While our nation’s leaders wrestle with questions of governance, America’s young people are in crisis.
The 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress revealed widening achievement gaps, with today’s struggling readers performing worse than their counterparts from three decades ago. Meanwhile, American students have fallen to 24th place internationally in mathematics.
This achievement gap isn’t just an educational challenge. It’s a fundamental threat to our nation’s future that demands a strategic national response.
While innovation and leadership at all levels are essential, the federal government plays a particularly important role. The Department of Education serves as a critical catalyst for educational excellence, enabling states and districts to scale successful approaches through evidence-based practices, providing infrastructure for rapid innovation, and ensuring all students receive the supports they need and rightfully deserve.
Without strong federal leadership, we risk disconnected experiments with no mechanism to scale success. Without access to federal data, we risk innovating in the dark. And without targeted federal support for our most vulnerable students, we risk limiting resources and opportunities based on a child’s zip code, race, or socioeconomic status.
From our partnerships with 4000 school systems in 41 states, TNTP has daily proof that leaders and educators can partner across lines of difference to center young people’s needs and invest in proven practices.
This moment calls for transformation, not demolition.
We must work together to improve life outcomes for young people at scale and build a workforce capable of tackling tomorrow’s challenges. Our nation’s future depends on it.
