There aren’t many mainstream education reporters that I know of who are focused solely on covering school choice, and — technically — Josh Snyder has other responsibilities.
But the school choice program created in Arkansas’ 2023 LEARNS Act is a big part of Snyder’s locally-funded three-year gig, which he’s handled since last summer, so I’m counting him as one of them.
And, given how rapidly school choice is spreading lately, there are likely to be more choice-focused education reporters in the future.
Watch or read the transcript above or on YouTube. Listen to it on Spotify or Apple.
Covering school choice is one of the biggest challenges in education journalism right now.
Raised by his grandparents in Arizona, Snyder’s personal experience with school choice was limited to time spent at a nearby school district during part of elementary school.
What’s it been like, covering school choice pretty much full-time?
Snyder says he’s spent much of his first six months on the beat developing sources, building trust, and getting a strong sense of the 145-page education overhaul.
“I feel like I’ve been able to thread the needle in terms of building trust with some very diverse communities here,” says Snyder, who’s written about spending patterns and operational issues.
Reaching out to district administrators and teachers has been harder, given their fears of getting in trouble. And there’s lots that’s left for him to do in the second half of the school year.
For example, he has yet to get out into the field to see these new programs and equipment first-hand — including gaming chairs and a chicken coop.
Watch or read the transcript above or on YouTube. Listen to it on Spotify or Apple.
You can follow Snyder’s work here. The paper’s other education reporters include Dmitry Martirosov (K-12) and Ryan Henderson (higher ed).
Previously from The Grade
‘We are the media now,’ says school choice advocate Corey DeAngelis
What’s it like when your (private, unregulated) school is exposed as a fraud?
Surprises a reporter experiences inside a newly-opened private school in Alabama
Inside the Harper’s magazine story about teaching at an ESA-funded micro-school
ProPublica’s Eli Hager on covering choice in a new era
Three ways to improve coverage of private education choice
‘Agency in the system’; a veteran journalist’s advice on covering school choice
‘A little bit shallow’: Cara Fitzpatrick calls for context & immediacy
Covering choice in the Trump 2.0 era
