PORTLAND, Ore. - The new school year is in full swing. For many Oregon school districts, this year marks the first that budgets have leveled out since the recession, which means no big staff or program cuts.

At Centennial High School in Multnomah County, Spanish teacher Reed Scott-Schwalbach says today, their foreign language department is about half its former size, teaches two languages instead of four, and operates with half the supply budget it used to have. But she says the excitement of a new year hasn't changed.

"There's a great sense of hope in the students, which is just wonderful to see," Scott-Schwalbach says. "Everyone comes back to school hopeful this year's going to be better than it was the year before, or as good as. That's one of my favorite things to see, and I see it a lot this year in my students."

It is also the first year Oregon teachers are using the Common Core standards for English and math. In the Medford School District, sixth-grade teacher Cat Olson says she and her peers are staying open-minded about the new challenge, and looking to the Legislature to weigh in on it.

"The biggest issues on the table right now of concern to teachers are, 'where is the state going to go at this point with the standardized testing and the Common Core, and how are our legislators going to respond to the buzz about that,'" Olson says. "That's kind of high on the radar for a lot of teachers."

The Oregon Education Association has taken the position that the classroom focus should be on learning rather than testing, and says it will advocate for more funding for teacher training.

John Larson, a high school English teacher in Hermiston, says his concern is the standardized testing won't leave enough time for teaching.

"It takes up about six weeks of your year just to administer the test," Larson says. "Just to prepare the students for the test takes up another three to four weeks. It's just not a really good use of instructional time."

Larson adds, every year teachers look forward to getting to know a new group of parents, too. The Hermiston School District makes it a priority to work with them.

"We call it 'Parent University,' and especially reaching out to those parents in poverty," Larson says. "Once a month, we hold a one-hour session, one in English and another in Spanish, and we talk to parents about how they can help their children be successful in school."

There are more than 568,000 students in Oregon, and almost 27,000 public school teachers.


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From gubernatorial candidate Mark Robinson to Superintendent of Public Instruction hopeful Michele Morrow, some Republicans running for office have suggested North Carolina could reject federal funding for public schools.

The idea is raising red flags for parents and teachers alike. The North Carolina Justice Center estimates turning down federal funding could strip more than $1 billion from schools and result in thousands of job losses.

Justin Parmenter, a teacher in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School District, thinks it would harm vulnerable student populations and strain already underfunded schools, especially in rural areas.

"Things like providing free and reduced (price) lunch for students who need that support," Parmenter outlined. "It would be serving students with special needs. It would be funding programs like substance abuse and mental health care."

Those who would turn down federal funding said it comes with "strings attached" or requirements they do not agree with. But Parmenter countered he has heard no clear plans on how to offset the nearly $1.7 billion shortfall it would create. He stressed a lack of a concrete strategy raises serious concerns about deeper cuts to public education.

Claire Kempner is a parent of three public school students voicing similar concerns, particularly about how cuts would affect rural areas and the quality of education. She worries about teacher retention in the face of low pay.

"We have a really hard time retaining teachers, especially in more rural areas of the state, like where I live," Kempner explained. "Teachers are not paid well enough, where they can live off of their salary. They're going to go to other areas or they may even leave the state completely."

The North Carolina Justice Center reported rejecting federal funds for North Carolina schools would lead to wider gaps in racial and economic opportunities.


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Colorado voters will decide whether to change the state's constitution to ensure families have school choice as a fundamental right.

Kallie Leyba, executive director of the American Federation of Teachers-Colorado, worries Amendment 80 on November's ballot would hurt the state's already underfunded public schools by diverting taxpayer dollars into a private school voucher program.

"Which would put Colorado's budget on the hook for paying for private education," Leyba pointed out. "It would drain the resources that the 95% of kids in Colorado who are attending public schools rely on."

Colorado students already have the right to attend any public school, including charter schools, regardless of where they live under the state's Public Schools and Choice Law. State law also allows families to home school or enroll in private school. Proponents of Amendment 80 said it will cement those rights into the state's constitution and protect parents' rights to educate their children the way they believe is best.

Josh Cowen, senior fellow at the Education Law Center, pointed to decades of evidence showing private school vouchers have led to some of the steepest declines in student achievement on record.

He added measures similar to Amendment 80 passed in Arizona, Florida and Ohio have led to serious budget cuts.

"Those states are spending a billion dollars each right now on vouchers, primarily for kids who are already in private school," Cowen explained. "When you're spending that kind of money on private religious education, you're not spending money on other things."

Leyba argued Amendment 80 could also harm Colorado students in rural parts of the state who depend on public schools.

"We have quite a few districts that are considered rural," Leyba noted. "Those kids don't have the options of private schools. Public schools are their option, and it's really important that we keep those public schools strong."

Palm Beach County schools are working to curb chronic absenteeism, which has surged since the pandemic.

Nearly 39% of Palm Beach County students missed 11 or more days of school last year.

Keith Oswald, chief of equity and wellness for the Palm Beach County School District, said families often face a combination of challenges triggering absences, so the district uses a variety of strategies, including sending notifications to parents when students reach five, 10 or 20 missed school days.

"I would say the more common where we see the 10 to 20 day range, I think it's a bad habit that we picked up from COVID of not coming to school that's stuck," Oswald observed. "Thinking that I could just miss a day or two a month is not a big deal but really, we're trying to educate people that it is a big deal."

The 2024 Annie E. Casey Foundation Kids Count Data Book revealed chronic absenteeism nearly doubled nationwide after the pandemic, with 30% of students missing significant amounts of school. The report also emphasized the long-term economic risks of learning loss, with U.S. students potentially facing $900 billion in lost lifetime earnings due to decreased academic achievement.

According to the Florida Department of Education, the statewide average of kids missing 21 or more days of school has modestly improved from a record high of almost 21% in the 2021-22 school year to 19.4% last year.

Oswald said the district also organizes problem-solving meetings with families to address concerns like transportation and housing instability, which can be primary causes of absenteeism.

"Sometimes it comes with employment; there's sometimes mental health issues in the family," Oswald outlined. "Food insecurity can come up at times. In our most severe cases, I think it's a sense of despair that a family gets into and needs additional support."

When community outreach fails, Oswald noted Palm Beach County has more formal procedures like working with a local judge on truancy interventions to help families understand the law and find solutions. He added the district needs more support staff to help with this dedicated outreach.

According to the Kids Count data, students in poverty and children of color are disproportionately affected by chronic absences, further widening the achievement gap.


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