Jodi Fortino
Education Reporter | KCURMore than ever, education lies at the intersection of equity, housing, funding, and other diverse issues facing Kansas City’s students, families and teachers. As KCUR’s education reporter, Fortino strives to break down the policies driving these issues in schools and report what’s happening in the region's classrooms.
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KIDS COUNT, an annual child wellness report, found 20% of students in Missouri and 27% of students in Kansas were chronically absent in 2021-2022. -
A wide-ranging bill in the Missouri legislature includes provisions to address the state's struggle to recruit and retain teachers, but also includes controversial school choice measures. -
Missouri’s state board of education decided to provide schools with optional guidelines on social-emotional learning to help them cope with worsening student behavior. Commissioners are concerned about potential political pushback to the learning standards, which have been criticized by conservatives. -
Schools in Missouri are still rebounding from the pandemic's impact on student learning. State education leaders say they're also grappling with student mental health issues, chronic absenteeism and teacher shortages. -
The Missouri legislative session is more than halfway finished, and many bills affecting schools are making their way through the Capitol.
