educational AI contenders like Khanmigo emerge, what lessons can they learn from the past? 社区黑料鈥檚 Greg Toppo took a look at how IBM鈥檚 failed effort tempers today鈥檚 shiny AI promises.

State-by-State, How Segregation Legally Continues 7 Decades Post Brown v. Board

by Marianna McMurdock

Seventy years after the Supreme Court outlawed separating public school children by race, Marianna McMurdock sought to answer a pivotal question: How are some of the most coveted public schools in the U.S. able to legally exclude all but the most privileged families? Last spring, she spoke with researchers at the nonprofits Available to All and Bellwether, which published a report that examined the troubling laws, loopholes and trends that are undermining the legacy of Brown v. Board in each state. The researchers called for urgent legal reform to offset the impact that one鈥檚 home address has on enrollment, particularly as many districts have started considering closures.

Being 鈥楤ad at Math鈥� Is a Pervasive Concept. Can it Be Banished From Schools?

by Jo Napolitano

Are you bad at math? If you are, it鈥檚 likely that self-fulfilling seed got planted early. Many math education leaders are trying to uproot that thinking, arguing that any student can master the subject with the right accommodations and tutoring. Changing the bad-at-math mindset in U.S. schools, however, will not be easy, others warn. 鈥淲e use math as a means to sort kids by who gets to be at the top and who gets to be at the bottom,鈥� one math equity advocate told Jo Napolitano. 

Hope Rises in Pine Bluff: Saving Schools in America’s Fastest-Shrinking City

by 社区黑料 Staff

Pine Bluff, Arkansas, earned the unwelcome distinction in the 2020 census of being America’s fastest-shrinking city, losing over 12% of its population in one decade. Amid this exodus of families, students and taxpayers, its school district had to navigate school closures, budget pressures and a state takeover. Throughout last winter, members of 社区黑料鈥檚 newsroom embedded in Pine Bluff to report on the region鈥檚 trajectory. Here are some of the powerful stories they came back with: 

Kids, Screen Time & Despair: An Expert in the Economics of Happiness Echoes Psychologists鈥� Warnings About Tech

By Kevin Mahnken

A prominent economist has joined the growing chorus of experts warning against the dangers posed to youth mental health by screens and social media, reported Kevin Mahnken. New papers released by Dartmouth College professor Danny Blanchflower, a leading expert in the burgeoning field of happiness economics, suggest that the huge increase in screen time over the last decade has made the young more likely to despair than the middle-aged. 

Why Is a Grading System Touted as More Accurate, Equitable So Hard to Implement?

By Amanda Geduld

As educators push for more transparency in grading policies post-pandemic, some are turning to standards-based grading. When done correctly, it separates academic mastery from behavior and more accurately reflects what students know. But misunderstandings of the model, a lack of proper training, and a rush to adopt it often leads to messy implementation. Associate professor Laura Link told Amanda Geduld that as schools look to fix learning gaps, 鈥渟tandards-based grading is one that seems like it can be a quickly adopted effort. But it could backfire 鈥� and does backfire 鈥� very easily.鈥�

Texas Seeks to Inject Bible Stories into Elementary School Reading Program

by Linda Jacobson

Last May, a sweeping redesign of Texas鈥� elementary school curriculum that used Bible stories to teach reading was unveiled. At the time, state education Commissioner Mike Morath described the changes as a shift toward a 鈥渃lassical model of education.鈥� But the revisions raised questions about potential religious indoctrination and bias. Nevertheless, in November, the Texas Board of Education approved the new curriculum in a close vote. Linda Jacobson followed the story closely.

The Political War Over the Department of Education Is Only Beginning

By Kevin Mahnken 

Fresh from their November victories, Republicans are already working to help President-elect Donald Trump achieve his promise of abolishing the U.S. Department of Education. But research suggests that, while perceptions of the agency are mixed, the public is unlikely to back a sweeping course of elimination. 鈥淪aying you鈥檒l get rid of it reads generically as being anti-education,鈥� one political scientist told Kevin Mahnken. 鈥淭hat strikes me as a very heavy albatross to hang around your neck come the midterms.” 

18 Years, $2 Billion: Inside New Orleans’ Biggest School Recovery Effort in History

By Beth Hawkins

In 2005, Hurricane Katrina destroyed 110 New Orleans schools. Displaced families could not return until there were classrooms to welcome their kids, but no one had ever tried to rebuild an entire school system. While many of the buildings were moldering even before the storm, federal funds couldn’t be used to build something better. Some of the schools had landmark status and were of great historical significance. Eighteen years and $2 billion later, Beth Hawkins took a look at seven schools that illustrate how the district accomplished the task.

As Ryan Walters鈥� Right-Wing Star Rose, Critics Say Oklahoma Ed Dept. Fell Apart

By Linda Jacobson

Oklahoma state education chief Republican Ryan Walters has acted as a one-man publicity machine, a performance that鈥檚 earned him venomous foes and ardent fans who follow him with a near-religious fervor. But one casualty of his approach might be a functioning state education bureaucracy. Even Republican lawmakers have grown impatient, calling for a probe into how Walters handles state and federal funds. As Rep. Tammy West, a GOP incumbent running for re-election, told reporter Linda Jacobson, 鈥淩egardless of party, citizens want transparency, accountability and communication.鈥�

AI 鈥楥ompanions鈥� Are Patient, Funny, Upbeat 鈥� and Probably Rewiring Kids Brains

By Greg Toppo

A college student relies on ChatGPT to help him make life decisions, including whether to break up with his girlfriend. Is this a future we feel good about? While AI bots and companions like ChatGPT, Replika and Snapchat鈥檚 MyAI, can offer support, comfort and advice, experts are beginning to warn of potential risks. 社区黑料鈥檚 Greg Toppo talks to researchers and policy experts about what we should be doing to help make them safer.

Indiana Looks to Swiss Experts to Create Thousands of Student Apprenticeships

By Patrick O鈥橠onnell

Indiana officials have turned to experts at the Swiss version of MIT for help in becoming a national career training leader by making apprenticeships available to thousands of high school students across the state. Indiana is the latest state to work with ETH Zurich 鈥� where Albert Einstein once studied 鈥� to develop ways to break down barriers between educators and businesses so that career training can be a large part of a reinvented high school experience, reported Patrick O鈥橠onnell. 

Investigation: Nearly 1,000 Native Children Died in Federal Boarding Schools

By Marianna McMurdock 

Nearly 1,000 Native American children died while forced to attend government-affiliated boarding schools, according to a report published last summer by the Interior Department. The children are buried in 74 unmarked and marked graves, reported Marianna McMurdock, as tribes assess repatriation of remains. Nearly 19,000 children were estimated to be kidnapped, often at gunpoint, and enrolled in the schools with the aim of assimilation. “We [were] never called by our name, we were all called by our numbers,鈥� said one survivor. 

The Nation鈥檚 Biggest Charter School System Is Under Fire in Los Angeles

By Ben Chapman 

The nation鈥檚 largest experiment with charter schools is no longer growing. These days, Los Angeles charter operators say they are just trying to survive. With tough new policies governing co-locations, falling enrollment, and a hostile district school board, charter leaders say they鈥檝e never faced stronger headwinds, reported Ben Chapman. With enrollment plummeting across the district, some charter networks have recently announced closures while others have stopped submitting proposals for new campuses. 鈥淣ow, particularly in L.A., our focus is not on growing,鈥� said Joanna Belcher, chief impact officer for KIPP SoCal. 

Florida Students Seize on Parental Rights to Stop Educators from Hitting Kids

By Mark Keierleber 

Late last year, Florida senior Brooklynn Daniels was called to the principal鈥檚 office and spanked with a wooden paddle 鈥渢hat was thick like a chapter book.鈥� Like in many enclaves that dot the Florida panhandle, Liberty County permits corporal punishment as a form of student discipline. But her flogging, the honors student said, went much further: She alleged sexual assault and filed a police report, reported Mark Keierleber. Daniels joined a student-led movement to change Florida law that has latched onto the GOP-led parental rights movement. 

Interactive: See How Student Achievement Gaps Are Growing in Your State

By Chad Aldeman

In 2012, then-President Barack Obama freed states from the accountability provisions of No Child Left Behind in exchange for reforms related to standards, assessments and teacher evaluations. That relaxing of school and district accountability pressures corresponded with a decline in student performance across the country that is still being felt 鈥� achievement gaps are growing across subjects and all across the country. To illustrate these alarming discrepancies, contributor Chad Aldeman and Eamonn Fitzmaurice, 社区黑料鈥檚 art and technology director, created an interactive tool that enables you to see what’s happening with student performance in your state.

Left Powerless: Non-English鈥揝peaking Parents Denied Vital Translation Services

by Amanda Geduld

Flouting federal laws, K-12 public schools routinely fail to provide qualified interpreters to non-English-speaking families. Parents must instead rely on Google translate, their own kid or a bilingual staff member who isn鈥檛 a trained interpreter for issues as simple as their child鈥檚 absence for a day or as complex and intimidating as a special education meeting or a school disciplinary hearing. The problem is pervasive and vastly underreported, experts told Amanda Geduld. School leaders say they are trying their best, but lack the money and staffing to meet the need. 

Failed West Virginia Microschool Fuels State Probe and Some Soul-Searching

By Linda Jacobson

The West Virginia treasurer鈥檚 investigation into a microschool, funded with education savings accounts, offers a glimpse into an emerging market that has mushroomed since the pandemic. When the program shut down after a few months, parents were left demanding their money back and scrambling to find other arrangements for their children. The example, experts say, shows that it takes more than good intentions to provide a quality education program. As one parent told Linda Jacobson, 鈥淚 should have seen the red flags.鈥�

In the Rush to Covid Recovery, Did We Forget About Our Youngest Learners?

by Lauren Camera

The country鈥檚 youngest elementary school students suffered steep academic setbacks in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic 鈥� just like students in older grades. But new research shows that they aren鈥檛 catching back up to pre-pandemic levels in reading and math the way older students are. And when it comes to math, many are falling even further behind. 鈥淲e were shocked when we first saw the data,鈥� Kristen Huff, vice president of assessment and research at Curriculum Associates, told Lauren Camera.

New York鈥檚 school funding formula relies on outdated information and 鈥渞eflects an antiquated concept of what public school districts are expected to do.鈥�

That鈥檚 according to a more than 300-page report released this week by the Rockefeller Institute of Government, a public policy think tank based at SUNY. As part of between Albany lawmakers and Gov. Kathy Hochul, the state charged the organization with issuing a set of recommendations to revise Foundation Aid, the formula that sends roughly $24.9 billion to school districts 鈥� including more than $9.5 billion to New York City schools.

First implemented in 2007, Foundation Aid uses decades-old data to calculate district needs, like relying on figures from the 2000 Census to measure student poverty. Other factors that impact district spending, including the number of students living in temporary housing, don鈥檛 weigh into the current formula at all. (Foundation Aid only received from the state in recent years 鈥� following a lengthy fight from education advocates.)

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Though the institute鈥檚 recommendations are not binding, its proposals could influence debates over how to update the formula when lawmakers return to Albany in January.

State Sen. Shelley Mayer, a Democrat who chairs the senate鈥檚 education committee, stressed that 鈥渁ny determinations about how to change the formula will rest with the Legislature and Governor.鈥�

鈥淭he Rockefeller Institute鈥檚 report offers a set of recommendations 鈥撯�� some good, some concerning 鈥撯�� to begin a robust conversation about how to fix the Foundation Aid Formula,鈥� Mayer said in a Tuesday statement. 鈥淔urther, we are not limited by what is proposed in the Rockefeller Institute鈥檚 report.鈥�

Read the Rockefeller Institute鈥檚 report .

Recommendations: School funding formula needs 鈥榮ignificant change鈥�

In its report, the Rockefeller Institute called for 鈥渟ignificant change鈥� to the formula. Schools today provide far more services than when the formula was initially created, the organization noted, pointing to mental health support at school, language instruction for English learners, and a growing reliance on schools as a 鈥渃ommunity hub.鈥�

The recommendations include modifying how the formula accounts for inflation, changing and updating the data used to determine student poverty, and establishing more nuanced calculations for funding based on students with disabilities, among other changes.

One of its suggestions is already getting pushback from some lawmakers and the governor: phasing out 50% of 鈥渟ave harmless,鈥� or 鈥渉old harmless,鈥� a policy that shields districts with declining enrollment from losing funding.

During the last budget cycle, Hochul sought to effectively end that provision, but the proposal was rebuffed by state lawmakers.

In a statement on Tuesday, a spokesperson for Hochul鈥檚 office distanced the governor from the Institute鈥檚 proposal to phase out the policy.

鈥淎s we craft the upcoming Executive Budget, the Governor believes we should avoid proposals that would negatively impact school budgets, such as eliminating the hold-harmless provision of the Foundation Aid formula,鈥� the spokesperson said.

Reactions: Formula needs overhaul, not tweaks, some argue

Some observers worry that the institute鈥檚 proposals don鈥檛 go far enough to overhaul the formula, and fail to account for major issues impacting New York City schools.

Michael Rebell, executive director of the Center for Educational Equity at Columbia University鈥檚 Teachers College and the lawyer who led the landmark case against the state that paved the way for Foundation Aid, argues it isn鈥檛 enough to change aspects of the formula. He believes the state鈥檚 current approach falls to provide a 鈥渟ound basic education.鈥�

鈥淲e need a process that takes a totally new look at what students need in 2024 and 2025, not tweaking and patching up something that was written in 2006,鈥� he said. 鈥淚f you鈥檙e not looking at the overall impact of whether kids in every district are getting a fair shot 鈥� are getting the opportunity for sound basic education 鈥� what have you accomplished?鈥�

Some advocates expressed mixed feelings about the report, noting it did not address several key concerns in New York City, including schools鈥� needs to help students in temporary housing. In New York City the number of students experiencing homelessness grew to last school year.

鈥淲e are disappointed that there are no recommendations to add weights for students experiencing homelessness and students in foster care so that schools can better meet their needs; to provide per pupil funding for 3-K and pre-K students; or to help NYC meet the new class size limits required by state law,鈥� said Kim Sweet, executive director of Advocates for Children, in a statement.

State Sen. John Liu, a Queens Democrat who chairs the Senate鈥檚 New York City education committee, echoed concerns about the report鈥檚 exclusion of the city鈥檚 class size reduction mandate.

鈥淭his absolutely must be considered to provide our school kids a constitutionally required, sound, basic education,鈥� he said in a statement.

Impacts: How proposals could affect NYC schools remains unclear

It鈥檚 difficult to determine how the report鈥檚 proposals might impact students in a particular school district, because they cannot be considered in isolation from one another, Rebell said.

For example, a recommendation that the formula stop using federal free- and reduced-price lunch eligibility as a basis for measuring student poverty might result in less funding for New York City schools, he said. At the same time, a proposal to update how the formula accounts for differing costs between regions could mean more state funding for the city鈥檚 students.

And with the state under no obligation to adopt any or all of the Rockefeller Institute鈥檚 recommendations, it remains unclear what the report might mean for students.

鈥淚 can look at aspects of this formula and say, 鈥楾his would help New York City. That would hurt New York City,鈥� but that鈥檚 not the way to do it,鈥� Rebell said. 鈥淭he way to do it is: What do kids in New York City need? What do kids in these rural districts need? How can we put together a package that鈥檚 responsive to all of it?鈥�

The city鈥檚 Education Department and teachers union were both reviewing the report.

鈥淲e are continuing to review the report and the impacts of its proposals, and look forward to working with the Governor and the legislature moving forward,鈥� Education Department spokesperson Jenna Lyle said in a statement.

Michael Mulgrew, president of the United Federation of Teachers, said, 鈥淪ome ideas sound promising. Others are cause for concern.鈥�

He was focused, he said, 鈥渙n what changes need to take place if we are to better support our city鈥檚 students, educators, and school communities.鈥�

Looking ahead: Formula need regular updates, report says

Regardless of how state officials choose to update Foundation Aid, the Rockefeller Institute noted more regular revisions to the school funding formula are critical. The report noted student populations and needs, state learning standards, and other measures of academic achievement are all subject to change each year.

鈥淎ssuming state policymakers enact some of the recommendations quickly, they should not wait another 17 years to examine the Foundation Aid formula for additional needed revision,鈥� the report said. 鈥淎n essential part of this reform effort should be a commitment to revisit the Foundation Aid formula every three to five years.鈥�

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news site covering educational change in public schools.

The proximate cause of the political fracas is a in Chicago Public Schools鈥� annual budget, driven primarily by the drying up of federal pandemic relief dollars. But funding challenges in the Windy City are downstream of a concerning reality: Chicago is increasingly beholden to the wishes of its teachers union. This is especially the case under the leadership of Mayor Brandon Johnson, who spent a decade as an organizer for the CTU and ascended to the mayoralty with its backing. At the helm of the city, Johnson has been willing to bend over backward to put his union sympathies into policy. A since-retired reporter Chicago Magazine editor Edward McClelland that CTU President Stacy Davis Gates 鈥�made Brandon Johnson.鈥� Now, 鈥淪tacy Davis Gates owns Brandon Johnson.鈥� 

Former U.S. Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D) a similar sentiment: 鈥淲e have a new political machine [in Chicago], and it鈥檚 called the CTU, and its vassal is Mayor Johnson.鈥�

The previous board鈥檚 resignations marked the apex of the tensions that have been simmering between it and Johnson ever since the board a controversial $9.9 billion budget in July. In addition, the board has sided with CPS CEO Pedro Martinez in opposing a $300 million short-term, high-interest loan to pay for the expensive raises sought by the CTU, which is negotiating a new contract with the board. After Johnson鈥檚 hardball move, there鈥檚 little question that the union鈥檚 negotiators are breathing a sigh of relief. In the memorable words of Chicago Magazine鈥檚 McClelland, following the board鈥檚 resignations, 鈥淢ayor CTU will appoint a set of lackeys, brownnosers, and apple polishers who will carry out the Chicago Teachers Union鈥檚 program鈥� 鈥� fire Martinez, take out the loan, and use the money to hand out for teachers.

Indeed, it鈥檚 clear that Johnson鈥檚 recent school board moves align well with the CTU鈥檚 positions. The union, which is toward Martinez, wants him gone. But the school board, which was almost entirely hand-picked by Johnson himself, refused to play along because it recognized the irresponsibility of taking on a risky loan.

It鈥檚 worth dwelling a bit on the financial situation of CPS. It can be boiled down to two words: not good. The school board a $9.9 billion budget in July that money for the contract that the board is currently negotiating with the CTU, which typically $100 million to $120 million annually to the district鈥檚 operating costs, nor a non-teaching-staff pension payment that will cost the district $175 million. 

These two expenses culminated in the roughly $300 million gap mentioned above. Mayor Johnson has pushed the school board and Martinez to take out a loan to close this gap, but because CPS bonds are 鈥渏unk鈥� rated, the interest payments on the loan would likely be exorbitant. Indeed, CPS is already $9.3 billion in debt, and principal and interest payments on outstanding debt 鈥� the debt that exists before this potential new loan would take effect 鈥� will $817 million this year alone. When Johnson first floated the idea of taking out a loan in July, an internal CPS memo by Chalkbeat called it a 鈥渇ictional or phantom revenue source.鈥�

An apparent lack of adequate state funding may also be at play here. In 2017, Illinois changed its to better fund historically under-resourced districts. Under the reformed funding formula, CPS 79% of its required funding this year the district鈥檚 recent increase in English language learners and a decrease in local revenue, both of which increased the required funding per the state鈥檚 formula. 

Lurking in the background of this shortfall is the between Johnson and Illinois governor J.B. Pritzker, providing fertile ground for the conspiracy-minded to suspect that the governor is holding back funding from Chicago鈥檚 schools out of personal pettiness. But the reality is more prosaic: in Illinois are even worse off than Chicago, including the 49 of them that are funded below 70%of what the state formula says they need. This suggests that Chicago is not being squashed by gubernatorial caprices. In the words of one person close to CPS, 鈥淚 think that the union thought, once Brandon [Johnson] got elected, that they鈥檇 be able to walk into Springfield and get whatever they wanted. . . . But there鈥檚 no money, especially after ESSER funds have expired.鈥�

Still, Chicago spends a lot of money each year on education. Per-student operating expenses in FY 22 $24,132, roughly double the . Moreover, as Chad Aldeman wrote last month, CPS has added thousands of personnel at the same time that enrollment in the district has been declining. 鈥淏udgeting decisions like these would be anathema in any other industry,鈥� argues Aldeman, 鈥渨here leaders normally try to match up the number of employees with customer demand.鈥� But 鈥淐hicago Public Schools is doing the opposite.鈥� 

Indeed, Aldeman notes that the district 鈥渃hose to invest 92% of its one-time relief funds in full-time school employees,鈥� a decision that greatly benefited the CTU鈥檚 members 鈥� and, by extension, CTU鈥檚 coffers.

But 鈥淢ayor CTU鈥� refuses to countenance worries about the CPS鈥檚 dire financial straits. In the press conference during which Johnson announced the board鈥檚 new appointees 鈥� which local news outlets have described as 鈥溾�� and 鈥溾�� 鈥� he compared those raising concerns about fiscal responsibility to slaveholders. 鈥淭hey said it would be fiscally irresponsible for this country to liberate Black people,鈥� Johnson argued. 鈥淎nd now you have detractors making the same argument of the Confederacy when it comes to public education in this system.鈥�

One can hardly blame the CTU for its insistence that its members receive generous raises, financial considerations be damned. The first concern of a union, after all, is simple: to act in the best interests of its members. But Brandon Johnson deserves less sympathy. In a time of unprecedented financial chaos for the school district, Mayor Johnson is acting in the interests not of Chicago as a whole but of the CTU. This is not to suggest that Johnson is a stooge of the union. Johnson strikes this observer as a full-throated advocate for the cause on which he rose to power, which is why the CTU funded him so generously in the first place; the arrow of causality does not point in the opposite direction.

Still, Johnson should know better than to jeopardize the financial health of the city鈥檚 school system in order to push forward the interests of just one of his many constituencies. In contrast, Chicago voters delivered a strong anti-union verdict in last week鈥檚 elections, as just four of the 10 school-board candidates elected were backed by the CTU. 

Perhaps this is a sign that Chicagoans have recognized the peril of being beholden to the union.

In a signed letter attached to today鈥檚 鈥淥urs to Solve, Once 鈥� and For All鈥� report, the six-member council (Jean-Claude Brizard, Mitch Daniels, Chris Howard, Andrew Luck, Frances Messano and Condoleezza Rice) writes that it identified 鈥渇undamental barriers鈥� to student equity and success within the current school system. 鈥淒espite our national commitment to the issue, steep increases in funding, and decades of reform efforts, our current system has been unable to offset poor student outcomes 鈥� particularly for minority and low-income students,鈥� the introduction to the report says. 鈥淭his failure goes against who we profess to be as a nation.鈥�

Hoover Institution Director and Council Co-Chair Condoleezza Rice went a step further in a Tuesday statement, framing the issue through the lens of national stability: 鈥淓ducation excellence is critical to the societal contract supporting our democracy and is inextricably tied to the success 鈥� or failure 鈥� of our nation.鈥�

Today鈥檚 report is unique in its focus on broader, system-level reforms. The council criticizes the existing structure of the nation’s education landscape, noting that the local school boards and state and federal agencies that run today’s schools 鈥渁re not the product of coherent and thoughtful design. Rather, they evolved over decades to a point where they hinder more than help the cause of improved outcomes for all students.鈥�

The group also highlights the 鈥減erplexing contradiction鈥� of today鈥檚 public schools, where the current system boasts strong community support, superior research and dedicated teachers and staff, but students鈥� academic outcomes vary widely 鈥� and many of these results are underwhelming. 

鈥淎ccording to virtually every available metric, the overall quality of American schools has either declined or remained stagnant since the 1970s,鈥� the council writes.

On a per-student basis, the U.S. spends 40% more than the average spent by member countries of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the council notes. At the same time, the U.S ranks 34th in math globally on the OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) evaluations.

鈥淐hanging the way these institutions are organized and function 鈥� what we call the 鈥榦perating system鈥� of public education 鈥� will raise trust, respect, agency, and empowerment for teachers and principals and will provide essential support from other education leaders,鈥� the group says in the report.

The council recommends four core commitments that they believe will help improve the educational 鈥渙perating system鈥�: Re-organizing the current system toward a new 鈥渢rue north鈥�  that focuses on student outcomes; minimizing regulations and mandates in favor of embracing incentives; cultivating and rewarding professional mastery in the education workforce; and flipping the system 鈥渇rom top-down to bottom-up.鈥�  

鈥淚n the flipped system hierarchy, schools are the apex organization,鈥� writes the council. 鈥淭hey need sufficient discretion to make decisions in situ to manage their own operations and to adapt their efforts to address the needs of their students.鈥�

A Hoover Institution spokesperson said that a dedicated website will accompany the report. Set to launch next month, the hub will offer readers and policymakers additional resources and details. 

A summit is also being scheduled for January at Stanford University, which will aim to bring experts together from across the country to discuss  and debate the findings of the report. 

鈥淲e hope this report builds motivation and commitment for change,鈥� the council members write in their introduction. 鈥淭ogether, we can launch a new approach to address the current state of public education in America, and provide every child the foundational opportunities they deserve.鈥� 

Disclosure: The Hoover Institution provides financial support to 社区黑料.

Over the last three years, Maui Waena Intermediate has invested nearly $300,000 in Covid-19 relief funds in its after-school program, hiring more staff and adding new programs to help students recover academically and socially from the pandemic.

The Valley Isle school鈥檚 extracurricular offerings have been a big draw for students, and class attendance has been steadily improving.

鈥淭hey鈥檙e more connected and they want to come to school,鈥� said Jennifer Suzuki, Maui Waena鈥檚 media teacher and after-school coordinator.

But while the increased after-school offerings may be drawing more kids to campus, the infusion of pandemic-era funding hasn鈥檛 achieved its primary goal: improving academic achievement. Only 26% of students at the school were proficient in math in the 2023-24 school year 鈥� the same as the year before, and a slight dip from the year before that.

Maui Waena鈥檚 struggles are reflective of a broader challenge in the state. Academic test scores in Hawaii have essentially flatlined for the last three years, despite an infusion of over $600 million in federal support to help schools address pandemic-era challenges, including learning loss.

Test scores released last month showed that 52% of Hawaii students were proficient in language arts last year, compared to 54% in the 2018-19 school year. Approximately 40% of students were proficient in math, down from 43% before the pandemic.

Advocates have been calling for years for the Hawaii Department of Education to provide greater detail about how schools are spending Covid relief funds. With funding ending this fall, a bigger concern is emerging over the lack of information about what the federal investment has achieved.

Principals say federal funds have supported student learning by enabling schools to purchase new curricula, hire more staff and expand access to tutoring and after-school programs. But there鈥檚 little information on what initiatives have resulted in the greatest student improvements, even though school leaders will likely need to convince lawmakers next year that the state should spend its own money to continue pandemic-era programs.

The DOE said in 2021 that it would fund a  to assess how different strategies helped middle school students recover from the pandemic, but spokesperson Nanea Ching said the initiative hasn鈥檛 been started. She did not say if the department still plans to move forward with the study.

In some cases, it鈥檚 too early to tell which federal investments drove the greatest gains in student learning during the pandemic, said Ash Dhammani, a policy data analyst at the . The long-term effects of programs from the pandemic may also depend on whether schools can use state funding to replace federal funds, he added. 

鈥淚t鈥檚 really important to highlight now, are we doing right by our students,鈥� Dhammani said, 鈥渁nd did we do enough with this one-time money?鈥� 

Covid Funds Spent On Variety Of School Needs

Hawaii schools experienced a smaller drop in student achievement during the pandemic than most states, but it鈥檚 concerning that progress has stalled in recent years, said David Sun-Miyashiro, executive director of HawaiiKidsCAN.

Improving student achievement was already a major issue in Hawaii before the pandemic. In early 2020, former superintendent Christina Kishimoto  of Hawaii students to achieve proficiency in math and reading by the end of the decade. Some educational advocates deemed her plan as overly ambitious but recognized that schools needed to progress at a faster rate.

A revised DOE plan calls for 65% of Hawaii students to achieve proficiency in reading and 50% in math by 2029.

In a Board of Education meeting last month, DOE Assistant Superintendent Elizabeth Higashi said Hawaii is following a national pattern of states seeing small to no improvements in academics. Attendance remains a challenge for some Hawaii schools, she said, which also reduces students鈥� learning time. Roughly a quarter of students were chronically absent from school last year.

In the final round of federal Covid relief funding, DOE received over $412 million to spend between 2021 and 2024. The DOE had to spend at least a quarter of the funds to address learning loss and support after-school and summer programs, but school leaders received a large degree of freedom on how to spend the remaining dollars.

Compared to other states, Dhammani said, Hawaii has done a good job of publishing  on the status of its federal funds, although the spending categories referenced in the monthly reports could be more detailed.

Some federal funds supported statewide initiatives, like free summer school classes, professional development for teachers and tutoring for middle school students. Complex areas also received nearly $170 million for individual school efforts to improve attendance and support academic and mental health needs.

For example, Kaneohe Elementary hired a social worker to support struggling families, while Keelikolani Middle School created an attendance arcade where students could play games before school and receive rewards for coming to class on time. 

鈥淭he funds were like a godsend,鈥� said Keelikolani Middle School Principal Joe Passantino. Since 2021, the school has surpassed its pre-pandemic state test scores in both math and reading.

But while principals say federal funds helped students recover from the effects of online learning, it鈥檚 been harder to track which strategies were most effective, especially when statewide academic progress has slowed in recent years.

For example, Sun-Miyashiro is interested in how the department funded tutoring programs during the pandemic and if schools were able to reach students who were struggling the most.

鈥淚t would be great to have data linked with activities and then be able to show how that had a meaningful impact,鈥� Sun-Miyashiro said.

With so many different uses for federal relief funds, it鈥檚 hard to determine which programs have resulted in the greatest success, Deputy Superintendent of Academics Heidi Armstrong said. In some cases, she added, investments in initiatives like new reading curriculum or regular screeners for students鈥� academics and mental health can benefit schools even after the federal funds expire.

鈥淚t鈥檚 very difficult to separate each one of those to say, this is what got us back to pre-pandemic levels, because there鈥檚 so many factors involved,鈥� Armstrong said. 鈥淲e are working very diligently to ensure that we continue on this trajectory.鈥� 

What Happens When Pandmic Funds Run Out?

While tracking the impact of federal dollars has been difficult, school administrators say the funding has been critical in connecting students with additional staff and resources that didn鈥檛 exist before the pandemic. Some are now worried that they won鈥檛 be able to sustain vital programs unless the state steps in with additional support.

At Lanakila Elementary, math and reading scores have met or surpassed their pre-pandemic levels. Using federal relief funds, principal Kerry Higa hired five additional teachers who could provide more individualized support to students by working with them in small groups.

The additional staff positions alone can鈥檛 account for the improved scores, Higa said, but having more quality teachers on campus has gone a long way, especially as students struggled to communicate and express themselves as they returned to in-person learning.

But as federal funds expire this year, the school has been unable to keep one of its teachers on staff, Higa said. He鈥檚 worried that other statewide programs, like free summer school, could also come to an end and provide fewer opportunities for his students to learn outside of class.

DOE received just over $20 million from the Legislature to replace federal funds and  in 2025 but will need to request more money to sustain the program in the future. Over the past three years, DOE spent roughly $40 million in federal funding on summer programs.

The state may be able to fill in some funding gaps for programs like summer school and tutoring, Sun-Miyashiro said, but the department will need to make a strong case for continuing these initiatives during the 2025 legislative session.

Deborah Bond-Upson, president of Parents for Public Schools of Hawaii and interim director of the Hui for Excellence in Education, said she鈥檚 worried about what the end of federal funding could mean for students. But she鈥檚 interested in tracking how the pandemic-era investments in professional development and technology for schools will serve students in the coming years.

Civil Beat鈥檚 education reporting is supported by a grant from Chamberlin Family Philanthropy.

Civil Beat鈥檚 community health coverage is supported by , Swayne Family Fund of Hawaii Community Foundation, the Cooke Foundation and .

There were two crates waiting for Valerie Smith, an elementary school librarian, when she arrived at the Sanford School Department鈥檚 central office on Monday. In one was a collection of 30 picture books featuring experiences of modern-day immigrants and their families, along with discussion prompts. In the other, a custom display built by Maine businesses to highlight the books.

For the district that has recently seen an influx of immigrants from Central Africa, Smith said it was the perfect fit. With tightening school budgets, the new Maine Department of Education initiative to send the diverse and inclusive collection to every district in the state will benefit all students, she said.

The Portland-based nonprofit, I鈥檓 Your Neighbor Books, that developed and distributed the collection nationwide said after almost three years of widespread bans targeting books on similar topics, this project strengthens Maine鈥檚 commitment to inclusive, diverse education. Smith, who hasn鈥檛 personally been targeted by the attacks on librarians through the book banning movement but has been wary of them, echoed the importance of the positive educational opportunities the collection will bring to her district.

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鈥淭hat鈥檚 what we do in libraries. We want kids to see themselves in our books,鈥� she said.

鈥淏eing able to enhance our collection, or widen it, with these books is going to be super 鈥� not only for those new Mainers or kiddos from different cultures coming to our schools, but are also great for our kiddos, who have been here all their life, because they can learn about some of those experiences by reading those books.鈥�

The collection features books highlighting representation, inclusion and belonging of immigrants and first-through-third generation families that I鈥檓 Your Neighbor books has distributed to schools across the country. They include titles written by and about immigrants from different parts of the world, such as Abuelita and Me by Leonarda Carranza, about a girl and her grandmother experiencing racism, In My Mosque by M.O. Yuksel, a book highlighting mosques as gathering places, and Priya Dreams of Marigold & Masala by Meenal Patel, a book containing colorful descriptions of India.

Peaks Island author Anne Sibley O鈥橞rien鈥檚 book, I鈥檓 New Here, about three immigrant children鈥檚 experiences in an English-speaking elementary school, is also featured in the collection.

However, the partnership with the Maine DOE, dubbed The Pine Project, is the first of its kind, distributing the organization鈥檚 Welcoming Library collection to every public school district with almost $650,000 in federal pandemic relief funds, according to Kendra Carter, an education marketing coordinator for the DOE.

The initiative will put almost 6,200 total books in circulation across the state, to be used as districts see fit, said Kirsten Cappy, executive director of I鈥檓 Your Neighbor Books.

鈥淚f we do not add in a collection of books about modern migrants and new generation communities, we鈥檙e leaving out what our classrooms and communities actually look like,鈥� Cappy said about the importance of the collection, which she thinks will significantly diversify the titles available to Maine teachers.

鈥淭he presence of these books changes teaching, and it changes minds.鈥�

The goal of the project, according to the Maine DOE, is to 鈥渆nhance students鈥� understanding of diverse experiences and foster inclusive school environments,鈥� Carter said in an email. The department will also offer an online training on September 30 to help educators teach the topics the books cover, which includes social emotional learning.

is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Maine Morning Star maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Lauren McCauley for questions: info@mainemorningstar.com. Follow Maine Morning Star on and .