For decades, educators have searched for better ways to answer a question students ask — sometimes aloud, sometimes silently — every day: Why does this matter? this summer found nearly half of U.S. middle and high schoolers reported losing interest in math about half or more of the time during class, and three-quarters said they lose interest at least sometimes.

Teachers are echoing a similar sentiment — three-fourths of educators surveyed in the most recent cited lack of student motivation as a leading challenge for the 2025-26 school year, with half of those respondents saying it is the top challenge students face. In math classrooms, where young people often feel anxious and struggle to understand how the material connects to everyday situations, motivating students is especially difficult.

As a former math teacher and administrator, I know there is certainly no lack of rigor or standards. The real difficulty is in helping students see how mathematical thinking shows up beyond worksheets and tests.

Events that students already pay attention to can help make math feel real. The Winter Olympics, for example, offer ready-made ways to connect math instruction to real-world problem solving, without adding new curriculum or instructional time.

Already top of mind for many students, the Olympics are filled with mathematics hiding in plain sight. The most obvious example is the stopwatch. Who wins gold, silver or bronze is frequently determined by hundredths of a second, making mathematical precision more than an abstract idea. Students analyzing race times can explore decimals, rounding and margins of error while seeing firsthand why accuracy matters when outcomes are this close. Suddenly, numbers start to carry true weight.

Ratios and proportions also emerge naturally in the Olympics. Torch relay data, for example, can teach students to compare distances covered by different runners for each leg, calculate average pace times and compare how they change day to day. These kinds of problems let students practice proportional reasoning and see how math can be used to coordinate complex events.

Data analysis becomes equally meaningful when students examine medal counts, scoring systems or competitors’ performance trends over time. Moving beyond reading charts to interpreting them helps students build the kind of data literacy that is increasingly essential for landing high-paying jobs across many segments of the workforce.

Speed, acceleration and force are no longer abstract ideas when students analyze downhill skiing or bobsledding. Comparing angles of descent or calculating velocity connects formulas to movement that students can see and replay. Math moves from a set of memorization procedures to a way of understanding the physical world.

What makes these approaches powerful is their accessibility. Teachers do not need to overhaul their curriculum to make math relevant. Strong instructional materials, thoughtful task design and real-world examples that students already know about are enough — and they provide the kind of instruction that reflects what research and classroom experience consistently show. 

Students learn math best when they can , explore it and connect it to something meaningful or recognizable in their everyday lives. Problems that invite different approaches to solving problems, such as drawing models or explaining reasoning out loud, help students build confidence — particularly those who have learned to fear being wrong. Relevance supports rigor by encouraging deep thinking and a personal investment in finding answers.

The Olympics will eventually fade from the headlines, but the bigger lesson is in recognizing that the world offers constant, mathematically rich moments waiting to be used. 

At a time when schools are under intense pressure to raise achievement and prepare students for a rapidly changing economy, relevance is not optional. students. It plays a direct role in whether students stay engaged and persist through challenging material. When young people can see how math connects to the world around them, they are more likely to participate, take risks and build confidence. When they cannot, math can feel abstract and disconnected, leading students to disengage and view it as a burden rather than a useful skill.

Grounding math in real-world problem solving means looking beyond textbooks to places where students might naturally encounter math in the world outside of the classroom — like the Winter Olympics. When educators consistently make those connections, math changes from something students endure to something they can use. That shift is essential to improving both engagement and outcomes.

There’s been some progress along the way. In 2022, after a number of high-profile Olympic athletes spoke out about their experiences losing sponsorships and health coverage, the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee directed the National Governing Bodies of each sport to with certain protections for athletes during pregnancy and the postpartum period.  At the 2024 Paris Games, the first ever was created with dedicated space where athletes could spend time with there children, and private space for breastfeeding mothers. That was a big shift since children and family members of competing athletes are generally in the Olympic Village.

As the photographs below reveal, generations of mothers have competed while pregnant, or with their children cheering from the stands. The path to motherhood is often demanding in any context  — but for Olympians, who train and compete year-round, it can be especially taxing. Here’s a glimpse into the unique challenges facing Olympic moms. 

Olympians train for it. Education leaders live it.

In elite sports, pressure is an expectation, not an exception. You prepare for it with intention, through conditioning, mental training and countless repetitions. In education leadership, the pressure is constant too: political shifts, community expectations and the unrelenting pace of change. Yet, unlike athletes, most leaders are never trained to manage that pressure as part of their craft. 

That gap has consequences. The found that fewer than half of women education leaders rate their physical or mental health as good, and more than a quarter report poor or very poor health. Fully 93% reported burnout is a major problem and, nearly nine in 10 say they are expected to prioritize work over their own wellbeing. It’s not just women leaders facing these challenges. A recent study by RAND found that fully report high levels of work stress, compared to just 33% of other working adults.

The results are predictable: exhaustion, attrition and a diminished bench of current and future leaders.

Society asks superintendents and system leaders to perform at an elite level when it comes to inspiring, deciding, communicating and advancing progress for students and schools. But those expectations are shouldered without the recovery cycles or coaching structures that make consistent performance possible. Enduring as a leader is not a question of talent. It’s a question of training and sustaining infrastructure.

For a competitive sailor on the water, every decision counts. Each maneuver, each adjustment of the sail and decision made on the course requires clarity and composure. There are no shortcuts, no quick wins and no timeouts from the conditions. Olympic sailing demands resilience, precision and presence. These are the same skills required to lead a school district through uncertainty.

As a two-time Olympian, Lara learned that the hardest work happens long before race day. You learn to trust your preparation, to focus on what’s in your control and to reframe setbacks as data rather than defeat. Leadership is the same. The stakes may be different, but the mental framework is identical: the ability to perform consistently under pressure.

Education leaders, too, face shifting winds and unpredictable currents. They need the tools to help them strengthen their own resilience, manage their energy and refine their decision-making – not in isolation but within a supportive system of peers and coaches.

To perform at the highest levels with consistency and resilience, leaders must tap into their “.” That means building the discipline, structure, and recovery needed to sustain high performance.

This notion crystallized for Julia through a that reframes health as a system of six interconnected domains: strength, cardio, metabolic health, nutrition, mental resilience and emotional well-being.

Getting “fit” as a leader means developing the daily discipline to perform under pressure, manage energy, stay clear-minded and recover quickly. The next evolution of education leadership, then, isn’t about adding more disconnected professional development modules. It’s about creating the space and structure for leaders to train like athletes: with clear routines, feedback and recovery.

For too long, education has treated leadership development as episodic. A conference here, a coaching session there. But sustained performance requires repetition, accountability, and reflection.

That’s why we’ve brought these principles to life through the (SEEN). A new model of leadership development, SEEN brings the same proven principles that drive Olympic training to executive leadership: focused preparation, continuous feedback and a community that holds leaders accountable to growth. It’s not about longer hours or grinding harder; it’s about building the capacity to lead with greater clarity, calm and stamina. 

One of the most powerful lessons from Olympic competition is that pressure itself isn’t the enemy. Indeed, it’s the . When leaders shift from avoiding pressure to embracing it, it can become a catalyst for growth.

That mindset is especially critical now. Education leaders are navigating unprecedented complexity: integrating artificial intelligence, addressing the mental health of students and staff, and rebuilding public trust. These are high-stakes, high-pressure challenges. And like any competition, success depends on preparation for both the challenges we can see and those we know we’ll never be able to anticipate. 

The goal isn’t to make pressure disappear. It’s to teach leaders how to operate within it, to see it as a contextual reality, and not an emergency.

This work is especially vital for women leaders, who often face additional scrutiny and higher expectations in public leadership roles. For them, pressure can feel isolating. But training in community transforms it into strength.

As in Olympic sailing, success isn’t determined by avoiding the wind. It’s about knowing how to read it, adapt to it and use it to move forward. The same is true for education leaders.

Leadership at this level is a discipline. And like any craft, it demands practice.

Because leadership, like sailing, will encounter rough conditions. Success lies in navigating them with focus, courage and a team you can count.

Olympic track and field star Allyson Felix is helping moms vote in this election.

Felix, who has been an outspoken advocate for parents, is partnering with the nonpartisan organization Chamber of Mothers to raise awareness for child care support available to parents voting in North Carolina, New York and Los Angeles this election cycle. This summer, Felix secured the first Olympic child care center.

In North Carolina, Felix and Chamber of Mothers are promoting a program through the nonprofit Politisit that will of child care for parents heading to the polls. Parents just have to fill out a with information on what care they will need and how much it will cost. In western North Carolina, where Hurricane Helene caused massive destruction at the end of September, Politisit will reimburse up to a full day of care.

In Los Angeles, Brella, a child care center known for its flexible hours, will be offering for kids 3 months to 6 years of age. Similarly, in New York City and Westchester, will offer up to a full day of free care to caregivers who are voting.

, a marketplace for parents to find flexible child care in California, and , a platform for parents to find babysitters in New York, are also each donating $10,000 in child care services that parents can access by signing up through Politisit.

 is now also available for caregivers who want to book free care though Politisit and its partners. It includes additional free spots in Southern California, San Francisco, Houston, Chicago, New York, Brooklyn, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, North Carolina, Georgia and Alabama.

“This election, you don’t have to choose between voting and motherhood,” Felix said in a statement. “This election, you can do both.”

Caregivers, and especially single mothers, are one of the in the country. Many say they feel “defeated or that their vote doesn’t make a difference,” said Erin Erenberg, the CEO and founder of Chamber of Mothers. Others cite the challenges of standing in potentially long lines with kids or not being able to secure care as barriers that have kept them from the ballot box.

But this election cycle, when candidates have spoken about caregiving more than ever, efforts have ramped up to help parents take part in a consequential election.

This story was originally published by .

At this year’s summer Paralympics in Paris, earned a silver medal in the F64 shot put. She also competed in the F64 discus event and came in 10th place. F64 is a for Paralympians with limb deficiencies and leg length differences.

“With able-bodied kids, they can use their body differently,” Middleton, a sophomore at Los Osos High School in Rancho Cucamonga, California, The Daily Bulletin in an interview last year. “They have both of their legs. They can do certain things a lot stronger. But it doesn’t matter because I can still compete with them.” 

Middleton is one of three inspiring high school Paralympians on Team USA who are competing in Paris this year. Here are their stories:

ARELLE MIDDLETON, 16

Middleton was with a congenital femoral deficiency, which means her left leg is shorter than her right leg and her left hip is underdeveloped. Despite physical challenges, she competes alongside athletes without disabilities in track and field high school meets.

In 2023, when Middleton was just 15 years old, she was named U.S. Paralympics Track & Field High School Female Field Athlete of the Year, and also a spot on the U.S. Paralympics Track & Field High School All-American list.

Her mother, former WNBA player Sandra Van Embricqs, encouraged Middleton to get involved in sports at an early age.

Middleton joined the Challenged Athletes Foundation, or CAF, at age 12 and frequently won competitions. But when she entered high school, her mother strongly encouraged her to join the Los Osos track and field team.

“I didn’t know how I would feel being with able-bodied kids,” Middleton told The Daily Bulletin. “They wouldn’t really understand as much as kids with a disability would understand, but I met some great people here. It’s good to be part of something with your school.”

The Paralympian plans to compete in both wheelchair basketball and track and field after she graduates in 2026. She believes cross-training will benefit her performance in each sport.

Several college basketball programs have already Middleton.

JORDAN WHITE, 15

At 15 years old, Jordan White is the youngest archer from the U.S. to for the Paralympics this summer. 

A sophomore at Hill Country Christian School of Austin, White’s math teacher Christopher Felleisen calls him a “phenomenal student.”

He’s also a quick learner. The Austin, Texas, native tried archery for the first time less than four years ago when he was looking for a new activity to keep him busy during COVID. He has since won six national records. And less than a year ago, he began working toward competing in Paris.

White was with a right leg that is shorter than the left, challenging his flexibility. He dedicates six to seven days a week to perfecting his form, strength, and mental agility and understands the role he plays in enhancing the representation of people with disabilities in archery. 

“I really hope that I can pave the way for other young disabled archers,” he Hill Country News in August.

“Jordan is a hard worker, asks great questions and is an extremely high achiever,” Felleisen told The 74. “What’s exciting about having Jordan in class is that he’s dedicated to doing well and it’s seen in his athletic performance, but his level of achievement is not very different in the classroom.”

White, who is part of a close-knit group of friends known as the ‘Lunch Bunch,’ takes part in his  high school’s engineering pathway program, which focuses on engineering and robotics classes. He’s also a member of the National Junior Honor Society and the yearbook staff. 

“He’s known for being incredibly intelligent and he’s at the top of all his classes, and everyone knows it,” added his academic and college advisor Jessica Pyo.

His teachers say they’re closely following his performance at the Paralympics.

“It looks like he’s having a lot of fun and this is a great story for him to tell, especially with college applications coming soon.” Pyo said.

MAYLEE PHELPS, 17

At just 17, Maylee Phelps has taken wheelchair tennis by storm and has secured a win in the first round of women’s singles in Paris. 

Phelps, a high school junior in Portland, Oregon, was with spina bifida, a condition where the spinal cord does not develop properly. This requires her to wear a leg brace and use a wheelchair.

The Paralympian began competing nationally at age 12, the International Tennis Federation’s Wheelchair Tennis Junior of the Year in 2023 and she scored the No. 1 position on the Cruyff Foundation Girls’ Junior Ranking. 

Phelps her homeschool schedule with at least five days a week of tennis practice and strength training. 

“She just absorbs,” U.S. national wheelchair tennis coach John Devorss the University of Oregon. “You tell her something and it just takes a few times and she’s correcting it herself, which is a great characteristic of any athlete is just be really coachable.”

Phelps and Devorss train in Salem, Oregon, which is more than an hour south of Phelps’ home in Portland. 

In her free time, the tennis player enjoys puzzles and playing with her dog Otis. She also volunteers at Shriners Hospital for Children, introducing children with disabilities to tennis.

In just a few weeks, these Olympians will be back to learning English and math with a proud story to tell.

Rivera, the youngest athlete on Team USA, a gold medal for the women’s gymnastics team finals, alongside decorated gymnasts Simone Biles, Jordan Chiles and Suni Lee.

“This was such an amazing experience and just being with the team to support them meant the world to me,” Rivera after receiving her gold medal in Paris. “It was so surreal.”

The 16-year-old New Jersey native did not compete as part of gymnastics team’s final competition, however. Rivera failed to qualify for the final based on her performance in two individual events — the bars and beam. Her overall score still helped the U.S. women’s gymnastics team advance and clinch the gold.

absolutely loving the commentators talking about how important hezly rivera is to this team and how just because she isn’t competing, doesn’t mean she contributed any less to wherever they stand at the end of the night

— aman (@royaltothebay)

Rivera attends Inspire Academy, an online school that allows her the flexibility to balance a rigorous training schedule.

Like Rivera, Wilson in the first leg of the U.S. men’s 4×400-meter relay, helping the team to qualify for the final and making him the youngest male track and field athlete from the United States to win a gold medal at the Olympics.

Although Wilson, who is a rising junior at Bullis School in Potomac, Maryland, admitted he “didn’t run his best,” he praised his teammates including Rai Jefferson, Christopher Bailey and Vernon Norwood, who helped support him during the run for gold. And he returned the favor as he them on from the stands of the Stade de France as they secured an Olympic-record victory. 

“I did what people said was the impossible…” Wilson on Instagram. “I’m the youngest US male track athlete to receive a gold medal at the Olympics!” 

The track and field sensation attention on social media when he his thoughts about the upcoming school year following his performance in Paris. He took to X and said, “Dang, I really got school in 2 and a half weeks #Gold #OlympicGamesParis.”

Dang, I really got school in 2 and a half weeks

— Quincy “Q” Wilson (@QuincyWilson5)

Jokes in reply immediately came flying in from fans after Wilson made this post.

“When the teacher asks for answers, raise your medal instead of your hand,” one fan said.  

“Them ‘what did yall do over summer break’ conversations gonna hit different lmao,” another added.

Like her high school Team USA counterparts, Shackell’s preliminary round participation helped earn her and her teammates Olympic medals. She a silver medal in the 4×200 freestyle relay with teammates including Katie Ledecky, Paige Madden and fellow high schooler Claire Weinstein. She also secured gold in the 4×100 medley relay with Regan Smith, Lilly King and Gretchen Walsh.

The 17-year-old, who will begin her senior year at Carmel High School this week, has made history as Carmel’s first female student to win an Olympic medal in swimming.

Many know her as an Olympian. We know her as a student. Welcome back to our Senior Greyhound ! We are so proud of you. Go Hounds!

— Tim Phares (@Tim4Phares)

“I was just happy to be there and happy to go as fast as I can, and get the girls the next night a good spot,” Shackell . “��’v�� been wanting a gold medal or like any medal since I was little, like 8 years old and dreaming of that moment. To be able to hold it is crazy, ��’v�� been looking at it everyday.”

Shackell is also the second female high school student from Indiana to win an Olympic medal in swimming.

For Rivera, Wilson and Shackell, many fans anticipate their return to the Olympics podium in 2028, when the U.S. will host the Summer Games in Los Angeles, California. They’ve just got to finish their homework first. 

Learn more about the other high school students we rooted for on Team USA this summer here. 

Among the athletes competing on Team USA this summer, several are still in high school making their mark in sports ranging from gymnastics to skateboarding. Many of these students are first time Olympians, who will be competing while also managing their class work and other academic responsibilities. 

Young stars on Team USA, such as gymnast Hezly Rivera and sprinter Quincy Wilson, are already rising fan-favorites. 

Meet six high schoolers we’re rooting for on Team USA. Let the games begin!

PAIGE HEYN, 16

Skateboarding made its Olympic debut at the and is returning this year in Paris. 

All eyes will be on Tempe, Arizona’s Paige Heyn, one of the fastest rising women in the sport. Heyn is “almost single-handedly responsible for that level of progression in women’s skateboarding,” John Nicholson, Heyn’s coach with USA Skateboarding, said. “It’s funny to be a pioneer at 16. In a matter of six months, she has directly influenced her competition.”

“I don’t really do normal 16-year-old stuff,” Heyn said.

Known as a switch skater, Heyn’s ability to skate with both her left and right foot forward has set her apart as she competes. 

Heyn is a sophomore enrolled in the United States Performance Academy (USPA), an online middle and high school for young elite athletes. Despite constant travel and time zone changes, she prioritizes her academics, according to her USPA learning coach Blair Lunn. 

“She is really enjoying her World History class,” Lunn told The 74. “She is also learning American Sign Language.” 

CLAIRE WEINSTEIN, 17

Claire Weinstein became one of the youngest swimmers to for the 2021 U.S. Olympic Trials at just 13 years old. Now at 17, she intends to keep making history.

With a lifelong record of straight A’s — which she’s recently demonstrated at the online Laurel Springs School — Weinstein’s teachers and trainers applaud her hard work, talent and focus.

“Claire absorbs information and training like a sponge,” Weinstein’s former full-time coach Carle Fierro told The 74. “She is efficient in quickly applying corrections to her technique, and is able to make connections in the water a lot of swimmers are unable to do.”

Fierro praised Weinstein for her remarkable sense of humor and hours of free time spent teaching young kids to swim. The teenager has committed to a decorative career as a top swimming recruit in her class at University of California-Berkeley. 

She is interested in either studying law or medicine, Claire’s mother Diane Weinstein told The 74.

QUINCY WILSON, 16

16-year-old Quincy Wilson a spot on the Team USA relay team, making history as the youngest-ever male U.S. track and field Olympian.

The upcoming junior is also an honor roll student at Bullis School in Potomac, Maryland.

Wilson brings “absolute joy to the classroom through his excitement to learn something new” and a “positive, respectful, inquisitive nature to each subject, enhancing the learning of his classmates,” Bullis Head of Upper School Robert Pollinco said. 

Wilson has received an array of prestigious honors at Bullis, including the Freshman Manuel José Baca, Jr. Joy of Living Award — and most recently, the Sophomore Head of Upper School Award earlier this spring. 

When not on the track, Wilson enjoys video games like Fortnite and Call of Duty with his friends. 

Pollinco said Wilson is seen as a “consummate scholar, leader, athlete, artist, explorer and most importantly, true friend at Bullis School.”

ALEX SHACKELL, 17

17-year-old Alex Shackell the first female swimmer from Indiana’s renowned Carmel High School to make a U.S. Olympic team. Shackell recognizes she is a part of not only the standing history of Indiana sports, but the athletic legacy of her high school.

Carmel’s swimming program won its consecutive state championship under coach Chris Plumb’s leadership, who believed Shackell’s best opportunity at becoming an Olympian was if she competed in the 200-meter butterfly — and that’s exactly what happened. 

Shackell is a rising junior at Carmel, but has committed to swimming at University of California-Berkeley, where she will be a conference title contender. There, she will her older brother Aaron Shackell, who’s also competing in his first Olympic games this year.

THOMAS HEILMAN, 17

Earlier this summer, 17-year-old Thomas Heilman the youngest American male swimmer to qualify for an Olympics team since Michael Phelps.

However, Heilman dismisses comparisons to the Olympic champion, who has a total of 28 medals.

“It’s always great to be in the same conversation as [Phelps], but I’m trying not to worry about that too much and trying to take things day by day,” Heilman during a press conference after earning his ticket to Paris.

Heilman, an upcoming senior at Western Albemarle High School in Crozet, Virginia, and of the greatest high school swimming recruits of all time, has committed to the University of Virginia.

HEZLY RIVERA, 16

New Jersey native Hezly Rivera is the youngest person competing on Team USA’s roster.

After moving to Texas in 2021, Rivera began at World Olympics Gymnastics Academy. There, she is coached directly by Valeri and Anna Liukin, the parents of Olympic champion Nastia Liukin. The gym has collectively earned 36 World and Olympic medals, having trained Olympians like Carly Patterson and Gabby Douglas.

While Rivera enjoys baking in her downtime (her favorite creations include red velvet and chocolate cakes), spending time with her dog and laying down to rest and recover from six days of training is just as rewarding. 

Rivera attends Inspire Academy, an online school that allows her the flexibility to focus on training full time.

I was going to compare it to how New York City keeps tweaking the Specialized High School Admissions Test in a desperate bid to perform best on it. How , not to mention and , refuse to explain the subjective metrics they use to admit their students. I was going to talk about the ongoing attempts to , and in the name of equity, as well as the push for .

But then Simone Biles withdrew from the Olympic team and all-around competitions. And, suddenly, I had something new to think — and write — about.

I’ll be honest. I never knew that quitting was an option. Maybe it was the immigrant in me, but I grew up with the understanding that, no matter how unhappy you were with something, you still sucked it up and kept going. That’s just what you did. I never expected anyone to come to my aid, either. When I was feeling browbeaten and mistreated by a then-boss, my American husband said, “Why don’t you go to Human Resources and file a complaint?” The notion never crossed my mind. A few weeks later, an American colleague did just that. The boss was spoken to, and his behavior toward all of us improved. Wow. Mind… blown.

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��’v�� written about how, when my middle child came to me and said that he was unhappy in high school, he wanted to quit and home-school himself, my first instinct was to say no. Persevering through an unhappy situation builds character!

Those of you who’ve read my know that he has plenty of character. So. Much. Character.

I, on the other hand, didn’t understand quitting simply because you were unhappy. It just didn’t compute. So what? Who cares how you feel?

Until Simone Biles.

Almost a year after I broke down and allowed my son to leave public school, I finally understood his request.

I said to my husband, “What if he’s right? What if you don’t have to stick out a bad situation, no matter what? What if it is OK to say, ‘this isn’t working for me’ and go looking for something that does?”

Which brings me to my realization last week. There were those who said Biles should have stuck it out. Not for herself, but for her team and for her country. This wasn’t about her. This was about what she could do for others.

It’s the same argument parents get when they opt out of traditional public schools. Whether that’s because the school is not letting their children take the classes they want, as in , because the curriculum and may even be or because, despite promises to the contrary, the school can’t support a child’s special needs, ranging from to .

Every family has a different reason for making alternative arrangements for their child. But every family gets the same pushback when they leave public school: You are hurting those left behind.

They claim that if involved, active families leave a school, the remaining students will suffer. ��’v�� suggested that it’s not the teachers, administrators or facilities that make “high-achieving” schools, but the parents in them who get their children tutored that account for the above-average test scores the schools then take credit for. If the only way schools can get even a majority of students to pass is by to prep children, isn’t that a much bigger problem? In fact, isn’t that the biggest problem of all?

Other critics contend that it’s not the involved families’ presence that makes the difference, but the simple fact that, when children walk out the public school door, the New York state pays in per-pupil funding for their presence goes out with them.

Families opting out means schools lose money. And lost money might mean cutting back on programs or letting a teacher or an administrator go. The implication is that parents should subsume their child’s needs to the needs of the school. It doesn’t matter if an individual child doesn’t get what they need — as long as the overall institution does. By such a metric, every single student could be getting shortchanged, but every single one is required to stay so the school that isn’t serving anyone can continue … not serving anyone?

Once upon a time, I might have fallen for both arguments. But, as Simone Biles demonstrated last week, if you’re in an untenable situation, you have to get out before your mental and physical health are permanently destroyed.

And that’s why she’s the GOAT — Greatest Of All Time.

Alina Adams is a New York Times best-selling romance and mystery writer, the author of Getting Into NYC Kindergarten and Getting Into NYC High School, a blogger at and mother of three. She believes you can’t have true school choice until all parents know all their school choices — and how to get them. Visit her website, .