Tulane Hosts Talk About the Effect of COVID-19 on Schools, Elections

NEW ORLEANS – Tulane University School of Liberal Arts Dean Brian Edwards will host a discussion with public education scholar Douglas Harris and political scientist Mirya Holman at 2 p.m. on June 3 about how COVID-19 is likely to affect schools across the country, as well as how the nation votes for a president. The online event is free, but participants must register here.

“Professors Harris and Holman are recognized leaders in their fields. Both scholars and the national media seek their insights into how COVID-19 might transform two foundational cycles of our society — the school year and election season. Now, these two experts are ready to share their research and answer the questions webinar participants have about these fundamental issues of our day,” said Tulane President Michael Fitts.

Harris is the founding director of the Education Research Alliance for New Orleans, national director of Research on Education Access and Choice, professor and chair of economics, and Schlieder Foundation Chair in Public Education. His research has helped inform and influence national debates over a range of education policies, especially in charter-based school reform, teacher evaluation, accountability, and college access.

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Harris is leading an effort to collect data from approximately 150,000 school websites across the country to see how the nation’s education system is responding to the coronavirus pandemic. The study looks at how students are learning when school buildings are closed, how schools were delivering online instruction and how students stayed in contact with teachers during the shutdown.

Holman, associate professor of political science, researches American politics and public policy, with a focus on state and local politics, gender and politics, research methods and environmental politics. She has been widely published in academic journals and in the media. She has been a frequent commentator about women mayors, sheriffs in the U.S., Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign and sexism.

Earlier this month, Edwards published a widely-circulated column in The Hill about how the still-unfolding COVID-19 crisis will be the defining moment for college and high-school-aged students, which he calls “the fractured generation.”

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