Transforming Schools

April 28, 2026 | American schools spend over $4 billion annually on physical security technologies like AI weapons detection and surveillance, yet evidence for their effectiveness is thin and some have caused student harm. Research consistently shows that safety is better achieved through trusting relationships, positive school climates, and mental health supports — not hardware.

March 4, 2026 | Across party lines, the states achieving the strongest and most lasting student outcomes share a common set of evidence-based strategies. From Massachusetts to Mississippi, high-achieving states all invest in equitable and adequate school funding, teacher quality, and coherent instructional systems.

December 15, 2025 | States across the country are rethinking high school to give students stronger skills and more relevant learning experiences. Their efforts offer a clearer picture of how policy shifts can create schools that better prepare students for life after graduation.

December 9, 2025 | State leaders from California and Kentucky joined LPI's opening Legislative Prep Session webinar and shared how community schools are helping students succeed in their states. They discussed the ways that locally driven strategies, grounded in research and community partnerships, are improving achievement, attendance, and student well-being in states across the political spectrum.

November 18, 2025 | As schools grapple with post-pandemic learning setbacks, a powerful and evidence-based approach is helping students rebound. Community schools—rooted in deep family engagement, expanded learning, and integrated supports—are driving some of the strongest learning gains in the nation.

October 21, 2025 | When classroom educators connect to a student’s life experiences and cultural backgrounds, known as culturally responsive teaching, they create a sense of belonging and emotional safety, which often increases students’ participation and motivation. Applying this approach to expanded learning programs in elementary and secondary schools can result in powerful outcomes.

August 27, 2025 | While enrollment declines provide a real challenge, the response can be transformative. Districts can use declines as an opportunity to reimagine schools into smaller, more connected, and more innovative learning communities by redesigning schools around relationships, equity, and deeper learning.

July 24, 2025 | As California schools face historic enrollment declines, one district is taking the opportunity to redesign its schools with a focus on evidence-based approaches, focusing on student voice, mental health, and career readiness.

May 30, 2025 | As AI reshapes the world, U.S. schools face an urgent reckoning: redesign outdated factory-era models of education.

September 30, 2024 | The science of learning and development reveals how to design high schools so that learners can thrive in environments that support individualized development; where they have strong, supportive relationships; and where their social, emotional, physical, and cognitive needs are met.