Throughout the past month, Bellwether has weighed in on the financial health of schools in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, with different reactions, resources, and recommendations from across our team. In case you missed it, here’s a quick recap: 

• In The 74, Andy Rotherham argues there’s a much bigger fiscal problem for schools than the COVID-19 pandemic: our aging population
• 101-friendly primer on school funding, state and local tax dollars, and the outlook for schools from Jennifer O’Neal Schiess
• Two key ways for districts to keep cost cutting measures from impacting high-need students, from Stephanie Spangler and Rebecca Gifford Goldberg
• Why might charter schools consider a merger — or not? — from Juliet Squire and Rebecca Gifford Goldberg
• Community colleges are losing enrollment and dollars, but don’t need to lose a generation of learners, says Jeff Schulz
• Projections for private schools and choice programs depend on these factors, writes Juliet Squire
• Early childhood providers are in dire financial straits, but state leaders can use this simple and underutilized lever to help them out, writes Ashley LiBetti

You can read all the posts in the series here, and we welcome your reactions! Thanks for following along.