The Problem

What is the "Gap"?

In the United States (and in many other countries around the world), there is an undeniable disparity in academic achievement between low socioeconomic status (SES) students and high SES students. We call this the "income achievement gap". In today's world, SES has become a factor in determining success- something that we strive to change. Despite the topic’s importance, surprisingly little effort has been made to initiate long-term changes.

The pandemic has only worsened this equity crisis. According to the Policy Analysis for California Education, distance learning had been disproportionately affecting low SES students. In most grades, low SES students lost substantially more learning than high SES students did. In some grades, low SES (or SED) students lost learning while high SES students’ learning actually accelerated.