Network Schools – Wayne Gerseny to https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/04/03/magazine/thomas-piketty-interview u w B l.html?h I’ll smid=url-share the Is for

Forbes writer Jim Cowen synthesized the three major adverse impacts public schools will face should President Trump continue to hold the line on his position that State and local governments receive no federal aid as a result of the pandemic:

1. Lost time = lost learning: As a result of last year’s sudden closure of public and private schools and this year’s stuttering start, students across the country are losing classroom time. That lost time is resulting in lost learning, especially for those students who struggle with connectivity or the independent learning required when schools went online.
2. Lack of Connectivity = 16,900,000 Children missing out on school: The Alliance for Excellent Education, working in partnership with other organizations, estimated that 16.8 million children lack the connectivity required to learn remotely. Unsurprisingly, roughly 1/3 of all BIPOC students lack sufficient connectivity. 
3. States are projecting a 20% loss in revenue: This is the most stunning and devastating news of all… and it packs an especially hard punch to those schools who receive extra aid as a result of state formulas. As witnessed during the economic downturn, districts serving impoverished students tend to benefit disproportionately from state aid… which means they suffer disproportionately when state budgets are slashed.

The bottom line to the POTUS’ decision to withhold funding from states is that the districts serving the poorest students and the minority students will  be forced to make the deepest cuts and their students will be the biggest losers. But for an administration that favors the shareholders over students, this is not a bug: it’s a feature.