COVID-19 and Education’s New Normal

By Kristan Uhlenbrock
Director, Institute for Science & Policy, Denver Museum of Nature & Science

COVID-19 has profoundly reshaped education, from K-12 all the way up to colleges and universities. Many of the challenges have been numerous and well-publicized: children struggling to keep up with virtual learning, parents juggling childcare with their own jobs, teachers wary to return to classrooms until vaccines quell the virus. The central role that schools play in our society has perhaps never been in greater focus. Yet the pandemic may offer unexpected opportunities as well, ushering in new tools and structures that could help schools emerge stronger on the other side. 

In our continuing look at the “new normal” across different sectors, Institute Director Kristan Uhlenbrock chatted with Rebecca Holmes, President & CEO of the Colorado Education Initiative; Christie Imholt, District Policy Director in the Office of the Superintendent, ‎Aurora Public Schools; and Landon Pirius, Vice President for Organizational Effectiveness, Student Affairs, and Strategic Initiatives for the Colorado Community College System, about what the near-term future will look like for students and schools.