Purpose: In this mixed methods study, we delve into the complex realm of perceptions of critical race theory (CRT) in the United States. The public perspective of CRT has implications for K12 education, particularly as it relates to teaching literature and social studies. In our investigation, we focus on school district superintendents'…

This brief seeks to serve as a clarion call for all educators and policymakers who believe higher education is a viable pathway to socioeconomic prosperity and eradicating centuries of generational poverty for Black people residing in the U.S. Despite the enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which marked the end of de jure segregation in the…

Researchers were already expecting a gradual enrollment slowdown before the onset of COVID-19. Public school enrollment edged up only 2% between 2012 and 2019, holding near 50 million students (NCES 2024), while the U.S. total fertility rate had slipped to 1.71 births per woman--well below the replacement level--foreshadowing a smaller school-age…

This study conducted a meta-analytic case study of NAEP Trial Urban Data Assessment (TUDA) data, exploring science achievement trends among Black girls in urban versus larger city school districts (N = 26,298). Results revealed statistically significant but practically small differences in achievement (g = -0.07), underscoring structural…

Objective: To determine the presence of overweight and obesity among minorities, and the factors contributing to this weight disparity. Participants: The study comprises 3405 students including nonwhite, international, and first-generation college students. Methods: An online cross-sectional survey collected data on demographics, height, weight,…

School nurses improve public health through vaccine promotion and mandate compliance. Despite recommendations and support for comprehensive adolescent HPV vaccination from organizations like the National Association of School Nurses as of 2023 only Virginia, Washington DC, Rhode Island, and Hawaii mandate HPV vaccine in schools. Virginia's mandate…

We use data from Michigan and an interrupted time series strategy to show how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted special education identifications and discontinuations. We find a substantial decrease in K-5 identifications and discontinuations during the 2019 to 2020 and 2020 to 2021 school years. Identifications fell by 19% and 12% in the first two…

This report examines descriptive patterns in student absenteeism before and after the COVID-19 pandemic in Virginia and North Carolina. The authors asks four questions: (1) How do absence rates vary across student demographic groups and years?; (2) What student characteristics (grade, achievement, race, poverty, status as an English language…

Career choices are shaped by students' experiences, knowledge, and skill sets across time, reflecting not only disciplinary interests but also exposure to evolving fields such as data science (DSC). Despite a surge in interest and enrollment in data science degrees, the United States faces a growing demand for data literacy across multiple…

Barriers to health care access can greatly affect one's health status. Research shows that U.S. adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) have poor health and face barriers such as long waits for appointments. However, whether barriers differ by race and ethnicity has not been examined. We conducted a secondary data analysis…

The doctoral defense is considered to have three dimensions: the scholarly dimension, the emotional (affective) dimension, and the cultural dimension. In this work, I explore the link between sociodemographic factors and students' perception of the doctoral defense to better understand the affective dimension. In particular, I focus on gender,…

A team of researchers wanted to learn whether AP teachers using a project-based learning (PBL) approach could develop students' deep learning of knowledge and skills while preparing them for their AP exams. They used a randomized controlled trial to evaluate the Knowledge in Action (KIA) project-based curricula for AP courses. KIA students…

Parental influences, particularly parents' occupations, may influence individuals' entry into the teaching profession. This mechanism may contribute to the relatively static demographic composition of the teaching force over time. We assess the role of parental influences on occupational choice by testing whether the children of teachers are…

This study examined the relationships between school-level school climate and race differences in student grades, accounting for school sociodemographic composition. We found that schools with more positive school climates had smaller race differences in student self-reported grades. The moderating effect of school climate remained after…

School-wide positive behavior interventions and supports (SWPBIS) have been widely implemented in more than 25,000 schools. Although extant literature provides experimental evidence supporting the positive impacts of SWPBIS on decreased office discipline referrals and suspensions, those effects for diverse students have not been fully…