School closures prompted by the coronavirus pandemic have sent families scrambling for solutions—balancing their work schedules with childcare and their children’s needs for social stimulation.
As spring approaches, these widespread closures may have deeper ramifications for a particular group: students preparing to enter high school or college.
“These are transitions that, if students get the right support, can completely change the path that they’re on,” said Bridgette Davis, AM’16, a University of Chicago doctoral candidate who studies educational access and how underserved youth progress into adulthood.
Before joining UChicago’s School of Social Service Administration, Davis taught and worked in Chicago and Atlanta public schools for more than a decade. Her current research follows 31 low-income students on the South Side of Chicago during their first year after high school.
The closures of schools across the country, she said, will likely precipitate a “widening gap” between low- and high-income students.
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