Amid an education funding shakeup, scrutiny over cyber charters and lingering pandemic-era gaps, educators in the region have plenty to contend with in 2026.
Pittsburgh’s Public Source asked six local education stakeholders and advocates about what to look out for as the year unfolds. From federal policy shifts and local school closures to chronic absenteeism and improving student success through technology, here’s what they said.
James Fogarty: How to catch kids up?
For James Fogarty, executive director of A+ Schools, addressing the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic remains a top priority.
At the forefront is tackling chronic absenteeism. Research shows that schools with higher rates of chronic absence (calculated as missing 10% of school days) see negative impacts for individual students. “It’s part of why our kids coming back from COVID haven’t done well,” Fogarty said. A+ Schools has partnered with Everyday Labs to send letters and text messages and help families when their child is at risk of chronic absence.
Another priority, Fogarty said, is ensuring older students in Pittsburgh schools receive the necessary resources and support to make up for missed academics during the pandemic. A 2026 report showed that students who were older during the pandemic performed worse in subsequent math proficiency tests.
“I think we’re going to have to figure out how to lean in with technology, whether it’s generative AI or cognitive tutors, but leveraging online resources that can be individualized for students, because there’s just no way to reach the scale we need to reach in terms of getting students engaged.”
Fogarty is the executive director of nonprofit A+ Schools, which works with community partners to bring resources and improve attendance in Pittsburgh Schools.
Gene Walker: Charter school reforms
Pittsburgh Public Schools (PPS) Board President Gene Walker will continue to closely monitor the district’s shrinking enrollment and potential charter school reforms.
The district passed a $729.7 million budget in December, with a $6.3 million operating deficit, which would have been bigger were it not for a state budget passed with a new formula for cyber charter school payments that channeled $178 million to school districts across Pennsylvania.
He said the recent cyber charter reforms and expansion of brick-and-mortar schools throughout the region could make charter school funding a bigger issue that people should pay attention to.
“I think as charter schools begin to kind of leak into our more rural communities, it’ll become a much bigger issue that folks take seriously, especially around funding.”
Walker is the managing director of Per Scholas, a national nonprofit that provides tech training and professional development.
Allyce Pinchback-Johnson: Watch out for federal impacts on local schools
Black Women for a Better Education founding member Allyce Pinchback-Johnson said she’s watching out for how the dismantling of the federal Department of Education will impact local school districts.
“When we think about education, we know that education is kind of situated in a lot of other social services,” she said. “And so when we think about disruptions, whether it be to healthcare benefits or access to food or housing, of course, those things definitely compromise the ability for students and families to be able to get to school or be successful in school.”
Federal shifts could also affect the safety of the city’s immigrant student population. She said she’s interested in seeing if the Pittsburgh school board adopts a resolution stating the district will not cooperate with ICE.
According to district policy, ICE officials will not be granted access to students without prior approval and relevant documentation from the district’s law department.
Pinchback-Johnson is a founding member of Black Women for a Better Education and the CEO of Pinchback Consulting LLC.
Robert Scherrer: Making learning personalized through technology
A top goal for Robert Scherrer, executive director of the Allegheny Intermediate Unit, is to personalize learning through technology. That includes differentiated content, flexible pacing and providing access to technology.
“How do we differentiate learning for each individual student? It’s always been incredibly challenging to do that, but I think with sort of the addition of technology and the things that we’re able to do, we’re able to do a better job of that,” he said.
Many districts in the region have adopted policies and integrated artificial intelligence tools and other assistive technology into their day-to-day teaching.
“A teacher has a learning activity for students, but now they’re able, with the support of AI, to really kind of customize those activities for each student or groups of students. And so I think that while many educators have always wanted to do that, there just hasn’t been a vehicle to make that happen.”
Scherrer was a former superintendent at the North Allegheny School District and has served as an administrator in Pittsburgh Public Schools. The AIU oversees 42 suburban schools in Allegheny County.
Billy Hileman: Stronger teacher pipelines
Billy Hileman, president of the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers, said PPS has an opportunity to strengthen its teacher and professional certification pathways program in the coming years.
The district is planning to launch an apprenticeship program for paraprofessionals who want to become certified teachers in the next school year. For students, the district has an ongoing Career and Technical program at Brashear High School, where they study to become teachers after college.
Building strong teacher pipelines and a healthy classroom environment by providing necessary supports should be top priorities for the district, Hileman said.
“Do teachers have what they need to build a positive classroom culture from day one?”
Hileman is a former PPS high school science teacher.
Pam Harbin: Delivering special education services
For PPS board member-turned-advocate Pam Harbin, advocacy around disability rights and special education remains a top priority. That includes delivering necessary services to special education students during remote learning days, providing guidance for remote learning and guaranteed access to technology.
“There’s lots of schools that don’t let the kids take the computers home and so if you don’t have your computer, it’s said on there, ‘Oh, we’ll make you do it on pencil and paper.’ Well, OK, what if the student with a disability can’t use pencil and paper?”
A recent press release from 412 Justice highlighted the state Department of Education’s requirement that all schools provide Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) to students with disabilities in all forms of remote learning, such as flexible instructional days or remote learning days.
Harbin said districts should plan ahead of remote learning days and see if students with an IEP need a paraprofessional or a personal care sssistant during that time.
Harbin is a co-founder of watchdog group 412 Justice, an organization that focuses on economic, environmental and education justice.
Lajja Mistry is the K-12 education reporter at Pittsburgh’s Public Source. She can be reached at lajja@publicsource.org.
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