"Schools are the gateway to needed services for many young people," according to the CDC. "Schools can provide health, behavioral and mental health services directly or establish referral systems to connect to community sources of care."

The greatest loss in math proficiency since 1990 is alarming, but the alarm has been going off since the early 2000s.

Neither test scores nor grades are dominating the conversations about the biggest education challenges in 2023.

"We don't feel safe. Faculty don't feel safe... if parents knew how unsafe the inside of the school is, they would be upset," one teacher told KPRC 2.