Research brief

The Impact of Severe Weather Events on Education: Revisiting Hurricane Katrina While Preparing for the Next Disaster

August 2025

By: Megan Kuhfeld, Jim Soland, Sofia Postell

Description

This research brief raises awareness of the scale and variation of educational impacts from the growing number of weather-related challenges facing U.S. schools. It addresses two critical questions: how does severe weather disrupt schools and affect the people in them; and which schools and communities are at most risk? Findings highlight four key takeaways: 1) Many U.S. schools face major budget and infrastructure challenges related to severe weather; 2) teachers need support to meet students’ varied needs following a weather-related disruptions; 3) a day of school missed after a severe weather event can translate to more than a day of learning lost; and 4) no school is totally ā€œlow-riskā€ from weather-related disruptions.

See More
Read the brief

Related Topics