As California’s wildfires attest, climate change is here, and its effects are being felt now. What President Joe Biden calls a “code red” moment should cause deep reflection on how all of us can prepare for a hotter world.  California...

When the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered schools, the grades and mental health of millions of students declined. Several of the leading Republican challengers in the upcoming California recall election of Governor Gavin Newsom see this crisis as an opportunity. Turning parents...

Heather Hough, executive director of Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE), talks about a closely watched measure to increase school funding. California’s Proposition 15, which would increase funding for public schools and local governments by changing tax rules for commercial...

USC Rossier Professor of Education Policy discusses strategies for engaging local stakeholders, her experience as a researcher and how COVID-19 will impact funding for education.

Last October, when he signed the legislation that placed Proposition 13 on the ballot, Gov. Gavin Newsom made a prediction: “Voters will approve this bond, because voters historically approve school bonds.” Newsom and supporters, who spent millions of dollars campaigning...

When they cast their votes in the March 3 primary election, South Bay residents could be forgiven for thinking they had stepped into a time machine. There’s a divisive measure on the ballot with the potential to greatly change financing...

The March 3 California ballot includes a $15 billion state bond issue to help schools, community colleges and universities with construction costs for their facilities. Last fall, the Legislature and Gov. Gavin Newsom placed the measure on the ballot by...

Governor Newsom’s proposed 20-21 state budget directs $3.8 billion in new revenue towards public schools. However, it is not enough. The California School Board Association reports that California ranks 38th nationally in school funding, $2,475 per student below the national...

By most accounts, California is thriving. Industries including entertainment, technology, real estate, and agriculture are flourishing, and state coffers are growing thanks to a booming economy and additional revenues raised by voters at the ballot box. At the same time...

Advocates, leaders and researchers have been waiting for a long time to have an early childhood champion in the governor’s office. Now we finally have one. Gov. Gavin Newsom and the new California Legislature have a historic opportunity to put...

California school districts need to significantly increase their education spending to ensure that students have adequate resources and support to provide the state’s content standards and meet its academic goals. Based on 2016-17 numbers, funding schools adequately to meet these...

Revisions to California’s charter school law. A ban on suspensions for disruptive behavior through middle school. A crackdown on medical exemptions from vaccinations. These were among the more contentious – and momentous – bills that Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into...

Negotiations over the next few days between the Newsom administration, the Department of Finance and legislative leaders will determine whether there will be a California state bond for K-12 and community college construction on the March 2020 ballot, as well...

As a candidate for governor, Gavin Newsom put forward a bold vision of high-quality early education for all the state’s youngest learners, and he is making good on his campaign promise. Early learning and child care occupy prominent places in...

Inequities continue to dampen the prospects for getting a $13 billion school construction bond on the 2020 California ballot, despite it sailing through the State Senate Education Committee last week. Assembly Bill 48 also slates a still-undetermined followup bond for...

In a recent EdSource webinar, "Building for the Future: Funding School Renovation and Construction," a panel of school facilities experts discussed a proposed school bond measure making its way through the Legislature. The panel decidedly agreed to the need for...

n a rare move, civil rights groups are challenging statewide school bond legislation because they say California's formula for awarding construction money benefits wealthier school districts more than poor areas that may need upgrades the most. A bill that would...

Despite strong evidence that high-quality early education programs can have a powerful impact on children’s future success in school and the workforce, Californians rank new investments in early childhood services below other educational priorities, according to a recent poll of...

Legislation to put a $13 billion school construction bond on the state ballot next year and a second bond in 2022 moved forward this week with strong support overall from the education community — and a vague promise by the...

California governor Gavin Newsom racked up significant wins last week when his first education budget sailed through the legislature mostly intact. A minimum increase, mandated by Prop. 98, will bump funding for K-12 and community colleges by $2.9 billion, to...

Because existing state funds for school facilities construction and renovation have been exhausted, school districts and community colleges are pushing legislation to place two bond measures, next year and in 2022, before state voters. But a recent study of California...

Research shows California schools are now relying more on counselors in order to improve outcomes for students in areas such as attendance and graduation. A report released last year as part of Getting Down to Facts II—a project involving Stanford University...

At this point, many readers will have heard the estimate from the Getting Down to Facts II research collaborative that California needs approximately $26 billion in additional funding to reach an adequate funding level in all schools, i.e. the level...

There is a growing consensus that California’s current school funding is not sufficient to provide an equitable, high-quality education to all of the state’s more than 6 million students, more than 60 percent of whom live in poverty, are learning...