2020 Report to the Community
Executive Summary

This executive summary provides data and an analysis of trends across Pittsburgh Public Schools (PPS), based on data in this and previous A+ Schools reports. Our goal is to provide readers with a picture of the district overall, and also to point to how the system is designed to get its current outcomes. Over this past year, many people have heard the term “systemic racism” in reference to social institutions. Our schools and districts also are structured in ways that privilege some students and disadvantage others. We hope to help readers understand the systemic issues that lead to unequal outcomes for children—and to motivate you to take action. You can use this summary as a starting point for conversations with your school board member, school leader, and other concerned community members. Working together, we can support schools to improve year over year.

 CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Prepared for the next step: Differences in opportunities for PPS high school students

For students in grades 9-12, the Pittsburgh Public Schools (PPS) offers four neighborhood high schools, three of which have magnet programs; two neighborhood 6-12 schools, and three magnet 6-12 schools with specialized programming. On the face of it, this looks like a system that caters to students’ individual interests and offers choice. But when we look more closely at which students benefit, we also see a system that shuts some groups of students out. Click here to read our report on the effects of magnet school requirements, unequal access to rigorous courses, and differences in which students are preparing for college.