California voters this year are set to decide who will serve as the state’s next superintendent of public instruction. But with campaign season already underway, the job the two contenders are running for is about to change drastically.  Starting next...

For decades, the teachers association and other education unions have easily gotten their favored candidates for state superintendent elected. And those chosen officials have faithfully echoed the unions’ position that the key to increasing outcomes is allocating more money.  School...

As the University of California weighs whether to reinstate the SAT in admissions, another option is also on the table: using California’s existing standardized test administered to high school juniors.  The committee charged with exploring the pros and cons of...

California lawmakers secured billions of dollars for public schools, community colleges, special education students and more in the 2026-2027 state budget.  In all, the budget included $128 billion of the $350 billion budget package for a myriad of education priorities...

The job of state superintendent is changing. NBC 7’s Shandel Menezes explains why both candidates vying for the seat are not happy about it.

A highly contentious move to revamp the California Department of Education has passed the state legislature, despite widespread opposition among education leaders across the state.  Assembly Bill 181 was crafted by Gov. Gavin Newsom and the state legislature to shift...

The University of California Board of Regents is being asked to consider whether to bring back the SAT and ACT for admissions, a debate so hot even New York is weighing in on this Golden State dilemma.  Despite dire warnings...

California’s audacious goal of having half of all K-12 students enrolled in bilingual education programs by 2030 has encountered one big stumbling block — there aren’t enough qualified bilingual teachers.  To help remedy that, a $10 million grant tucked in...

Learning Lab Director Lark Park interviewed Dr. Michael W. Kirst in a wide ranging conversation–from how education policymaking has changed over the decades, to whether UC should bring back standardized testing, to why the professional development of teachers, the structure...

Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond said he first learned last year via text message that Gov. Gavin Newsom intended to overhaul his office. Newsom teased last January a plan to shift control of the state Department of Education to...

California’s Department of Education will soon be under the control of the governor’s office, drastically changing the role of the next state superintendent, who will be elected in November.  The change, pushed through by Gov. Gavin Newsom as part of...

After decades of steady growth, the country’s K-12 public school enrollment is in sustained decline. Federal projections indicate that 40 states will experience further losses through 2030-31, driven primarily by falling birth rates, with other contributing factors including slowing immigration...

One of the offices on the November ballot is California’s Superintendent of Public Instruction. That elected official has led the state’s Department of Education and made sure policies passed by lawmakers are implemented.  Next year, that will change.  Under an...

The just-approved state budget strips authority from the elected state superintendent of public instruction, transferring power in January to an appointee of the governor, dramatically changing the oversight and management of a public school system serving more than 6 million...

Legislation for the big shift — moving the California Department of Education from the State Superintendent of Public Instruction’s control to a new chief executive of education under the governor — passed the Legislature Monday, though barely.  With 15 lawmakers...

A new California law creates an appointed education commissioner, shifting many powers from the elected state superintendent.

In his eighth and final budget, the tax gods continued to smile upon Gov. Gavin Newsom, enabling him to cement funding for signature programs he started while salving grumbling districts that are wincing over the financial impacts of declining enrollment...

The next state superintendent of public instruction won’t be managing the California Department of Education anymore.  The department’s control will shift in January to a new director of education, who will report to the governor, under a deal announced Friday...

There is real momentum for change, triggered by a report issued in December by Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE).

California’s families are losing faith in public education — not because they do not believe in public schools, but because too often they feel unheard, shut out and forced to navigate a system that is fragmented, confusing and disconnected from...

Reclassification of students designated as English learners (ELs) is a critical process governed by state policies that mandate using multiple criteria to ensure fairness and accuracy. However, while these policies aim to create equitable pathways for reclassification, discrepancies in local...

The fate of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposal to shift control of the California Department of Education from the state superintendent of public instruction to a new education commissioner answering to future governors and the State Board of Education will become...

The first sign was the empty desks that slowly started to appear. Then there were fewer kindergartners in San Francisco. Shrinking graduating classes in San Jose. An Oakland elementary school that lost so many students it was forced to close...

California ranks 33rd in the nation in the well-being of its children and 34th in education, according to an annual report on children’s welfare released Monday. It marked the 15th straight year that California ranked in the bottom third of...