District of Columbia

The reform of public education in the nation's capital

A Policymaker’s Playbook for Transforming Teaching

The District of Columbia Public Schools’ transformation of teaching into a performance-based profession

Right From the Start: D.C.’s Groundbreaking Teacher Hiring Strategy

A model teacher-hiring system

Common Lotteries and the Future of Urban Public Education

How D.C.’s school lottery makes public school choice work better for both students and schools

Vouchers in D.C.: Choosing Not to Choose

An analysis of D.C.’s federally funded private-school voucher program

District of Columbia

By the Numbers

Universal Pre-K

  • 17

    States, plus D.C., with a universal pre-k policy as of January 2023

  • 5

    States with at least 70 percent of 4-year-olds enrolled in pre-K, 2019-20

Source: National Institute for Early Education Research

Math Test Scores in D.C.

  • 31%

    D.C. students scoring proficient in math in 2019

  • 19%

    D.C. students scoring proficient in math in 2022

Source: Office of the State Superintendent of Schools

D.C. Neighborhood Schools

  • 28%

    Students in the District of Columbia attending their designated neighborhood school

Source: D.C. Policy Center

District of Columbia

All Work

Testimony: Addressing Chronic Absenteeism in the District of Columbia

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Testimony: How to Retain Teacher Talent in the District of Columbia

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How D.C. Public Schools Improved Teacher Quality, Diversity

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Right From the Start: D.C.’s Groundbreaking Teacher Hiring Strategy

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The Pandemic Dims a Beacon of School Improvement

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Disrupted: The Path to School Reform in the Nation’s Capital

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Reducing Chronic Absenteeism in the Nation’s Capital

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Retaining Teachers: The View from Washington, D.C.

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Rethinking What and How 45,000 Students Learn

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Common Lotteries and the Future of Urban Public Education

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ANNOTATION: Parsing the Plan to Expand D.C.’s Voucher Program

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The Effects of Universal Preschool on Washington, D.C.

Read More about The Effects of Universal Preschool on Washington, D.C.