Nearly 100,000 Americans suffer from the blood disorder sickle cell anemia, a painful disease that shortens life-expectancy. Sickle cells aren’t round – they’re shaped like a crescent moon – and Radio Rookie Bree Person hates looking at them. She hates talking about them too. But Pearson, a student at Washington Irving High School, decided she wanted more people to understand the illness. Hear her report and an interview with a pediatrician at the Children’s Hospital at Montefiore.

In a series of reports, SchoolBook, The New York Times and WNYC explored the rising cost of public school for parents of New York City schoolchildren — from the increased reliance on parents for everyday supplies to the growing phenomenon of extreme fund-raising at some city schools. Here is a recap of the reports, as well as readers’ reactions to what they read and heard.

Arne Duncan, the United States secretary of education, urged New York grant makers to support reforms in curriculum, testing and teacher evaluations so that the state — and the country — can catch up to the rest of the world.

SchoolBook is examining the issue of how to incorporate news headlines into the classroom by hosting an event with teachers on Tuesday. Ahead of the discussion, WNYC’s “Brian Lehrer Show” spoke with Peter Nelson, director of the New York City branch of the organization Facing History and Ourselves, to ask how to blend current events with curriculum demands.

Four high school students from the Caribbean arrived this year at a high school in the heart of Crown Heights, Brooklyn, with zero knowledge of the history of tension between the black and Lubavitch Jewish communities. A reporting workshop led them on a journey through stereotypes and misinformation to conversation and discovery.

Mayor Bloomberg said Tuesday that the education department will open 54 new schools this fall, bringing his administration closer to the goal of having 1,800 New York City schools by 2013.

A new report finds students in certain well-off neighborhoods have more access to high-performing middle schools than students from low-income communities in the Bronx and Brooklyn. The Schott Foundation report also concludes that students from low-income, mostly black and Hispanic districts, have fewer experienced teachers and are less likely to attend gifted and talented programs and specialized high schools.

New York City principals are expected to create a culture of leadership in their buildings. Their offices say something about their personal style. Take a look at a group of principals in their offices, and send in more photos to build our collection.

WNYC’s “The Brian Lehrer Show” used Spring Break to catch up on the latest education news.

The teachers’ union claims the Department of Education is violating state Freedom of Information Law by declining to release e-mails between former Chancellor Joel I. Klein, other officials and education groups. The e-mails date back to May 2010, the same year the city was blocked by the union from closing more than 20 low-performing schools.