EWA Radio

The already stressful and arduous process of applying for college financial aid was supposed to be easier this year. Instead, the public saw the meltdown of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). 

As the U.S. Department of Education scrambles to fix calculation errors, colleges and universities have had to hit pause on making admissions decisions, adding even more confusion to the mix. 

In Baltimore and many other school systems in Maryland, Black teachers are leaving at a higher rate than their colleagues of any other racial group. That tracks with national trends, and leaves too many schools with educator workforces that are significantly less diverse than the student populations they teach. 

Kristen Griffith of The Baltimore Banner shares in...

Many state funding formulas allocate additional dollars for low-income students to level the playing field. But fewer account for concentrated poverty in communities, despite the additional challenges faced by schools serving large shares of economically disadvantaged students. 

What is the impact of concentrated poverty on students? How might more resources be directed to high-poverty schools, and what ot...

For a reporter who is not officially on the education beat, Alec MacGillis of ProPublica finds plenty to keep him busy, going deep into stories about how the COVID-19 pandemic continues to be felt in all aspects of lives of students and their school communities. 

He joins EWA Radio to discuss his two newest pieces: a close look at a private company providing outreach services tracking down absent students in the hard-hit school sys...

While in her junior year at Milpitas High School in Northern California, student journalist Riya Vyas  heard the rumors like everyone else – two teachers had been accused of improper behavior with students. 

She used the power of the press – and open records requests – to build a paper trail and show that the teachers had been allowed to resign quietly, decreasing the possibility that a record of disciplin...

For a reporter who is not officially on the education beat, Alec MacGillis of ProPublica finds plenty to keep him busy, going deep into stories about how the COVID-19 pandemic continues to be felt in all aspects of lives of students and their school communities. 

He joins EWA Radio to discuss his two newest pieces: a close look at a private company providing outreach services tracking down absent students in the hard-h...

Suburbs have long been a touchstone of the proverbial American dream, promising happy lives and top-notch schools to their fortunate inhabitants. But what happens when white and affluent families move on, leaving behind massive municipal debt, poorly planned infrastructure, and school systems ill-equipped to meet the needs of newer residents – many of whom are often less wealthy, Black, and Hispanic? 

Long...

From fiscal cliffs to surges in high-need students, 2024 is expected to be a challenging year on the K-12 and higher ed beats. 

As Boston Globe editor Melissa Taboada told EWA public editor Emily Richmond: “Winter is coming.” Jon Marcus, higher education editor for The Hechinger Report, also joined the discussion, offering his forecast for the months ahead. 

Among the big stories these veteran journalists say to watch for: student ...

If you’re a journalist who’s feeling burned out or ready for a change, a professional fellowship can be a chance to recharge and renew your passion for your work. 

What are the differences among the best-known residential fellowships? What makes a great application? What should you expect from your fellowship year? And how can you boost your chances of grabbing the brass ring? 

Two experienced...

What keeps rural Black students from pursuing college or thriving when they get there? J. Brian Charles of The Chronicle of Higher Education went to Sussex County, Virginia to get a closer look at what post-high school opportunity looks like in the swampy countryside, where “peanuts, pork, and pine” are the major exports – not young people headed for higher education. 

He talks with EWA Public Editor Emil...

Few education policies have become more divisive – or politicized – than school choice. Chalkbeat editor and author Cara Fitzpatrick discusses her new book, “The Death of Public School.” 

Who really benefits from charter schools and voucher programs, and how have conservative politicians seized the reins of what was, albeit briefly, a bipartisan movement aimed at improving educational equity? If public edu...

What if you could earn a college degree by demonstrating your mastery of a specific set of skills, rather than completing a minimum number of hours instructional seat time? 

That’s the premise behind a massive experiment underway in California’s community colleges. EWA Reporting Fellow Adam Echelman of CalMatters shares insights from his close look at the promise – and potential perils – of “competency ba...

Few things were as fraught with controversy amid the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic as the decision to close many schools while others stayed open. 

Apoorva Mandavilli, science and global health reporter for The New York Times, looked closely at how air quality in public schools impacted outbreaks, what it would take to give more students access to healthier classrooms, and what’s keeping more polic...

The new academic year is underway, and challenges – and opportunities – lay ahead for school communities. 

Kalyn Belsha, newly named senior reporter for national education news at Chalkbeat, shares her must-have stories for the K-12 beat. From the impact of new laws barring teachers from talking about “controversial” topics – such as race, racism and gender identity – to what happens when the federal COVID...

Do you know Elizabeth City State University, a historically Black college, in North Carolina? What about SUNY-Geneseo in New York’s Finger Lakes region? Both schools were top performers in the Washington Monthly’s annual college rankings.

The magazine puts a premium on graduation rates, overall costs to students and families, whether graduates end up in good-paying jobs doing meaningful work, and how ready they are for advanced deg...

Mike Hixenbaugh of NBC News won the Ronald Moskowitz Prize for Outstanding Beat Reporting at this year’s National Awards for Education Reporting ceremony.

He speaks candidly about the perils of “parachute journalism,” especially in the wake of tragedies – such as the Robb Elementary School shooting in Uvalde, Texas – and explains what keeps pulling him back to stories about students and schools. Plus, wha...

Reporters Jodi S. Cohen and Jennifer Smith Richards share the backstory to their blockbuster investigation into Illinois police ticketing students at schools for minor infractions, a practice costing them seat time and their families thousands of dollars in fines. 

The joint series f...