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...

The paper comes as the California Teachers Association is pushing for state lawmakers to approve a package of bills that would set limits on the growth of charter schools in the state, which was the second after Minnesota to pass...

California’s school districts have recently seen large increases in revenue and have gained substantial flexibility over how they spend their money. At the same time, widespread disagreements about how districts should spend their money have culminated in teacher strikes...

Rising pension contribution rates are causing great angst among school districts in California. The rates are not rising because benefits are improving—in fact, the benefit formula for new teachers today is much less generous than for teachers hired prior to...

California’s new State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Tony Thurmond, is creating 13 work groups to identify and recommend strategies for addressing some of the state’s thorniest education challenges. The work groups will address the challenges identified in a study issued...

To adequately educate every student, California needed to spend $16,890 per pupil in the 2016–17 school year. The state spent $12,204.The vast funding gap was the highlight of Getting Down to Facts II research presented by Policy Analysis for California...

For California districts already grappling with teacher shortages, high housing costs pose one more obstacle to hiring. Many districts can’t find enough fully credentialed teachers to fill their classrooms, according to the “Getting Down to Facts II” education research project...

In this EdSource Commentary, Grant Boyken, public affairs executive officer for the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS), states, “CalSTRS’ dedication to act as fiduciaries on behalf of California’s teachers requires that we correct the record to assure our members...

A small group of advocates for equitable school construction asks why wealthier school districts keep getting the most state building aid. The group has been examining how school districts with small tax bases and low-income families can get a bigger...

An article about Vallejo, California-based iMod Structures, cites the September 2018 Getting Down to Facts II report, Financing School Facilities in California: A Ten-Year Perspective, that found that, “California school districts need to spend between $3.1 billion and $4.1 billion...