A survey of school superintendents across Colorado at the end of 2020 showed a high level of concern about the loss of student reading and math skills due to the pandemic, as well as negative impacts on the mental health of both students and teachers. National data confirm these worries; a McKinsey study shows the […]
Education
School Counselor Corps Grant Program Evaluation
Nationally, COVID-19 has highlighted the instability of relying on a small number of school counselors to guide hundreds of students through changing academic hurdles, prepare them for an uncertain future, and triage increasing mental health challenges. Colorado has one of the lower students-per-counselor ratios nationally—with 295 students per counselor in the 2019-20 school year—in part […]
RISE: Innovating Improved Student & Family Outcomes in the Wake of COVID-19
Bennett 29J, Strasburg 31J, and Weld RE-3J School Districtst As the 2020 school year wound down, the Children’s Hospital of Colorado declared a state of emergency for youth mental health. Atop already high needs, the impacts of COVID-19 were devastating, resulting in a 90% increase in demand for behavioral health treatment and the emergence of […]
2021 Legislative Review
Several significant bills passed this legislative session, strengthening opportunities to improve the lives of Colorado residents across the lifespan, from prenatal care to early childhood development to adult services. The Colorado Lab worked together with state and local government agencies, legislators, the Governor’s Office, research colleagues, and subject matter experts to inform this suite of […]
DPS and Colorado Judicial Branch Partner with LINC
We are pleased to welcome Denver Public Schools and the Colorado Judicial Branch (adult and juvenile state courts) as new partners to the Linked Information Network of Colorado (LINC). LINC was created through the Lab’s partnership with the Colorado Governor’s Office of Information Technology to help state and local government agencies harness data to inform […]
Fostering Opportunities: Closing the High School Graduation Gap for Youth Who Experience Foster Care
Only one in four Colorado students who experience foster care during high school graduate with their class. Most interventions aimed at improving the graduation rates of youth who experience foster care are spearheaded by child welfare agencies or the judicial system with services typically ending when students exit the foster care system. Yet there is evidence […]
Barriers to Higher Education: Learning from the Experience of Foster Youth in the Time of the Pandemic
As the pandemic challenges all students seeking to succeed in college, a new study examines the barriers that young people in foster care have long faced, and the supports that make a difference for them. These findings guide the way to the policies and practices that will benefit all youth in these difficult times. From […]
Concurrent Enrollment: A Pathway to Success
Throughout Colorado, more high school students than ever are taking college courses before graduation. The state supports this through a program called Concurrent Enrollment and a new report from the Colorado Evaluation and Action Lab shows that it has the power to help students graduate from college and earn more in their early careers. Recognizing […]
Fostering Opportunities: Stories of Success
As the nation celebrates the class of 2020 and the resilience of graduates during a worldwide pandemic, it can be easy to forget that some students face huge challenges to high school graduation even in “normal” times. Living in foster care can make school feel like a perpetual marathon. In Jefferson County, a program called […]