Photo: Shauna Bittle

No Zoom class can replicate the experience of studying forestry management or salmon habitats on 1,000 acres of woodland along the Puget Sound. That’s at least partly why Evergreen State College, a campus known for environmental studies, has declared its intent to resume in-person classes this fall.

Announcements like Evergreen’s are trickling out despite admitted uncertainty and with plenty of caveats. While COVID-19 rates are generally declining across the country, cases of the disease are still spiking in some regions. The rollout of vaccines has been slower than expected, and the emergence of COVID-19 variants continues to worry some experts.

Photo: Brittainy Newman

An education program is immersing high school students from historically underserved communities in Ivy League classes, and the students’ success has raised questions about how elite university gatekeepers determine college prospects.

For decades, various programs have tried to connect promising students from underserved communities to elite higher education, with some success, but the effort by the National Education Equity Lab is less about matchmaking than challenging students academically, giving them confidence and preparing them for the rigors of competitive colleges.