
How extra funding and learning time are helping students catch up from COVID interruptions
Photo by Cornell Watson for NPR
Schools in Guilford County, N.C., have used a grants from the Walton Family Foundation and the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation to repurpose learning hubs established in 2020. Then, the hubs were used to provide students access to technology and connection to online classrooms. Now, the hubs serve as oases in the desert of lost learning, a spot for students lost in the CoVid era to stop in and stay on track.
The grants were instrumental in setting up the hubs, and in providing funding for students to travel to the hubs, meals for them, and to help pay for materials and instruction. The administrators and teachers in the district have volunteered substantial time, too, to reach out to students that might feel lost and might fall behind because of their learning gap.
The hard work and re-purposing of the hubs has clearly paid off. Not only are students back in learning mode, "In the spring of 2021, with the help of Saturday learning hubs, increased flexibility from the state, and a summer quarter, Guilford County posted the highest high school graduation rate in its history: 91.4 percent. That's in a district where nearly two-thirds of students are living in poverty."
Kudos to all involved: students, teachers, admin, volunteers, and the two foundations that helped spark this wonderful success story.
Schools in Guilford County, N.C., have used a grants from the Walton Family Foundation and the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation to repurpose learning hubs established in 2020. Then, the hubs were used to provide students access to technology and connection to online classrooms. Now, the hubs serve as oases in the desert of lost learning, a spot for students lost in the CoVid era to stop in and stay on track.
The grants were instrumental in setting up the hubs, and in providing funding for students to travel to the hubs, meals for them, and to help pay for materials and instruction. The administrators and teachers in the district have volunteered substantial time, too, to reach out to students that might feel lost and might fall behind because of their learning gap.
The hard work and re-purposing of the hubs has clearly paid off. Not only are students back in learning mode, "In the spring of 2021, with the help of Saturday learning hubs, increased flexibility from the state, and a summer quarter, Guilford County posted the highest high school graduation rate in its history: 91.4 percent. That's in a district where nearly two-thirds of students are living in poverty."
Kudos to all involved: students, teachers, admin, volunteers, and the two foundations that helped spark this wonderful success story.