1. Among the many datasets Burbio gathers are PreK-12 school budgets. This week we compare keyword mentions year over year across 560 districts covering 30% of K-12 students. The chart below shows the percentage of districts mentioning each term last year (blue) versus this year (red). The largest increases are in CTE and Artificial Intelligence, while other categories are flat or slightly declining:
2. As tools like Claude and ChatGPT become part of everyday work, they are changing expectations for how easily companies can access and apply data to identify customers and opportunities. For Burbio clients, that is increasing the value of having deep, reliable K-12 data directly available within those workflows. Clients are now bringing our data into these tools through MCP, and into internal data environments through APIs.
Here’s an example of what that looks like through Burbio’s MCP. For this exercise, the prompt was simply, "Tell me about early-stage discussions of school construction projects that have appeared since August 1st." Below are sample results:
- Sayville Union Free School District, NY, is preparing for a new capital facilities initiative, retaining bond counsel to support financing of a future capital project.
- Duluth Public Schools, MN, has approved a new ten-year facilities maintenance plan covering district-wide building envelope, electrical, mechanical and roofing projects, with up to $39.8 million in facilities maintenance bonds planned to finance the work.
- Bellevue Community School District, IA, is moving forward with the next phase of its elementary school facilities plan, approving an agreement with an architectural firm for an addition to an elementary school.
- Kennett Consolidated School District, PA, is advancing renovations of Kennett High School’s cafeteria, library, restrooms and student commons into construction documents, with bidding planned for early 2027 and construction beginning that spring.
- Tift County Schools, GA, is advancing a $10–$14 million renovation of Annie Belle Clark Primary Facility, including HVAC and roof replacement, flooring, ceilings, lighting, security and restroom upgrades, with construction planned to begin in 2027.
3. This week, we use our Signals Tracker to look at afterschool programming trends, drawing on more than 740 district discussions across 48 states since June. Programs span tutoring and academic intervention, STEM, arts and music, sports and recreation, childcare, literacy, career exploration, and English learner support.
First, we take a look at California due to its unique Expanded Learning Opportunities Program (ELOP), which provides dedicated state funding for districts to offer before-school, afterschool and other expanded learning programs.
- ELOP involves much more than afterschool programming: California districts are working through staffing, enrollment, program design and administration as they implement ELOP, while offering a wide range of academic and enrichment activities.
- Staffing and capacity are key implementation issues: Districts are working through staffing levels, student-to-staff ratios, participation and available capacity, including aligning staffing with enrollment and filling available program space.
- ELOP supports a wide mix of programming: Districts combine academic support and intervention with STEM, arts, recreation and other enrichment centered on student interests and engagement.
Next, we take a look at national trends:
- Academic intervention is a major use of afterschool time: Districts are using afterschool programs for tutoring, targeted academic support, homework assistance, remediation and credit recovery, particularly in reading and math.
- Enrichment is central to program design: STEM, arts, music, recreation and sports appear frequently in afterschool plans, often alongside academic support.
- Childcare and family needs are an important part of the model: Districts emphasize before- and afterschool care, supervision and reliable coverage for families beyond the regular school day.
- Staffing is a recurring implementation challenge: Districts are adding staff hours, hiring coordinators and support staff, and managing staffing ratios and recruitment needs, with staffing availability sometimes limiting program capacity.
- Outside organizations expand district capacity: Community organizations and providers deliver tutoring, STEM, literacy, arts, recreation and childcare, adding programming and expertise districts may not have internally.