Strengthening public education and the labor force

Strengthening public education and the labor force
Photo by Lydia Thompson, Urban Institute

Education and training are critical to economic success. Children and adults should have access to high-quality educational and skill-building opportunities that equip them for jobs that pay a living wage. Learn more about how to ensure our schools and workforce development opportunities help people prepare for today’s labor force and improve their job prospects.

Brief

The Advancing Early Education Collaborative in Washington, DC

Early educators in Washington, DC, earn the lowest salaries among early educators in the greater Washington region, at just $16,442 annually.
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Highlights

Four Lessons from the District of Columbia Public Schools’ COVID Test-to-Return Program

Amid the Omicron COVID-19 surge, the debate over school operations has been intense.
Elementary-school students listen to a guest speaker
Highlights

Building an Education Research-Practice Partnership for DC

How well are DC’s schools serving students?
Eric Wang, 39, co-owner of Burmese Restaurant Thamee on H street corridor poses during an interview about how small business owners are coping with the COVID-19 crisis
Highlights

Who Is Most Affected by the Economic Downturn in the DC Region?

Across the US, workers in industries most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic have filed record numbers of unemployment claims. People working in businesses that rely on consumers to come and spend in place, such as restaurants, bars, and movie theaters, and those in the tourism and travel industries have been the hardest hit so far. The Washington, DC, region is not immune. Unlike the Great Recession, the federal government presence will provide no insulation from the pandemic’s negative economic consequences.
Employees, customers and security guards maintain social distancing at DC Wharf's Fish Market
Highlights

The Pandemic’s Disparate Effects on DC Workers and Neighborhoods

An earlier version of this post displayed the wrong source information for the maps (corrected 4/27/20).
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Highlights

The Best of Urban–Greater DC in 2019

Like nearly every year that preceded it, 2019 brought rapid growth and change for the Greater DC area.
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Highlights

New DC Education Data Show How School Choice Plays Out across Wards

Chelsea Coffin of the DC Policy Center contributed to this post.
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Highlights

Exploring Education Data Reveals Increasing Diversity in Maryland Schools

In Maryland, several school districts have recently begun talking about redistricting—that is, redrawing boundaries to reduce overcrowding in schools and enhance racial and economic integration.
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Highlights

How research supports an organization serving Asian American youth in DC

Asian American Youth Leadership Empowerment and Development (AALEAD) provides after-
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Highlights

The fate of Initiative 77 should include the voices of DC’s low-income and minority residents

In June, 56 percent of Washington, DC, voters supported Initiative 77, a referendum that raises DC’s tipped minimum wage to the city’s standard minimum wage by 2026.
India waits to cross an intersection on her walk home from Kelly Miller Middle School in late January. After receiving so many tardies at Hardy, Vanessa decided to switch India into a middle school closer to their home. Photo by Lydia Thompson/Urban Institute.
Highlights

New study shows inequalities in distances students travel in DC

School choice policies in Washington, DC, have given families unprecedented options, but in some cases, more options can mean tough decisions.
Research Report

The Road to School: How Far Students Travel to School in the Choice-Rich Cities of Denver, Detroit, New Orleans, New York City, and Washington, DC

Scroll down to see our interactive map showing average school commute times for students in Denver, Detroit, New Orleans, New York City, and Washington, DC.
Research Report

The Effect of the DC School Voucher Program on College Enrollment

This study of Washington, DC’s, Opportunity Scholarship Program (OSP) provides the first experimental evidence on the effect of a publicly funded private school choice program on college enrollment.
Highlights

In DC, new child care regulations are a promising start

New child care regulations put DC at the leading edge of a field typically marked by low wages and inconsistent quality.
Research Report

Does Attendance in Early Education Predict Attendance in Elementary School? An Analysis of DCPS’s Early Education Program

Enrollment in early childhood education programs can be an important stepping stone to higher educational achievement.