Insights and News

June 2026

The Principal Effect

A new white paper from the Learning Policy Institute examines how effective principals can address broader efforts to improve classroom engagement, support educators, and build stronger school systems. It also identifies where strategic support from federal, state, and district leaders can strengthen school leadership and student outcomes. To learn more, join us for a webinar on June 8th with Linda Darling-Hammond, founding president and chief knowledge officer at the Learning Policy Institute; Bronwyn Bevan, Wallace’s vice president of research; and other field leaders.

The Summer Struggle for Everyday Families

Nationwide, parents of 24.6 million kids want a summer program for their child. However, roughly half of these children are missing out on the positive and engaging experiences summer can hold. The latest America After 3PM special report offers an in-depth view of parents’ priorities for their children’s summers.

Building Trust, Sustaining Art

A new report from the Social Science Research Council examines cross-cutting themes from studies of more than a dozen organizations participating in the Advancing Well-Being in the Arts initiative. The report highlights the ways organizations rooted in communities of color sustain their work, strengthen community accountability, and contribute to long-term cultural vitality. Each organization was initially paired with a research fellow, and results from those collaborations are captured as well in a series of short briefs.

Understanding the Adolescent Brain

With the school year ending and summer ahead, young people are stepping into less structured time—and that's not a bad thing. Adriana Galván, professor of psychology at UCLA, explains why the exploration and risk-taking that come naturally to adolescents are essential to their development and how summer and out-of-school-time programs can provide the relationships, experiences, and opportunities that help them thrive.

Schools, Districts, States

The Education Trust's new podcast series, edUnplugged, dives into candid conversations with school leaders, advocates, and experts in the education field on the most pressing issues in American education.

Wallace’s vice president of education leadership Rotunda Floyd-Cooper recently sat down with the National Association of State Boards of Education to discuss the growing complexity of school leadership and why supporting principal well-being and retention must be part of the conversation about improving schools.

That message was echoed at a recent gathering at the Maryland State House, where the conversation centered on the extraordinary commitment of school leaders and the urgent need to invest in their support, professional learning, and well-being.

In a new Forbes article, Linda Darling-Hammond makes the broader case for investing in principals, exploring how effective school leadership can strengthen teaching, improve school climate, and support student success.

Youth Development

This eSchool News article makes the case that high-quality summer learning programs are a strategic investment that can help close opportunity gaps, strengthen literacy, and support young people’s long-term success.

As concerns grow about the job market for recent graduates, this op-ed argues that career readiness begins through the everyday experiences, skills, and self-awareness students build long before entering the workforce.

Education Week explores how schools can help students build life skills such as self-awareness, empathy, critical thinking, and responsible decision-making to navigate online spaces thoughtfully and safely.

The Arts

An article by Research for Action draws on Wallace-supported research to highlight how high-quality arts programs can help young people build belonging, identity, and lasting relationships and explores ways to expand access through out-of-school-time programs.

American Diversity Report points to research from the Advancing Well-Being in the Arts initiative to underscore the vital contributions of arts organizations rooted in communities of color while offering practical strategies to help smaller organizations amplify their stories and expand their reach.

Dataland, the “world’s first museum of AI arts” is scheduled to open later this month in downtown Los Angeles and will present an evolving immersive, audiovisual experience based on millions of images, sounds, and scents from nature.