Strains in Education

My latest looks at the way Americans perceive their neighborhood public-school system in this tumultuous time. Resource strains, not cultural battles, are front of mind for residents across communities, the American Communities Project/Ipsos 2023 Survey found. This is not typically what’s covered in the national media and on social media platforms.

From my piece: “From pandemic woes to social challenges to culture clashes to educator shortages, public schools have been working under extreme stress these past four years. This is showing up in the way Americans perceive their neighborhood public-school system, according to the American Communities Project/Ipsos 2023 Survey. More than a third of Americans gave their public schools a fair or poor rating. Ratings were worse in rural communities of color. Across all 15 community types, underfunding or underinvestment was the top concern voiced, followed by too much demand or strain, such as staff shortages.”