Portland Public Schools has a math problem. The district enrolls 13,138 students across its nine major high schools. But enrollment numbers are in a steep decline. By the 2033-34 school year, population researchers at Portland State University project, those same...

K–12 educators worry they won’t be able to defend their most vulnerable students as Trump reforms curriculums, strips classroom protections and moves to dismantle the Department of Education. Annenberg Media interviews with K–12 educators, policy experts and nonprofit leaders across...

On February 10, as part of its mission to “maximize government efficiency,” the Trump administration announced its cancellation of roughly $1 billion in federal contracts for education research. These contracts were held under the Institute of Education Sciences (IES)—the research...

From private school vouchers to threats over “woke” curriculum, the Trump administration has launched a slew of reforms intended to reshape K–12 schools. But it’s still too soon to determine how—or if—those efforts will play out in California...

California school districts would receive $2.5 billion through a small cost-of-living increase, plus additional funding to train math and reading coaches, expand summer and after-school programs, and help launch the state’s Master Plan for Career Education in the proposed 2025-26...

The re-election of former President Donald Trump is certain to bring a period of conflict,tension and litigation between his White House and California’s political and education leaders whose policies and values the president-elect castigates. It also could potentially have major...

A bill that could lead to changes in the way California public schools are funded—and send more money to most of them—has been sent to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk for his signature. California is one of seven states that fund...

A bill that could lead to changes in the way California public schools are funded—and send more money to most of them—is headed to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk for his signature. California is one of seven states that fund schools...

In the coming days, Gov. Gavin Newsom is expected to confirm his commitment to place a state school construction bond on the November ballot. What he hasn’t committed to yet — but must decide in the next 10 days —...

With declining enrollment and the expiration of federal COVID-19 relief funds, many California schools are facing financial challenges, said Marsh, who researches K-12 policy and governance. California is also facing a state budget deficit that could affect some districts more...

The wealth gap in California is wider than in most other states, and studies show that providing financial literacy education in school can result in a higher rate of fiscally responsible actions, including avoiding high risk loans, beginning a retirement...

California high school students may have an additional course added to the eight that are needed to graduate. These courses, such as the ethnic studies requirement passed in 2021, all entered the school curriculum at the direction of the State...

A decade after California revolutionized the way it funds schools, nearly everyone agrees the initiative has done what it was meant to do: improved math and reading scores and brought more resources to students who struggle the most. And nearly...

California’s public schools live—or die—by the numbers. They are utterly dependent on how much money the state budget allocates each year under Proposition 98, a formula adopted by voters in 1988 that only a few wonks in and around the...

While the vast majority of students in California—86% of seniors in 2023—graduate from high school, most—56% in 2023—do not complete their A-G requirements, according to an EdSource analysis of data from the California Department of Education. EdSource’s analysis found that...

A Hayward elementary school struggling to boost low test scores and dismal student attendance is spending $250,000 in federal money for an organization called Woke Kindergarten to train teachers to confront white supremacy, disrupt racism and oppression and remove those...

For many school districts in California, the flush years of budget windfalls are decidedly over. Declining enrollment, expiring Covid funds, inflation and ballooning staff costs have combined to lead some districts — particularly those in urban areas — to make...

When it passed in 1978, before most of today’s Californians were even born, Proposition 13 addressed the very real fear of rising tax bills pricing people out of their homes. But we now have decades of evidence that Proposition 13...

California Gov. Gavin Newsom released his proposed May budget revision for the 2023-24 fiscal year May 12. Newsom’s revised proposal now accounts for a projected $31.5 billion “shortfall,” or deficit, an increase from the governor’s January budget, which estimated approximately...

For the past decade, California has spent billions of dollars to improve the education of at-risk children, but there’s scant evidence that it had the intended effect. When Jerry Brown returned to the governorship in 2011, a quarter-century after his...

Michael Kirst, the architect of the Local Control Funding Formula and then its chief implementer as president of the California State Board of Education for the first five years after its passage in 2013, freely acknowledges the law needs some...

In 2013, the Legislature adopted the Local Control Funding Formula, landmark legislation championed by then-Gov. Jerry Brown that overhauled how California finances TK-12 schools. It significantly redistributed money to districts based on student needs, and, in exchange for transferring more...

Now is the time for California elected leaders to be bold and to build on the historic progress we’ve seen. As a state that is poised to be the fourth largest economy in the world, California has the capacity and...