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Kevin Mahnken

Senior Writer

Kevin is a Senior Writer at The 74. He has helped coordinate the publication of dozens of research studies, white papers, and book chapters at Washington D.C.'s Thomas B. Fordham Institute. He also wrote and edited articles for the institute's website. His coverage of education news and politics included pieces on testing, curriculum, and school discipline.

Before moving to education coverage, Kevin wrote about national politics and culture for The New Republic, where he served as a reporter and fact checker. His coverage there ranged from Obamacare implementation to the government shutdown to horrible advertisements for tequila. Prior to that, he interned at the National Endowment for the Humanities and the United States Senate. His freelance work has been published in the Atlantic, the Daily News, and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

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Kevin Mahnken

Senior Writer

Articles by Kevin Mahnken

How Rural Republicans Derailed Texas School Voucher Plan

New Study: Charter Students Outperforming Peers at Traditional Public Schools

IES Director Mark Schneider on Education Research and the Future of Schools

COVID School Data: Mental Health Worse, Staffing Tight, Enrollment Frozen

Carnegie, ETS Team Up to Develop Competency-Based Assessments

Interview: Researcher Anthony Bryk on Chicago Schools’ ‘Radical’ New Direction

Steep Drop in Student History Scores Leaves Officials ‘Very, Very Concerned’

Exclusive 74 Interview: Bill Gates Calls U.S. Education a ‘Challenged Space’

Black Parents Open to New Forms of Schooling, Polling Suggests

Parents Rate Math Crucial to Kids’ Success — But Say It Needs an Update

In Progressive Breakthrough, Teachers' Union Organizer Elected Mayor of Chicago

Florida Just Became the Nation’s Biggest School Choice Laboratory

Competing K–12 Visions Collide in Chicago Mayor’s Race

Denver’s Reforms Led to Huge Academic Growth, Study Finds. But Will They Last?

Classical Academies: What if Education’s Next Big Thing is 2,500 Years Old?

Tough Love: Study Shows Kids Benefit from Teachers With High Grading Standards

In Rare Move, New Mexico Adds Weeks’ Worth of Extra K-12 Class Time

Florida School Choice Bill Has a Hidden Reform: Part-Time Enrollment

‘It’s Erasing History’: Daryl Scott on Black Studies and the AP Clash in Florida

Under Huckabee Sanders, Red-State Reforms Now Roll Through Arkansas

Q&A: Khan Academy’s Sal Khan on COVID’s Staggering Impact on Student Math Skills

Global Learning Loss: Top 4 Takeaways from Latest International COVID Research

Cardona Calls for Better Teacher Pay, More Multilingualism in Speech

Study Finds School Vouchers Decrease Racial Segregation in Ohio Classrooms

New Data: Post-COVID, School Leaders Frustrated in Efforts to Curb Misbehavior

Arts Education Program Increases School Engagement, Study Finds

A DARPA for K–12? Omnibus Bill Includes Substantial New Funds for Education R&D

14 Charts This Year That Helped Explain COVID’s Impact on America’s Schools

Exclusive: All Teacher Shortages Are Local, New Research Finds

Teachers Felt More COVID Anxiety than Healthcare Workers, Study Finds

Despite COVID Backlash, Thurmond Sails Toward Second Term as CA Schools Chief

Study: Damage from NAEP Math Losses Could Total Nearly $1 Trillion

Nation’s Report Card Shows Largest Drops Ever Recorded in 4th and 8th Grade Math

As Voters Pick Next Governor, Arizona Cements ‘Education Savings Accounts’

In Reelection Bid, DeSantis Keeps Eye on Schools — and 2024

Heading into Midterms, GOP Finds All School Politics is Local

Author Richard Reeves on the Boys’ Education Problem We Don’t Like to Talk About

Back to the Future: GOP Pledge to Abolish Education Department Returns

Why Are So Many Republicans Raising Teacher Salaries?

Harvard Professor Martin West on This Week’s Harrowing NAEP Results

‘Nation’s Report Card’: Two Decades of Growth Wiped Out by Two Years of Pandemic

The ‘Mass Exodus’ of Teachers Never Happened, Paper Argues

New Poll: Majority of Adults Don’t Trust Educators to Handle Sensitive Topics

Q&A: Education Reporter Anya Kamenetz on COVID Failures & Students’ Stolen Year

New Research: Summer Learning Boosts Math Performance, College Graduation

Democracy Prep Founder Seth Andrew Sentenced to a Year in Prison For Wire Fraud

Court Documents: Racial Preferences Massively Boost Black, Hispanic Applicants

Rash of New Polls Raises Red Flags for Democrats on Education

Harvard Economist Offers Gloomy Forecast on Reversing Pandemic Learning Loss

Study: When School Board Members Are Elected, Their Property Values Go Up

Supreme Court Backs School Coach Who Prayed on 50-Yard Line After Football Games

As Biden Signs Waiver Extension, Study Shows School Meals Lower Grocery Costs

Supreme Court Throws Out Maine’s Ban on Religious Schools Receiving Public Funds

After Steering Mississippi’s Unlikely Learning Miracle, Carey Wright Steps Down

Pandemic Seriously Altered Teens’ Relationships, Pew Survey Finds

A Former U.S. Ed Secretary’s Uphill Battle to Become Maryland’s Next Governor

Research Shows Heavy Toll on Survivors of School Shootings

Educator. Mentor. Translator. How One Man Aided Immigrant Families Through COVID

Local Officials Rail Against Possible Takeover of Boston Schools

Once a National Model, Boston Public Schools May Be Headed for Takeover

Study: COVID Learning Loss Comparable to That Inflicted by Hurricane Katrina

Study: When Political Heat Rises, Scores Drop

Q&A: Jonathan Chait on Democrats' Divide Over Education, School Innovation

Study: Congress May Move on State K-12 Bills

Betsy DeVos Reemerges Promoting Voucher-like System For Michigan Schools

Exclusive Poll: Stark Generation Gaps Revealed on Ed Choice, Teachers’ Unions

Interview: Howard’s Daryl Scott on the Wars over Teaching American History

Student ‘Mental Health Days’ Catching On In More States

States Moving to Disinvest Teacher Pension Funds from Russia

Private School Students More Connected to Internet, Teachers in 2020

San Francisco Recall a Rare Success in Efforts to Unseat School Board Members

Study: Charters Moved Fast to Prioritize Learning During COVID

Interview: Pollster David Paleologos on School Politics in 2022

Study: Teacher Observations Biased Against Males, African Americans

As Schools Fight Learning Loss, Experts Ask: Can Tutoring Programs Be Scaled?

Boston Charter Schools Increase Student Voting, Study Finds

Amid Growing Test-Optional Movement, SAT Goes Virtual