The state Department of Education partnered with Columbia University this summer to figure out the best way for children to learn during the pandemic. A big part of their solution is something called “real-time learning.”

“The larger the school choice program, the greater the possible stress on public schooling. This should be of special concern in a pandemic when we know there’s a very good chance that public school funding will be reduced,” said Preston Green, a professor of educational leadership and law at the University of Connecticut.

Researchers from UConn and the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies have been awarded a $3 million grant from the National Science Foundation Research Traineeship Program to fund a new program to help train graduate students in risk analysis to build resilient landscapes in the face urbanization and climate change.

COVID-19 cases are surging in states. So does that mean it’s OK to send kids back to school in the fall? Here in Connecticut, coronavirus trends look very different, leading Governor Ned Lamont to recommend that schools reopen. But the uncertainty is causing anxiety among parents, teachers and students. How will schools ensure everyone will be safe? How will kids’ learning be impacted? And on a practical level, how will wearing masks and social distancing work inside our schools?

Rachael Gabriel, director of the Neag School of Education’s Reading and Language Arts Center, tells us about some of the initiatives she’s hoping will help students, teachers, and parents stay on top of reading education during the pandemic.

“I see sports at its best as a great example for our country to be a better team and better teammates,” says Doug Glanville.

“We have a lot to be worried about as adults, but at the center of what is going on in our heads should be how we are talking about back-to-school with our children.”

Americans are starting to really examine the statues in their communities including here in our state. We are all acting as curators.

Listen in as faculty member Megan Staples discusses the challenges teachers face in online learning settings.

UCTV Sports’ Students of Storrs podcast interviews Doug Glanville, former MLB player, now sport management faculty at the Neag School, in a discussion on athlete activism and the intersection between sport and society.