A November 6, 2018 O’Brien Fellowship conference highlighted the work of 2017-18 O’Brien Fellow Erin Richards of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, and her student intern team (Sean Blashe, Diana Dombroski, McKenna Oxenden and Patrick Thomas) and Journal Sentinel collaborators (Angela Peterson, Kevin Crowe, Erin Caughey and Andrew Mollica).

Their online and print series “Lessons Lost” examines the academic impact of student turnover between schools in Wisconsin and across the nation.

The conference keynote speaker was Gary Briggs of EdNavigator, a nonprofit that’s implementing innovative solutions to school turnover in New Orleans.

There was also a panel discussion featuring students, parents, educators and researchers on the front lines of the issue; and one panel of O’Brien student interns who worked on the project. The conference also included a photo exhibit of Journal Sentinel photojournalist Angela Peterson’s work from the series.