The Senior Research Associate will conduct original research consistent with the Consortium model, applying rigorous methods to answer questions of policy and practice in collaboration with educational stakeholders. The SRA will also co-direct the work of the Equitable Learning and Development Group developing and leading a nationally focused research agenda that centers student and educator experiences in schools. The candidate will also provide guidance to other researchers at the Consortium on how to conduct rigorous research and engage with policymakers and school practitioners.

This episode features a conversation with Alex Usher and Alex Seeskin from the University of Chicago. Alex Usher is Associate Director for Data Research at the University of Chicago’s To&Through Project and Senior Research Analyst for the UChicago Consortium on School Research. Alex Seeskin is Director of The To&Through Project, which is housed at the UChicago Urban Education Institute.

Data released this week by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) demonstrated the devastating effect of the pandemic on the recent academic gains made by Chicago students.

In math, 41% of fourth graders were “below basic” — which NAEP defines as students not demonstrating the prerequisite fundamental skills they would need to be proficient in a subject — with roughly another 20% recognized as “proficient.” Also in math, 51% of eighth graders were considered below basic, with 16% achieving proficiency...

While abysmal math scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress exams have parents and educators worried about students’ futures, English learners made a surprising gain, scoring four points higher in 8th-grade reading while student results overall dropped.

Developing the critical skills, attitudes, and behaviors children need to succeed as adults requires consistent, supportive relationships and positive developmental experiences in and out of school, according to a report by the University of Chicago Consortium on Chicago School Research.

Key Findings

• Students in grades 3-8 in the On-Track category graduated high school at more than twice the rate of students in the Intensive Support category (93 percent vs. 39 percent) and enrolled in college at more than four times the rate of students in the Intensive Support category (72 percent vs. 16 percent).
• Students in the Academic Support category, who came to school regularly yet were still not earning a 3.0 GPA, made up nearly 40 percent of students in the 2018–19 school year.

Tara Vahdani is a Research Assistant at the UChicago Consortium and a graduate student at the Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice. An aspiring school social worker, she is especially interested in exploring the promise of schools in addressing the non-academic needs of students. Working closely with the Consortium’s Director of Partnerships and Engagement, Tara helps identify and develop opportunities for stakeholder engagement.

Madison Thân is a Research Analyst at the UChicago Consortium. She conducts data analysis under the Equitable Learning and Development Project (ELDP), primarily working on Cultivate, ELDP's survey tool measuring student noncognitive factors. She collaborates with researchers both internal and external to the UChicago Consortium to provide data, research, and resources centered on student experience and classroom learning conditions to students and their families, educators, districts, and other stakeholders.

After 18 months of virtual learning, Terrence Smith returned to Chicago’s Austin College and Career Academy last year — and was struck by how empty the four-story building felt.

The West Side school lost more than a third of its student body during the pandemic, shrinking to fewer than 160 students, in a campus meant to serve almost 1,900...